2012 NFL Draft: Analyzing the First Round's Riskiest Defenders

As NFL teams prepare for this week's NFL scouting combine and April's 2012 NFL draft one of the reasons they will be doing so much due diligence is in the hopes of avoiding investing a first round pick (and millions of dollars) in a player who turns out to be a "bust."

Teams looking for help on the defensive side of the ball in the first round this April may want to work late when researching this trio of players, as each have considerable questions swirling abut them.

After all, no one wants to be the next squad to pull a "Vernon Gholston."

Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina

At 6'6" and 285 pounds, North Carolina defensive end Quinton Coples is incredibly talented physically and capable of dominating games for stretches.

However, a lackluster senior season in Chapel Hill that saw Coples record only 7.5 sacks has led some to question Coples motor and work ethic, including NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock, who told the Houston Chronicle, "I’m not a fan. I’d be scared to death because he did not play well or hard as a senior."

Coples boosted his draft stock some with a strong showing at the Senior Bowl and could do so again with a solid combine, but the team that drafts Quinton Coples in the middle of the first round of April's draft will be rolling the dice a bit that the reward is worth the risk.

Vontaze Burfict, ILB, Arizona State

Arizona State inside linebacker Vontaze Burfict is a 6'3", 250-pound beast of a man capable of taking over a game at any time.

However, as Burfict has also shown, he's just as capable of losing his temper and picking up stupid penalties, which happened with alarming regularity at Arizona State, according to ESPN's Todd McShay.

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Scout told me he thinks Vontaze Burfict=17 personal fouls in 35 gms. He's a violent collision waiting to happen but too often out of control

—Todd McShay (@McShay13) Feb. 16, 2012

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Burfict's 2012 draft stock has been sliding amid reports that he's out of shape, and you can count Peter Schrager of FOX Sports among those who isn't overly impressed with what he sees. "The more research and film work I’ve done on the linebacker, the more I’ve cooled on him. His instincts aren’t great. He’s not as physically imposing as I recall him being, and he’s consistently out of position," he said.

If Burfict is going to rehabilitate his lagging stock and climb back into the first round of April's draft he's going to need good showings at the combine and Arizona State's pro day, and even then a team would be taking a substantial (and quite possibly ill-advised) risk that Burfict can keep his head on straight and stay out of trouble.

Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama

Alabama cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick was a key component of the Crimson Tide's run to the national championship last year, as the 6'3", 192-pound junior racked up 29 tackles and two forced fumbles while shutting down opposing receivers en route to being named a second-team All American.

Kirkpatrick is a big, physical player with good speed that excels in run support, but teams drafting Kirkpatrick as a cornerback may find themselves with a safety on their hands, as pointed out by Mike Mayock in an interview with the Charlotte Observer.

"He's big and he's long. I'm not sure what he's going to run (in the 40). Some people might even think he should convert to safety down the road," he said.

That fact coupled with the character concerns that have arisen in light of Kirkpatrick's January arrest for possession of marijuana have caused Kirkpatrick to tumble on many draft boards, but given the premium on the cornerback position in the NFL it's likely that some team later in the first round will decide Kirkpatrick is worth the gamble.

Let's just hope they get the position they were looking to address.