NFL Draft Predictions: Fantasy Football

NFL Draft 2006
What: 2006 NFL Draft
When: April 29-30
Where: New York City
Rounds: Seven rounds

Click Here For Part 1 of the 2006 NFL Draft Preview...

Here's my selections and rankings for the 2006 NFL draft coming up on April 29th in New York. This of course is after carefully pouring over all the statistics that have come in over the last week from the NFL Scouting Combine. This is not necessarily a prediction of the order they will be selected, rather a prediction of which players in my opinion will be the best at the next level.

23. Tampa Bay - DeMeco Ryans, LB
School: Alabama
Status: Senior
Height: 6-1 Weight: 236
Strengths: Is quicker than fast. Moves well laterally and when coming forward. He is instinctive and his technique is outstanding. He plays with leverage and shows very good balance and body control. Is quicker than fast. Takes excellent angles in pursuit and is a reliable, powerful tackler. Really has a nose for the football. Is disciplined and will execute his assignments. He shows good recognition skills and won't take too many false steps. He shows adequate-to-good range in underneath zone coverage. Gets good jumps on the ball and also shows good ball skills when in position to make a play. He has developed his array of pass rush moves and is relentless in pursuit of the QB. Ryans should be the second or third linebacker selected in the 2006 draft.

24. Cincinnati - Ko Simpson, DB
School: South Carolina
Status: Senior
Height: 6-1 Weight: 200
Strengths: Possesses good upside. Lacks ideal bulk but has the frame to get bigger. Is a powerful player for his size. He fills hard versus the run and has developed into a solid open field tackler. He flashes some explosive power at the point of attack. Is a ball-hawk with playmaking instincts. Shows adequate range in coverage. Possesses adequate-to-good speed and shows good closing burst to the ball. Shows outstanding ball skills. Has enough quickness and natural athleticism to match up versus bigger receivers one-on-one. Physical and tough. Simpson is a risk-reward type of prospect who could come off the board as high as a late first round pick in 2006.

25. N.Y. Giants - Johnathan Joseph, CB
School: South Carolina
Status: Senior
Height: 5-11 Weight: 187
Strengths: A fast-rising prospect with explosive speed. Is a fluid athlete with very good initial quickness and COD skills. He shows the ability to turn-and-run without losing much in transition. Is quick out of his pedal and shows good closing burst. Is able to make up a lot of ground when the ball is in the air. He shows good leaping ability and will challenge for the ball in traffic. Possesses natural playmaking instincts and very good ball skills. Is aggressive in run support. Willing and fills hard. Shows adequate strength and is an efficient tackler in space. Joseph possesses the potential to develop into a difference maker as a fulltime starting cornerback in the NFL.

26. Chicago - Leonard Pope, TE
School: Georgia
Status: Senior
Height: 6-6 Weight: 259
Strengths: He shows outstanding top-end speed for his size. Is a smooth and fluid athlete. Will be able to stretch the field vertically as a pass-catcher in the NFL. Also can adjust to the poorly thrown ball. Has big, soft hands and is a reliable receiver. Does a fine job of settling into soft spots in zone coverage. Gets upfield quickly and shows some initial burst to pick up yards after catch. Has upside as a blocker because of size potential, long arms and mobility. Continues to improve in that facet every season. Pope would likely emerge as a late-first or early-second round selection in the 2006 draft.

27. Carolina - Dominique Byrd, TE
School: USC
Status: Junior
Height: 6-2 Weight: 260
Strengths: Is an outstanding athlete at the TE position. Has a lot of upside as a pass-catching H-back in the NFL. He has good initial quickness and adequate speed for the position. He can stretch the seam and is a playmaker in the passing game. He has very good hands. He will make the acrobatic catch. Shows good body control and balance. Will adjust to the poorly thrown ball. Is fluid and smooth as a route runner. Also gets upfield quickly after the catch and shows some burst and elusiveness for the position. He is a better blocker than measurables might indicate. As it stands right now, Byrd has second round talent with a ton of upside.

28. Jacksonville - Ernie Sims, OLB
School: Florida St.
Status: Junior
Height: 6-0 Weight: 220
Strengths: Ernie Sims is a tremendous athlete with great speed and coverage skills for a linebacker. He may be the best coverage linebacker in the 2006 draft, and reminds in some ways of former FSU linebacker Derrick Brooks. He's also very strong for his size and may excel at the next level because of this. He would be a very good fit for a cover 2 system, such as in Tampa Bay or Indianapolis.

29. Denver - Sinorice Moss, WR
School: Miami
Status: Senior
Height: 5-8 Weight: 185
Strengths: Sinorice Moss may be one of the fastest players in college football and has a knack for making big plays. The younger brother of Santana Moss; they both share comparable size and speed. That is where the comparisons end. Sinorice might never be a number one receiver like his brother but he will make a huge contribution to any team as a third receiver or on special teams. Another thing to mention is that he is a very good route runner which will translate well in the NFL.

30. Indianapolis - Taitusi "Deuce" Lutui, G
School: USC
Status: Junior
Height: 6-6 Weight: 370
Strengths: Is one of the biggest OL prospects in the 2006 class. He has rare overall size; is a tall, wide-body with massive bulk. He will engulfs defenders at the POA. He has adequate lower body strength and will be able to drive defenders off the line of scrimmage if he gets good positioning and plays with leverage. He rarely loses a battle once he has locked on. He can anchor vs. the biggest and strongest bull rushers. He actually has impressive short-area agility for his size.

31. Seattle - Maurice Stovall, WR
School: Notre Dame
Status: Senior
Height: 6-4 Weight: 236
Strengths: Possesses loads of upside because of his size/speed ratio. He is tall, well built and strong. He has very good top-end speed for his size. Is a potential mismatch when left alone on an island. He has long arms and big hands. Has shown flashes of becoming a huge playmaker on the perimeter. He has a lot of potential as a red zone weapon. He can use his frame to shield defenders and he has the size and athletic ability to consistently win the jump ball. He will make some acrobatic receptions. He has shown enough as a senior to warrant consideration in the late-first round or second round of the 2006 draft.

32. Pittsburgh - Bobby Carpenter, LB
School: Ohio St.
Status: Senior
Height: 6-3 Weight: 255
Strengths: Tall with good overall size and frame to get bigger. Has very good straight-line speed for his size. Shows very good fluidity for his size. Is at his best in the passing game and could fit best as a 3-4 OLB in the NFL as a result. Possesses the athletic ability and speed to match up very well in man-coverage. Shows very good instincts and range in zone coverage. Has developed into an effective pass rusher. Has good speed and closing burst to the QB. He can play a backup role at a couple of different LB positions early in his NFL career and he also is a proven playmaker on special teams, where he should be able to contribute right away.

Click Here For Part 1 of the 2006 NFL Draft Preview...
Click Here For Part 2 of the 2006 NFL Draft Preview...

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