Unknown draft prospects we should keep an eye on

[Nflnick11]

Who are your diamond in the rough, unheard of, or not talked about players we should be following right now who could be a great player or a great pickup for us, maybe you follow there team and say hey that guys pretty damn good..Examples chris horton, marques colston, clifton smith, etc. it can't be a player thats projected to be in the first round to mid second rounds...

A couple of my players to watch would be:
Joe Burnett CB/RS UCF (this guy was a pretty decent corner, but the scouts say that he probably wont be a corner in the NFL, which I disagree with, especially if his head coach said that joe's the best corner he's coached since asante samuel...plus even if he is a bad corner, he is a great returner, and the only one in the country to rank in the top 10 in both kick and punt returns)

Adam Leonard and Solomin Elimimin LB's Hawaii (they were both first team all WAC, with S.E. getting WAC defensive player of the year, but the scouts say he is to small for both LB positions [london fletcher ring a bell]...Leonard is labeled as the hardest hitting LB in the WAC for 2 straight years by numerous magazines, the scouts say that he's slow [4.7 fourty]...both aren't expected to get drafted, but if we bring them in as free agents, we have nothing to lose)

Lawrence Sidbury DE Richmond (he got all american first team for I-AA, the thing with him is that the scouts say that he only has one pass rush move and is a complete non factor in the run game and gets swalloed up by bigger tackles, but his motor and 3 sack game in the championship tells me he wants to win, plus Jared Allen was a fourth rounder out of Idaho State, and wasn't that highly rated as a DE)

Ramses Barden WR Cal Poly (He's 6'6 238, has good hands, the negatives on him are that he played against little competition and that he goes done usually on the first tackle...if thats it, im taking him in the 5th round)

Jason Williams LB Western Illinois (some say inside linebacker, some say outside linebacker, the only negative on him is that he's a small school linebacker...i say who cares?)

Johnathan Luigs (Arkansas), AQ Shipley (Penn State), Cecil newton (Tennessee State) C's (they all are great underrated centers, lewis could probably play guard too, Luigis and Shipley both won the Rimington Award, nations best center, and all three of them are 3 year starters, newton is a four year starter with NFL bloodlines, Shipley is also a great leader, and big enough to handle 3-4 NT's)

Jarrett Dillard WR Rice (he's 5'11, and isn't that fast, but he has tremendous hands and can catch a jump ball as if he were a 6'4 receiver, definetly could be one of the top 10 wr's 3 years from now)

Seth Olsen G Iowa (blocked for the nations best running back, shonn Greene, plus a 3 year starter)

Ladarius Webb CB Nicholls state (is a great I-AA corner, some say he could be a starting NB by the end of the season, came from the same college as kareem Moore, and ran one of the fastest fourties at the combine)

Luis Vasquez G, Rylan Reed T, Texas Tech (Vasquez improved his stock at the combine, by benching the most for any person with 39 reps, plus he's a great pass protector, the problem is, can he run block? Rylan Reed is a great tackle but scouts question if he can run block as well, plus he is 27 years old and isn't expected to be drafted, but as a free agent, and as a backup, i'd take a look at him)

chris Baker hampton DL (can play DE or DT, and dominate at hampton, but got kicked off penn state for weed, worth a look since we need a DE)

Brandon Williams DE Texas Tech (He is going to be a steal to who ever gets him, he led the Big 12 in sacks with 13, a few of those came against Jason Smith, Phil Loadholt, and Rylan Reed, the thing with him scouts say is that he's small, but i think he's about the same height and weight as osi umenyiora, so really?!?)

Devin Moore RB Wyoming (he's short but a great returner, and is a RB with speed, which we desperatley need, similar to darren sproles of san diego, moore runs a 4.35 fourty yard dash, which is better than moreno and anyother RB in this years slow class...)

[Eknox]

It definatley wouldn't hurt to work these guy's out, But I have to ask .Does Vinnie really dig to find the diamond in the ruff players, or does he just listen to Mel Kiper Jr ?

[Nflnick11]

Originally Posted by Eknox

It definatley wouldn't hurt to work these guy's out, But I have to ask .Does Vinnie really dig to find the diamond in the ruff players, or does he just listen to Mel Kiper Jr ?

well i dont think mel said anything about chris horton last year soo i think its more of vinny getting lucky picking him

[SmootSmack]

Edwin Williams (OL-Maryland)
Victor Butler (LB-Oregon State, I think)
David Veikune (DE-Hawaii)

[FRPLG]

Rodney Landers (QB-JMU)

Given the chance he's the next Bryan Westbrook. The guy is ridiculous. Edwards got all the hype in I-AA for athletic QBs but Landers is just as good if not better. He's a RB at the next level in my opinion.

