NFL Combine 2017: Matt Miller's Position-by-Position Primer

What does the NFL Scouting Combine mean to the draft stock of the players who will perform, those too injured to take part and even those not invited? Tons.

The combine, which ends Monday, is the best chance to compare athletes across the board. It's also the first chance for teams to meet underclassmen, put all 330 players through medical tests and conduct 15-minute private interview sessions. This is the introductory phase for these teams. Does the athleticism on the turf match what we saw on film? That's the question everyone will be asking throughout the week.

The NFL selects the best of the best and brings them all to Lucas Oil Field for a week of intense physical and mental testing. Who will leave Indianapolis with the most gained and lost? We'll take a look while also updating my top-400 rankings before the madness begins.

Top 100 Overall Players

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S Jamal Adams /

Heading into the combine, it's worth noting that this is a really, really good draft class—and not just at the top with rare talents like Myles Garrett and Leonard Fournette either. This class is deep at multiple positions.

The 2017 safety and tight ends classes are the most talented I've ever seen. Jamal Adams and Malik Hooker are legitimately on par with Eric Berry and Earl Thomas as prospects. The same goes for the cornerback class with a legitimate eight players capable of going in the first round. Because of this, it's easy to want to put 50 players on a top-32 list.

When watching the workouts this week in Indianapolis, be aware of just how much talent is available at each spot. When I was coming up as a scout, we were taught to use the combine as a tiebreaker, and that's how I still view the event. Below you'll notice many players at the same position grouped together in the top 100 list. The combine will allow me to separate Corey Davis from Mike Williams or Marshon Lattimore from Quincy Wilson. The film grade I assign to players is ultimately around 90 percent of the final evaluation, but this is still a height-weight-speed league. Finding athletes matters.

Because of the depth of this class, there will be names below that will surprise you with where they're ranked. Some may seem too high, and some no doubt seem too low. Much will change in the next three months, but here's a look at the top 100 players for the 2017 NFL draft as we head into the combine.

2017 Top 100 Players

Rank	Player	School	Pos.
1	Myles Garrett	Texas A&M	EDGE
2	Leonard Fournette	LSU	RB
3	Reuben Foster	Alabama	LB
4	Jamal Adams	LSU	S
5	Malik Hooker	Ohio State	S
6	Solomon Thomas	Stanford	EDGE
7	Jonathan Allen	Alabama	DL
8	Mike Williams	Clemson	WR
9	Quincy Wilson	Florida	CB
10	Corey Davis	Western Michigan	WR
11	Marshon Lattimore	Ohio State	CB
12	O.J. Howard	Alabama	TE
13	David Njoku	Miami (Fla.)	TE
14	Taco Charlton	Michigan	EDGE
15	Mitch Trubisky	North Carolina	QB
16	DeShone Kizer	Notre Dame	QB
17	Gareon Conley	Ohio State	CB
18	Dalvin Cook	Florida State	RB
19	Sidney Jones	Washington	CB
20	Charles Harris	Missouri	EDGE
21	Haason Reddick	Temple	LB
22	Garett Bolles	Utah	T
23	Derek Barnett	Tennessee	EDGE
24	Ryan Ramczyk	Wisconsin	T
25	Christian McCaffrey	Stanford	RB
26	Joe Mixon	Oklahoma	RB
27	Teez Tabor	Florida	CB
28	Deshaun Watson	Clemson	QB
29	Jabrill Peppers	Michigan	S
30	Takkarist McKinley	UCLA	EDGE
31	Ryan Anderson	Alabama	EDGE
32	Tre'Davious White	LSU	CB
33	Marlon Humphrey	Alabama	CB
34	Montravius Adams	Auburn	DL
35	Caleb Brantley	Florida	DL
36	Alvin Kamara	Tennessee	RB
37	John Ross	Washington	WR
38	Forrest Lamp	Western Kentucky	G
39	Jarrad Davis	Florida	LB
40	Cam Robinson	Alabama	T
41	Budda Baker	Washington	S
42	Patrick Mahomes	Texas Tech	QB
43	Adoree' Jackson	USC	CB
44	Justin Evans	Texas A&M	S
45	Jordan Leggett	Clemson	TE
46	Malik McDowell	Michigan State	DL
47	Cooper Kupp	Eastern Washington	WR
48	Marcus Williams	Utah	S
49	Desmond King	Iowa	S
50	Davis Webb	California	QB
51	Zach Cunningham	Vanderbilt	LB
52	T.J. Watt	Wisconsin	EDGE
53	Dan Feeney	Indiana	G
54	Evan Engram	Ole Miss	TE
55	Zay Jones	East Carolina	WR
56	Carlos Henderson	Louisiana Tech	WR
57	Dawuane Smoot	Illinois	EDGE
58	Cordrea Tankersley	Clemson	CB
59	D'Onta Foreman	Texas	RB
60	Tim Williams	Alabama	EDGE
61	Joe Mathis	Washington	EDGE
62	Carl Lawson	Auburn	EDGE
63	Eddie Jackson	Alabama	S
64	Fabian Moreau	UCLA	CB
65	Brad Kaaya	Miami (Fla.)	QB
66	Raekwon McMillan	Ohio State	LB
67	Bucky Hodges	Virginia Tech	TE
68	Carroll Phillips	Illinois	EDGE
69	Antonio Garcia	Troy	T
70	Chidobe Awuzie	Colorado	CB
71	Jourdan Lewis	Michigan	CB
72	Chris Godwin	Penn State	WR
73	Pat Elflein	Ohio State	C
74	Rasul Douglas	West Virginia	CB
75	Marcus Maye	Florida	S
76	Howard Wilson	Houston	CB
77	Obi Melifonwu	UConn	S
78	Nathan Peterman	Pitt	QB
79	Dion Dawkins	Temple	G
80	Garrett Sickels	Penn State	EDGE
81	Chad Hansen	California	WR
82	JuJu Smith-Schuster	USC	WR
83	Amara Darboh	Michigan	WR
84	Curtis Samuel	Ohio State	WR
85	Jordan Willis	Kansas State	EDGE
86	DeMarcus Walker	Florida State	EDGE
87	Elijah Qualls	Washington	DL
88	Anthony Walker	Northwestern	LB
89	Roderick Johnson	Florida State	T
90	Ethan Pocic	LSU	C
91	Isaiah Ford	Virginia Tech	WR
92	Wayne Gallman	Clemson	RB
93	Jalen Reeves-Maybin	Tennessee	LB
94	Marlon Mack	South Florida	RB
95	Kevin King	Washington	CB
96	Vince Biegel	Wisconsin	LB
97	Cameron Sutton	Tennessee	CB
98	Corn Elder	Miami (Fla.)	CB
99	Samaje Perine	Oklahoma	RB
100	Chris Wormley	Michigan	DL

