2012 NFL Draft Updated Position Rankings

With the NFL draft season heating up, here's the latest take on the top 200 players eligible for the 2012 NFL draft, with breakdowns by position.

No Matt Barkley and no Landry Jones means someone is set to rise at quarterback, but do any of the players after Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III deserve a first-round grade?

Find out which positions are strongest and weakest with this updated look at every position and its top players.

Quarterbacks

The 2012 quarterback class has been weakened by the decision of Matt Barkley to return to USC, but there are still a number of potential franchise quarterbacks in this class.

Obviously, Andrew Luck is a name we all know. Luck is in an elite category of prospects and should be the no-brainer first overall pick in the 2012 draft. Behind Luck are two juniors who will make things interesting.

Robert Griffin III from Baylor wrapped up a Heisman Trophy, a 10-win season and a bowl win. He's expected to enter the draft and will be a top-five pick if he does declare. 

One name to watch is Nick Foles from Arizona. He's big, had a 69 percent completion percentage and has the arm every scout loves.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
1	Andrew Luck	QB	1	Stanford	rJr	6-4	235	4.73
2	Robert Griffin III	QB	2	Baylor	rJr	6-2	220	4.52
32	Nick Foles	QB	3	Arizona	rSr	6-5	240	4.96
46	Brock Osweiler	QB	4	Arizona State	Jr	6-7	240	4.83
49	Kirk Cousins	QB	5	Michigan State	rSr	6-3	205	4.8
65	Ryan Tannehill	QB	6	Texas A&M	rSr	6-4	222	4.65
85	Ryan Lindley	QB	7	San Diego State	rSr	6-4	230	4.92
100	Brandon Weeden	QB	8	Oklahoma State	rSr	6-4	218	4.92
112	Russell Wilson	QB	9	Wisconsin	rSr	5-11	210	4.59
135	Case Keenum	QB	10	Houston	rSr	6-1	210	4.94
161	Chandler Harnish	QB	11	Northern Illinois	rSr	6-2	220	4.72
191	Kellen Moore	QB	12	Boise State	rSr	6-0	195	4.98
192	Aaron Corp	QB	13	Richmond	rSr	6-3	205	4.76
197	Austin Davis	QB	14	Southern Mississippi	rSr	6-1	221	4.78
241	Jordan Jefferson	QB	15	LSU	Sr	6-4	223	4.64
257	Dominique Davis	QB	16	East Carolina	rSr	6-3	212	4.65
281	Patrick Witt	QB	17	Yale	rSr	6-3	220	4.87

Running Backs

The 2012 draft class is unique in that two running backs show up among my top 10 players—a testament to their talent, as well as the overall lack of elite prospects from this class.

Trent Richardson and Lamar Miller have received considerable praise in this space all season, so allow me to introduce you to a sleeper first-round pick—Chris Polk of Washington.

Polk has great size and is a true feature-back prospect. His strength, vision and ability as a receiver make him a very exciting late first-rounder.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
3	Trent Richardson	RB	1	Alabama	Jr	5-11	224	4.52
10	*Lamar Miller	RB	2	Miami (Fla.)	rSo	5-11	212	4.42
30	*Chris Polk	RB	3	Washington	rJr	5-11	222	4.48
60	*David Wilson	RB	4	Virginia Tech	Jr	5-10	205	4.42
63	Doug Martin	RB	5	Boise State	rSr	5-09	210	4.48
81	*LaMichael James	RB	6	Oregon	rJr	5-09	195	4.42
91	*Bernard Pierce	RB	7	Temple	Jr	6-0	218	4.59
97	Isaiah Pead	RB	8	Cincinnati	Sr	5-10	200	4.42
109	Dan Herron	RB	9	Ohio State	rSr	5-10	208	4.52
111	*Ronnie Hillman	RB	10	San Diego State	rSo	5-10	190	4.49
115	Cyrus Gray	RB	11	Texas A&M	Sr	5-10	200	4.47
126	Terrance Ganaway	RB	12	Baylor	rSr	5-11	240	4.62
133	*Robert Turbin	RB	13	Utah State	rJr	5-09	216	4.57
139	Vick Ballard	RB	14	Mississippi State	Sr	5-11	220	4.58
145	Brandon Bolden	RB	15	Mississippi	Sr	5-11	221	4.52
154	Jeff Demps	RB	16	Florida	Sr	5-08	191	4.26
160	Tauren Poole	RB	17	Tennessee	Sr	5-10	215	4.56
176	Davin Meggett	RB	18	Maryland	Sr	5-08	215	4.56
186	Bobby Rainey	RB	19	Western Kentucky	rSr	5-07	205	4.49
189	Chris Rainey	RB	20	Florida	rSr	5-08	175	4.36
195	*Darrell Scott	RB	21	South Florida	rJr	6-1	240	4.48
217	Marc Tyler	RB	22	Southern California	rSr	5-10	230	4.59
239	Mike Harris	RB	23	Murray State	Sr	5-10	198	4.64
240	*Bryce Brown	RB	24	Kansas State	rSo	6-0	220	4.52
244	Adonis Thomas	RB	25	Toledo	rSr	5-10	185	4.45
285	Foswhitt Whittaker	RB	26	Texas	rSr	5-10	202	4.49
300	Bryce Beall	RB	27	Houston	Sr	5-10	215	4.6

