50 Rookies Guaranteed to Make a Huge Impact in 2012

The 2012 NFL draft is here and the excitement is out there, you can feel it.  Every year the draft gives teams the opportunity to add young players to their roster.  Some of these young players make an immediate impact on the teams that draft them.

We are going to look at 50 players that will be drafted at some point in the 2012 NFL draft that will make an impact for their teams in 2012.

1. Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford

Luck is the total package playing quarterback from his pre-snap reads to his arm talent. He is the No. 1 player in the 2012 draft and the best quarterback to come into the draft since John Elway.

2. Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

Griffin III might be the best athlete to ever play quarterback but that is not all with him. He has a great arm and is incredibly accurate. He has the ability to kill a defense in multiple ways. He is my favorite for rookie of the year.

 

3. Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama

Richardson has great ability in every aspect of the game as a running back.  He is the best running back to enter the NFL since Adrian Peterson.  He is as can’t miss as it gets.

 

4. Doug Martin, RB, Boise State

Martin is another running back who can do it all and do it all well.  He is a very good runner and a good contributor as a receiver.  Martin is an every down back and will bring a lot of value to a team.

 

5. David Wilson, RB, Virginia Tech

Wilson is as pure a home run hitter as there is in the entire draft. He can finish a play with his speed and is a physically willing player.  He is a good runner between the tackles and should be a great part of a running back tandem.

6. Lamar Miller, RB, Miami (FL)

Miller is a lightning fast running back that can threaten the edge of the defense with his speed. Miller has a great size/speed combination. He will hurt defenses early in his career.

7. Chris Polk, RB, Washington

Polk is a bell cow type of running back. If you sleep on him he will hurt you but he is not pretty. He has great power and really nice receiving ability. He is a starting caliber running back capable of a full workload.

 

8. LaMichael James, RB, Oregon

James is another player in the group of guys that you should not take your eyes off of. He is dazzling and has phenomenal lateral agility. He can side-step a defender and not lose any speed. He will embarrass defenders at times in the NFL.

9. Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame

Floyd has character concerns but a team will make him a number one wide receiver. He has good hands and does a nice job of catching the football. He is a big play making wide receiver.

10. Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State

Blackmon is a great talent playing wide receiver. He gets knocked because he doesn’t have elite speed but he just gets it done. He will be a yards after the catch monster in the NFL.

 

11. Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor

Wright is an electric play maker and perhaps the real home run hitter in this draft at the receiver position. He has incredible speed and he plays faster than he timed. He is going to make big plays happen as an NFL player.

12. Rueben Randle, WR, LSU

Randle is raw but he has incredible athleticism and should be a player that a team should showcase immediately. He is very athletic and will make a lot of plays simply because he is so gifted.

13. Alshon Jefferey, WR, South Carolina

Jeffery has all the tools to be a big time wide receiver in the NFL. He can run well but is best using his big body to make plays. Jeffery has the best potential of all the receivers in this class and is a player everyone should get to know.

14. Stephen Hill, WR, Georgia Tech

Hill has eye-popping speed and incredible potential as a football player. He can take the top off of a defense immediately and is a player that defenses must account for because if his speed.

15. Mario Louis, WR, Grambling State

Louis is another incredible athlete coming over to football from the basketball court. He has electric athletic ability and can really play the jump ball. He has sneaky big play abilities.

16. Dale Moss, WR, South Dakota State

He is a superstar athlete who has burst onto the football scene after coming over from the basketball court. Moss is an electric athlete and a player that can challenge teams vertically with his size/speed combination.

17. Thomas Mayo, WR, Cailfornia (PA)

Mayo is a small school standout and a player who has been incredibly productive as a college wide receiver. He has great hands and impressive athleticism. Mayo is the kind of player that can have success because of his all-around skills.

18. Coby Fleener, TE, Stanford

Fleener is a big target and a tight end that can exploit mismatches in the defense. He has good hand and is a threat to challenge a defense vertically. Fleener should put up nice numbers in 2012 as a rookie tight end.