Quarterbacks

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Patrick Mahomes /

The big talk from media analysts—and I've been guilty of this too—is that the quarterback and offensive tackle classes are kind of weak. That's not fair. The quarterback class is incredibly deep. There just aren't day one starters like Jameis Winston or Andrew Luck. That doesn't make it a bad group; it's a group that isn't ripe yet.

Patrick Mahomes and DeShone Kizer have super rare traits. Mahomes has the strongest arm I've ever seen and is able to make unbelievable throws off-platform that few quarterbacks in the last 10 years of draft scouting have been able to. Kizer also has a strong arm and a big body, and he's a very good runner; he just needs time to develop.

Veteran scout Greg Gabriel told me a few weeks ago that "quarterback evaluation starts now," and he's right. So much of the final grade on a quarterback includes interviews, medicals, combine workouts, pro-day workouts and the wiring of the player. For Mahomes and Kizer, this week in Indy could shoot them to the top of my list.

2017 Quarterback Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Mitch Trubisky	North Carolina	15	Yes
2	DeShone Kizer	Notre Dame	16	Yes
3	Deshaun Watson	Clemson	28	Yes
4	Patrick Mahomes	Texas Tech	42	Yes
5	Davis Webb	California	50	Yes
6	Brad Kaaya	Miami (Fla.)	65	Yes
7	Nathan Peterman	Pittsburgh	78	Yes
8	Chad Kelly	Ole Miss	184	No
9	C.J. Beathard	Iowa	185	Yes
10	Joshua Dobbs	Tennessee	188	Yes
11	Jerod Evans	Virginia Tech	201	Yes
12	Cooper Rush	Central Michigan	239	Yes
13	Alek Torgersen	Penn	248	No
14	Seth Russell	Baylor	285	Yes
15	Brady Gustafson	Montana	333	No
16	Sefo Liufau	Colorado	347	Yes
17	Mitch Leidner	Minnesota	350	Yes
18	Trevor Knight	Texas A&M	354	Yes
19	Wes Lunt	Illinois	404	No
20	Zach Terrell	Western Michigan	410	No
21	Antonio Pipkin	Tiffin	411	No

Running Backs

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Christian McCaffrey /

This is the year to get a running back. 

An unreal five running backs hold legitimate first-round grades, and many teams will eye this year as the time to get a young back. Leonard Fournette is a rare, generational athlete at the position and should turn heads in Indianapolis, but he's not the only top-tier back. Dalvin Cook and Christian McCaffrey both offer excellent three-down skills. So do Joe Mixon and Alvin Kamara, but concerns about off-field issues for Mixon could push him out of the draft completely, while Kamara saw limited use in two seasons as a backup at Tennessee.

There is value in this group on Day 2 and even into Day 3. There can be starting running backs to come out of this group in Round 4 or 5, much like a Jordan Howard last year. One interesting subplot to the draft will be if teams jump on running backs early or wait given the depth. Some general managers may see a player like Marlon Mack as a third-round value and potential starter and opt to pass on a Dalvin Cook in Round 1 because of that.

No matter where the run on backs starts in the draft, we can be confident there will be many of them drafted.

