2015 NFL Draft's All-Sleeper Team
What exactly is a sleeper?
This well-worn term isn't synonymous with "underrated" or "guys you haven't heard of," though it's often mistakenly used interchangeably. No, a sleeper is more than that. It's an underrated guy whom people may have heard of (or not) but has long been written off.
These are the true diamonds in the rough. It's like the other side of the coin from "boom or bust" prospects—there's no bust potential because these aren't players who are expected to go very high within their draft class. It's just boom or...meh, we tried.
What makes a player worth sleeper status?
The guys on this list are all compelling because they're fantastic all-around prospects or they flash unique traits at one facet of the position and can be developed to become more well-rounded. However, they also need to have a legitimate reason for falling down the draft class—some sort of red flag that will make teams think twice for the first handful of rounds.
These are all guys who personnel men will stand on the table for, only to be ultimately overruled by the group (for a time) because of something that doesn't sit right. Maybe it's less-than-ideal size. It could also be level of competition, injury history, character concerns or the like.
Most importantly, the player who truly qualifies as a sleeper must have the overall ability to overcome that deficiency. Think Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, whose athleticism and arm talent far outweigh his height issues. Running back Arian Foster was passed over for the entire 2009 draft, but his toughness made up for his injury-riddled past.
Click ahead for the best sleepers at each position in the 2015 NFL draft, and leave your team in the comments below.
Quarterback
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Brandon Bridge (South Alabama)
In scouting, much has to be made within the give-and-take of natural athletic ability and acquired skill. Ideally, one would love a player to have plenty of both, but that's obviously rare. So, it's a bit of a balancing act when a player has plenty of one but not enough of the other.
When in doubt, bet on the guys who have plenty of what the good lawd and their momma gave them.
Bridge has a cannon of an arm. That phrase gets thrown around a lot, but Bridge is an uber-blessed athlete who has floundered at the lower levels of football and has never had anything near NFL-caliber coaching.
This is a guy teams will get excited about. He will have a chance. What he does with that is up to him and the fickle fates of the NFL gods.
Also Considered: Hutson Mason (Georgia); Anthony Boone (Duke)
Running Back
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Terrence Magee (LSU)
Magee can do it all.
I'm a fan of runners. Realize that is a different term from running back because running backs also have to run routes, catch the ball, pass block, play special teams, etc. Often, I misstep in my scouting because a guy is a dynamic runner, forgetting that teams won't give him a chance to do much of that if he can't do all the other things they need him to do.
Magee is a fine runner, but he's best defined by the fact that he can run routes as well as some tight ends and receivers, catch the ball naturally and pass block with the best at his position.
Malcolm Brown (Texas)
Brown is average.
Yes, that's meant as a backhanded compliment, but it will help him in the NFL. Brown is an average runner. He has average burst. He's an average pass-blocker. He's an average receiver. However, his effort is top-notch, and he understands what he can't do. He doesn't mess around in the open field. He's a battering ram.
Also Considered: Karlos Williams (Florida State); John Crockett (North Dakota State)
Tight End
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Nick O'Leary (Florida State)
Once upon a time, O'Leary would've been a legitimate first-round prospect and likely would've been the first tight end in this class. Sadly for him, the NFL has changed and turned away from old school-style tight ends who can "do it all" and win not with elite athleticism and receiving but with the rare toughness that allows a player to go from blocking a 300-pound man one play to catching a touchdown the next.
O'Leary has those skills, and while he won't be a first-round, highly valued pick and may never be the feature of his team's passing game, he can stick in the league for a long time and could end up being his new quarterback's most trusted target.
Also Considered: Wes Saxton (South Alabama); Blake Bell (Oklahoma)
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Wide Receiver
4 of 10Jake Kumerow (Wisconsin-Whitewater)
Not sure I could do much better than what my colleague, Ty Schalter, recently wrote on Kumerow.
Go read that. All of it.
