Hey, guys! Instead of posting my updated big board standings and making you guys comb through all of the prospects to see what’s different, I figured I’d just isolate my new player evals in a quick post here on Patreon along with where they rank on the overall board. Of course, if you want to revisit the big board, it’s linked below! Here’s who I added to the board today:
4. RB Bijan Robinson, Texas – I mean…come on….what box does Robinson NOT check? He is an absolute mutant when it comes to stop-start juice, change of direction, lateral quickness, speed, and acceleration. He can break tackles left and right. He’s a great receiver that can get out and run routes, where he also shows great concentration at the point of the catch. He’s good enough in pass protection, and plays with a deceptive sort of power, burst, strength, physicality, and balance. He hits the hole and plays Frogger, where his instincts show up and he makes quick cuts to easily navigate traffic. If this was 2005, he might be the #1 overall pick in this draft. I’m not going to spend too much time poking holes in his game trying to find weaknesses…he’s as close to a spotless prospect as I’ve seen in a long time. Not only is he the clear RB1 in this draft, I think he can still be the focal point of an offense despite the NFL skewing so heavily in favor of the passing game in 2023. I know positional value would dictate he’s a late first rounder at best…but, just look at this man’s game. I’m not going to be surprised if he goes as high as #8 to the Atlanta Falcons.
47. OL Braeden Daniels, Utah – I had to turn off the USC tape because it was just too good, and yeah…the Florida tape is a little more down to Earth. I first noticed Daniels at the Scouting Combine, and immediately jotted his name down as a guy that I absolutely had to make a point of going back and seeing if the tape matches up with the measurables. He’s light for an offensive lineman, not even cracking three bills at 294 lbs (and 6’4”), and you see it show up at times with an inconsistency in sustaining run blocks, and when he’s unable to generate the power to knock bendy guys who are quick to get around him away from the play. For the most part, is lateral quickness is a sight to behold, though he does seem to struggle against defensive linemen who have a quick first step inside. That’s about all the negative stuff I have to say about him as a prospect, though. His size may cause some pause for some teams, but man, he’s got some good tape against some good defenses floating around out there. He’s a great lateral mover capable of mirroring rushers and routing them outside, he has a quick kick step, and he plays pretty nimbly even when he’s in a wide stance. He also showed that if he loses his guy, he does have the short area quickness and agility to get back to him. I think he’s being a little underrated in his run blocking too. I want to see more consistent drive, like I said, but he’s got some pop to his game – it’s not necessarily from pure power, but it comes from leverage…getting below a guys pad level and springing up to pop his ass. He is perfectly capable of holding his own at the point of attack. I noticed him shedding blocks and getting to the second level to hit somebody a couple of times against Florida. Nothing demonstrated this underrated run blocking ability like a touchdown run during the USC game when Daniels got low, drove his feet, held onto his guy, and opened up a hole for the running back to score. Daniels is a hell of an athlete that has a couple of minor concerns on his tape, but is otherwise, a really high-ceiling guard in the NFL – I like him so much, hell, I’d even say he could bring some of that left tackle versatility to the next level if you’re in a pinch and need him to.
70. OG Andrew Vorhees, USC – Holy shit, how bad do you feel for Andrew Vorhees? If this guy didn’t tear his ACL at the Scouting Combine, I’m putting him among the most promising guards in this year’s draft class. He had some issues, don’t get me wrong – he’s not the most natural lateral mover, he runs a little too high at the second level, and because of his 6’6” 310lb frame, leverage appeared to be a struggle for him at times. He had a little bit of that Blake Freeland situation going for him. But, playing along the interior of the offensive line is a different story than playing tackle (and maybe why some think Freeland might kick inside to guard too). Vorhees uses his length and power to simply drive guys back. He gets that “A shape” going in pass protection – wide stance, hands on shoulders…he ain’t moving folks. What I liked the most about him was his tenacity, and how he’d put someone in the dirt whenever he had the chance to do it. He’s got a vicious chokeslam! Someone is still going to roll the dice on him because he has some downright dominant tape that I think would’ve easily made him a Day 2 pick. Unfortunately, he’s going to miss 2023, and that could be the kicker that pushes him on down to Day 3.
76. OG Chandler Zavala, NC State – Okay, I know this is going to seem lazy, but just read my Jon Gaines II blurb and flip it from right guard to left guard and you got Zavala. They’re built similarly, play a similar game…I mean, dead ringers for one another on opposite sides of the center.
