The 75th NFL Draft is set to begin tonight at Radio City Music Hall in New York, marking the earliest in the week the draft has ever started. Just don’t expect to hear more than one Penn State Nittany Lion have his name called until later this weekend.
Draft experts Mike Band of DraftAce.com and Scott Wright of DraftCountdown.com predict former Penn State defensive tackle Jared Odrick will be the only Nittany Lion selected in the first round.
Band, who was crowned the 2009 NFL Mock Draft Champion by TheHuddleReport.com, said Odrick’s physical tools are the main reason he likely secures a first round draft pick.
“He definitely has the build, size, and athleticism to work well both at defensive tackle and at defensive end,” Band said, “especially since a lot of teams in the NFL are switching to 3-4 defenses.”
Band has Odrick slotted as the No. 25 pick in the draft by the Baltimore Ravens but says that there is definitely a chance he could go even higher.
“There’s been talk that the Browns really like [Odrick],” he said. “The only problem is he’s not worth the seventh overall pick…although, the team is said to be trying to move up or down. If they can move down to 15 then Odrick would be a possibility then.”
After Odrick, predictions get a bit murky for the former Lions, but both Band and Wright rank Sean Lee as the next-best Penn State prospect.
Coming from “Linebacker U,” Lee has heightened expectations and hype. But Band said that Lee, like other Penn State linebackers in recent drafts, isn’t living up to the billing.
“When you look at the Penn State linebackers that have come out, I think they’re always hyped up pre-draft,” Band said. “You look at Posluszny and Connor. Both those guys went lower than expected and I expect the same with Sean Lee.”
Band projects Lee as a second-rounder, going 63rd overall to the Indianapolis Colts.
Like Band, Wright also graded Lee as a mid-second round pick.
“He reminds me of Paul Posluszny,” Wright wrote in an email. “He could work either in an inside or outside defensive scheme.’
But Lee isn’t even Penn State’s top talent at linebacker in this draft. Former Lions outside linebacker Navorro Bowman, who surpassed his senior year to declare for the draft, has the skills to be a first round pick, Wright said.
“Raw talent-wise I think Bowman is a stronger talent than Lee,” he said. “Sean Lee has the work ethic, but Bowman is the better talent.’
But for Bowman, off-the-field issues have de-railed any chance of going in the first round, Wright said.
In his time at Penn State, Bowman faced felony aggravated assault charges for his involvement in a 2007 on-campus altercation. He also admitted in 2009 to marijuana use, Wright said, and as a result, NFL teams are hesitant to take the risk.
Band has Bowman as the first pick of the fourth round, No. 99 overall, to the St. Louis Rams.
Unfortunately for the rest of the draft-eligible Lions, he’s the last player Band anticipates being selected in the seven-round draft. The only other player Band thinks has a real shot at being a late-round selection: tight end Andrew Quarless.
“Quarless is a tight end that’s athletic, but he lacks the bulk and the strength to be a reliable inside line blocker,” Band said. “That’s probably going to make him a fringe late-round pick.”
Wright on the other hand said a third Penn State linebacker, Josh Hull, could surprise people as a late round selection.
“If I was to name a sleeper it would have to be Josh Hull,” Wright wrote in an email. “Hull has a chance to be drafted late. He is a classic over-achiever.”