[That Guy]

vinnie definitely listens to mel though, they're friends...

i don't think anyone should sell a future UDFA prospect as a top 10 WR though. every year there are WRs that slip through, or some 6'6' guy that can't really play, and every year they come into someone's camp and get cut, ending their cup of coffee NFL careers.

we'll see what happens, but I would caution against overselling guys that aren't even in the top 250. more than likely 1 or less of the guys in this thread will be noteworthy 3 years from now. that doesn't mean they aren't worth a look, just that the odds are that it'll be a waste of time.

[Dirtbag59]

I say anyone thats a backup at USC. They're cheap, good enough to be on USC, and on top of that they got low mileage.

[SFREDSKIN]

Worrell Williams LB Cal Berkeley (Brother of DJ Williams, Broncos LB)
Rulon Davis DE Cal Berkeley
Dan Grankowski TE Maryland

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by Dirtbag359

I say anyone thats a backup at USC. They're cheap, good enough to be on USC, and on top of that they got low mileage.

Kyle Moore! and the other LB!

[freddyg12]

Great thread nick! I love reading about the late round/undrafted guys cause I don't know much about them until draft time.

I'll go w/what I know, my Hokies:

1) Orion Martin, DE, He's only 6'2 , 250, maybe smaller, so he's projected as 5th-6th round if that. He came on at the end of the year, has room for improvement as he was a late bloomer & might be just on the cusp. He's known as a mature (is 23) guy & highly regarded by his coaches & team.

I think he'll make it in the nfl if he's put in the right position, I just don't know if that's 4-3 DE or OLB in a 3-4? Worth our 6th IMO.

2) Purnell Sturdivant, ILB. He would be a good pickup if he goes undrafted. Might develop as a solid MLB, but probably no better than Blades.

[mauiRedskinbarn]

I think his name is Kaluka Maiava, he grew up on maui and went to the high school right down the street from my house. He was projected to be the best player ever to come from Maui, but he didn't really get a chance behind the stellar USC linebackers corps. He played well against Penn St though.

[MiraclesHappen07]

Originally Posted by freddyg12

Great thread nick! I love reading about the late round/undrafted guys cause I don't know much about them until draft time.

I'll go w/what I know, my Hokies:

1) Orion Martin, DE, He's only 6'2 , 250, maybe smaller, so he's projected as 5th-6th round if that. He came on at the end of the year, has room for improvement as he was a late bloomer & might be just on the cusp. He's known as a mature (is 23) guy & highly regarded by his coaches & team.

I think he'll make it in the nfl if he's put in the right position, I just don't know if that's 4-3 DE or OLB in a 3-4? Worth our 6th IMO.

2) Purnell Sturdivant, ILB. He would be a good pickup if he goes undrafted. Might develop as a solid MLB, but probably no better than Blades.

Heck ya man i agree with ya, i love them hokies also! I agree Martin could be good, if he can develope and change to the pro style of Deffenses. But i also like Jason Worilds who will come out next year, he is straight out beast.

[MiraclesHappen07]

I wouldnt mind Lawrence Sidbury ethier. Watched a few highlight vids of him on youtube, and he looks perdy good. Plus ill take anyone who has the will and motor to do good over anyone who has talent but no the desire. Plus i heard he could be like the next Dware type of player, could be a steal

[freddyg12]

Originally Posted by MiraclesHappen07

Heck ya man i agree with ya, i love them hokies also! I agree Martin could be good, if he can develope and change to the pro style of Deffenses. But i also like Jason Worilds who will come out next year, he is straight out beast.

I just hope the Skins are taking a serious look at local players like those at VT. In the past under Gibbs they always picked a handful of local guys to try out, not sure if that is still the norm.

JLC bashed vinny et al for not nabbing Eddie Royal, but at the time I didn't think much of them not getting royal since he's only 5'10. I hoped they would look at some of the VT wr's that went in the late rounds last year, e.g. Josh Morgan who went in the 5th to San Fran & had a decent rook year.

Go Hokies!

[Dirtbag59]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Kyle Moore! and the other LB!

Holy crap. If we could get him in the fifth round that would be a amazing. Worse case he has all the measurables to compete for the starting spot at LE. Seriously that really is one hell of a find.

Agility/Quickness - 2 - Missed two games in 2005 with a sprained right knee. Also had arthroscopic knee surgery prior to 2008 spring practice.

Strength/Toughness - 3 - Sound overall strength, as he is stout on the edge. Questionable overall toughness though

Instincts -3 - Locates ball quickly. Needs to do a better job of getting hands up in passing lanes when isn't going to get to the quarterback in time

Pass Rusher - 2 - Can turn the corner with speed and power. Also shows adequate closing speed when gets a clear path to the quarterback. At times plays with too high a pad level making it easier for tackles to get their hands on him

Run Stopper - 2 - Does an adequate job of sinking hips and can set the edge. Uses hands along with long arms to create separation from blockers and can shed blocks quickly. Can scrape down the line and make the tackle in the backfield or near the line of scrimmage

Trait Scale
1 = Exceptional 2 = Above average 3 = Average 4 = Below average 5 = Marginal