2017 Running Back Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Leonard Fournette	LSU	2	Yes
2	Dalvin Cook	Florida State	18	Yes
3	Christian McCaffrey	Stanford	25	Yes
4	Joe Mixon	Oklahoma	26	No
5	Alvin Kamara	Tennessee	36	Yes
6	D'Onta Foreman	Texas	59	Yes
7	Wayne Gallman	Clemson	92	Yes
8	Marlon Mack	South Florida	94	Yes
9	Samaje Perine	Oklahoma	99	Yes
10	Brian Hill	Wyoming	106	Yes
11	Kareem Hunt	Toledo	116	Yes
12	Jeremy McNichols	Boise State	124	Yes
13	T.J. Logan	North Carolina	128	Yes
14	Elijah Hood	North Carolina	151	Yes
15	Jamaal Williams	BYU	159	Yes
16	Justin Davis	USC	175	Yes
17	James Conner	Pitt	195	Yes
18	Dare Ogunbowale	Wisconsin	199	Yes
19	Donnel Pumphrey	San Diego State	212	Yes
20	Corey Clement	Wisconsin	214	Yes
21	Joe Williams	Utah	223	Yes
22	Stanley Williams	Kentucky	226	Yes
23	Aaron Jones	UTEP	227	Yes
24	Elijah McGuire	UL Lafayette	236	Yes
25	Devine Redding	Indiana	240	Yes
26	De'Veon Smith	Michigan	242	Yes
27	Tarean Folston	Notre Dame	252	No
28	Joe Yearby	Miami (Fla.)	269	No
29	Matthew Dayes	NC State	279	Yes
30	Tarik Cohen	NC A&T	286	Yes
31	Jahad Thomas	Temple	294	Yes
32	De'Angelo Henderson	Coastal Carolina	340	Yes
33	Chris Carson	Oklahoma State	349	Yes
34	Rushel Shell III	West Virginia	364	Yes
35	Shock Linwood	Baylor	388	No

Wide Receivers

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Corey Davis /

Corey Davis and Mike Williams might not be on the level that A.J. Green and Julio Jones were in the 2011 draft class, but we're seeing two very dynamic playmakers sit atop the board at wide receiver this year. After that, the depth is staggering too.

Williams and Davis are one-two on the board right now with time left for a flip-flop at the top. The combine will be big for both, but since Davis is struggling with an ankle injury, the on-field tests won't help push him over Williams just yet.

Among the favorites from the next tier, Carlos Henderson is a burner with great downfield ability, and possession guys like Cooper Kupp and Zay Jones have the skills to be instant starters in the pros. The same could be said for Chad Hansen, Chris Godwin and sleepers like Taywan Taylor.

There's a good chance three wide receivers go in the first round (Davis, Williams and John Ross) with a solid 10 possible on Day 2. With 31 receivers drafted last year and 35 the year before, that's a safe bet to look at in 2017.

2017 Wide Receiver Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Mike Williams	Clemson	8	Yes
2	Corey Davis	Western Michigan	10	Yes
3	John Ross	Washington	37	Yes
4	Cooper Kupp	Eastern Washington	47	Yes
5	Zay Jones	East Carolina	55	Yes
6	Carlos Henderson	Louisiana Tech	56	Yes
7	Chris Godwin	Penn State	72	Yes
8	Chad Hansen	California	81	Yes
9	JuJu Smith-Schuster	USC	82	Yes
10	Amara Darboh	Michigan	83	Yes
11	Curtis Samuel	Ohio State	84	Yes
12	Isaiah Ford	Virginia Tech	91	Yes
13	Taywan Taylor	Western Kentucky	102	Yes
14	Noah Brown	Ohio State	109	Yes
15	Dede Westbrook	Oklahoma	113	Yes
16	Travin Dural	LSU	114	Yes
17	Trent Taylor	Louisiana Tech	122	Yes
18	Ryan Switzer	North Carolina	135	Yes
19	Malachi Dupre	LSU	138	Yes
20	Josh Reynolds	Texas A&M	139	Yes
21	Mack Hollins	North Carolina	144	Yes
22	Jehu Chesson	Michigan	148	Yes
23	Amba Etta-Tawo	Syracuse	149	Yes
24	KD Cannon	Baylor	154	Yes
25	Fred Ross	Mississippi State	156	Yes
26	Stacy Coley	Miami (Fla.)	158	Yes
27	Travis Rudolph	Florida State	162	Yes
28	Jalen Robinette	Air Force	164	Yes
29	Damore'ea Stringfellow	Ole Miss	165	No
30	Kermit Whitfield	Florida State	169	Yes
31	Isaiah McKenzie	Georgia	172	Yes
32	Derrick Griffin	Texas Southern	176	No
33	Josh Malone	Tennessee	177	Yes
34	Jamari Staples	Louisville	178	Yes
35	Ish Zamora	Baylor	180	No
36	James Quick	Louisville	182	Yes
37	Shelton Gibson	West Virginia	193	Yes
38	Jerome Lane	Akron	198	Yes
39	Artavis Scott	Clemson	215	Yes
40	ArDarius Stewart	Alabama	216	Yes
41	Speedy Noil	Texas A&M	220	Yes
42	Bug Howard	North Carolina	228	Yes
43	Rodney Adams	South Florida	233	Yes
44	Ricky Seals-Jones	Texas A&M	241	Yes
45	Michael Rector	Stanford	244	Yes
46	Kendrick Bourne	Eastern Washington	257	Yes
47	Robert Davis	Georgia State	274	Yes
48	Jesus "Bobo" Wilson	Florida State	278	Yes
49	Billy Brown	Shepherd	280	Yes
50	Corey Smith	Ohio State	283	No
51	Krishawn Hogan	Marian University	287	Yes
52	Noel Thomas	UConn	297	Yes
53	Victor Bolden	Oregon State	306	Yes
54	Quincy Adeboyejo	Ole Miss	307	Yes
55	Kenny Golladay	Northern Illinois	308	Yes
56	Gabe Marks	Washington State	310	Yes
57	Zach Pascal	Old Dominion	324	Yes
58	Darreus Rogers	USC	328	Yes
59	Drew Morgan	Arkansas	331	Yes
60	Keon Hatcher	Arkansas	336	Yes
61	Greg Ward Jr.	Houston	346	Yes
62	Keevan Lucas	Tulsa	361	Yes
63	Jhajuan Seales	Oklahoma State	395	No
64	Deon-Tay McManus	Marshall	402	No
65	Jordan Westerkamp	Nebraska	403	No

