2010 NFL Draft Preview: Gerald McCoy

As the days to the 2010 NFL draft, the one player mentioned in more NFL mock drafts as the first overall selection has been Gerald McCoy. With his dominant performance at the NFL combine, some have crowned him as the best overall player.

Gerald McCoy's Strengths

McCoy has shown the ability to explode off the line and use the first step to move either through defenders or around them. He is agile for his size and is able to use it to create an effective pass rush. This helped McCoy record 12 sacks during the last two years at Oklahoma.

McCoy has shown he can maintain a high level of energy, something that can be a hit or miss with interior lineman. He does not give up on the play until the ball is whistled dead.

Gerald McCoy's Weaknesses

McCoy's overall size of 6'4" and 295 pounds, while impressive, will not allow him to find success as a two-gap nose tackle.

McCoy will need to improve on his strength and conditioning to help handle the double teams he will likely face when the opposition is running the ball at him.

Gerald McCoy's will be drafted by the St. Louis Rams

The Rams' need help at just about every position on the field. McCoy is more of a polished defensive player and will be the perfect fit for the Rams' 4-3 defensive scheme. This will allow other defensive players like James Laurinaitis or Chris Long to make the play.

Recently rumors have begun to circulate that the Rams are interested in selecting quarterback Sam Bradford with their first overall pick. The Rams are using this as a smoke screen tactic to see if any of the other 31 NFL teams are interested in trading up to pick Bradford.

In the end, Gerald McCoy will cost less to sign than Bradford and will end up having a successful career in St. Louis.

Resources
http://nfldraft.rivals.com/cviewplayer.asp?Player=64904&PT=7&PR=2&type=scoutingreport&type=scouting#bio
http://www.nfl.com/draft/2010