Fullbacks

Only four pure fullbacks were drafted during the 2011 NFL draft, and that's a pretty good year for a position used by less than half of the NFL. The 2012 class will feature roughly the same number.

A favorite player of mine in this group is Cody Johnson of Texas. Prior to 2011, Johnson lined up at tailback and was used in a single-back set. He's moved to the role of fullback this season and showed remarkable burst, power and vision.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
177	Chad Diehl	FB	1	Clemson	rSr	6-2	260	4.72
190	Cody Johnson	FB	2	Texas	rSr	5-11	252	4.72
212	Evan Rodriguez	FB	3	Temple	rSr	6-2	250	4.67
264	Drake Dunsmore	FB	4	Northwestern	rSr	6-2	235	4.74
272	Devon Ramsay	FB	5	North Carolina	rSr	6-2	250	4.68
297	Joe Suhey	FB	6	Penn State	rSr	6-1	222	4.76

Wide Receivers

The wide receiver position has seen some back-and-forth between the top two players—Alshon Jeffery and Justin Blackmon—but we're back to our old standby at No. 1.

Jeffery brings the size and deep-ball ability that Blackmon doesn't, which gives him the nod at the top. Both are talented, and each does different things well, but Jeffery is the player I prefer.

The remainder of the receiver class is very solid. Michael Floyd looks like a future starter and solid intermediate option, Kendall Wright is a freakish deep threat and return option, while Mohamed Sanu is one of the more underrated overall athletes in the class.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
5	*Alshon Jeffery	WR	1	South Carolina	Jr	6-4	229	4.56
6	*Justin Blackmon	WR	2	Oklahoma State	rJr	6-1	215	4.54
12	Michael Floyd	WR	3	Notre Dame	Sr	6-3	224	4.54
21	Kendall Wright	WR	4	Baylor	Sr	5-10	190	4.42
37	Nick Toon	WR	5	Wisconsin	rSr	6-2	220	4.52
38	*Mohamed Sanu	WR	6	Rutgers	Jr	6-2	215	4.57
45	*Rueben Randle	WR	7	LSU	Jr	6-3	208	4.57
50	Dwight Jones	WR	8	North Carolina	Sr	6-4	225	4.53
78	Brian Quick	WR	9	Appalachian State	rSr	6-4	216	4.63
93	DeVier Posey	WR	10	Ohio State	Sr	6-1	210	4.54
94	Jarius Wright	WR	11	Arkansas	Sr	5-10	180	4.34
101	*Chris Givens	WR	12	Wake Forest	rJr	6-0	195	4.52
102	Marvin McNutt	WR	13	Iowa	rSr	6-2	215	4.52
107	T.Y. Hilton	WR	14	Florida International	Sr	5-10	184	4.48
118	*Stephen Hill	WR	15	Georgia Tech	Jr	6-4	206	4.57
122	Ryan Broyles	WR	16	Oklahoma	rSr	5-10	188	4.52
124	*Tommy Streeter	WR	17	Miami (Fla.)	rJr	6-4	215	4.49
129	A.J. Jenkins	WR	18	Illinois	Sr	6-0	190	4.49
134	Marvin Jones	WR	19	California	Sr	6-2	202	4.53
153	Jeff Fuller	WR	20	Texas A&M	Sr	6-3	220	4.52
167	Jordan White	WR	21	Western Michigan	rSr	6-0	215	4.54
168	Marquis Maze	WR	22	Alabama	rSr	5-08	184	4.49
169	Joe Adams	WR	23	Arkansas	Sr	5-11	190	4.38
172	B.J. Cunningham	WR	24	Michigan State	rSr	6-2	216	4.59
181	Rishard Matthews	WR	25	Nevada	Sr	6-1	215	4.54
194	LaVon Brazill	WR	26	Ohio	rSr	5-10	192	4.49
196	Derek Moye	WR	27	Penn State	rSr	6-4	210	4.54
209	Keshawn Martin	WR	28	Michigan State	Sr	5-10	190	4.44
214	Jermaine Kearse	WR	29	Washington	Sr	6-1	208	4.5
224	Travis Benjamin	WR	30	Miami (Fla.)	Sr	5-10	175	4.36
227	Greg Childs	WR	31	Arkansas	Sr	6-3	217	4.56
230	Lance Lewis	WR	32	East Carolina	Sr	6-1	209	4.5
237	Gerell Robinson	WR	33	Arizona State	Sr	6-3	222	4.58
245	Jarrett Boykin	WR	34	Virginia Tech	Sr	6-2	218	4.64
278	Juron Criner	WR	35	Arizona	Sr	6-4	215	4.62

