NFL Draft 2012: Overrated Prospects Who Were Drafted Too High

After reflecting on the 2012 NFL draft, it's clear that some teams drastically reached to select overrated players.

There will likely be some players you think were taken too high that I don't have on this list. It's easy to make knee-jerk reactions to players you don't know much about and assume they were overrated.

Players like Bruce Irvin and A.J. Jenkins were considered to be massive reaches at first glance, but after looking at the big picture, they were taken with the knowledge that other teams had them on their radar and wouldn't be available later on (h/t STLToday.com and ProFootballTalk.com).

The players on this list are ones who would have been available later on, but were taken way too early. 

Tony Bergstrom, OT, Selected by Oakland Raiders with Pick No. 95

Bergstrom was a huge reach at the bottom of the third round. 

There were many better options for offensive linemen for the Raiders at this spot, including guys like Bobbie Massie, Brandon Mosley and Zebrie Sanders—all of whom went in the fourth round or later.

The worst part about this pick is that it was Reggie McKenzie's first chance to make his mark as a general manager—a chance that he squandered. 

Lamar Holmes, OT, Selected by Atlanta Falcons with Pick No. 91

I had Holmes going in the seventh round in my mocks. He isn't anywhere close to being an NFL offensive tackle, and if the Falcons have ideas for him as a guard, they could have done better.

As it was with Bergstrom to the Raiders, Atlanta had better options.

Obviously, they see something in Holmes that I don't, but I'm not the only one who had him as a late-round pick. 

Per NFL.com:

"

Holmes has a bad habit of stopping his feet on contact, which works in pass protection but leaves him vulnerable when pulling or blocking against the run. His feet don't coincide with his hands when engaged on a block, and he will need to learn to eat up grass in the run game or he will get plays blown up at his expense at the next level.

"

That doesn't sound good at all.

Ronnie Hillman, RB, Selected by Denver Broncos with Pick No. 67

I don't know what's worse—the fact that the Broncos took Hillman at the top of the third round or the fact that they traded up to do so.

Either way, Hillman shouldn't have been taken at this point in the draft, especially when guys like Lamar Miller and Robert Turbin were still on the board—both of whom were taken in the fourth round.

Hillman isn't a powerful runner, and though he did post a 4.45-second 40-yard dash time at the NFL Scouting Combine (h/t NFL.com), he isn't particularly explosive with the ball in his hands.

He will struggle at the next level, and the Broncos could have done a whole lot better with this pick.

Ryan Broyles, WR, Selected by Detroit Lions with Pick No. 54

Broyles isn't a big guy at 5'10" and 192 pounds. Usually guys his size get taken this high because they have blazing speed and quickness, but Broyles has neither.

He's also coming off of a shredded ACL from November 2011, and it isn't known if he has lost any straight-line speed as a result. 

Broyles will have to work out of the slot in the NFL and will struggle against physical corners and safeties. He should have been a third-round selection at best, and the Lions took a huge leap drafting him this high.

Derek Wolfe, DE, Selected by Denver Broncos with Pick No. 36

If I were a Broncos fan, I would have been extremely angry that the team a) traded away their first-round pick and b) took Wolfe with their first pick.

Wolfe was a fifth-round pick by my watch. 

The Broncos are counting on Wolfe to help them with their run-defense as a tackle in their 4-3 scheme. The trouble with that is he's not going to be effective at taking on double-teams at the next level.

Wolfe isn't a powerful guy. He isn't a quick, explosive player, either. He isn't going to collapse the pocket, and he won't force teams to hone in on him, allowing them to continue focusing on the Broncos' edge rushers like they did last year. 

I know they needed help in the middle, but there were many more players on the board that would have been better picks: Kendall Reyes, Jerel Worthy and Devon Still to name a few.  

This was the most disappointing first pick by a team in the entire draft.

Brandon Weeden, QB, Selected by Cleveland Browns with Pick No. 22

This one boggles the mind, it really does.

Weeden isn't going to make things better for the Browns. They would have been so much better off taking David DeCastro and continued building around Colt McCoy.

What makes this pick even worse is that the Cleveland brass had told McCoy not but one day earlier that they weren't going to pick up a quarterback to supplant him (h/t ProFootballTalk.com).

All's fair in love and war, but this was a terrible move.

Dontari Poe, DT, Selected by Kansas City Chiefs with Pick No. 11

Poe is going to be a boom-or-bust player in the NFL. 

He didn't consistently produce during his tenure with the Memphis Tigers, making me wonder how in the world he's going to consistently produce against the elite athletes on NFL offensive lines.

Sure, he was a workout warrior at the NFL Scouting Combine, but that doesn't say much, if anything, about how he's going to produce on Sundays.

The Chiefs should have looked to their offensive line and drafted David DeCastro—one of this year's safest prospects.

Instead, they took a huge risk on unproven potential.

Luke Kuechly, MLB, Selected by Carolina Panthers with Pick No. 9

This pick makes no sense at all. 

The Panthers already have a legit linebacking corps with Jon Beason, Jordan Senn and James Anderson. 

What do they intend to do, move Beason to play on the outside?

Whatever their intentions, the Panthers should have taken either Stephon Gilmore or Fletcher Cox to bolster the parts of their defense that needed bolstering.

Then there's the fact that Kuechly wasn't even the best middle linebacker on my board. Dont'a Hightower is going to end up being the best one out of this draft class when we look back in five years.

Ryan Tannehill, QB, Selected by Miami Dolphins with Pick No. 8

Tannehill was the most overrated player in the draft.

He isn't even ready to be a starter, and I'm positive he will begin the season on the sidelines with a clipboard in hand.

The Dolphins could have traded back into the mid-to-late first round and still landed Tannehill. They also could have taken the best player available with the No. 8 pick and moved back up into the first round to take Tannehill with their second pick. 

Either option would have been better than what they did.

Tannehill has a lively arm, but he is not an accurate passer. He will take time to develop—not that there's anything wrong with that—and could have been had at a significant discount than what they paid for his services.

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