In short, this is a tall (6'5", 205 lbs), lanky receiver with a wide catch radius. He knows how to block among the best in the class, and he's had a parabolic improvement over the past couple of seasons. There's room to grow, and if he cashes in on that, he could be a big-time threat.
Kenny Bell (Nebraska)
Bell is one of the best receivers in Nebraska history. While Nebraska spent most of its history as a triple-option school, it's also been doing the whole football thing for a long time.
Bell has a lot of warts to his game and has a long way to go before he matches his peers in this class, but he's lightning-quick and can jump out of the gym. Combine that athleticism with a little better understanding of the game and better route-running ability, and he has an outside chance to be special.
Also Considered: DeAndre Smelter (Georgia Tech); George Farmer (USC)
Offensive Line
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Offensive Tackle: Cedric Ogbuehi (Texas A&M); Daryl Williams (Oklahoma)
Ogbuehi was the presumptive top tackle in the class for a long time. Injuries and poor play stole that from him, but he won't be injured forever. He's also extremely flexible from a position perspective, has great conditioning and is a fantastic pass-blocker.
Williams isn't much of a mover, but when his hands are on a defender, they're not going any place other than where he wants them to go. Depending on where he lands, he could either wash out as a subpar athlete or thrive as a tremendous run-blocker who wins in pass-blocking situations with good anchor and help around him.
Offensive Guard: John Miller (Louisville); Robert Myers (Tennessee State)
Both Miller and Myers fit into a similar box as non-ideal athletes who have succeeded as offensive linemen because they are big bodies with great functional strength and technical ability.
Like Williams above, system is going to matter a whole lot to these guys' success, but both can be quality NFL players and incredible interior blockers.
Center: Reese Dismukes (Auburn)
Dismukes is a good (not great), throwback center who very well could fail in the NFL because he's not an uber athlete or ridiculously strong. Yet his determination, smarts and technical ability overshadow his marginal skills. He'll earn a spot in the NFL, and there's a strong chance he'll do something with it.
Also Considered: B.J. Finney (C, Kansas State); Al Bond (OG, Memphis); Fabbians Ebbele (OT, Arizona)
Defensive Line
6 of 10
Note: These guys are all down players in both a 3-4 or 4-3 and were picked not necessarily for their flexibility but for their ability to make an impact for a team willing to find the right spot for them. Generally speaking, these would not be defensive ends in a 4-3. Those are covered in the next slide.
Henry Anderson (DE/DT, Stanford)
Maybe this is cheating because Anderson is a darling in certain corners of the NFL draft media world, but he's still not a guy casual fans know about. As a natural 3-4 defensive end, he's probably not on a lot of teams' minds either because it's not always a position that garners a lot of attention.
Physically, there's a chance he gets overwhelmed on Sundays, but he's been an impactful player at a high level and could quickly be a top-10 performer at his position.
Christian Covington (DT/DE, Rice)
Covington is on the light side of where NFL teams like their defensive linemen (289 lbs), so the big payoff for him will be if he can add weight and maintain his explosiveness. However, he has an awesome first step that will create havoc.
Derrick Lott (DT/DE, Tennessee-Chattanooga)
Natural pass-rushers from the defensive tackle position aren't always easy to find—especially at lower levels of play. Lott looks like a defensive end coming out of his stance, and quarterbacks have to fear him just as much as if he were coming around the edge.
Also Considered: Joey Mbu (DT, Houston); Xavier Williams (DT, Northern Iowa)
Edge Pass-Rushers
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Note: These players would generally fit either as a 3-4 outside linebacker or a 4-3 defensive end. Different media members and scouts tag these prospects in different ways, but ultimately they're defined more by what they do—rushing the passer from the perimeter—than where they line up.
Anthony Chickillo (DE/OLB, Miami)
After coming on big time at the East-West Shrine Game, Chickillo has mostly spent the pre-draft season flying under the radar in much the same way he did at Miami. The question personnel guys have to ask is, "why doesn't the tape match what we know he can do?" He's a talented young man, but a lot of talented young men have disappointed at Miami the last couple of seasons.