Tight Ends

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O.J. Howard /

Never before have I ranked two tight ends so high in a draft class. O.J. Howard and David Njoku aren't just special pass-catchers; both are special all-around players. This isn't an Eric Ebron-type pick. These are legitimate plug-and-play weapons with excellent blocking, receiving and run-after-catch talent. And both could be gone in the top 15.

Howard and Njoku are the cream of the crop, but this is a solid all-around group. Evan Engram and Jordan Leggett are very good flex tight end candidates, as is small-schooler Gerald Everett. Michigan star Jake Butt was considered a Day 2 prospect before suffering an ACL tear in the Orange Bowl, while Ashland junior Adam Shaheen is turning heads in pre-combine workouts.

Gauging pure athleticism is a great scouting tool for tight ends, and this group will put on a show in Indianapolis.

2017 Tight End Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	O.J. Howard	Alabama	12	Yes
2	David Njoku	Miami (Fla.)	13	Yes
3	Jordan Leggett	Clemson	45	Yes
4	Evan Engram	Ole Miss	54	Yes
5	Bucky Hodges	Virginia Tech	67	Yes
6	Jake Butt	Michigan	117	Yes
7	Adam Shaheen	Ashland	119	Yes
8	Gerald Everett	South Alabama	126	Yes
9	Michael Roberts	Toledo	141	Yes
10	Cole Hikutini	Louisville	146	Yes
11	Jeremy Sprinkle	Arkansas	160	Yes
12	Blake Jarwin	Oklahoma State	173	No
13	Eric Saubert	Drake	189	Yes
14	Pharaoh Brown	Oregon	210	Yes
15	Josiah Price	Michigan State	247	No
16	Darrell Daniels	Washington	293	Yes
17	Scott Orndoff	Pitt	311	Yes
18	George Kittle	Iowa	323	Yes
19	Daniel Brunskill	San Diego State	329	Yes
20	Cethan Carter	Nebraska	338	Yes
21	Jonnu Smith	Florida International	351	Yes
22	Hayden Plinke	UTEP	357	Yes
23	Phazahn Odom	Fordham	375	No
24	Tyrone Swoopes	Texas	397	No
25	Barrett Burns	Appalachian State	398	No

Offensive Tackles

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Ryan Ramczyk /

All year we've talked about the lack of top-tier talent at the offensive tackle position. That hasn't changed—no player ranks inside my top 15—but the depth of the group is starting to impress with more viewings.

Garett Bolles and Ryan Ramczyk are battling for that first tackle slot, and what's interesting is that both players were one-year starters at their FBS schools—Bolles at Utah and Ramczyk at Wisconsin. Each shows remarkable movement and toughness, which could propel them up the board before the draft. Ramczyk, who had surgery on a torn hip labrum, will not work out at the combine.

After the Big Two, Cam Robinson is the next on the list. He's an excellent run-blocker but struggles with consistency and movement against smaller, quicker ends. The Alabama star will also need to answer questions about a summer arrest on gun charges when interviewed by teams.

The sleepers of the group come from Temple and Western Michigan. Dion Dawkins may end up playing guard in the NFL, but his ability to anchor and drive-block makes him exciting, while Taylor Moton is moving up my board consistently due to his plug-and-play skills as a right tackle.

