NFL Draft: Who Are the Top Prospects?

Once the Superbowl is behind us we will have the meaningless but fun pro-bowl, then it will be back to serious business. Teams wil begin building for next year through the free agent market as well as the draft. Unless they trade for draft picks, only the Dallas Cowboys and the Carolina Panthers will not have a draft selection in the first round. The Detroit Lions will have two picks, the overall number one pick, as well as the 20th pick from the Cowboys. Also with two picks in the first round will be the Philadelphia Eagles with the 21st and 28th picks overall. Which teams will select which players is a matter of huge debate, even for the number one overall pick. Some have the Lions taking Sanchez from USC, while others have them selecting an offensive lineman. Most experts however believe the Lions will draft a quarterback and it will most likely be Stafford out of Georgia. With the number one pick in doubt who goes where gets very cloudy very quickly. Each team has certain needs, but if a quality player is left on the board it may be hard for a team to pass them by, even if he doesn't fill a particular need.

The top players entering the draft, by position, look to be;

At QuarterBack - Stafford (Georgia) and Sanchez (USC)

At Running Back - Wells (Ohio State)

At Offensive Line - A. Smith (Alabama)

At Wide Receiver - Crabtree (Texas Tech)

At Corner Back - Jenkins (Ohio State)

At Defensive Line - Orakpo (Texas)

At Line Backer - Curry (Wake Forrest)

A team's needs can change rapidly, depending on their ability, or inability to sign free agents. The Baltimore Ravens for instance have a large number of defensive players entering the free agent market this year. If they are unable to sign several key players, their draft choices could change dramatically. If Warner or Collins are allowed to enter the free agent frenzy some teams might just go for a more seasoned QB rather than an unknown from the draft. There are also some good receivers in the free agent market, including Engram from the Seahawks and Houshmandzadeh of the Bengals. With each free agent signing the dynamics of the 2009 draft changes. It will be very interesting to see how the expert predictions of today match the actual results come draft day.