2010 NFL Draft: Ndamukong Suh vs Brandon Graham

I am sure everybody that does not live under a rock has heard every media outlet singing praises of Suh.

"Suh is the most dominating defensive player I have ever seen."

"Suh will be the No. 1 pick overall, and rightfully so."

Etc. Etc. Etc.

Well I bleed Maize and Blue. And we just so happen to have a defensive player by the name of Brandon Graham on our team that is entering the draft.

Considering I have never heard of a comparison between the two, I am taking the liberty of doing so. So let's get to it.

We will start off with Ndamukong Suh out of Nebraska.

Suh just completed his fifth year at Nebraska at the DT position. His last year there he has had staggering numbers all across the board.

Games PLayed ------------- 14  (career 54)

Total Tackles -------------- 85  (career 214)

Tackles for a loss----------- 24  (career 57)

Sacks --------------------- 12  (career 24)

Interceptions-------------- 1    (career 4)

Forced Fumbles------------- 1   (career 3)

Hurries---------------------  28  (career 41)

Blocked Kicks--------------- 3   (career 6)

Touchdowns---------------- 0   (career 2)

There is no doubt that Suh is a phenomenal player. He is a disruptive force on the D line and he is going to have one heck of a career in the NFL. But let's do a little comparison, shall we?

Brandon Graham is a fourth year senior out of Michigan. He played in all but four games in his collegiate career. So here is a look at his stats (previous year as well as career totals).

Games Played-------------- 12   (career 46)

Total Tackles -------------- 64   (career 138)

Tackles for a loss ---------- 29   (career 63)

Sacks ----------------------11   (career 32)

Interceptions--------------  N/A (career N/A)

Forced Fumbles------------- 2     (career 8)

Hurries---------------------  1     (career 3)

Blocked Kicks--------------- 2     (career 2)

Touchdowns---------------- 1     (career 1)

So to the average guy, Suh might ultimately seem like the better choice on paper. However, there is a few things to consider. Suh was a fifth year senior so he played in eight more games than Graham did to achieve his career totals. In eight fewer games Graham obtained eight more sacks and six more tackles for loss.

The other thing to consider is Suh had 4.5 sacks in his last collegiate game (against Texas)...which is a phenomenal feat to the naked eye, but a closer look shows that 4.5 sack game was against a Texas team that did not have a great offensive line.

Graham was dominant in the Senior Bowl. He achieved two sacks and a forced fumble and was named MVP.

So what does this tell us?

Well IMO, I think "The most dominant defensive player" title should be attached to Brandon Graham. All due respect to Suh.