Brian Orakpo, DE/OLB, Texas

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6-3, 263, 4.6-40

Very strong and powerful. One of the strongest players in the Draft. Excellent size and athleticism. Has long arms to keep blockers off his frame. Takes on blockers well and sheds.  Locates ball well and closes quickly to the ball carrier.  Good in pursuit from the backside.  Plays with good leverage. Plays with a narrow base.  Struggles to hold the edge when teams run at him. Lacks the initial burst of an edge rusher.   Production does not match athletic ability.  Better athlete than football player.  Plays high at times and needs to improve lower body strength.  Has been injury prone.  Played DE at Texas but might be better off at OLB in a 3-4 at the pro level.
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Jeremy Maclin, WR, Missouri
6-0, 198, 4.45-40

Very elusive in the open field.  Has deceptive speed. Makes quick cuts and changes directions well. Great burst.  At his best working quick-hitting routes, vertical sideline routes and dragging through zones.  Tracks the ball well downfield.  Gets good release off line.  Has second gear to run past corners.  Gets upfield quickly.  Makes the first guy miss.  Sets up his blocks well on screens.  Uses his hands well when jammed. Needs to improve route running.  Lacks experience versus press coverage.  Hard worker.  Tough.  Competitive.  Excellent kick returner.

Josh Freeman, QB, Kansas St.
6-6, 250, 4.9-40
Junior

His #’s improved each year at Kansas St.  Played with limited supporting cast so his stats (only 59% compl %) are a little misleading. Has a big time arm and can make any throw.  Has prototypical size.  Gets rid of the ball quickly.  Must improve accuracy – particularly on intermediate and deep throws.  Poised in the pocket.  Needs to improve reading coverages.  Tends to force some throws and stares down targets.  Needs to get better at looking off safety.  Goes through his progressions well.  Good field vision.   Identifies the blitz well.  Good scrambling ability and hard to bring down.   B   Read More...

Brian Cushing, OLB, USC
6-3, 243, 4.7-40

Closes well on the ballcarrier.  Violent Hitter.  Very athletic.  Versatile – can line up at OLB, ILB or DE.  Loose in the hips and changes direction well.  Good closing burst to consistently finish plays.  Smooth at dropping into coverage.  Reads QB’s eyes well and makes play on the ball.  Instinctive and smart.  Times blitzes well.  Makes few mental mistakes. Takes good angles to the ball and can get to the perimeter. Must add pass rush moves.  

Gartrell Johnson, RB, Colorado St.
5-11, 218, 4.6-40
Projection: 4th round

Good size and power.  A tough, punishing, between-the-tackles runner.  Runs with good pad level.  Runs through arm tackles and punishes defenders.  Runs with good body lean and always falls forward on runs.  Played FB until his senior season when he got a chance at halfback.  Johnson had good production in this role averaging 5.4 yds/carry and scoring 12 TD’s.  Good at picking up the blitz.  Has good feet and is very shifty for his size.  Can wear down defenses as a complementary back.  Needs work on his route running.