Tight Ends

The 2012 NFL draft class of tight ends doesn't feature a rock-star prospect, but there is one guy worth taking a hard look at in the first round. That would be Orson Charles of Georgia.

Charles is a very good athlete who fits the mold of a Jimmy Graham-style player. He's not a great blocker, but he makes up for it with wide receiver-like speed and hands. His concentration, route-running skills and speed will make him dangerous as a receiver.

Outside of Charles, Clemson's Dwayne Allen is a keeper. Allen is no slouch himself when it comes to production and pass-catching ability. He could be a sleeper as a first-rounder.

Keep an eye on Tyler Eifert from Notre Dame. He's a junior and unlikely to enter, but if he does he'll be our No. 1 tight end.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
34	*Orson Charles	TE	1	Georgia	Jr	6-3	242	4.64
42	*Dwayne Allen	TE	2	Clemson	rJr	6-4	255	4.76
56	Coby Fleener	TE	3	Stanford	rSr	6-6	245	4.77
104	Ladarius Green	TE	4	La.-Lafayette	Sr	6-6	236	4.64
120	Michael Egnew	TE	5	Missouri	Sr	6-5	245	4.6
151	Brian Linthicum	TE	6	Michigan State	rSr	6-4	245	4.82
170	Rhett Ellison	TE	7	Southern California	rSr	6-5	250	4.76
183	Kevin Koger	TE	8	Michigan	Sr	6-4	258	4.78
198	Kavario Middleton	TE	9	Montana	Sr	6-5	248	4.87
202	Anthony Miller	TE	10	California	Sr	6-3	260	4.88
221	George Bryan	TE	11	North Carolina State	rSr	6-5	265	5.14
254	Nick Provo	TE	12	Syracuse	rSr	6-3	249	4.78
262	Deangelo Peterson	TE	13	LSU	Sr	6-3	236	4.73
273	David Paulson	TE	14	Oregon	rSr	6-3	242	4.82

Offensive Tackles

There is no Joe Thomas or Jake Long in this class, but that doesn't mean the 2012 draft won't feature multiple offensive tackles drafted in the first round.

Matt Kalil of USC will leave school early and figures to be a top-five pick. Kalil could see himself drafted as high as No. 2 overall, depending on how the draft order looks. Kalil is joined by top-10 talents Riley Reiff and Jonathan Martin as three possible tackles drafted in the first 10 picks.

The first round should see as many as five tackles drafted, with another impressive group of players hitting the second tier for those looking in Round 2.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
7	*Matt Kalil	OT	1	Southern California	rJr	6-6	295	5.05
8	*Riley Reiff	OT	2	Iowa	rJr	6-6	300	4.94
11	*Jonathan Martin	OT	3	Stanford	rJr	6-6	305	5.29
31	Mike Adams	OT	4	Ohio State	Sr	6-6	320	5.28
43	Zebrie Sanders	OT	5	Florida State	Sr	6-5	307	5.25
51	Andrew Datko	OT	6	Florida State	Sr	6-6	321	5.23
53	Nate Potter	OT	7	Boise State	rSr	6-6	298	5.18
82	Brandon Mosley	OT	8	Auburn	Sr	6-5	305	5.22
98	Levy Adcock	OT	9	Oklahoma State	Sr	6-5	322	5.23
110	Tony Bergstrom	OT	10	Utah	Sr	6-5	315	5.29
125	Matt McCants	OT	11	UAB	rSr	6-6	295	5.26
137	Mitchell Schwartz	OT	12	California	rSr	6-5	318	5.36
156	Tom Compton	OT	13	South Dakota	rSr	6-6	312	5.15
157	Matt Reynolds	OT	14	Brigham Young	rSr	6-4	305	5.28
174	Markus Zusevics	OT	15	Iowa	rSr	6-5	300	5.08
201	James Carmon	OT	16	Mississippi State	Sr	6-7	330	5.43
205	Jeff Allen	OT	17	Illinois	Sr	6-4	315	5.26
223	Jeff Adams	OT	18	Columbia	Sr	6-6	305	5.02
248	James Brown	OT	19	Troy	rSr	6-4	312	5.32
252	Landon Walker	OT	20	Clemson	rSr	6-5	305	5.18
271	Mike Ryan	OT	21	Connecticut	rSr	6-5	335	5.38
282	Don Barclay	OT	22	West Virginia	rSr	6-4	310	5.27
287	John Cullen	OT	23	Utah	Sr	6-4	300	5.23
288	Donald Stephenson	OT	24	Oklahoma	rSr	6-5	307	5.34

Offensive Guards

No offensive guard in my 10 years of scouting has ever been ranked as high as David DeCastro. He is that good, but this is also a class that lacks elite players outside the top five.

