2016 NFL Draft: NFL draft Sleepers

The 2016 NFL Draft will feature several sleepers that quickly make a name for themselves as value picks.

With everyone focused on who will go in the first 40 or so picks of the NFL draft, let’s identify my top 10 NFL sleepers for day 3 of the draft. This is not to say that they’re guaranteed to go on day 3, all these players are currently perceived as Day 3 picks.

1. Jihad Ward, DL/EDGE Illinois. There’s some buzz that he could be as good as Shaq Lawson. Only he has the body to play anything from the 7 or 9(edge rusher) to the 6 or 5(end) to even 3(tackle) on sub packages. While this is for Day 3 picks, it’s entirely possible that Ward sneaks into the top 60. He’s listed here because the current perception is that he’s a Day 3 pick.

Best fit: New England Patriots. He’s hard working, unselfish and can play multiple spots. This sounds like a match made in heaven.

2. Hassan Ridgeway, DL Texas. Somehow Texas has a lot of good players but not a good team. Ridgeway is another defender who’s projected to go on day 3 but might end up going much higher. The comparison heard most with him is the great Kawann Short in Carolina but what will always hold Ridgeway back is his lack of conditioning and effort. But if a team can light the fire under him and get him to work on his conditioning, they could find themselves with a 5 year starter.

Best fit: Chicago Bears. He’s more of a 3 but could easily play 5. In Fangio’s front where there will always be a 4th rusher attacking the ball, Ridgeway could shade inside a bit from the 5 and thrive.

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3. Tyvis Powell, DB Ohio State. He’s a pure coverage safety with great size but is an indifferent tackler and hitter at best. If a team drafts him with open eyes that they’re getting this coverage specialist, then Powell could stick in the NFL. What’s most impressive is his ability to high point the ball and seems to have a good feeling for where quarterbacks are going with the ball. Between him and Vonn Bell, I’d rather draft Powell since he has an NFL level skill in coverage while Bell seems to have no NFL level skills.

Best fit: Washington Redskins. They aren’t sure who their safeties are going to be and when beat writers ask about 2nd year player Kyshoen Jarrett, they indicate that they expect him to miss 2016(and perhaps longer) with a nerve injury.

4. Keyarris Garrett, WR Tulsa. At first glance, he looks like a 1st round pick. He’s big(6-3) with long arms(34+ inches) and soft hands. He also runs a 40 pretty well(4.53 at the combine). So, why is he seen as a day 3 pick? His tape looks very inconsistent. He doesn’t fight for the ball and needs a lot of work with his route running. He’s a project but one with a lot of potential for the right coaching staff.

Best fit: Pittsburgh Steelers. They love wideout projects like this and don’t pressure them to step up early unless they’re able to.

5. Paul Perkins, RB UCLA. Before I write this, I know that physically, Perkins and this NFL star are two completely different style runners with completely different physical attributes. That said, Perkins reminds me of Marshawn Lynch. Not in that he’s a violent runner who looks for contact to punish defenders but in his short area quickness. He’s a runner who has a very short stride and this makes him look quicker than he is. And in this, he’s very much like Lynch. If a defense can’t surround him or get two arms on him, he’ll make them look bad.

Best fit: Seattle Seahawks. They live for runners like him: short area quick, cuts well and doesn’t mind only playing 2 downs.

6. Charone Peake, WR Clemson. He’s big, fast and was very productive in an offense that ran the ball a lot at Clemson. He’s also a hard worker who interviewed very well. There’s two real problems: 1-he has godawful hands. They’re very small for a wideout and he doesn’t use them well for a wideout. Specifically, he brings them up late when he should have them up earlier. 2-He missed 27 games due to various injuries: including 2 knee surgeries. There’s no doubt he’s a project and one that has a decent about of risk.

Best fit: Kansas City Chiefs. Reid loves to get his hands on project wideouts like Peake, stash them for 2-3 seasons and let them learn.

7. Matt Ioannidis, DL Temple. There’s only role he can really play in the NFL: he’s a power 5 tech end in a 3-4 defense that either just ties up blockers on passing downs or has to come out on the sub packages. If a team is drafting him solely for this role, they should be happy. He’s a very strong, powerful and smart kid who knows how to hand fight and overpower a blocker. That should get him at least a few seasons in the NFL.

Best fit: Houston Texans. With all that speed and talent on the edges and with Watt, what they really need is a powerful run stopper who can help tie up blockers.

8. DeAndre Houston-Carson, DB William and Mary. He’s a classic free safety who has great ball and coverage skills and needs to bulk up to become a better tackler. He’s also a very good special teamer who blocked 4 punts in 2014(in only 9 games). At the very least a team who drafts him will be getting someone who can contribute immediately on special teams.

Best fit: Baltimore Ravens. John Harbaugh is a former special teams coach who likes to find special teamers and slowly work them into one side of the ball.

9. Aaron Green, RB TCU. He’s a small runningback who plays smaller than he is size-wise. And any team who drafts him will have to teach him the nuances of being a pass catching back. Why I think that he has potential as a sleeper is apparent on the film: he has amazing footwork and has some of the fastest, quickest steps that I’ve seen on tape in a long time. Just by itself, this is enough to draft a prospect late on. With this skill, if a team can coach up his other skills then they’ll have to find snaps for him on the offense.

Best fit: Philadelphia Eagles. With Sproles aging, Green could sit-even on the practice squad-and learn from one of the masters of being a pass catching back.

10. Brandon Shell, OL South Carolina. There’s only one position he can play in the NFL: right tackle. He was a disaster at left tackle as a senior because he just doesn’t have the quickness and he’s too stiff to bend and play guard. But he could be a lesser talent Morgan Moses: a stiffer tackle who thrives in a power running scheme and with tight end help against faster rusher.

Best fit: Minnesota Vikings. He can sit behind Loadholt and Smith then get a shot down the road.

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