81. OC Luke Wypler, Ohio State – Wypler is a fine center prospect. I do worry a bit about his stature (6’3”, 303), but to be considered “smaller” for the position, I rarely saw Wypler get blown up watching what I watched. It wasn’t always a win, but it wasn’t like he was dominated by the like of Jalen Carter, Mazi Smith, and Tomi Adebawore – he had some wins against those guys too. I don’t know that he necessarily has the frame to hold up against powerful and twitchy interior pass rushing defensive linemen consistently in the NFL. He could get more powerful at the point of attack (I noticed him bending at the back a lot but being able to use his hands and stance to hold position). Because of that, I didn’t see him blowing too many holes wide open, which makes me think he’s better suited for a zone-running scheme. He had some nice backside seals in the Michigan game, but he also overpursued on a couple of angles (thankfully, the play had developed away from him so it wasn’t a factor). He is a great athlete for the position, and does his best work in space where his athleticism can shine. There’s not a lot of pop or drive to his game, but his technique is solid – when he gets the pad level advantage, he keeps it, he’s great at diagnosing stunts and either picking up extra rushers or passing them off to guards when needed. He had some great footwork going up against Adebowore that allowed him to mirror him effectively. He doesn’t seem to have the foundational strength to power his way out of the phone booth when traffic gets a little jammed up, but when he’s in space, he can latch onto a guy and route him away from the play. He’s a pure center – because of his size, I’m not sure you should confidently project him to guard.
97. OL Joe Tippman, Wisconsin – You won’t find the biggest Tippmann fan here. His game is predicated on his strength and power in run-blocking, but I’m not sold on really anything else that he does. He’s a popper – he initiates contact in the run, and the name of his game is “pull and demolish.” Tippmann generally plays with a wide stance and good footwork. He does his best work when they pull him outside and send him headhunting. He is a torpedo at the second level and has the potential to blow some holes wide open. That’s why his landing spot will make all the difference in the world to what his career in the NFL looks like. He’s got a high floor in the right offense, and is ready to start Week 1. But, I found a couple of things that really bothered me watching games (Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan State). One, his hands come from under, almost like he’s trying to double undercut the DT’s armpits. His hands flail wide at times, and that undisciplined hand usage allows rushers to get their hands on his chest/shoulders, punch him, and generally re-route him. Twitchy interior rushers, can really work the guy if they can play with their hands. Two, it also felt like he was thrown out the club far too often for a guy that is 6’6” 313lbs. I noticed he was on the ground a lot. Ultimately, like I said, if the right offense adds him, they’ll get a polished, high-football-IQ run-blocker that can step in Week 1. If some other offense drafts him, I’m not sure what they were watching.
101. RB DeWayne McBride, UAB – There’s a lot about McBride that screams “steady” and “solid” when you’re projecting him to the next level. His stat line at UAB in 2022 was ridiculous, and he looked like a man among boys against UAB’s schedule. He bounces off tackles, and plays with a steady balance and quick footwork that allows him to change direction quickly. He goes fishing with defenders sometimes – whether it’s looking guys off or varying his speed, in 1:1 situations, he can bait a defender to go one way as he goes another. There’s an element of power to his game that complements the balance and the technical proficiency well. But, I think he runs a little high, and while his athleticism and speed may look great on tape, I can’t imagine he’ll look that dominant against NFL competition (fuck, I hate being “level of competition” guy). He also caught two passes for all of 2022.
119. OG Jordan McFadden, Clemson – Man oh man, do I love me some Jordan McFadden as a project offensive guard. He has some real upside – I noticed him at the Scouting Combine, where he ran a 4.99 40 and looked like a smooth, fluid athlete at the position. Now, you take one look at him and can see that he doesn’t have the length to play tackle in the NFL even though he was Clemson’s left tackle. But, he has traits that make him a potential player at guard. Even in college, he was thrown off balance a bit too much at tackle. He’s short and stocky, but what’s most impressive about him is how he moves his feet to keep driving when he has the leverage advantage. Kick him inside and use that speed, pot-belly pig frame, and footwork! Not to mention, he’s a guy that has the experience to hold his water at the next level. I love the Kelvin Beachum vibes, and he could prove to be a real sleeper in this year’s draft.