19. Matt Kalil, OT, USC

Kalil is a monster in the making and the key words are in the making. He is not a finished product and he needs to add some bulk in order to be a franchise left tackle. Kalil does have great talent and should end up being a very good left tackle.

20. Mitchell Schwartz, OT, California

Schwartz is a very intelligent football player and a player with a good pedigree. His brother Geoff is a Minnesota Viking. Schwartz is a very fundamentally sound football player and should be a capable tackle for years.

21. David DeCastro, G, Stanford

DeCastro is a nasty interior blocker, perhaps the best to come into the NFL in quite some time. He can get to the second level and dominate there. He should be a perennial Pro-Bowler at guard.

22. Cordy Glenn, G, Georgia

Cordy Glenn is a massive football player, like a refrigerator with feet. He is a versatile offensive lineman as he can be moved around the offensive line. Glenn can anchor the offensive line and generate some significant push in the running game.

23. Peter Konz, C, Wisconsin

Peter Konz is a giant of a center and a player that is very undervalued. Konz is big and he is very mobile and he can get to the second level of the defense from the center position. Konz should anchor an offensive line for years.

24. Cam Johnson, OLB/DE, Virginia

Johnson is raw but he is athletically gifted and is certainly a player that can be disruptive. He is a willing tackler and is best suited for a 3-4 defense as an outside linebacker.

25. Melvin Ingram, OLB/DE , South Carolina

Melvin Ingram is a terror along the edge of the defense as he can really get to the quarterback. Ingram is big and freakishly athletic and he should be able to use his athletic tools to pressure the quarterback now.

26. Dont'a Hightower, OLB, Alabama

Dont'a Hightower is an imposing physical presence playing outside linebacker. He can be relentless and is a punishing finisher. Hightower is perfectly suited for outside linebacker in a base 3-4 defense.

27. Courtney Upshaw, OLB/DE, ALabama

Courtney Upshaw is a very big linebacker who is more of a grinder than athletically imposing. Upshaw is a very hard worker and is a very safe pick. He will instantly bring value to a defense.

28. Shea McClellin, OLB/DE, Boise State

Shea McClellin has elite pass rushing abilities and looks perfectly suited to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense. He can really generate the pass rush and should make his mark as a rookie in this aspect of the game.

29. Vinny Curry, OLB/DE, Marshall

Vinny Curry is a good pass rusher and a player that can make plays in space. He has great athletic abilities and is a candidate to be able to drop into coverage as a 3-4 outside linebacker.

30. Whitney Mercilus, OLB/DE, Illinois

Whitney Mercilus is a pass rush specialist only at this point in his career. Mercilus can get to the quarterback and there is value in that. He is a hard worker and will be a good addition to any football team.

31. Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College

Luke Kuecly is an incredibly productive linebacker and he is versatile as well. He can be dropped into coverage and is not a liability there. He is a sure tackler and can help any team right away.

32. Mychal Kendricks, LB, California

Mychal Kendricks is an explosive athlete playing at the linebacker position. He can really bring it and he punishes ball carriers in the hole. Kendricks is a smart football player that can help a team as a 4-3 inside linebacker.

33. Lavonte David, LB, Nebraska

Lavonte David is an extremely athletic football player and he should be a player that contributes right away on defense. David is a player that finds himself near the football and that should continue in the NFL.

34. Bobby Wagner, LB, Utah State

Bobby Wagner is a gifted athlete and a player that can really run well. His ability to move gives him the versatility of playing in multiple schemes. Wagner is a very good football player and he should have a good impact on a defense right away.

35. James-Michael Johnson, LB, Nevada

James-Michael Johnson is a hard nosed, well put together linebacker. He is a very sure tackler and he has prototype size to play in the middle of a defense. He is a very tough player and he will add toughness and solid tackling to any team that drafts him.

36. Audie Cole, LB, North Carolina State

Audie Cole is an underrated linebacker who is capable of playing in multiple positions on a defense. He can play inside or can be moved outside. Cole can run and is a very good athlete. He should have a nice impact on a teams defense immediately.