2017 Offensive Tackle Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Garett Bolles	Utah	22	Yes
2	Ryan Ramczyk	Wisconsin	24	Yes
3	Cam Robinson	Alabama	40	Yes
4	Antonio Garcia	Troy	69	Yes
5	Dion Dawkins	Temple	79	Yes
6	Roderick Johnson	Florida State	89	Yes
7	Adam Bisnowaty	Pitt	131	Yes
8	Taylor Moton	Western Michigan	134	Yes
9	Julie'n Davenport	Bucknell	145	Yes
10	Jermaine Eluemunor	Texas A&M	152	Yes
11	Conor McDermott	UCLA	161	Yes
12	Avery Gennesy	Texas A&M	168	Yes
13	J.J. Dielman	Utah	179	Yes
14	David Sharpe	Florida	202	Yes
15	Dan Skipper	Arkansas	203	Yes
16	Jon Heck	North Carolina	246	No
17	Jonah Pirsig	Minnesota	253	No
18	Clint Van Horn	Marshall	254	No
19	Collin Buchanan	Miami (Ohio)	259	Yes
20	Erik Magnuson	Michigan	261	No
21	Aviante Collins	TCU	289	Yes
22	Justin Senior	Mississippi State	292	Yes
23	Ethan Cooper	Indiana-Pa.	299	Yes
24	Levon Myers	Northern Illinois	314	No
25	Sam Tevi	Utah	322	Yes
26	Nate Theaker	Wayne State (Mich.)	342	Yes
27	Javarius Leamon	South Carolina State	343	Yes
28	Jerry Ugokwe	William & Mary	345	Yes
29	Will Holden	Vanderbilt	359	Yes
30	Cole Croston	Iowa	376	No
31	Andreas Knappe	UConn	381	No
32	Kent Perkins	Texas	389	No

Offensive Guards

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

Forrest Lamp

While not a sexy position, offensive guard has become an important add in Round 1 of the NFL draft. Players like Zack Martin have helped round out offensive lines in Dallas, while Brandon Scherff was a top-five pick in 2015.

There aren't any top-five picks here, but there are some potential first-rounders. That starts with Forrest Lamp. The left tackle from Western Kentucky has the length of an NFL guard and projects well there given his excellent agility and poise as a blocker. Lamp, like Martin and Scherff, has all the tools to be a great day one guard after playing left tackle in college.

Other top names include Dan Feeney from Indiana and Dorian Johnson from Pitt. I've heard from NFL scouts that both players could rise into the top 50 picks due to the demand for solid offensive linemen in the NFL right now.

Everyone loves to watch linemen run the 40-yard dash, but I'll focus mostly on short-area agility drills like the three-cone and on-field work where players' movement and balance are on display. The 40 and the bench press are good for TV but haven't proved to be great indicators of NFL success.

2017 Offensive Guard Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Forrest Lamp	Western Kentucky	38	Yes
2	Dan Feeney	Indiana	53	Yes
3	Dorian Johnson	Pitt	111	Yes
4	Zach Banner	USC	166	Yes
5	Damien Mama	USC	186	Yes
6	Nico Siragusa	San Diego State	211	Yes
7	Greg Pyke	Georgia	249	No
8	Sean Harlow	Oregon State	260	Yes
9	Isaac Asiata	Utah	276	Yes
10	Jessamen Dunker	Tennessee State	277	Yes
11	Chase Roullier	Wyoming	290	Yes
12	Erik Austell	Charleston Southern	291	Yes
13	Gavin Andrews	Oregon State	316	No
14	Caleb Peterson	North Carolina	317	No
15	Kyle Kalis	Michigan	327	No
16	Jordan Morgan	Kutztown	330	Yes
17	Ben Braden	Michigan	337	Yes
18	Danny Isidora	Miami (Fla.)	348	Yes
19	Corey Levin	Chattanooga	353	Yes
20	Cameron Lee	Illinois State	371	Yes
21	Alex Kozan	Auburn	409	No

Centers

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Pat Elflein /

Last year, Alabama's Ryan Kelly established himself as a legit Round 1 player. After the combine, all the talk in scouting circles was about him as a target for teams like the Indianapolis Colts and even the San Francisco 49ers in a trade-up scenario that ultimately netted Joshua Garnett. This year, there isn't a top-tier talent like Kelly, but two very good centers have the tools to make instant impacts.

Pat Elflein at Ohio State and Ethan Pocic from LSU are both impressive talents. Elflein is a shorter, more compact player, while Pocic is a hulking 6'6". While different in build, both are tough, nasty blockers who project as NFL starters.

After the two top players, the depth at center is equally impressive. Chad Wheeler and Tyler Orlosky could both be starting on NFL teams within two seasons and can be had after Day 2 of the draft.

We're accustomed to first-round centers after Kelly and Travis Frederick. While this year won't give us that top-tier draft pick, the depth is among the best in recent memory.

2017 Center Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Pat Elflein	Ohio State	73	Yes
2	Ethan Pocic	LSU	90	Yes
3	Chad Wheeler	USC	150	Yes
4	Tyler Orlosky	West Virginia	155	Yes
5	Kyle Fuller	Baylor	205	Yes
6	Jon Toth	Kentucky	335	Yes
7	Deyshawn Bond	Cincinnati	377	No
8	Cameron Tom	Southern Mississippi	385	No
9	Lucas Crowley	North Carolina	393	No
10	Jay Guillermo	Clemson	400	No

Defensive Line

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Jonathan Allen /

Alabama's Jonathan Allen is head and shoulders above the competition as the best defensive lineman in this year's class. That makes the combine important for him as he looks to maintain his status—and medicals will be huge for Allen given his string of shoulder surgeries in college—and also key for the players below him who are looking to come up the board.