DeCastro will be a plug-and-play starter at the next level. He's as game-ready as any offensive lineman in this class and will be an instant upgrade for whichever NFL team selects him.

Outside of DeCastro, the guard class is very average. There are potential starters in Cordy Glenn (if he doesn't move to tackle) and a slew of players in Round 2 who could step in as rookies.

A few players to keep an eye on this spring would be Brandon Washington and Kevin Zeitler. Both have the potential to move up with good workouts. 

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
9	*David DeCastro	OG	1	Stanford	rJr	6-5	312	5.22
26	Cordy Glenn	OG	2	Georgia	Sr	6-5	348	5.28
55	*Brandon Washington	OG	3	Miami (Fla.)	Jr	6-4	320	5.36
59	Kevin Zeitler	OG	4	Wisconsin	Sr	6-4	318	5.26
76	Kelechi Osemele	OG	5	Iowa State	rSr	6-5	347	5.4
90	Amini Silatolu	OG	6	Midwestern State	Sr	6-3	324	5.42
113	Senio Kelemete	OG	7	Washington	Sr	6-3	302	5.23
144	Lucas Nix	OG	8	Pittsburgh	Sr	6-5	310	5.18
178	Ryan Miller	OG	9	Colorado	rSr	6-8	298	5.32
187	Antoine McClain	OG	10	Clemson	Sr	6-5	335	5.34
207	Jaymes Brooks	OG	11	Virginia Tech	rSr	6-2	308	5.05
235	Rishaw Johnson	OG	12	California (PA)	rSr	6-4	308	5.18
247	Derek Dennis	OG	13	Temple	rSr	6-3	328	5.45
253	Desmond Wynn	OG	14	Rutgers	rSr	6-5	295	5.14
261	Joe Looney	OG	15	Wake Forest	Sr	6-3	320	5.02
289	Brandon Brooks	OG	16	Miami (Ohio)	rSr	6-4	343	5.32

Centers

The 2012 class of centers is very good, with Peter Konz still looking like a first-rounder even after missing time at the end of the regular season. Konz carries a similar grade to 2011's Mike Pouncey.

After Konz, there is no shortage of talent. Michael Brewster, who missed five games to suspension, could be a rookie starter. David Molk and Ben Jones also bring a good amount of potential and could be impact players. 

There is little risk with this group of linemen. Whichever NFL team pulls the trigger on these players will find quality interior linemen.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
24	*Peter Konz	C	1	Wisconsin	rJr	6-5	315	5.16
70	Ben Jones	C	2	Georgia	Sr	6-3	316	5.26
123	Michael Brewster	C	3	Ohio State	Sr	6-4	305	5.17
128	David Molk	C	4	Michigan	rSr	6-2	288	5.18
171	Quentin Saulsberry	C	5	Mississippi State	rSr	6-2	300	5.16
185	Philip Blake	C	6	Baylor	Sr	6-2	320	5.26
188	William Vlachos	C	7	Alabama	rSr	6-1	295	5.25
250	Moe Petrus	C	8	Connecticut	rSr	6-2	302	5.04
265	Garth Gerhart	C	9	Arizona State	rSr	6-1	302	5.23
279	David Snow	C	10	Texas	Sr	6-4	295	5.28
283	D.J. Hall	C	11	Texas State	rSr	6-1	305	5.4

4-3 Defensive Ends

The increased role of the 3-4 defense makes scouting the defensive end, defensive tackle and outside linebacker much more fun, but much harder to classify. Here are the rankings of players who fit well in a 4-3 defense.

Whitney Mercilus and Nick Perry headline a group of athletic pass-rushers who can really get busy off the edge. Both underclassmen will be drafted in the first round, with Perry showcasing his impeccable stats and Mercilus riding an impressive 2011 campaign.

