Predictions: 1st Round Surprises

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

Who will be this year's recipient of the Alan Branch award, an honor bestowed upon the draftee whose stock is highly overvalued by the fans, experts and prognosticators? To clarify the "ground rules," nominations for this award should not be based upon whether you think the nominee will be be a bust. Rather, the nominee should be someone who most mocks predict will be drafted in in the first round but, for whatever reason, will drop out of the first round.

Who will be this year's recipient of the Logan Mankins award, an honor bestowed upon the draftee whose stock is highly undervalued by the fans, analysts and prognosticators? The nominations for this award should be given to those draft prospects that most mock drafts predict will be drafted in the second round or third round but, for whatever reason, will be end up getting drafted in the first round.

[GTripp0012]

Alan Branch Award: Aqib Talib. He's going to be a second round pick. Jonathon Stewart also, but I know a lot of mocks don't have him in the first, so he's a close runner up.

Logan Mankins Award: I have two LM Awards. Trevor Laws from Notre Dame to get picked in the first ahead of Kentwan Balmer, and Antoine Cason to be a first round selection, going before both Talib and Mike Jenkins.

[Dirtbag59]

Originally Posted by Sheriff Gonna Getcha

Who will be this year's recipient of the Alan Branch award, an honor bestowed upon the draftee whose stock is highly overvalued by the fans, experts and prognosticators? To clarify the "ground rules," nominations for this award should not be based upon whether you think the nominee will be be a bust. Rather, the nominee should be someone who most mocks predict will be drafted in in the first round but, for whatever reason, will drop out of the first round.

Who will be this year's recipient of the Logan Mankins award, an honor bestowed upon the draftee whose stock is highly undervalued by the fans, analysts and prognosticators? The nominations for this award should be given to those draft prospects that most mock drafts predict will be drafted in the second round or third round but, for whatever reason, will be end up getting drafted in the first round.

I'd also like to propose a Tyler Brayton/Jason Babin/Anthony Spencer/ Craig Davis award for the player who becomes a 1st round pick that nobody knows about and then ends up justifying why nobody knows about him. Also I'd like to propose renaming the Logan Mankins award after Nnamdi Asomugha or Nick Barnett

However for the Jason Babin award I nominate Cliff Avril the DE out of Purdue.

For the Logan Mankins award I nominate Tyrell Johnson the S out of Arkansas State

and for the Alan Branch award I nominate Kentwan Balmer.

[WaldSkins]

Alan Branch award ill say: CALAIS CAMPBELL- In my opinion one of the most overrated players in the draft.

Logan Mankins: Joe Flacco.

[Silverfox]

Originally Posted by WaldSkins

Alan Branch award ill say: CALAIS CAMPBELL- In my opinion one of the most overrated players in the draft.

Logan Mankins: Joe Flacco.

Absolutely agree with the Calais Campbell selection - Wish we all would get off that bandwagon (maybe save him for the 4th rnd - whoops , we don't have a pick here do we?)

[SmootSmack]

Alan Branch=Kenny Phillips (of course most have him as the last pick in the 1st round)

Logan Mankins=(well I won't say Cason though I think many don't appreciate just how good he is) Dan Connor

[Smeezed_82]

Calais Campbell is EXTREMELY overrated. I think this year's Logan Mankins will be Quentin Groves out of the good ole Auburn U...

High motor

[SmootSmack]

Campbell may be overrated at #21, but early second possibly very late first round I don't think he's a bad choice. I think the only question might be how much is he depending simply on his athleticism and how far will that get him in the NFL. He's not my first, second, third, or possibly fourth choice on the D-Line but I wouldn't hate it.

[SC Skins Fan]

Alan Branch = I'd say Talib, but almost every mock I see from reputable people has him out of the first round. I'll shake it up and say Phillip Merling. That gives me an opportunity to ask a question. Are you guys saying Campbell is overrated based upon workouts or based upon film/college production? I haven't watched much of the guy in college, and I know his numbers were down this past year, but he has rare size which is certainly what the scouts would like about him. I suspect Smoot's opinion is probably based on more than the 40 time, but if you other guys are saying he is overrated based on the 40 I'd say that is WAY too simplistic. Plus, everyone has Merling up there above Campbell but he hasn't even worked out because of the sports hernia and his college production was comparable to Campbell's (12 sacks, 31 TFL for Merling; 19.5 sacks, 39 TLF for Campbell in comparable playing time). So what is it that puts Merling above Campbell and makes Campbell overrated?

Logan Mankins = Tyrell Johnson, DB, Arkansas State

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

I'm not so sure Campbell is overrated. The guy is getting blasted by most posters on the warpath and other football fan sites. Campbell's poor 40 times are also widely known.

[SKINSnCANES]

I think people are down on campbell because they expected him to be a top 10, if not top 5 pick, and he didnt perform well enough last year to warrant that. That doesnt mean all of a sudden he sucks. He came off a 10.5 sack year with a bad year. The canes team was undergoing a coaching change.

One of the 'coaching changes' was the departure of his dline coach...who is now with the Skins.

Im a big fan of the mock draft on nfldraftcountdown.com that has us taking campbell in the first, malcom kelly in the second, and safety thomas decoud in the third. I know people are down on kelly, but with a late second round pick he could be a steal (aka, boldin, chad johnson, to...etc)

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

Originally Posted by SKINSnCANES

Im a big fan of the mock draft on nfldraftcountdown.com that has us taking campbell in the first, malcom kelly in the second, and safety thomas decoud in the third. I know people are down on kelly, but with a late second round pick he could be a steal (aka, boldin, chad johnson, to...etc)

Neither Campbell nor Kelly are safe picks, but they both appear to have upside. I'd be happy with that draft.

[davelavarra]

Alan Branch award: Aqib Talib will fall to second round tomy opinion.

Logan Mankins award: definitely LB Curtis Lofton, highly underrated, he can climb to the bottom of the first.

[EXoffender]

Alan Branch = Glenn Dorsey (lower leg fractures anyone?)
Logan Mankins = Roy Scheuning (w/Bugel)

[TheMalcolmConnection]

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that McFadden stinks it up. MAYBE he'll rush for over 1,000, but something tells me he turns into a huge bust.

As far as the most underrated guy to turn into gold, that's so hard to say because it could be about anyone. Not because I'm a Tech guy, but just because I have this feeling, I think Eddie Royal will surprise a lot of people out of this year's WR draft class.