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Tuesday evening, the NFL announced 30 players will attend the 2014 NFL Draft. This will be a record number of players, and all but guarantees some of them will be waiting for Day 2 to get out of the green room. While some will carry into the second round, the NFL likely has heard enough buzz on some of the players to feel they won't necessarily slip too far. There are no guarantees on that, but it gives us something to think about.
Here is the complete list of players who will be at Radio City Music Hall on May 8 (and potentially beyond) for the 2014 NFL Draft:
|
1) |
Odell Beckham, Jr. |
WR |
Louisiana State |
|
16) |
Cody Latimer |
WR |
Indiana |
|
2) |
Blake Bortles |
QB |
Central Florida |
|
17) |
Marqise Lee |
WR |
Southern California |
|
3) |
Teddy Bridgewater |
QB |
Louisville |
|
18) |
Taylor Lewan |
T |
Michigan |
|
4) |
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix |
S |
Alabama |
|
19) |
Khalil Mack |
LB |
Buffalo |
|
5) |
Jadeveon Clowney |
DE |
South Carolina |
|
20) |
Johnny Manziel |
QB |
Texas A&M |
|
6) |
Brandin Cooks |
WR |
Oregon State |
|
21) |
Jake Matthews |
T |
Texas A&M |
|
7) |
Kony Ealy |
DE |
Missouri |
|
22) |
Jordan Matthews |
WR |
Vanderbilt |
|
8) |
Eric Ebron |
TE |
North Carolina |
|
23) |
Morgan Moses |
T |
Virginia |
|
9) |
Mike Evans |
WR |
Texas A&M |
|
24) |
C.J. Mosley |
LB |
Alabama |
|
10) |
Kyle Fuller |
CB |
Virginia Tech |
|
25) |
Calvin Pryor |
S |
Louisville |
|
11) |
Jimmy Garoppolo |
QB |
Eastern Illinois |
|
26) |
Greg Robinson |
T |
Auburn |
|
12) |
Justin Gilbert |
CB |
Oklahoma State |
|
27) |
Bradley Roby |
CB |
Ohio State |
|
13) |
Ra'Shede Hageman |
DT |
Minnesota |
|
28) |
Ryan Shazier |
LB |
Ohio State |
|
14) |
Timmy Jernigan |
DT |
Florida State |
|
29) |
Jason Verrett |
CB |
Texas Christian |
|
15) |
Cyrus Kouandjio |
T |
Alabama |
|
30) |
Sammy Watkins |
WR |
Clemson |
I would argue the most interesting name on this list is Indiana wide receiver Cody Latimer. The talented pass catcher had slipped on people's radar following January foot surgery. He impressed people with some of the basic physical work at the Indiana Pro Day in late March, and will reportedly run routes and do pass catching drills later this week. The discussion at this point has shot him up into Day 2 consideration, with some wondering whether he might slide into the end of the first round.
Another name of note is quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The Eastern Illinois quarterback was a bit of a sleeper when draft season started, and suddenly people are projecting him in the second round, and some even in the first round. A lot of NFL teams probably had a pretty good idea of what to make of Garoppolo before the media finally caught on to him. It doesn't mean he'll definitely be a first or second round pick, but at this point, that seems more and more likely.
With both these players, and anybody else for that matter, it all comes down to whether one team likes them. We might think a certain player will slip down to the later rounds, but all it takes is one team wanting the guy to mess that up. It most notably applies to a guy like Aaron Colvin. I'm sure the 49ers wouldn't mind seeing him slip down to the fourth or fifth round (or at least their third round comp pick), but if one team decides he's worth the risk earlier, you're left holding the bag.