37. Michael Brockers, DT, LSU

Michael Brockers is gifted run stopper and a player that will command double-teams immediately. He will help the players around him by freeing them up to get to the ball. Brockers is a dominant defensive lineman and since he is young he can get bigger. Brockers immediately upgrades a defense.

38. Fletcher Cox, DT, Mississippi State

Fletcher Cox is a very athletic defensive tackle who can threaten the quarterback. He is explosive but he is raw and will need some work on his technique. Cox may end up as a 3-4 defensive end because of his size.

39. Josh Chapman, DT, Alabama

Josh Chapman is a tough football player, a player that played the last eight weeks of his senior season on a torn knee ligament and torn cartilage. He will be ready for camp and is good to go for his rookie season. Chapman is a tough football player to move and will bring a presence right away.

40. Devon Still, DT, Penn State

Devon Still is a big nasty defensive tackle that plays with bad intentions at times. He is a powerful football player and a guy that can be counted in to stand his ground. He is a good gap penetrator and a player that will have a nice impact for the team that drafts him.

41. Jerel Worthy, DT, Michigan State

Jerel Worthy is a big hard working defensive tackle. He can really move the pile and is a player that can really generate some pop at the point of contact. He is a good gap penetrator and a player that will physically help out the team that drafts him.

42. Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU

Morris Claiborne is one of the better cover cornerbacks to enter the draft in some time. He is versatile and can play any scheme a defense needs him to play. He is a willing tackler but his strength is in shutting down opposing wide receivers. Claiborne should help the team that drafts him right away.

43. Stephen Gilmore, CB, South Carolina

Stephen Gilmore is an incredible athlete with great workouts to match the great football play he has put on tape. Gilmore can run very well and he has a nice physical presence. He is a willing tackler and a player that will help his team in multiple ways. 

44. Casey Hayward, CB, Vanderbilt

Casey Hayward is a very confident football player. He has the mental makeup to be a great cornerback. He is a ball-hawk and was very productive playing in the SEC without any help. He like to play in zone coverage where he can read and react. Hayward is going to be a really good football player and a player that impacts immediately.

45. Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama

Dre Kirkpatrick is a big cornerback who might have to move to safety down the road because of his size. He plays the run extremely well and can really hit ball carriers behind the line of scrimmage. Kirkpatrick has very good ball skills and will use these aspects of the game right away in 2012.

46. Jamell Fleming, CB, Oklahoma

Jamell Fleming has a big presence at the cornerback position. He likes to re-route wide receivers and is really good at pushing them into places they don't want to go. He is a willing tackler and a player that can really help a defense because of his physicality.

47. Mark Barrom, S, Alabama

Mark Barron is everything you want a safety to be. He can cover and is not a liability in any way against the pass and he is a ferocious hitter. He has really good size and he will step up to defend the run and will create turnovers because of the violence of the collision. All teams would get better with the selection of Barron as he is physically imposing and is a very good football player.

48. Harrison Smith, S, Notre Dame

Harrison Smith offers a lot of things for a potential team drafting him. He covers a lot of ground and one of the most sure tacklers in the 2012 NFL draft. He rarely misses tackles and it gives defense some security knowing he won't miss. He has good ball skills and is a consistent solid football player. He would immediately and positively impact any team drafting him.

49. Markelle Martin, S, Oklahoma State

Markelle Martin is a heavy hitter with great size for the safety position. He moves very well and once he recognizes that a play is developing he puts himself right where he needs to be to make the play. Martin has great ball skills and will make a lot of plays with his hands. Martin is another safety that would automatically help a defense with his blend of ball skills and hitting ability.

50. George Iloka, S, Boise State

George Iloka has great size at 6' 3" and 225 pounds. He will match up well with the bigger wide receivers he will see in the NFL because of his size. Iloka has good ball skills and is a very good tackler. He is versatile enough to play in coverage or to defend the run. Iloka's size and athleticism will be a good addition to any team that drafts him.