2010 Draft Prospect: Brandon Spikes

Last season wasn’t a very good year for the Eagles linebackers. There was a lot of rotation going on and the Eagles couldn’t seem to find a group of players that could get the job done. When Stewart Bradley went down last year, the Eagles struggled to fill his shoes. He will be returning this year and the Eagles linebackers will be looking for redemption. To help solidify the lineup, they will look to bring someone in from the draft to help out. Brandon Spikes could be that player.

Spikes broke onto the season in 2007 where he recorded a total of 131 tackles for Florida in his sophomore season. His numbers declined from there but he finished his career with a total of 285 tackles, six sacks, six interceptions, a forced fumble, and scored four touchdowns. He’s one of the top rated inside linebackers in this years class and is a solid player in the middle at 6-3 260 pounds.

At the NFL Combine, Spikes didn’t run a very good 40-yard dash time so his stock has declined a bit. People are worried about his closing speed, but it didn’t seem like it was much of a problem while he was in college. I’m sure he wants to improve his footwork and become quicker, but I’m not overly concerned about his combine time.

Something that does worry me a bit and is something the Eagles will have to evaluate is Spikes’ attitude. He’s been known to have issues off the field, but hopefully those don’t carry over into his NFL career.

Although Spikes could go in the first round, I think it seems much more likely that he’ll be picked up at some point in the second round. With two second round picks (currently), the Eagles could look to take him somewhere on Friday.

I think Spikes has a lot of talent, but I’m not certain that his attitude will adjust from the one he had at Florida. The Eagles linebackers definitely need help and bringing in Spikes would give them more options.

They could move Bradley out of the middle if they wanted, as this is something that is talked about often. Personally, I don’t like Spikes in the first round or at 37, but if he falls to their later second round pick I think it would be a good pick up.

What are your thoughts on Brandon Spikes?