Melvin Ingram projects best as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense, but he's played almost every position in the South Carolina front seven and could stick at defensive end.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
14	*Nick Perry	DE	1	Southern California	rJr	6-3	250	4.64
16	Melvin Ingram	DE	2	South Carolina	rSr	6-2	276	4.82
19	*Whitney Mercilus	DE	3	Illinois	rJr	6-4	265	4.68
33	*Chandler Jones	DE	4	Syracuse	rJr	6-5	265	4.78
39	*Sam Montgomery	DE	5	LSU	rSo	6-4	245	4.56
48	Andre Branch	DE	6	Clemson	rSr	6-4	260	4.77
52	Vinny Curry	DE	7	Marshall	rSr	6-3	263	4.74
95	Jake Bequette	DE	8	Arkansas	rSr	6-5	271	4.62
116	Cam Johnson	DE	9	Virginia	Sr	6-3	270	4.76
127	Jacquies Smith	DE	10	Missouri	Sr	6-3	255	4.62
143	Trevor Guyton	DE	11	California	Sr	6-3	280	4.86
164	Malik Jackson	DE	12	Tennessee	Sr	6-5	270	4.82
165	Shea McClellin	DE	13	Boise State	rSr	6-3	255	4.74
208	*Olivier Vernon	DE	14	Miami (Fla.)	Jr	6-3	265	4.73
229	Jack Crawford	DE	15	Penn State	Sr	6-5	273	4.79
258	Julian Miller	DE	16	West Virginia	rSr	6-3	268	4.76
268	Tyrone Crawford	DE	17	Boise State	Sr	6-4	273	4.75
277	Cordarro Law	DE	18	Southern Mississippi	rSr	6-2	261	4.67
284	*Donte Paige-Moss	DE	19	North Carolina	Jr	6-4	260	4.67
286	Frank Alexander	DE	20	Oklahoma	rSr	6-3	255	4.82

3-4 Defensive Ends

The 3-4 defense is proving to be more than a fad. Currently six of the best teams in the NFL all run a 3-4 defense, including the top two seeds in each conference.

As the 3-4 becomes more widespread and as more teams find ways to mix the disciplines of the 3-4 and 4-3 together, the need for big-bodied defensive ends who can control two gaps becomes more important.

The 2012 draft class of 3-4 prospects at defensive end won't disappoint. There may not be a J.J. Watt-type player, but this class is deep from top to bottom.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
20	Devon Still	DT	1	Penn State	rSr	6-4	310	5.06
26	Jared Crick	DE	2	Nebraska	rSr	6-4	285	4.82
28	*Fletcher Cox	DT	3	Mississippi State	Jr	6-4	295	4.96
42	Quinton Coples	DT	4	North Carolina	Sr	6-6	285	4.76
56	Billy Winn	DE	5	Boise State	rSr	6-3	300	4.89
81	Cam Johnson	DE	6	Virginia	Sr	6-3	270	4.76
100	*Marcus Forston	DT	7	Miami (Fla.)	rJr	6-3	300	4.95
104	*Kawann Short	DT	8	Purdue	rJr	6-3	310	5.22
120	Kendall Reyes	DT	9	Connecticut	rSr	6-4	296	4.99
121	Kheeston Randall	DT	10	Texas	Sr	6-5	305	5.07
123	Trevor Guyton	DE	11	California	Sr	6-3	280	4.86
136	DaJohn Harris	DT	12	Southern California	rSr	6-4	310	5.16
156	Jaye Howard	DT	13	Florida	rSr	6-3	303	5.02

4-3 Defensive Tackles

The defensive tackle position has been rich in recent NFL drafts, with guys like Ndamukong Suh, Gerald McCoy and Marcell Dareus dominating the top of the first round.

The 2012 class doesn't have any one player who is on that same level, but there is a good group of middle-to-late first-round prospects worth taking a hard look at.

If any player has a chance to move up his stock this year, it's Jerel Worthy of Michigan State. He has an ideal first step and is quick enough off the ball to cause problems in the backfield.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
22	Jerel Worthy	DT	1	Michigan State	rJr	6-3	310	5.04
23	Devon Still	DT	2	Penn State	rSr	6-4	310	5.06
27	Dontari Poe	DT	3	Memphis	rJr	6-5	350	5.36
35	Fletcher Cox	DT	4	Mississippi State	Jr	6-4	295	4.96
40	Quinton Coples	DT	5	North Carolina	Sr	6-6	285	4.76
44	Brandon Thompson	DT	6	Clemson	Sr	6-2	310	5.04
67	Josh Chapman	DT	7	Alabama	rSr	6-1	310	5.02
69	Alameda Ta’amu	DT	8	Washington	Sr	6-3	337	5.22
73	Sylvester Williams	DT	9	North Carolina	Jr	6-3	320	5.19
83	Kawann Short	DT	10	Purdue	rJr	6-3	310	5.22
96	Kendall Reyes	DT	11	Connecticut	rSr	6-4	296	4.99
121	Marcus Forston	DT	12	Miami (Fla.)	rJr	6-3	300	4.95
130	Kheeston Randall	DT	13	Texas	Sr	6-5	305	5.07
141	Mike Martin	DT	14	Michigan	Sr	6-1	304	4.98
149	DaJohn Harris	DT	15	Southern California	rSr	6-4	310	5.16
162	Brett Roy	DT	16	Nevada	Sr	6-3	280	4.88
166	Nicolas Jean-Baptiste	DT	17	Baylor	rSr	6-2	335	5.06
206	Mike Daniels	DT	18	Iowa	rSr	6-0	280	4.84
210	Derek Wolfe	DT	19	Cincinnati	Sr	6-5	300	5.16
216	Jaye Howard	DT	20	Florida	rSr	6-3	303	5.02
228	Hebron Fangupo	DT	21	Brigham Young	rSr	6-1	331	5.08
251	Matt Conrath	DT	22	Virginia	rSr	6-7	280	4.84
256	Christian Tupou	DT	23	Southern California	rSr	6-2	300	5.06
276	Tydreke Powell	DT	24	North Carolina	rSr	6-3	310	5.22

