2015 NFL Draft: Pass-Rushers Undersized, but Talented

Many teams are looking at the 2015 draft class to add potential pass-rushing talent to their squads. This class doesn't lack talent, though they each come with concerns, but first take a look at this offseason's free-agent class to note why franchises will more than likely elect to go the draft route.

Scout.com yearly lists their top free agents before the process begins. This season, four of their 5-star free agents would be considered pass-rushers.

Their top-ranked player at the position is Justin Houston, who quietly led the NFL in sacks with 22, only a half a sack from matching Michael Strahan's single-season record in the NFL, as J.J. Watt stole the defensive spotlight. According to Fox Sports' Mike Garafolo, Houston may be a franchise-tag candidate, which would take him off the market until at least 2016.

After that, there's Jerry Hughes, the one-time "bust" for the Indianapolis Colts who found a home in Buffalo, netting 20 sacks in his two seasons with the team. Many have stated that the two sides are trying to keep him a Bill, and Matthew Fairburn of Syracuse.com reported Doug Whaley, the general manager of the squad, wants to get a long-term deal hashed out.

The third of the four is Jason Pierre-Paul, who had a lowly 2013 before bouncing back with a solid 2014 campaign. In 2013, he had surgery on his back and managed to put together just two sacks in 11 games, coming off the bench in five of them.

Lastly is Greg Hardy, who after back-to-back double-digit-sack seasons was seen on the field just once in 2014. He was convicted of assault before the season, appealed and had the charge dropped. Still, with the Ray Rice story hanging over the NFL for the entire season, it's still not a great look for teams going to bat for his talent, from a public-relations standpoint—especially when while he was gone he attempted to start up a rap career, making headlines with what Bleacher Report's Kenny Dorset called a "questionable lyric."

The top-tier free-agency edge-rusher class may be made up of two players who re-sign with their original teams, another with a bad back and one with off-field concerns looming his head. To say the least, it's not really the year for franchises to go wild and spend money on the position in the spring.

Still, the demand for pressure creation on the outside of defenses is high. Teams like Atlanta, Tennessee, Oakland and Jacksonville drastically need the help and have the high picks to make an addition. The question becomes: Are there players worth top-10 selections?

The short answer is yes, but it's dependent on what a team is looking for. There are five names that stand above the rest when you're looking at this declared talent pool of former college players who are primarily trying to get after the quarterback.

Randy Gregory was on the top of everybody's list heading into combine week, but in Indianapolis, he showed a flaw most have with the class. He's too light to project to a true 4-3 defensive end role. Sliding in at almost 6'5" and just 235 pounds, he raises huge red flags. Even more concerning is his playing weight. According to DraftInsider.net's Tony Pauline, he was just 218 pounds when playing at Nebraska.

To put that into perspective, that's essentially Kam Chancellor's size, who plays defensive back for the Seattle Seahawks. Chancellor is known as a freak for his position, but the difference between someone with his frame playing safety and someone primarily playing on the line of scrimmage would be a sight to see. Benjamin Allbright of Mile High Sports also brought up an interesting size comparison for the former Husker.

There's also Clemson's Vic Beasley and Missouri's Shane Ray. Beasley was listed at 235 in college, and it's not out of line to think that college teams sometimes embellish the size of "undersized" players to help their NFL prospects. That's why when he weighed-in at 246 pounds, his stock may have risen in the minds of many decision-makers. If nothing else, we've at least seen players like Clay Matthews make more than a solid career off playing at roughly his size. Still, he's listed as an outside linebacker on NFL.com's combine profile.

Ray is listed as a defensive end at the same size, even a pound lighter. The interesting thing about Ray is that he has the body of a 3-4 outside linebacker, but he doesn't play in space the way you'd love a top-10 pick at the position to perform. So, you're damned if you take him as a 4-3 defensive end because of his size, but you're damned if you take him as a 3-4 outside linebacker because of his talent split out that wide.

I touched base with this during my evaluation of the SEC's Defensive Player of the Year.

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By and large, he's a half-body player. If he only is blocked by half the body of a tackle, he's able to continue running past him, even in an altered route. If a tackle has time to square him up, though, he can look irrelevant on plays. He's a high runner who doesn't use leverage to convert his speed to blow through his man. He also loses a lot of steam when changing his course in space.

It wouldn't shock anyone if he goes as high as he's being projected currently on draft day, but I'm also not sure he's the right choice that high. Unless you are able to get into his head and rewire him as a functional athlete, there's only a few defined roles the collegiate defensive end can thrive in, and I'm not sure those are worth such a premium investment.

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The two other names are larger, physically, than the previous three, but they too are listed as outside linebackers, while the lighter Ray is a defensive end. Dante Fowler of Florida, coming in at 6'3" and 261 pounds, is a Chandler Jones type of prospect. He's got very strong hands and has potential to be a top pass-rusher on a squad, but he lacks the true potential to be an all-world talent. Maybe the process will play itself out and his athleticism is shown to be levels ahead of where many think he is, but currently, he's a fringe top-10 selection in my mind.

Alvin "Bud" Dupree is the last "big" name of the class and is talked about less than the other names. He's just a very solid all-around player at 6'4" and 269 pounds. Like Fowler, he doesn't project to be a Von Miller type of 3-4 outside linebacker, but he's a player who can start for you at the position for eight or so years without worry.

There is no slam dunk. Every player has issues, be it size, transition to a new role or upside. This class is a bit of a pick-your-poison type of situation for teams, who have to roll the dice and pray for next-level development.

Some sleepers are bubbling around in the late first-round to second-round range for teams who don't feel that gamble is worth taking a shot at in the top half of the first round. Eli Harold of Virginia is a Beasley-like player. He showed up at the combine at 6'3" and 247 pounds, better than most thought he'd be listed at, but he's still going to be pigeonholed as a rotational pass-rusher or 3-4 weak-side outside linebacker only in his first couple of years, unless he can drastically throw on good weight on his frame.

Hau'oli Kikaha of Washington is another interesting name. He's a player who transitioned to a 3-4 outside linebacker while playing for the Huskies, but he did see time as a defensive end as a true freshman. Between that transition from his 2010 freshman campaign and his 2013 one, at outside linebacker, he unfortunately injured his knee twice, ending his 2011 and 2012 seasons early.

Kikaha then bounced back for back-to-back All-Pac-12 seasons, ending his career with just about every sack record you can imagine in the Washington record book. Still, the questions about his medical clearance is going to hang over his head throughout the draft process. While the combine is first and foremost a medical check, teams like their doctors to get a feel for a player's body during their own visits. The question is yet to be answered.

He's a technique player who lacks the physical "wow factor" that others in this class possess. With his judo background, though, you're hard-pressed to find a player who uses his hands better than the 246-pounder. If you look at Aldon Smith's combine testing, nothing pops off the page, either. While Smith is tabbed as a freak because of his length and NFL success, he's built most of his sack total through great technique, like Kikaha can potentially. Mock Draftable's "spider chart" of defensive end percentiles shows that Smith was essentially a pedestrian other than his arm length back in 2011.

If you're looking for a pass-rusher to fall in love with, there are clear traits that present themselves as a plus in this class. If you're looking for a "safe" player, there are those, too. The problem that may arise with every single one of them, though, is going to be that transition to defensive end, as all of them have the stereotypical bodies of 3-4 outside linebackers.

The 3-4 teams are going to look at this class fine, but for 4-3 teams...let's just say I wish them the best of luck.