If a coach can light a fire, they'd be getting an extremely gifted pass-rusher.
Deiontrez Mount (OLB/DE, Louisville)
Mount played a ton of different positions at Louisville, but he's an outside linebacker in the NFL through and through. A good athlete who only falls short of the highest gear of an elite pass-rusher or the elite flexibility of a true coverage linebacker, Mount will slot in as a backup rush specialist early in his career and be a special teams ace.
There is potential for Mount to put up incredible numbers because his production has always outweighed his projection. He has a natural feel for the game and is great at tracking down quarterbacks and ball-carriers alike.
Also Considered: Frank Clark (OLB, Michigan); Terrell Hartsfield (OLB/DE, Cincinnati)
Linebackers
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Note: These players are, for lack of a better term, "traditional" linebackers. Can they rush the passer? Sure, but they're also going to make an impact in chase-and-tackle, run-stuffing or coverage roles either on the inside of a 3-4 or anywhere in a 4-3 defense.
Zack Hodges (LB, Harvard)
Bleacher Report's Lars Anderson wrote a great feature on Hodges.
On the field, we're talking about a guy who will get lost in the shuffle either as a true pass-rushing outside linebacker or as a supposed thumper in the middle. No, Hodges wins with his hustle and his versatility. He definitely needs more polish at the position and the flexibility that goes along with it, but he has the chance to stick around the league for a long time and be a defensive weapon.
Ramik Wilson (LB, Georgia)
A few years back, Wilson was a young starter at an SEC school and looked every bit like he'd turn into a potential first-round-caliber player. However, the growth never happened for him physically or in terms of skill level. That said, he's a good all-around linebacker who always seems to be on the cusp of doing something great.
Also Considered: Taiwan Jones (ILB, Michigan State); Aaron Davis (LB, Colorado State)
Cornerbacks
9 of 10
Alex Carter (Stanford)
Carter has a nasty habit of putting bad tape out there, but he's also a well-built (6'0", 196 lbs), big corner prospect who has lots of great moments on the field as well. Yes, he needs to tighten things up and be more consistent, but he's going to get the chance to succeed as teams are looking for tall, thick defensive backs.
He has all of the tools to be great.
Nick Marshall (CB/S/QB, Auburn)
Marshall will be a work in progress as a defensive back. The team that selects him will probably make him the No. 3 "emergency" quarterback on game days but work on utilizing his natural fluidity, agility and athleticism, potentially as a nickel or dime corner. He could also possibly be a safety.
It will be a rough transition, but Marshall is the kind of athlete who can make it work.
Also Considered: Lorenzo Doss (Tulane); Jacoby Glenn (Central Florida)
Safeties
10 of 10
Anthony Harris (Virginia)
Add 10 pounds and we're talking about a first-round lock.
Harris (6'1", 183 lbs) knows the position as well as anyone and was a three-year starter to boot. He has great ability in both zone and man coverage. He's also flexible enough to click and close and bring down ball-carriers before they do too much damage. He's good at taking on and shedding blocks and can blitz a little as well.
Will he have trouble covering the best of the best slot receivers and big tight ends? Absolutely...and who doesn't? He'll make a ton of plays for his defense the rest of the time.
Tevin McDonald (Eastern Washington)
A super instinctive player with fantastic bloodlines—his father, Tim, was a six-time Pro Bowler at safety, and his brother, T.J., plays for the Rams—McDonald was able to succeed at Eastern Washington even though he's undersized for a safety (5'11", 195 lbs). While there, he never got the polish he needed.
He tends to over-rely on his athleticism and will get burned trying to make big plays, but this is the sort of diamond-in-the-rough player who position coaches bang the table for in the middle rounds.
Also Considered: Anthony Jefferson (UCLA); Ladarius Gunter (Miami)
Michael Schottey is an award-winning NFL national lead writer for Bleacher Report and a writer for Football Insiders. Follow him on Twitter.
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