NFL Draft

I love the Draft. Love it. If I could get away with it, I would sit and watch it for at least 4 hours each day it's televised. And when I was single, I did just that. Now with a wife and kid, however, I try to keep it on in another room and randomly sneak in there to catch a peek. As of right now, there are at least 20 mock drafts presented by either si.com or espn.com writers. Some of those 20 are merely alterations of preexisting mocks, but I'd say 10-15 are legit original mocks. Don Banks does one, Mel "Hair" Kiper, McShay, they all put one out. And because they're way more "in" than I am, I'll decline to guess on the 1st round myself. All it would be is a compilation of everybody else's hard work anyways, and I'm not into stealing unless it involves drugs and / or hookers. But I digress. Instead, I'm going to offer my list of top 5 underrated players and top 5 overrated players from the B10, each of whom figure to be a 1st-day draft selection. You'll see names like Beanie Wells, Brian Robiskie, Shonn Greene, and even a little Vontae Davis for good measure. So without further adieu, here we go: Overrated

1. James Laurinaitis. Seriously. How many times does a big-time OSU product have to come out into the NFL and suck absolute dick until we all figure out that OSU can't produce a pro product to save their soul. Quick, name an OSU linebacker who's worth a shit in the NFL. .....got any?.....A.J. Hawk? Really? Is that all you've got? Ok, he's decent, but he's nowhere near the hype he received. And I'm here to say that Laurinaitis won't be either. Nowhere near, actually. Besides, go ahead and refer to Andy Katzenmoyer if you need any true examples of all-time FAILS from OSU.
2. Javon Ringer. This is a bit of a stretch, because it's entirely likely that this jackass doesn't crack the top 3 rounds. That being said, however, watch for this guy to go all Ron Dayne on people and proceed to suck balls for the life of his career. Which, in my guess, should last about 3 seconds. He put up some decent numbers this past season, but when you run it 40 times a game, you're bound to get a few 100-yard games.
3. Aaron Maybin. Mr. Maybin, meet Vernon Gholston. Vernon, meet Aaron Maybin. The two of you are identical to one another, only people are sold on Mr. Maybin being disruptive in the right system. I see a speed rusher without any heart (no, not you, Vernon; I'm talking about Aaron right now, though I understand how you could be confused), and is too young and stupid to know any better. He may be decent in 3-4 years, but certainly not right now.
4. Malcom Jenkins. Sensing a pattern here? I hate tOSU, I think their defense is perennially overrated (they play a great system and are very smart, but can get burnt by equal athleticism, which few B10 teams possess), and Jenkins all but proved my theory with his 40 time approaching 5.2 seconds (not quite; it was closer to a 4.9, which is still a joke for a CB). Ultimately, Jenkins may get switched to FS or SS and excel, but I don't see him as a CB. Not even close.
5. Bradley Fletcher. Here is my non-homer pick of this post, because I absolutely adore Fletcher. He's a guy that came in, did everything asked of him, and generally made every play that was needed. Yet he never truly blew anybody away with his playmaking. He never had any "wow" defensive moments, and I never saw him dominate one side of the field like a true CB should be able to do. Granted, that could have been the system he's in, but I'm not sold. I see Fletcher as a situational CB at best, and a special teams flyer at worst.

Underrated

1. Shonn Greene. Homer pick here, being a Hawkeye, but I see Greene just blowing people up in the pros. He laid entirely too many defenders down with pure, brute force, and once he gets into permanent football shape, he won't need 5 games to warm up like he did for the Hawkeyes. He lacks pure top-end speed, sure, but he'll get you 5-6 yards per carry with his eyes closed. His vision for holes in the line is borderline unparalleled, and he refuses to go down after the first hit. He may never put up 2000 yards in a season, but he'll be a solid starter or a great 1-2 back in the thunder-lightning mold.
2. Brian Robiskie. Talk about a guy that runs crisp routes and catches everything in sight. Robiskie is similar to Greene in that he'll never light you up going deep, but if you need a 12-yard out pattern to get a first down, this guy will be open, guaranteed. All you need to do is have the ball with 5 yards of him, and it's his.
3. Travis Beckum. The poor man's Brandon Pettigrew, only a bit smaller. I (heart) this kid, and if he can find a team that doesn't need him to block all that much (see: Colts, Indianapolis), he's going to make a coach very, very happy. His routes are solid, his hands are like feather pillows, and he's a nimble little bugger for a tight end. I cheer for this kid despite the bloody W on his collegiate helmet.
4. Vontae Davis. I hate making this pick, because with the family heritage he's got (and requisite similarity to being a giant douche like his older brother), I'm terrified that he'll go all vagina in the NFL and proceed to suck. But with his skill, he has the ability to really produce. I don't see him being an All-Pro by any means, but he can be a legit starter for a playoff team for the next 10 years, if only he decides he wants it bad enough.
5. Derrick Williams. In order to attempt a fair and unbiased look at this, I'll throw Williams in there, because I see blazing speed, great hands, and a kid who started as a star and ended as a star. I don't necessarily think Mr. Williams will ever be a #1 WR, but he could be a very solid slot guy (a la Anthony Gonzalez from OSU), or a decent #2 WR.

So there you go. My B10 look at the first 3 rounds of the upcoming draft.