Travis http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/daniels_travis Spears http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/spears_marcus LT http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/turner_lionel Corey http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/webster_corey Big Ben http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/wilkerson_ben There was no information re Marcus Randall. I wish all of these guys the best and hope they all get drafted as high as possible.
ESPN Insider reviews... Marcus Spears Strengths: Is versatile; has the potential to play DE and DT in a 4-3, as well as DE in a 3-4. He is stout versus the run and can be even stouter if he learns to play with more consistent leverage. His size and strength give him loads of potential as a perimeter run-stopper. Is a physical specimen with terrific quickness, agility and athleticism for his size. Is a better edge rusher than his 40-time would indicate. Lacks first-step quickness of elite undersized edge rushers but he shows very good anticipation skills and initial quickness for his size. He is powerful as a pass rusher and does a good job of knocking OT's back onto their heals. He changes directions well for his size and will use a lot of double moves back to the inside. He is very quick when rushing the passer from the inside. He also shows very good closing burst for such a massive defensive lineman. Has improved his run/pass recognition. Has adequate-to-good recognition skills now. Won't take himself out of many plays by getting too far upfield. Does a good job of finding the ball and reacting quickly. Will also do a good job of sniffing out the screen. He can be an explosive tackler when he lines it up. He has a nose for the ball. His motor is good and he won't quit on a play. Has developed into a much harder worker. Weaknesses: Is a little bit of a 'tweener DE/DT. Lacks ideal bulk and anchor to move inside fulltime, but also lacks speed as an edge rusher. He needs to improve his array of pass rush moves. Improved his technique and toughness as a senior but still has room to grow in both of those areas. Still tends to play too erect at times and loses his power when he does. Lets OL get into his pads too often when he wears down. Must continue to improve his hands and ability to disengage. Doesn't have good top-end speed for a DE prospect, so won't make as many plays from behind in pursuit. Also is just decent in terms of tackling consistency. Needs to show more leverage; tends to tackle too high. Overall: Spears was also a heavily recruited basketball star coming out of the high school level but elected to stick with football. He played on both sides of the ball as a true freshman in 2001 (FB, TE and DE), but moved to defense fulltime as a sophomore in 2002 and was LSU's starting LDE from that point on. Spears had eight sacks as a junior in 2003 but was still too inconsistent and didn't play with enough aggressiveness. He made a wise decision to return for his senior season in 2004 and he showed tremendous dedication during the offseason leading up to it. Spears struggled fighting through double teams early on as a senior but he continued to improve as the season progressed and finished with 17 TFL and nine sacks in 13 games. Spears doesn't have elite speed but he's an outstanding athlete for his size. He continues to improve his strength and he has become a much more physical and aggressive player. Spears also has a very good work ethic and has developed into a leader on and off the field. He grades out as a mid-first round draft pick and, if Spears continues to dedicate himself to improving his strength and toughness, he should emerge as a premier every-down starter in the NFL with the versatility to play inside and outside both in a 3-4 and a 4-3 scheme. Spears doesn't have the natural edge rushing explosiveness that some of the other top defensive ends in this class posses but he is one of the best all-around NFL prospect. Corey Webster Strengths: Has good size and man-to-man cover skills. Is technically sound and proven in press-man coverage. Is aggressive and tough in coverage. Has very good instincts. Will do a good job of pressing WR's at the LOS. Has long arms and a strong upper body. He is smooth for a taller cornerback. Shows the ability to transition smoothly and doesn't open his hips too early. Shows good balance in his backpedal and burst out of it. Closes quickly on the ball in the short-passing game. Also possesses excellent leaping ability (39-inch vertical), long arms and extremely good ball skills to challenge on the deep ball. Is a playmaker when the ball is in the air. Weaknesses: Biggest concern is his lack of ideal speed. He's at his best in press man-to-man coverage but lacks great makeup speed if he makes a mistake. Might need to be protected a lot more in the vertical passing game in the NFL than he has been in college. Lacks experience in zone coverage. Hamstring and foot injuries really set him back in 2004. Durability is a serious concern. Is below average in run support. Not overly physical in that facet and will miss too many open field tackles. Mental capacity a concern; scored a 12 on Wonderlic Test. Overall: Webster was also a highly recruited basketball star in high school but elected to play football. He played wide receiver his first two seasons at LSU but moved to cornerback in 2002, where he wound up as a consensus first team All-SEC and led the SEC with seven interceptions in his first season as a starter. He returned as a fulltime starter in his 2003 junior season and continued to improve his technique and consistency at the position. Webster was granted an extra season of eligibility (2004) after he was ineligible as a true freshman in 2000 but struggled through his final season due to a nagging hamstring injury and turf toe. Webster showed a great deal of toughness trying to play through injuries as a senior but he was nowhere near 100-percent. The first game that he was even close to full strength was against Alabama (Nov. 13), when he intercepted a key pass in the end zone and returned it 44 yards. Webster began the 2004 season as a sure-fire first round pick but missed one game because of injury and also missed time in several others. While it isn't fair to judge him on his hobbled senior season in 2004, there is some concern that Webster will never regain the same quickness and speed that he once had because of complications regarding his foot. In our opinion, Webster is still worth drafting in the mid-to-late range of the second round but if he drops considerably on draft day it will be as a result of long-term durability concerns Ben Wilkerson Strengths: Has adequate but not great size. Has a good frame and can continue to get bigger and stronger. Has terrific initial quickness and wins most of his battles with his first step. Is fluid and shows good