Nose Tackles

Drafting a nose tackle is never as easy as it sounds. The criteria for the position change depending on the team and the scheme they have developed. It's no longer as simple as drafting the biggest defensive lineman you can find.

The 2012 class has talented players ready to jump in to the "0-technique" position once in the NFL. Memphis junior Dontari Poe headlines a solid, but small, group of very big men.

Overall	Player	Pos	Pos Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
40	*Dontari Poe	DT	1	Memphis	rJr	6-5	350	5.36
60	*Sylvester Williams	DT	2	North Carolina	Jr	6-3	320	5.19
65	Alameda Ta’amu	DT	3	Washington	Sr	6-3	337	5.22
79	Josh Chapman	DT	4	Alabama	rSr	6-1	310	5.02
129	Mike Martin	DT	5	Michigan	Sr	6-1	304	4.98
187	Nicolas Jean-Baptiste	DT	6	Baylor	rSr	6-2	335	5.06

4-3 Outside Linebackers

The 2011 NFL draft saw a 4-3 outside linebacker drafted No. 2 overall when the Denver Broncos made Von Miller of Texas A&M their pick. While Miller does move around a lot, he's still technically a 4-3 'backer. There is no Von Miller in this class. Sorry.

The lack of an elite prospect is cushioned by a very solid class otherwise. There are three outside linebackers ranked in the top 15—a rarity for the nature of this position—with a solid group of players filling out Rounds 2 and 3.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
18	Zach Brown	OLB	1	North Carolina	Sr	6-2	230	4.48
54	Lavonte David	OLB	2	Nebraska	Sr	6-1	225	4.62
58	Keenan Robinson	OLB	3	Texas	rSr	6-3	240	4.68
62	Bobby Wagner	OLB	4	Utah State	Sr	6-0	232	4.69
75	Sean Spence	OLB	5	Miami (Fla.)	Sr	5-11	224	4.58
88	Travis Lewis	OLB	6	Oklahoma	rSr	6-2	228	4.72
92	Tyler Nielsen	OLB	7	Iowa	rSr	6-3	235	4.54
105	Nigel Bradham	OLB	8	Florida State	Sr	6-2	240	4.67
119	*Terrell Manning	OLB	9	North Carolina State	rJr	6-3	225	4.63
140	Josh Kaddu	OLB	10	Oregon	Sr	6-3	236	4.67

3-4 Outside Linebackers

The 3-4 outside linebacker position is one of the most fun to scout, but also one of the hardest to project at the next level. Look at Aaron Maybin and Vernon Gholston as evidence of that.

The 2012 class is loaded with college defensive ends and outside linebackers ready to take on the task of blitzing the quarterback off the corner. This group is loaded with first-round talents and players who could have immediate impacts on playoff rosters.

