sleeper of Draft according to Coyle

[Mr. Laz]

by Frank Coyle - Publisher/ Head Scout 4/16/05

The biggest sleeper of the entire NFL Draft ’05 is defensive lineman

Marcus White #90 - 6'4" 290 lbs. - Murray St. (Ky.) -
Sp. 4.8 Rating 80

Athletic senior defender has been a dominant performer n the OVC over his short two year career with the Racers. Marcus is a huge athletic defender who has the combination of agility, quickness and power to become an NFL starting lineman. He is a very good athlete who shows an explosive burst on the snap and the upfield speed to get around the corner. He competes hard and shows a good first step that allows him to flash quickness up the field with the power to fight through the double team. As a senior, he played in 11 games with 39 tackles, 8 TFL, 3 sacks, 3 PBU, 1 FR and 3 FF in a very strong performance.

He failed to duplicate his outstanding junior campaign, though he was double teamed often and dealt with a minor injury. He has fine instincts and good ball awareness that allows him to diagnose, find the ball and run hard to finish with strong tackling. As a junior, he was a totally dominant defender in the OVC with 41 tackles, 18.5 TFL, 9 sacks, 2 FF and 1 FR, earning 1st team conference honors. It was his first performance at the Division I-AA level after two seasons at Auburn where he played as a true freshman in the ’01 season. He is a huge athlete with long arms and fine footwork that may allow him to play both inside and outside in both schemes as a pro. He can change directions easily and get up the field with good closing speed to the QB. He uses his strong hands well with pass rushing technique initially and the ability to overpower tackles at the lower level. He can anchor vs. the run at the POA and has the power, technique and agility to separate to make the play.

He has the balance and power to keep his feet vs. the double team with the leverage to make the play himself. He can stack it up and stretch the play laterally with the speed to make the play away from him and the ability to run hard to the ball when he is freed up. He has some natural pass rush skills with the burst on the snap to gain a fast advantage and the power to bull rush a big offensive tackle. He is more explosive than Packers’ Kenny Peterson is off the edge and also a better and more natural athlete. He is similar to the Saints’ Darren Howard and Texans’ Gary Walker in agility, size and power. All are strongside ends and ‘tweener types with experience both inside and outside. He was a 2nd team USA Today HS All-American as one of the nation’s top 15 linemen.

At Auburn, he played in all 10 games as a true freshman, one of only two players to accomplish that feat. His ability to get the edge and flatten out nicely to close on the passer is best utilized on the outside as a strongside end. He has good speed and can pursue from behind and make plays along the line. He is a fine combination of power, speed and toughness to become a major surprise as a pro. He is still raw in some respects but he has enormous upside to be an NFL starter. Incredibly he was not invited to the NFL combine. He runs in the 5.0 flat time with a 35." VJ and a 9’ BJ. Major small college sleeper that I am especially high on and one of the best late bargains in this entire draft. Outstanding 2nd day pick with the talent to be a huge surprise and NFL starter in the right setting.

[NaptownChief]

Thought I was reading about the Big Terd again for a second or two...How did he work out by the way?

[Logical]

I hear this guy will make an excellent safety for the Chiefs.

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by Vlad Logicslav

I hear this guy will make an excellent safety for the Chiefs.

Excellent...Safeties are like dollars, you can never have too many.