Scouting Report: Blue Chip Prospects in the 2016 NFL Draft

This is the first in a series of scouting report on various prospects in the 2016 NFL draft. This doesn’t mean that every prospect will get analyzed but this author hopes to go through some of the major cohorts of prospects: blue chippers, fake blue chippers, underrated prospects and guys that teams should stay away from. Today: the blue chippers.

Joey Bosa, DL Ohio State
What he does well: Great at the point of attack with a quick first step, great hand use and amazing power.

He’s very difficult to trap or get around. Basically, college offenses game planned completely around him during his last two seasons.

He also has great versatility on the defensive front 7: he could line up at End, tackle, outside linebacker, edge rusher, etc.

What he struggles with: He sometimes gets himself into trouble by misreading the snap count or the play pre-snap. He will guess wrong and be out of position. This doesn’t mean that he can’t still make the play, but you will see NFL teams trying to get him to guess wrong.

Red Flags: Suspended for pot use and academic issues. Which doesn’t sound that bad but it was Urban Meyer who suspended him.

Draft range: #1-4 overall.
Pro comparison: Jared Allen, multiple teams. He’s not the hot head that Allen is, but he plays with the same drive, power and passion that Allen does.

Bosa will be linked with 3-4 teams, but he’ll be at his best as a strongside End in a 4-3 defense. However, wherever he goes he should be a monster of a player.

Laquon Treadwell, WR Ole Miss
What he does well: He has an amazing catch radius, hands, and ability to muscle defenders off the ball.

His sheer physicality made him one of the toughest receiving threats to deal with in 2015, all this after recovering from a gruesome leg injury which cut his 2014 short.

What he struggles with: he has major issues with his speed and quickness, so don’t expect a lot of separation from him on the field. At some point, that will be a big problem in the NFL if he can’t get faster(or quicker).

Red Flags: Medical(leg injury in 2014)
Draft range: #2-#12 overall.
Pro comparison: Alshon Jeffrey, Chicago. Treadwell gets incorrectly compared to Dez Bryant. He doesn’t have Bryant’s explosion on the field and off the field. Jeffrey, like Treadwell, is a ball magnet who won’t be out-muscled for the ball.

His game is also similar to Chris Chambers, but Treadwell has a much better body than Chambers ever did.
Emmanuel Ogbah, DL Oklahoma State
What he does well: he has natural rush skills and uses his unique combination of power and speed to terrorize opposing offensive linemen. He also looks fine when asked to zone blitz and drop into coverage.

He’s also been extreme productive in a Power 5 conference, and at times, completely unblockable. When you put the film on, you see a guy who can’t be handled by ever three blockers(ask Baylor). With such strong hands, he’s able to get a sack even if he can only get a few fingers on a quarterback.

What he struggles with: He can bite on traps a lot, but part of that is that he’s a late comer to football. He plays with too much aggression at times, and well coached teams have taken advantage of that.

Red Flags: None that are apparent.
Draft range: #4-#15 overall
Pro comparison: Michael Strahan, NY Giants. Ogbah could play on either side of a defensive line, but he’s going to do best lining up over the right side of an offense like Strahan did.

Both players just have that amazing combination of power, speed and drive. Ogbah is a relentless rusher who gives his all just to disrupt the play.

Jalen Ramsey, DB Florida State
What he does well: He’s amazing in both and man and zone coverage, He can play at a high level at CB or free safety and looks equally as comfortable outside as he does in the slot.

Also: great leadership skills for a defender and has a nose for the ball.

What he struggles with: To quote Avon Barksdale, Ramsey might be a “man without a country.” He’s a bit too stiff to play corner and doesn’t quite tackle well enough to be a free safety. He could end up being a high talent Jimmie Ward: FS/CB tweener.

Red Flags: None that are apparent.
Draft range: #3-#8 overall.
Pro comparison: Eugene Robinson, Atlanta. Ramsey probably has better physical tools coming out of school, but both he and Robinson were smart defensive backs who knew how to cover deep and had a wide range for the ball.

If he’s drafted to play outside corner full time, he will struggle to make the transition. Keeping him at safety is the best way to maximize his contributions to the team that takes him. And he could slide to the slot CB spot and cover lesser wideouts and tight ends.

Vernon Hargreaves III, DB Florida
What he does well: He’s a pure shutdown corner in every sense of the term. For the last 3 seasons he’s been matched up-generally-with the top wideout of the opposing team.

He’s nearly the perfect corner prospect, only lacking large physical size to go with his technique, speed, quickness and press abilities.

What he struggles with: He lacks ideals size so some teams have had some success against him using a tall WR that they throw jump balls to.

Alabama was able to get good production from Amari Cooper against him, but there’s very few corners who can say that they got the best of Cooper.

Red Flags: Not that are apparent.

Draft range: #1-#10 overall.
Pro comparison: Joe Haden, Cleveland. Although Hargreaves is probably more advanced as a prospect than Haden was coming out of Florida. Haden was more aggressive than Hargreaves is and Haden went to a defense that basically built their pass defense around him.

Considering the style of team building in the NFL now, teams will do the opposite: draft Hargreaves and think that he can just shutdown a wideout for them while they play any style of defense.