The most exciting player from this group is Alabama's Courtney Upshaw. He has the ability to play defensive end, inside linebacker or outside linebacker. Upshaw has Terrell Suggs-like skills.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
13	Courtney Upshaw	OLB	1	Alabama	Sr	6-2	265	4.76
16	Melvin Ingram	OLB	2	South Carolina	rSr	6-2	276	4.82
14	*Nick Perry	DE	3	Southern California	rJr	6-3	250	4.64
19	*Whitney Mercilus	DE	4	Illinois	rJr	6-4	265	4.68
33	*Chandler Jones	DE	5	Syracuse	rJr	6-5	265	4.78
39	*Sam Montgomery	DE	6	LSU	rSo	6-4	245	4.56
41	*Ronnell Lewis	OLB	7	Oklahoma	Jr	6-2	244	4.63
48	Andre Branch	DE	8	Clemson	rSr	6-4	260	4.77
52	Vinny Curry	DE	9	Marshall	rSr	6-3	263	4.74
68	Bruce Irvin	OLB	10	West Virginia	Sr	6-2	245	4.54
72	Brandon Lindsey	OLB	11	Pittsburgh	rSr	6-2	250	4.68
95	Jake Bequette	DE	12	Arkansas	rSr	6-5	271	4.62
116	Cam Johnson	DE	13	Virginia	Sr	6-3	270	4.76
127	Jacquies Smith	DE	14	Missouri	Sr	6-3	255	4.62
165	Shea McClellin	DE	15	Boise State	rSr	6-3	255	4.74
208	*Olivier Vernon	DE	16	Miami (Fla.)	Jr	6-3	265	4.73
258	Julian Miller	DE	17	West Virginia	rSr	6-3	268	4.76
277	Cordarro Law	DE	18	Southern Mississippi	rSr	6-2	261	4.67
284	*Donte Paige-Moss	DE	19	North Carolina	Jr	6-4	260	4.67
286	Frank Alexander	DE	20	Oklahoma	rSr	6-3	255	4.82
298	Jerrell Harris	OLB	21	Alabama	Sr	6-2	242	4.73

Inside Linebackers

The inside linebacker class is highlighted by a madman named Vontaze Burfict. A one-time top-two player on my board, Burfict has taken a tumble down the board slightly this season due to his inability to control his emotions on the field. Burfict has All-Pro ability, but keeping him under control will be a chore. 

College football fans will recognize the name Luke Kuechly. The tackling machine from Boston College has been a staple on the awards circuit and will be among the most-followed draft prospects this spring. Kuechly is underwhelming though, making the majority of his tackles downfield and failing to show the strength to be an impact player on every down. I'm proceeding with caution.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
20	Vontaze Burfict	ILB	1	Arizona State	Jr	6-3	250	4.67
36	Luke Kuechly	ILB	2	Boston College	Jr	6-2	237	4.8
66	Dont’a Hightower	ILB	3	Alabama	rJr	6-4	260	4.78
106	James-Michael Johnson	ILB	4	Nevada	rSr	6-1	240	4.68
114	Audie Cole	ILB	5	North Carolina State	rSr	6-4	239	4.84
138	Mychal Kendricks	ILB	6	California	Sr	5-11	240	4.72
142	Emmanuel Acho	ILB	7	Texas	Sr	6-2	245	4.79
173	Jerry Franklin	ILB	8	Arkansas	rSr	6-1	245	4.6
218	Chris Galippo	ILB	9	Southern California	rSr	6-2	250	4.74
222	Chris Marve	ILB	10	Vanderbilt	rSr	6-0	242	4.86
259	D.J. Holt	ILB	11	California	rSr	6-0	242	4.84
269	Max Gruder	ILB	12	Pittsburgh	rSr	6-1	230	4.72
295	Garrick Williams	ILB	13	Texas A&M	rSr	6-2	232	4.74

Cornerbacks

The cornerback class in 2012 has the potential to be as strong as any position group this year. It all hinges on the decisions of key underclassmen.

Morris Claiborne hasn't received the hype of teammate Tyrann Mathieu, but he's a much better cover man and NFL prospect. Claiborne even grades out higher than former LSU cornerback and 2011 first-rounder Patrick Peterson.

After Claiborne there is no shortage of talent. Dre Kirkpatrick and Stephon Gilmore are locks for the first round if they declare. Alfonzo Dennard and Janoris Jenkins are both solid senior corners who should see their names called on the first two days of the draft.