body control. Takes excellent angles as a run blocker. Is at his best when uncovered. Shows good balance and body control. Makes up for lack of great speed with initial quickness and angles. Has a quick set in pass protection. Is extremely aware and does an excellent job of picking up blitzes and stunts. Has adequate upper body strength and a powerful hand punch in pass pro. Really does a good job with his hand placement. Is a leader and a hard worker. Does an outstanding job with line calls. Plays with a great motor. Weaknesses: Is tall and somewhat lean. His biggest weakness is his lack of base and lower body strength. Will have to play with perfect leverage and positioning to hold up against more powerful bull rushers. Will struggle versus massive two-gap NT's in the NFL. Was able to consistently get out on linebackers and seal them off on the second-level in college but he doesn't have good top-end speed, which is concerning when projecting him as a reach blocker in the NFL. Durability is also a major concern. Overall: Wilkerson took over as LSU's starting center midway through his true freshman season in 2001 and, when healthy, was LSU's fulltime starter the next three seasons. Wilkerson missed the Cotton Bowl as a sophomore because of a back injury that required surgery but he returned healthy as a junior in 2003. He did, however, suffer a season-ending patella tendon injury in his left knee versus Vanderbilt (Nov. 6, 2004) and had surgery shortly thereafter. He did not workout at the combine while still rehabilitating the injury. Wilkerson lacks ideal size but is one of the most efficient, technically sound and athletic centers in this class. Prior to the injury we considered him to be the top rated prospect at the position. While he is expected to make a full recover, the injury does have some bearing on his draft value and could cause him to slip a little bit on draft day. Assuming he recovers fully and considering he has such a strong work ethic, we still think Wilkerson is worth drafting on Day 1. Travis Daniels Strengths: Has very good size and the frame to get even bigger. Has a little bit of experience at FS and it might ultimately be a better position for him in the NFL. His instincts and awareness continue to improve. He does a good job of using his long arms and wide wingspan to smother receivers at the LOS. He has good quickness when coming forward out of his pedal and he uses his long arms to bat a lot of passes down. He has good leaping ability, long arms and shows the ability to consistently take away the fade route and jump ball. He also has developed into a physical run supporter. Has good size and is aggressive when filling off the edge. Has some versatility due to experience at DC and DS. Weaknesses: His marginal speed is his biggest physical weakness. He can protect himself in college, but will be unable to consistently turn and run with faster receivers in the NFL. Plays a little bit too high and doesn't always show great leverage in his pedal. He doesn't have great burst out of his pedal and his hips are somewhat stiff when he's forced to turn and run. Most of his experience is in man-coverage but he likely will have to play in a zone scheme that protects him deep at the next level. Also concerns regarding his mental capacity. Overall: Daniels played sparingly as a true freshman in 2001 and a little bit more as a sub-package cornerback in 2002, but his development as a sophomore was hampered by a nagging hamstring injury. He was moved to safety in the spring of 2003 but was allowed to move back to cornerback in the fall thanks to the emergence of true freshman LaRon Landry. Daniels had a breakout season as a junior in 2003, starting all 14 games opposite Corey Webster at cornerback and finished with 58 total tackles, 6.5 TFL, two sacks, two INT's and 26 PBU. As a senior in 2004, Daniels started all 12 games and finished with 48 tackles, one INT and nine PBU. Daniels has good size and his technique has continued to improve. He has adequate ball skills and emerged as a playmaker in run support, which will help him in terms of his potential to contribute on special teams at the next level. However, his lack of speed, fluidity and ball skills limit his NFL potential and ultimately will cause him to slip to the final few rounds of the 2005 draft. Lionel Turner Strengths: Has excellent size and power. Shows the overall bulk and strength to take on and shed blockers at the POA if his leverage and hands improve. He is one of the most powerful hitters in this draft class. He has explosive short-area power. Is a downhill striker that plays with a great motor. Is tough and energetic. Can be the emotional leader of a defense and really sets a tone physically. Is extremely instinctive in the passing game. Has better range in zone coverage than his 40-time would indicate. Weaknesses: Lacks speed. Has gotten away with marginal speed at the college level but will not be nearly as productive in coverage or as a pass rusher in the NFL. Is stiff in his hips. Will have trouble matching up man-to-man in the NFL. Lacks closing burst as a pass rusher. Lacks speed to play from sideline-to-sidelin in the NFL. May never be more than a two-down type ILB in the NFL. Plays too high. Lets blockers get into his body too often. Technique is inconsistent. Takes poor angles and misses too many tackles. Goes for the big his too often and winds up missing too many arm tackles. Overall: Turner redshirted in 2000 and was a reserve linebacker in 2001 before becoming a starter on the outside in 2002, when he registered 9.5 sacks. Turner made the move from OLB to MLB and started all 14 games as a junior in 2003, finishing second on the team with 78 total tackles, including five TFL, three sacks and two INT's. He stayed at MLB as a senior in 2004 and finished with 82 total tackles, including five TFL and two sacks. Turner has some versatility having played WLB, SLB and MLB during his career at LSU. Turner has great experience and was very productive in the passing game both as a blitzer and in coverage. He also is an explosive hitter with very good size and upper body strength. However, while Turner is quick and powerful, he is not fast and he struggles to get through traffic when moving laterally. Overall, he has the potential to serve as a reserve ILB in the NFL and could contribute in a pinch as a two-down run plugger. He also has some potential to contribute on special teams. However, his lack of speed and athleticism limit his NFL upside and should cause him to slip to the final rounds of the 2005 draft or possibly to go undrafted all-together. Marcus Randall They have him running a 4.76.. didnt he run like a 4.5 or so? I would really like to see the kid get a chance to play somewhere, at any position. He was one of my favorites. Between MR, Spears and Michael Clayton, there was some real class on this team these last few years.
