NCAA Scouting
Third Round Analysis
by Paul Emery
April 24th 2010
 
A pick by pick look at the Third Round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Overall, I wasn't impressed by this round – too many gambles and not much in terms of value.
 
1 (65) Rams – Jerome Murphy - CB - South Florida – the Rams took Bradley Fletcher last year, so Murphy will compete for the job – either way the Rams have three good CB's. Decent size and speed.
 
2 (66) Lions – Amari Spievey - CB – Iowa – Junior entry who had some character concerns and wasn't expected to be picked this early.
 
3 (67) Buccaneers - Myron Lewis - CB – Vanderbilt – excellent size and speed combination – a superb combine performance moves him into the Third Round. Could play FS – still very raw.
 
4 (68) Chiefs - Jon Asamoah - OG – Illinois – solid pick from the Chiefs – nice fit to keep Charles getting the yards.
 
5 (69) Raiders – Jared Veldheer - OT – Hillsdale – I projected Veldheer to the Raiders in the first round – but Mr Davis waits until the third round for the workout warrior of the 2010 combine. As mentioned in my combine article – Veldheer's numbers were better than Bruce Campbell's. Raw prospect and a typical Raiders pick finally!
 
6 (70) Ravens (From Seahawks through Eagles and Broncos) – Ed Dickson – TE/HB – Oregon – can't block – receiver only. Drifts in and out of games – big gamble.
 
7 (71) Packers (From Browns through Eagles) – Morgan Burnett - S - Georgia Tech – had a superb pro day and I don't think he would have been out of place in the second round. Can play strong or free safety.
 
8 (72) Bills – Alex Carrington - DE - Arkansas State – excellent 3-4 scheme fit – has the length required to play the position. The Bills get two 3-4 DL types on Day Two to retool to their new defensive system.
 
9 (73) Dolphins - John Jerry – OT/OG – Mississippi – mauler – long arms and decent enough feet to be a RT if needed – or can move inside to G – his likely spot initially.
 
10 (74) Jaguars - D'Anthony Smith - DT - Louisiana Tech – another DT for Jacksonville in a deep class. Smith had injury problems as a Senior – but a decent smaller school talent.
 
11 (75) Bears – Major Wright - FS – Florida – might be a tweener. Has decent speed, but doesn't have the hips to cover man to man. Not big enough for a box Safety.
 
12 (76) Giants - Chad Jones - FS – LSU – the Giants draft continues to contain more questions than answers. Jones is also a baseball prospect and is very raw. They might not expect much initially from any of their first three picks.
 
13 (77) Titans - Damian Williams - WR – USC – Williams was rated as a higher pick by many, but concerns about his durability and body catching drop him to the third. Slot type WR – reminds me of the “fun and gun” Florida WR's under Steve Spurrier – few of whom made it in the NFL.
 
14 (78) Panthers – Brandon LaFell - WR – LSU – not a blazer, drops too many passes and has character concerns. Don't like the pick at all.
 
15 (79) Chargers (From 49ers) - Donald Butler - ILB – Washington – had a solid post season to rise up boards. Has the bulk and arm length to play 3-4 ILB – good athlete.
 
16 (80) Broncos - J.D. Walton - C – Baylor – a need pick – maybe a round early. Walton isn't the best athlete and isn't necessarily a great scheme fit. Fits a huge need in Denver though.
 
17 (81) Texans – Earl Mitchell - DT – Arizona – had the best 10 yard split of any DT at the Combine. Inconsistent on the field – flashes ability but a little too high for me.
 
18 (82) Steelers – Emmanuel Sanders - WR – SMU – wiry WR who can return punts. Direct replacement for Santonio Holmes – interestingly Sanders isn't clean off the field as he was suspended for the last two games of his Junior year.
 
19 (83) Falcons – Corey Peters - DT – Kentucky – rising player who is a nice scheme fit. Gets penetration and has some pass rush ability. Can team with last years first round pick, Peria Jerry for many years to come.
 
20 (84) Bengals - Jordan Shipley - WR – Texas – undersized and slower than ideal prospect who catches too much in his body. Slot type receiver.
 