122. RB Keaton Mitchell, East Carolina – Mitchell is going to be a spark plug for the right offense in the NFL. Speed is his hallmark, and he has it in spades. It was fun to watch on tape, but to see the speed and agility drills stack up with the rest of the speedsters in this class proved that it wasn’t just a schedule thing. He is explosive, seemingly able to kick it to his highest gear as he gets the ball. He’s small, and you see it show up in his tendency to take runs outside instead of lowering his helmet and taking on contact. There was a play, practically on the goal line, against BYU during which they tried to run him up the middle, and he just doesn’t have the size to be that type of running back. But, man – for a team that might want Achane or Gibbs but misses out on them, Mitchell would be a tremendous value add. He is electric.
124. RB Zach Evans, Ole Miss – Evans is more of a “boom or bust” prospect than the banter would indicate. He’s a boom for his build, size, speed, and his willingness to take on tacklers and run through them – he certainly looks the part of a running back in the NFL. His bust potential, at least to me, comes from a lack of production against better run defenses. Against bottom seven SEC run defenses, Evans averaged 8.7 yards per carry. Against top seven SEC run defenses, he averaged 1.8. I fired up the Mississippi State and Alabama tape to see why that might be, and while Evans is a frustrating watch because he’s apart of a timeshare on that Ole Miss offense (not just among RBs, but everyone is in that unit), there’s enough there to cause pause. He has a tendency to run directly into spaces that are not open. I don’t know if it’s a vision issue or what, but in tight quarters, he didn’t show the decisiveness, burst, and acceleration to get through holes. He’s also inconsistent as a pass protector.
126. RB Sean Tucker, Syracuse – Tucker is fine. That’s it. I’m not sure I see the upside that some others do with him, but he can definitely be a splash play waiting to happen if he gets to the edge. He offers pure straight line speed and explosiveness in the open field. But, I think he’s a little too patient (bordering on hesitant) between the tackles in identifying lanes and picking his angles. I watched a couple of his games and felt like he left a lot of yardage on the field and he offers little as a pass protector.
128. RB Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh – I like his consistent speed, though I wouldn’t say he possesses a lot of acceleration (or, “stop-start”) variance. He has decent hands on screen passes. And his ability to cut through a hole and take the ball up field is a ton of fun to watch. But, there are a couple of things that really bothered me watching the Tennessee game – one, to be as stocky as he is, he didn’t run with a whole lot of tackle-breaking power. He ran right into contact at times and then he was brought down. Two, he seemed to do this weird thing where he got to the line of scrimmage and slowed down whenever the hole wasn’t immediately open. When he did this, but the hole opened up, he didn’t have that stop-start juice to get it to the next level quick enough. There’s a fine rotational running back in a zone scheme here, but I don’t see the upside that some others do.
142. FB/RB Hunter Luepke, North Dakota State – I was close to putting Luepke on the “just guys” list, but there were a couple of things that really impressed me about him that I wanted to mention. For one, he’s a straight line power runner that isn’t going to keep you guessing as to where he’s going to go. His size, style, and physicality have most draft nuts sliding him to fullback, but North Dakota State used him as more of a bell cow runner so he’s relatively unproven as a pure blocker in the context of the consistency it takes to be an effective fullback in the NFL. Maybe someone brings him in to be a pure short yardage power rusher, but I think his higher ceiling is at the fullback position. But, holy shit – ND State sent him out running routes on a couple of occasions and he blew me away by how naturally he caught the ball in stride down the field (watch the Arizona highlights). There’s something about him that is just plain fun to watch.
152. OL Earl Bostick Jr., Kansas – I am in no man’s land with Bostick here. I don’t know that there’s another prospect in this year’s draft class that has as wide of a disparity between his traits shown at the Scouting Combine and the tape. The traits are absolutely elite, but I don’t know what you do with ‘em! He played left tackle at Kansas, where he showed some flashes of good quickness in pass protection, an ability to mirror guys, and route them out and away from the play. At other times, it looked like he was unnatural and unsure of where to attack. He played high and tentative in the run game, and I found him to drift indecisively more than I would’ve liked. In that regard, it depends on how you want to look at Bostick – either he doesn’t have it, or he’s a lump of clay that has the traits you can mold into something better. He posted one of the best Relative Athletic Scores among tackles at the Combine – that and his flashes of solid pass pro technique are what could get him drafted, but he looks like a developmental prospect that you might want to put through two training camps before you’re giving him a real shot.
Check out how these guys stack up on my full 2023 NFL Draft Big Board, and keep an ear to the ground for more updates here on Patreon!
