NFL Draft: Ranking the 5 most overrated prospects for 2018
By Peter Panacy
Unlike last year’s NFL Draft, this year doesn’t feature a lot of quality edge rushers to bolster teams’ pass-rushes right out of the gate.
San Francisco 49ers
NC State’s Bradley Chubb is easily the top EDGE, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see him go to a pass-rush-needy team like the Indianapolis Colts (No. 6 overall) or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 7 overall).
That’s a bit of a reach, perhaps, but not bad. However, another team looking to bolster the pass rush could target a player like UT San Antonio EDGE Marcus Davenport.
Sure, Davenport looks the part of an elite edge rusher. He’s 6-foot-7 and 255 pounds, and it’s impossible to overlook the combined 15 sacks he had over the last two years at college. He ran a 4.58 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, which is pretty fast for the position.
The problem, though, is Davenport isn’t quite the sum of his parts. He’ll take some time to develop into a quality pass-rusher, and those generally aren’t the prospects you’ll want to take in the first half of Round 1.
B/R’s Matt Miller explained more:
"This scout isn’t buying the risk vs. reward of Davenport in the top 10, and it’s hard to argue with. Will he be Dion Jordan or Vernon Gholston all over again? Betting on development can net teams a star at a steal value, but it can also blow up in their faces."
If Davenport falls, fine. But if some team reaches in the top 10 or 15, it’s too much a risk.