21 (85) Browns (From Patriots through Raiders) – Colt McCoy - QB – Texas – a perfect fit for a Mike Holmgren offense. Lacks a top arm and needs to adapt from the spread in college, but could develop down the road. Durability and slight frame a concern.
 
22 (86) Eagles (From Packers) - Daniel Te'o-Nesheim - DE – Washington – went flying up draft boards with a nice combine workout – works hard and is a little like Connor Barwin from last year.
 
23 (87) Broncos (From Eagles) – Eric Decker - WR – Minnesota – missed the second half of his senior year with injury and thus his stock has suffered. Also a baseball prospect. If healthy he would have gone at least a round higher. Has enough concerns to be classified as a gamble, but might be worth it at this point in the Draft.
 
24 (88) Cardinals (From Ravens) – Andre Roberts - WR – Citadel – small school slot WR – should be able to step in and contribute right away.
 
25 (89) Panthers (From Cardinals through Patriots) - Armanti Edwards – QB/WR - Appalachian State – don't worry Matt Moore, Edwards isn't really the 2nd QB the Panthers are taking! He will be a pro WR who can run some Wildcat packages. Fine athlete.
 
26 (90) Patriots (From Cowboys) - Taylor Price - WR - Ohio – Price lacked a top QB at Ohio, but showed enough in the post season to get himself into Day Three.
 
27 (91) 49ers (From Chargers) - Navorro Bowman - LB - Penn State – played outside in college – projects inside in San Fran. Has long enough arms to translate. Has character concerns which caused him to drop.
 
28 (92) Browns (From Jets) – Shawn Lauvao – OG - Arizona State – decent athlete with good strength – T in college – projects to G in Cleveland.
 
29 (93) Chiefs (From Vikings through Texans) – Tony Moeaki - TE – Iowa – all around TE who has had real problems staying healthy. If he can, he's good value here.
 
30 (94) Colts – Kevin Thomas - CB – USC – had a good combine and super pro day on USC's fast track and on the back of these performances moved into Round Three.
 
31 (95) Saints – Jimmy Graham - TE – Miami (Fl) – played only one year of football in college – basketball conversion project. Flashed enough ability as a receiver to warrant this pick. Can learn from another Miami alum – Jeremy Shockey.
 
32 (96) Bengals (Compensatory selection) - Brandon Ghee - CB - Wake Forest – had the best overall CB workout at the Combine. Still a little raw, but can play nickel and learn from Leon Hall.
 
33 (97) Titans (Compensatory selection) – Rennie Curran - LB - Georgia – may not have the athletic ability needed for his size – but was very productive in college and is a decent enough scheme fit.
 
34 (98) Falcons (Compensatory selection) – Mike Johnson - OG – Alabama – at times Johnson looks dominant – but he has too many lapses. If the Falcons can iron them out, they have got themselves a fine player.
 
Summary
 
Best Pick: There aren't many picks in this round that make me go “Wow” – the best of a bad bunch is Alex Carrington – DE – Bills. Nice scheme fit and had a nice post season.
 
Worst Pick: Brandon LaFell – WR - Panthers – looks the part until you throw him the ball – drops way too many balls – has small hands, so isn't ever likely to be a reliable WR.
 
Best Value: Andre Roberts – WR – Citadel – should step in and contribute right away in the slot and could become much more.
 
Worst Value: J.D. Walton – C – Broncos – a need pick – forced without the depth in the Center class we had last year.
 
Biggest Surprise: That so many gamble type prospects went off the board in this round.
 
Best Players Still on the Board: A surprise that more 3-4 OLB types haven't come off the board – Ricky Sapp, Everson Griffen , Eric Norwood and Thaddeus Gibson – plus Corey Wootton who is more 4-3 DE. Others still around: Matt Tennant – C/G – Boston College; Akwasi Owusu-Ansah – CB – Indiana (Pa); Cam Thomas – DT – North Carolina; Greg Hardy – DE – Mississippi; AJ Edds – SLB – Iowa; Blair White – WR – Michigan; Arthur Jones – DE – Syracuse; Dorin Dickerson – TE/HB – Pittsburgh. Plenty of value around for Day Three and many in this list who I would have taken above some of those taken in Round Three.