The second tier of defensive linemen—Caleb Brantley, Montravius Adams, Malik McDowell and Elijah Qualls—combine impressive talents and tools but have question marks either about size, motor, wiring or scheme fit. McDowell, especially, is a gifted athlete in the mold of former first-rounder Arik Armstead and could see his stock rise in Indianapolis if he aces interviews with teams.

The real depth in this draft on defense comes at every position but defensive lineman, but there are plenty of diamond-in-the-rough prospects likely to be available in Round 3 or later. My favorite? Larry Ogunjobi of Charlotte, whose quick first step and stout build will remind many of Grady Jarrett.

2017 Defensive Line Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Jonathan Allen	Alabama	7	Yes
2	Montravius Adams	Auburn	34	Yes
3	Caleb Brantley	Florida	35	Yes
4	Malik McDowell	Michigan State	46	Yes
5	Elijah Qualls	Washington	87	Yes
6	Chris Wormley	Michigan	100	Yes
7	Carlos Watkins	Clemson	101	Yes
8	Dalvin Tomlinson	Alabama	108	Yes
9	Tanoh Kpassagnon	Villanova	112	Yes
10	Larry Ogunjobi	Charlotte	120	Yes
11	Vincent Taylor	Oklahoma State	125	Yes
12	Eddie Vanderdoes	UCLA	127	Yes
13	Nazair Jones	North Carolina	130	Yes
14	Jaleel Johnson	Iowa	133	Yes
15	Jarron Jones	Notre Dame	136	Yes
16	Charles Walker	Oklahoma	147	Yes
17	Ryan Glasgow	Michigan	170	Yes
18	DeAngelo Brown	Louisville	191	No
19	Davon Godchaux	LSU	219	Yes
20	D.J. Jones	Ole Miss	243	Yes
21	Isaac Rochell	Notre Dame	273	Yes
22	Ralph Green III	Indiana	284	No
23	Stevie Tu'ikolovatu	USC	295	Yes
24	Tanzel Smart	Tulane	302	Yes
25	Treyvon Hester	Toledo	309	Yes
26	Chunky Clements	Illinois	320	Yes
27	Jeremiah Ledbetter	Arkansas	355	Yes
28	Josh Tupou	Colorado	390	No
29	Devaroe Lawrence	Auburn	401	No
30	Harold Brantley	Missouri	408	No
31	Isaiah Golden	McNeese State	412	No

Edge-Rushers

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Myles Garrett /

The top overall player in the draft—Myles Garrett—headlines a stellar class of edge-rushers. While Garrett may be a generational athlete, there are legitimate seven pass-rushers with a top-32 grade, and a potential 10 of them could go in the first round when it's all said and done. That's unheard of.

Garrett should go first overall. Solomon Thomas could go top-five. Taco Charlton could go top-15. The top-tier talent is amazing, and the depth is also notable. If you can't find a pass-rusher in this class, fire your scouts.

What am I looking for from this group at the combine? As mentioned before, the drill work is a great tiebreaker. Looking at the cluster of players here—Takkarist McKinley, Ryan Anderson, Charles Harris, Derek Barnett—a leader can emerge as the top player in that group with what he does on the field and in meetings.

Edge-rushers aren't all about athleticism, but that is a very telling part of the evaluation. The 40 isn't a great scouting tool but does offer a cross-comparison among the players. As always, I find more value in three-cone drills, short shuttles and field work.

With 16 edge-rushers in the top 100, here's my list of the best overall.

2017 Edge-Rusher Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Myles Garrett	Texas A&M	1	Yes
2	Solomon Thomas	Stanford	6	Yes
3	Taco Charlton	Michigan	14	Yes
4	Charles Harris	Missouri	20	Yes
5	Derek Barnett	Tennessee	23	Yes
6	Takkarist McKinley	UCLA	30	Yes
7	Ryan Anderson	Alabama	31	Yes
8	T.J. Watt	Wisconsin	52	Yes
9	Dawuane Smoot	Illinois	57	Yes
10	Tim Williams	Alabama	60	Yes
11	Joe Mathis	Washington	61	Yes
12	Carl Lawson	Auburn	62	Yes
13	Carroll Phillips	Illinois	68	Yes
14	Garrett Sickels	Penn State	80	Yes
15	Jordan Willis	Kansas State	85	Yes
16	DeMarcus Walker	Florida State	86	Yes
17	Tarell Basham	Ohio	103	Yes
18	Tyus Bowser	Houston	104	Yes
19	Derek Rivers	Youngstown State	105	Yes
20	Daeshon Hall	Texas A&M	115	Yes
21	Trey Hendrickson	Florida Atlantic	137	Yes
22	Noble Nwachukwu	West Virginia	153	Yes
23	Bryan Cox	Florida	157	Yes
24	Matt Milano	Boston College	187	Yes
25	Ejuan Price	Pitt	208	Yes
26	Ifeadi Odenigbo	Northwestern	213	Yes
27	Avery Moss	Youngstown State	217	Yes
28	Deatrich Wise Jr.	Arkansas	218	Yes
29	Josh Carraway	TCU	231	Yes
30	Keionta Davis	Chattanooga	232	Yes
31	Tashawn Bower	LSU	258	Yes
32	Devonte Fields	Louisville	264	Yes
33	James Onwualu	Notre Dame	265	No
34	Dylan Cole	Missouri State	281	No
35	Lewis Neal	LSU	282	No
36	Fadol Brown	Ole Miss	304	Yes
37	Calvin Munson	San Diego State	315	No
38	Pita Taumoepenu	Utah	344	Yes
39	Al-Quadin Muhammad	Miami (Fla.)	356	Yes
40	Dylan Donahue	West Georgia	358	Yes
41	Ken Ekanem	Virginia Tech	363	Yes
42	Torrodney Prevot	Oregon	374	No
43	Joshua Posley	Ball State	378	No
44	Deon Hollins	UCLA	386	No
45	Kylie Fitts	Utah	391	No
46	Jordan Burton	Oklahoma State	394	No
47	Jamal Marcus	Akron	406	No

