Now it’s time for the 2014 NFL Draft Defensive Prospect Rankings. Below you’ll find just about every top 5-10 players at each position on defense. The top defensive prospect is the first name you see below and the guy you see above. Jadeveon Clowney is the best prospect in the draft and should be the first overall pick.
Defensive End
Jadeveon Clowney – South Carolina – 6’5 – 265 Ibs – 1st round
Dee Ford – Auburn – 6’2 – 255 Ibs – 1st round
Kony Ealy – Missouri – 6’4 – 275 Ibs – 1st round
Scott Crichton – Oregon State – 6’3 – 275 Ibs – 2nd round
Demarcus Lawrence – Boise State – 6’3 – 250 Ibs – 2nd round
Honorable Mention – Kareem Martin, Marcus Smith and Trent Murphy.
Without question Jadeveon Clowney is the top prospect of the defense as well as the defensive ends and overall the draft. He has good company behind him though with Dee Ford who can be that 3-4 edge rusher while guys like Kareem Martin and Scott Crichton are going to be solid defensive ends for any 4-3 defense or a 5 technique 3-4 defense. No need for me to get technical though, I’ll sum it up with the defensive ends having a deep draft as well.
Defensive Tackle
Timmy Jernigan – Florida State – 6’2 300 Ibs – 1st round
Aaron Donald – Pittsburgh – 6’1 – 285 Ibs – 1st round
Louis Nix – Notre Dame – 6’2 – 330 Ibs – 1st round
RaShede Hageman – Minnesota – 6’6 – 310 Ibs – 2nd round
Stephon Tuitt – Notre Dame – 6’6 – 305 Ibs – 2nd round
Honorable Mention – Dominque Easley, Will Sutton and Kelcy Quarles.
Another deep position in the draft but I know, Timmy Jernigan over Aaron Donald? How can I have Donald drafted before Jernigan? Because I can. Jernigan to me is a smoother athlete and has more of an ideal size when it comes to a defensive tackle. Overall though, Donald is a perfect 3 tech while Hageman has great size and speed but he lacks the consistency and strength to be considered a first rounder. Will Sutton is nice 3rd round guy as well.
Outside Linebacker
Khalil Mack – Buffalo – 6’3 – 250 Ibs – 1st round
Anthony Barr – UCLA – 6’5 – 255 Ibs – 1st round
Ryan Shazier – Ohio State – 6’1 – 235 Ibs – 1st round
Kyle Van Noy – BYU – 6’3 – 245 Ibs – 1st-2nd round
Carl Bradford – Arizona State – 6’1 – 250 Ibs – 2nd round
Honorable Mention – Jermiah Attaochu, Trevor Reily and Christian Jones.
Looking at it now, the OLB position is deeper than I thought. Not as deep as others but after much film, I see some sleepers here. Khalil Mack is the top player at this position though and could be the best outside backer we’ve seen since Terrell Suggs. I’ve really grown fond of Anthony Barr and Kyle Van Noy while Ryan Shazier is slowly falling into the second round for me. Expect some movement from teams to grab these players at outside backer.
Inside Linebacker
CJ Mosley – Alabama – 6’2 – 235 Ibs – 1st round
Chris Borland – Wisconsin – 6’0 – 250 Ibs – 2nd round
Shayne Skov – Stanford – 6’2 – 245 Ibs – 3rd round
Brock Coyle – Montana – 6’1 – 240 Ibs – 4th round
Preston Brown – Louisville – 6’1 – 250 Ibs – 4th-5th round
Honorable Mention – Lamin Barrow and Max Bullough.
Overall CJ Mosley is the best player at inside backer while also being considered one of the safest picks in the draft. Shayne Skov and Chris Borland have the potential to be really good but outside of those top three guys, it’s just depth charts and special teams guys.
Cornerback
Justin Gilbert – Oklahoma State – 6’0 – 192 Ibs – 1st round
Darqueze Dennad – Michigan State – 5’11 – 200 Ibs – 1st round
Kyle Fuller – Virginia Tech – 6’0 – 190 Ibs – 1st round
Bradley Roby – Ohio State – 5’11 – 195 Ibs – 2nd round
Jason Verrett – TCU – 5’10 – 190 Ibs – 2nd round
Honorable Mention – Keith McGill, Phillip Gaines, Marcus Roberson and Jaylen Watkins.
Another deep draft for the cornerbacks and it seems like that’s the case every year. There’s a trio of Florida prospects who will go between rounds 2 and 4 while the top 3 guys above are the best prospects at the position. You can get more out of Gilbert as his ceiling isn’t even close to being reached yet, Fuller is a very physical corner while Dennard is the most pro ready. Teams will be drafting these guys left and right.
Free Safety
Hasean Clinton-Dix – Alabama – 6’1 – 210 Ibs – 1st round
Calvin Pryor – Louisville – 5’11 – 210 Ibs – 1st round
Terrance Brooks – Florida State – 5’11 – 200 Ibs – 2nd round
Dion Bailey – USC – 6’0 – 200 Ibs – 3rd round
Ed Reynolds – Stanford – 6’1 – 210 Ibs – 4th round
Honorable Mention – Kenny Ladler and Marqueston Huff.
The more and more I look at Calvin Pryor, the more I put him at the top of this list. He’ll go in the middle of the first round and I believe he’s the best FS. I do like Clinton-Dix and I believe he’ll be the first safety off the board but I don’t think he’ll be as good as Pryor in the future. Kenny Ladler is the sleeper in this position and could go before Ed Reynolds in the 4th round.
Strong Safety
Jimmie Ward – Northern Illinois – 5’11 – 195 Ibs – 2nd round
Deone Bucannon – Washington State – 6’1 – 210 Ibs – 2nd round
Brock Vereen – Minnesota – 6’0 – 200 Ibs – 3rd round
Tre Boston – North Carolina – 6’0 – 205 Ibs – 4th round
Craig Loston – LSU – 6’1 – 215 Ibs – 4th-5th round
Honorable Mention – Ahmad Dixon and Dezmen Southward.
I really like Bucannon and Ward out of this position. They’ll be day two picks but will be big time players for a defense. Bucannon is slowly on the rise to be the best SS in this class but at the end of the day, Ward will be the first one taken. Vereen will be a project but for the 3rd round, you can develop him nicely. Not a real deep position but some nice players in this class.