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https://theringer.com/2017-nfl-draf...timore-deshaun-watson-dalvin-cook-c09db45ca6e
Defensive Lineman: Malik McDowell, Michigan State
There are plays, and even full games, when McDowell looks like a top-10 pick with the upside of an All-Pro. Just watch him consistently blow by offensive linemen against Notre Dame.
But the 6-foot-6, 295-pound defensive lineman disappears too often. His unreliable effort, along with his inconsistent technique — he plays with a narrow base and comes off the ball much too high at times — means that he’s going to require a bunch of coaching at the next level. He could be a disruptive force all across the defensive line like Calais Campbell, but he could also have a short career. It all depends on how much he buys into his new team’s system.
Safety/Linebacker: Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
Peppers is a top-end athlete with explosiveness, speed, and power behind his pads. In a hybrid-linebacker role for the Wolverines, he was a force against the run (15.0 tackles for a loss) and a capable blitzer (3.5 sacks). He has tantalizing upside as a rangy, physical safety and brings added value as a return man on special teams and wildcat runner on offense. Peppers is the only prospect in the draft with the potential to be an early-impact playmaker for his new team in all three phases of the game.
However, Peppers’s upside as a multitalented superstar is contingent upon his ability to develop instincts and ball skills in coverage at the next level. Run-defending safeties are a dime a dozen in the league, and in the pass-happy NFL, high-value defensive backs must be able to cover. But as the primary defender in coverage in his three years with Michigan, Peppers gave up 58 receptions on 93 targets, with just six passes defended. Ball skills and production don’t typically show up suddenly in the NFL, where players face more sophisticated offenses, better quarterbacks, and superior receivers. So if a team takes Peppers in the first round with visions of a defensive playmaker and special teams returner in the form of Charles Woodson, they’ll be betting on massive improvement in Peppers’s pass-coverage instincts.
Defensive Lineman: Malik McDowell, Michigan State
There are plays, and even full games, when McDowell looks like a top-10 pick with the upside of an All-Pro. Just watch him consistently blow by offensive linemen against Notre Dame.
But the 6-foot-6, 295-pound defensive lineman disappears too often. His unreliable effort, along with his inconsistent technique — he plays with a narrow base and comes off the ball much too high at times — means that he’s going to require a bunch of coaching at the next level. He could be a disruptive force all across the defensive line like Calais Campbell, but he could also have a short career. It all depends on how much he buys into his new team’s system.
Safety/Linebacker: Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
Peppers is a top-end athlete with explosiveness, speed, and power behind his pads. In a hybrid-linebacker role for the Wolverines, he was a force against the run (15.0 tackles for a loss) and a capable blitzer (3.5 sacks). He has tantalizing upside as a rangy, physical safety and brings added value as a return man on special teams and wildcat runner on offense. Peppers is the only prospect in the draft with the potential to be an early-impact playmaker for his new team in all three phases of the game.
However, Peppers’s upside as a multitalented superstar is contingent upon his ability to develop instincts and ball skills in coverage at the next level. Run-defending safeties are a dime a dozen in the league, and in the pass-happy NFL, high-value defensive backs must be able to cover. But as the primary defender in coverage in his three years with Michigan, Peppers gave up 58 receptions on 93 targets, with just six passes defended. Ball skills and production don’t typically show up suddenly in the NFL, where players face more sophisticated offenses, better quarterbacks, and superior receivers. So if a team takes Peppers in the first round with visions of a defensive playmaker and special teams returner in the form of Charles Woodson, they’ll be betting on massive improvement in Peppers’s pass-coverage instincts.