Linebackers

Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

Haason Reddick /

Think back to all the great linebackers drafted early in Round 1 recently—players like Luke Kuechly and Patrick Willis. Reuben Foster has the tools to be a similar kind of player. While he wouldn't have ranked ahead of a healthy Jaylon Smith or Myles Jack last year—both were special players—he's still a very, very talented linebacker and worthy of a top pick.

Watching linebackers at the combine means focusing hard on change-of-direction skills and range, both as a tackler and as a cover man. Even middle linebackers nowadays are asked to cover the middle of the field, so Foster and those challenging for his top spot must show the ability to not only come up and play the run but also get deep in coverage.

The 2017 linebacker class is a very good one. Foster reigns as the king of the castle, but there are starters to be found outside the top 10 picks here. Haason Reddick's performance at the Senior Bowl has his stock soaring, and a good week of testing could secure his status as a Round 1 player.

2017 Linebacker Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Reuben Foster	Alabama	3	Yes
2	Haason Reddick	Temple	21	Yes
3	Jarrad Davis	Florida	39	Yes
4	Zach Cunningham	Vanderbilt	51	Yes
5	Raekwon McMillan	Ohio State	66	Yes
6	Anthony Walker	Northwestern	88	Yes
7	Jalen Reeves-Maybin	Tennessee	93	Yes
8	Vince Biegel	Wisconsin	96	Yes
9	Paul Magloire Jr.	Arizona	118	No
10	Kendell Beckwith	LSU	121	Yes
11	Duke Riley	LSU	123	Yes
12	Elijah Lee	Kansas State	143	No
13	Josh Harvey-Clemons	Louisville	163	Yes
14	Steven Taylor	Houston	181	No
15	Alex Anzalone	Florida	183	Yes
16	Connor Harris	Lindenwood	200	Yes
17	Ben Gedeon	Michigan	206	Yes
18	Keith Kelsey	Louisville	229	Yes
19	Hardy Nickerson	Illinois	237	Yes
20	Nyeem Wartman-White	Penn State	250	No
21	Ukeme Eligwe	Georgia Southern	255	No
22	Ben Boulware	Clemson	256	Yes
23	Riley Bullough	Michigan State	266	Yes
24	Tanner Vallejo	Boise State	267	Yes
25	Jermaine Grace	Miami (Fla.)	271	No
26	Blair Brown	Ohio	303	Yes
27	Jayon Brown	UCLA	305	Yes
28	Harvey Langi	BYU	319	Yes
29	Brooks Ellis	Arkansas	360	Yes
30	Marquel Lee	Wake Forest	362	Yes
31	Kevin Davis	Colorado State	365	Yes
32	Brandon Bell	Penn State	396	No
33	Marcus Oliver	Indiana	407	No

Cornerbacks

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Marshon Lattimore /

NFL teams love cornerbacks, but in recent history they haven't drafted them super early. Patrick Peterson was the No. 5 overall pick in 2011, and last year Jalen Ramsey went in the same spot, but traditionally the first cornerback comes off the board around pick No. 10. This year, that won't be the case.

Marshon Lattimore is the man crush of many NFL scouts I've spoken to based on his size, speed and ball skills. Teams also like his teammate, Gareon Conley, and the duo at Florida (Teez Tabor, Quincy Wilson). Don't forget about Sidney Jones and Marlon Humphrey as potential Round 1 players either.

When April 27 finally gets here, a run on cornerbacks should be expected. The players mentioned above and USC's Adoree' Jackson are all contenders to hear their names called Thursday night.

It's not a top-heavy class, though. Starting-caliber cornerbacks can be found in subsequent rounds. There might be seven cornerbacks ranked in the first round, but there are another 10 ranked in the top three rounds after that.