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
4	Morris Claiborne	CB	1	LSU	Jr	6-0	185	4.45
15	Dre Kirkpatrick	CB	2	Alabama	Jr	6-2	192	4.49
17	Stephon Gilmore	CB	3	South Carolina	Jr	6-1	193	4.52
25	Alfonzo Dennard	CB	4	Nebraska	Sr	5-10	205	4.49
57	Chase Minnifield	CB	5	Virginia	rSr	6-0	185	4.49
61	Jayron Hosley	CB	6	Virginia Tech	Jr	5-10	172	4.52
64	Jamell Fleming	CB	7	Oklahoma	rSr	5-11	192	4.54
74	Janoris Jenkins	CB	8	North Alabama	Sr	5-10	182	4.46
77	Trumaine Johnson	CB	9	Montana	Sr	6-2	204	4.52
80	Brandon Boykin	CB	10	Georgia	Sr	5-10	183	4.44
84	Shaun Prater	CB	11	Iowa	Sr	5-10	185	4.49
87	Leonard Johnson	CB	12	Iowa State	Sr	5-10	202	4.49
99	Coryell Judie	CB	13	Texas A&M	rSr	5-11	190	4.48
103	Josh Robinson	CB	14	UCF	Jr	5-10	192	4.47
108	Omar Bolden	CB	15	Arizona State	rSr	5-10	195	4.49
131	Donnie Fletcher	CB	16	Boston College	Sr	6-1	195	4.53
136	Casey Hayward	CB	17	Vanderbilt	Sr	5-11	188	4.53
146	Robert Blanton	CB	18	Notre Dame	Sr	6-0	200	4.53
150	Ryan Steed	CB	19	Furman	Sr	5-11	190	4.52
163	Asa Jackson	CB	20	Cal Poly	Sr	5-10	188	4.4
175	Keith Tandy	CB	21	West Virginia	rSr	5-10	199	4.54
184	Dwight Bentley	CB	22	La.-Lafayette	Sr	5-10	180	4.49
193	Robert Golden	CB	23	Arizona	Sr	5-11	200	4.54
199	Trevin Wade	CB	24	Arizona	rSr	5-11	192	4.56
200	Cliff Harris	CB	25	Oregon	Jr	5-11	168	4.49
204	Charles Brown	CB	26	North Carolina	rSr	5-09	205	4.49
219	D’Anton Lynn	CB	27	Penn State	Sr	6-0	208	4.53
225	Isaiah Frey	CB	28	Nevada	Sr	5-11	190	4.52
234	Terrence Frederick	CB	29	Texas A&M	rSr	5-10	187	4.52
243	Emanuel Davis	CB	30	East Carolina	rSr	5-10	182	4.52
249	Quenton Washington	CB	31	South Florida	rSr	5-10	195	4.5
255	DeQuan Menzie	CB	32	Alabama	Sr	5-11	198	4.65
275	Antonio Fenelus	CB	33	Wisconsin	Sr	5-08	190	4.49
290	Tashaun Gipson	CB	34	Wyoming	Sr	6-0	203	4.57

Safeties

The two safety classes feature just one first-round talent—Alabama's Mark Barron. There are talented players in these two groups who could immediate see themselves called upon to start in the NFL, even if drafted in the second or third round.

The spread of the 3-4 defense will surely help Alabama safeties Barron and Robert Lester, as both have been exposed to the Nick Saban defense and will be ready to step into the complex system once in the NFL. You have to think the New England Patriots would love to see Barron on the roster next fall.

FREE SAFETY

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
71	Markelle Martin	FS	1	Oklahoma State	rSr	6-1	198	4.47
86	Aaron Henry	FS	2	Wisconsin	rSr	6-0	210	4.52
89	Robert Lester	FS	3	Alabama	Jr	6-2	210	4.56
132	George Iloka	FS	4	Boise State	Sr	6-3	213	4.5
148	Trenton Robinson	FS	5	Michigan State	Sr	5-10	195	4.46
158	Eddie Whitley	FS	6	Virginia Tech	Sr	6-0	200	4.56
179	Tramain Thomas	FS	7	Arkansas	Sr	6-0	204	4.6
203	Blake Gideon	FS	8	Texas	Sr	6-0	205	4.64
215	Jerrell Young	FS	9	South Florida	rSr	6-1	209	4.57
220	Tysyn Hartman	FS	10	Kansas State	rSr	6-2	206	4.64
226	Brandon Hardin	FS	11	Oregon State	Sr	6-2	216	4.52
232	Damien Jackson	FS	12	Mississippi	Sr	6-2	210	4.58
267	Christian Thompson	FS	13	South Carolina State	Sr	6-1	218	4.45
270	Corey Mosley	FS	14	Virginia	rSr	5-10	200	4.51

STRONG SAFETY

Rank	Player	Pos	Pos. Rank	School	Class	Ht	Wt	40 Time
29	Mark Barron	SS	1	Alabama	Sr	6-2	218	4.56
79	Antonio Allen	SS	2	South Carolina	rSr	6-1	202	4.57
117	Harrison Smith	SS	3	Notre Dame	rSr	6-2	215	4.55
152	Duke Ihenacho	SS	4	San Jose State	rSr	6-0	205	4.6
182	Sean Cattouse	SS	5	California	Sr	6-2	218	4.56
213	Matt Daniels	SS	6	Duke	Sr	6-0	210	4.53
238	Eddie Pleasant	SS	7	Oregon	rSr	5-10	210	4.54
242	Charles Mitchell	SS	8	Mississippi State	Sr	5-11	205	4.56
274	Kelcie McCray	SS	9	Arkansas State	rSr	6-2	195	4.48
280	Delano Howell	SS	10	Stanford	Sr	5-11	198	4.58
294	Sean Richardson	SS	11	Vanderbilt	Sr	6-2	220	4.54