2017 Cornerback Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Quincy Wilson	Florida	9	Yes
2	Marshon Lattimore	Ohio State	11	Yes
3	Gareon Conley	Ohio State	17	Yes
4	Sidney Jones	Washington	19	Yes
5	Teez Tabor	Florida	27	Yes
6	Tre'Davious White	LSU	32	Yes
7	Marlon Humphrey	Alabama	33	Yes
8	Adoree' Jackson	USC	43	Yes
9	Cordrea Tankersley	Clemson	58	Yes
10	Fabian Moreau	UCLA	64	Yes
11	Chidobe Awuzie	Colorado	70	Yes
12	Jourdan Lewis	Michigan	71	Yes
13	Rasul Douglas	West Virginia	74	Yes
14	Howard Wilson	Houston	76	Yes
15	Kevin King	Washington	95	Yes
16	Cameron Sutton	Tennessee	97	Yes
17	Corn Elder	Miami (Fla.)	98	Yes
18	Marquez White	Florida State	132	Yes
19	Ahkello Witherspoon	Colorado	140	Yes
20	Channing Stribling	Michigan	167	Yes
21	Cole Luke	Notre Dame	174	No
22	Damontae Kazee	San Diego State	190	Yes
23	Jalen Myrick	Minnesota	196	Yes
24	Jack Tocho	NC State	197	Yes
25	Jeremy Clark	Michigan	204	Yes
26	William Likely III	Maryland	207	Yes
27	Shaquill Griffin	Central Florida	221	Yes
28	Nate Hairston	Temple	222	Yes
29	Brian Allen	Utah	224	Yes
30	Sojourn Shelton	Wisconsin	230	Yes
31	Ezra Robinson	Tennessee State	263	Yes
32	Des Lawrence	North Carolina	268	No
33	Jeremy Cutrer	Middle Tennessee	270	No
34	Ashton Lampkin	Oklahoma State	275	Yes
35	Michael Tyson	Cincinnati	296	Yes
36	Brendan Langley	Lamar (Texas)	301	Yes
37	Breon Borders	Duke	313	No
38	Brad Watson	Wake Forest	318	No
39	Treston Decoud	Oregon State	334	Yes
40	Art Maulet	Memphis	366	Yes
41	Greg Mabin	Iowa	380	No

Safeties

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Malik Hooker /

Not since the 2010 draft—when Eric Berry and Earl Thomas came out—has a draft class seen two safeties like Jamal Adams and Malik Hooker. Because of the rare talent the two possess, it's safe to assume NFL teams will be all over them in the early picks of Round 1.

Adams and Hooker are special, but they aren't alone in the Round 1 talk. Jabrill Peppers and Budda Baker are legitimate prospects and will warrant conversations after the combine given their athleticism. Peppers, especially, is poised to blow up in Indianapolis given his all-around skill set. He will work out as a linebacker, but I rank him among the safeties.

The strength of the safety class is at free safety with Day 2 prospects like Eddie Jackson, Marcus Williams and Justin Evans all potential starters. Like the edge-rusher class, no team should have an excuse to miss on a safety this year.

2017 Safety Rankings

Rank	Player	School	Overall	Combine Invite
1	Jamal Adams	LSU	4	Yes
2	Malik Hooker	Ohio State	5	Yes
3	Jabrill Peppers	Michigan	29	Yes
4	Budda Baker	Washington	41	Yes
5	Justin Evans	Texas A&M	44	Yes
6	Marcus Williams	Utah	48	Yes
7	Desmond King	Iowa	49	Yes
8	Eddie Jackson	Alabama	63	Yes
9	Marcus Maye	Florida	75	Yes
10	Obi Melifonwu	UConn	77	Yes
11	John Johnson	Boston College	107	Yes
12	Lorenzo Jerome	Saint Francis (Pa.)	110	Yes
13	Josh Jones	NC State	129	Yes
14	Tedric Thompson	Colorado	142	Yes
15	Delano Hill	Michigan	171	Yes
16	Montae Nicholson	Michigan State	192	Yes
17	Jadar Johnson	Clemson	194	Yes
18	Rayshawn Jenkins	Miami (Fla.)	225	Yes
19	Johnathan "Rudy" Ford	Auburn	234	Yes
20	Nathan Gerry	Nebraska	235	Yes
21	David Jones	Richmond	245	No
22	Jordan Sterns	Oklahoma State	251	No
23	Tony Conner	Ole Miss	262	No
24	Xavier Woods	Louisiana Tech	298	Yes
25	Randall Goforth	UCLA	312	No
26	Demetrious Cox	Michigan State	321	No
27	Shalom Luani	Washington State	339	Yes
28	Jamal Carter	Miami (Fla.)	341	Yes
29	Damarius Travis	Minnesota	352	Yes
30	Chuck Clark	Virginia Tech	367	Yes
31	Ahmad Thomas	Oklahoma	379	No
32	Nate Andrews	Florida State	382	No
33	Weston Steelhammer	Air Force	387	No
34	Orion Stewart	Baylor	399	No
35	Quincy Mauger	Georgia	405	No