Bloom 100: 21-50
by Sigmund Bloom on 04/20/10The Bloom 100 is written with deep IDP PPR dynasty leagues that start 3 WR and TE, and a full defense. NFL Comparisons are best case scenarios and not meant to be a prediction of the player’s career, but instead characterize his game in terms of a prominent player with that playing style.
21. Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri - Weatherspoon could easily be your #1 rookie draft LB after the picks are announced later this week. He’s got the range and skills to stay on the field for all three downs, and he is a better fit as a 4-3 MLB than Rolando McClain (*cough* Giants *cough*), although his most likely destination seems to be playing outside in Atlanta’s 4-3 defense.
NFL Comparison: Jon Beason
22. Taylor Price, WR, Ohio - Price is very advanced for having played in a very weak passing offense at Ohio. His speed, quicks, and toughness make him a good wildcat QB in addition to a strong WR prospect. Price understands how to use his physical gifts to create separation and get extra yards in the open field, and he shouldn’t last past the third round of the draft.
NFL Comparison: Andre Caldwell
23. Emmanuel Sanders, WR, SMU - Sanders plays very fast and explosive, but always under control. He can break down a defender in the open field, and he sacrifices his body in the air to make the play. He has a slight build and might get pushed around at the next level, but the natural playmaking instincts should bubble to the surface again as he physically matures.
NFL Comparison: Steve Breaston
24. Carlton Mitchell, WR, South Florida - No doubt about it, Mitchell is starting NFL quality when it comes to physical attributes. He’s long, strong, fast, and explosive. He’ll need a few years to round out his game, but we were saying the same thing about Mike Wallace last year and he is poised to start for the Steelers.
NFL Comparison: Jacoby Jones
25. Donald Butler, LB, Washington - You have to love players who come up biggest when the most is on the line, and Butler did, leading the Huskies to an upset of USC by intercepting a pass, forcing a fumble and racking up 12 tackles. Butler definitely has the coverage skills to stay on the field for all three downs, although some teams may view him as an OLB prospect because he’s not big enough to defeat blocks from pulling guards.
NFL Comparison: Jerod Mayo
26. Anthony Dixon, RB, Miss St - Dixon is going to have a good NFL career because he plays all out and he offers enough versatility to play an RB/FB tweener role. Dixon will provide his NFL team with great depth at RB and a talent that can be used in various ways by a creative offensive coordinator. He won’t ever enter the season atop the depth chart, but he could be very productive when the lead back ahead of him gets dinged, and he could even force his way into a committee.
NFL Comparison: Jason Snelling
27. Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame - Count me among the group that is not sold on Clausen as a franchise QB. He’s lacking a signature win and has no plus tools or abilities to give him a trump card against NFL defenses. I think he is more a product of surrounding talent and system than a future quality NFL QB, but he’ll still get the chance to start and fail repeatedly like most first-round QBs, and that’s worth something in dynasty leagues.
NFL Comparison: Matt Cassel
28. Dennis Pitta, TE, BYU - Pitta catches everything and he is the aggressor while running routes against linebackers. His speed is adequate to good at best, but he has moves and instincts after the catch even though he is not a threat to break a big play. Pitta is the kind of target that will earn his QBs trust with consistency.
NFL Comparison: Owen Daniels
29. Brandon Graham, OLB/DE, Michigan - Graham’s eventual fantasy value may hinge on whether he goes to a 3-4 or a 4-3 defense, but either way, he’ll be a player. He doesn’t have ideal length for a edge rusher, but like Elvis Dumervil, Dwight Freeney, and Lamarr Woodley, Graham uses his lack of basketball height to get superior leverage against taller tackles. His motor never stops, so Graham should be around the ball a lot for a player who lines up at or near the line of scrimmage.
NFL Comparison: Lamarr Woodley
30. Eric Berry, S, Tennessee - Berry is one of the four or five best safeties to come out of the college ranks in the last ten years. Whether that will translate to fantasy numbers is yet to be seen, as recent franchise safeties like LaRon Landry and Sean Taylor have been marooned away from the action as do-everything centerfielders. Still, you’re getting a player with almost zero bust risk, a complete game, and big play instincts when you take Berry.
NFL Comparison: Ed Reed
31. Damian Williams, WR, USC - Williams will go a lot higher in most rookie drafts, but I see a player with limited upside because he lacks outstanding size, speed, quicks, or explosiveness. He is adequate to good in all areas of a wide receiver’s game, but he strikes me as a guy who won’t be more than a solid #3 WR at the next level.
NFL Comparison: Davone Bess
32. Sean Lee, LB, Penn State - Lee is a very smart, tough linebacker who will never be a liability, but he might lack the speed and strength to be the kind of LB that blows plays up or forces turnovers that few LBs could create. Situation is everything - he could be an IDP stud if his path is clear to an ILB spot, like former teammate Paul Posluszny, but he could be buried on a team with a strong MLB, like former teammate Dan Connor.
NFL Comparison: Tedy Bruschi
33. Eric Decker, WR, Minnesota - Decker is about as sure-handed, tough, and polished as they come, but he has little physical upside in terms of quickness, speed, or explosiveness. He could be very productive in the right offense and role, but he could also be passed over by more gifted wideouts on the depth chart over time.
NFL Comparison: Kevin Walter
34. Daryl Washington, LB, TCU - Washington has the athleticism and range to be an everydown tackle machine, but he is not an explosive hitter or very physical LB. He still has a ways to go in terms of instincts and technique, but he could be an outstanding cornerstone of a defense if he grows as much in his first few NFL seasons as he did in his first season as a regular starter at TCU.
NFL Comparison: Will Witherspoon
35. Joe Webb, WR, UAB - Webb’s physical attributes are almost prototypical for the position (6’3” 220, 4.44 40, strong, huge hands, long arms, quick), but he was a QB last year for UAB, and he will need to be built from the ground up as a WR. His ceiling is as high as any WR in this class not named Bryant, and he has the work ethic and intangibles to make the switch, so he’s a risk worth taking in the third round of your rookie drafts.
NFL Comparison: Legedu Naanee
36. Navorro Bowman, LB, Penn State - Bowman is an aggressive downhill LB who makes a ton of plays on the offense’s side of the line of scrimmage. He plays all-out, angry and physical, just the way you expect a Linebacker U LB to play. He’s got some off-the-field issues, he might have come out a year early, and he is undersized, but Bowman’s intensity and instincts should get him into the starting lineup sooner than later.
NFL Comparison: Thomas Davis
37. Mike Williams, WR, Syracuse - None of us should be shocked if Williams is one of best three WRs in this class in five years, nor should it surprise us if Williams is one of the first three WRs to get cut by his team in rookie minicamp. His long frame, strength, agility, and good enough speed add up to a starting quality NFL WR, if not a #1 in the making, but his work ethic and on-again, off-again status on the Orange roster during his career are very worrisome. If Williams does make it, he’ll be a red zone monster with his natural ball skills and “my ball” mentality.
NFL Comparison: Chris Henry
38. Derrick Morgan, DE/OLB, Georgia Tech - Like Graham, Morgan would become a very valuable IDP if he goes to a 4-3 defense where he would join the dwindling ranks of 4-3 ends who can rush the passer and play the run with equal aplomb. Morgan is durable, smart, and young (just turned 21), so we could just be seeing the tip of his upside iceberg.
NFL Comparison: Tamba Hali
39. Blair White, WR, Michigan State - White won’t leave any corners in the dust, and he’s not going to make many highlight plays, but he just gets the job done as a receiver and blocker, and he’s and tough and cagey after the catch. The former walk-on is about as reliable as any receiver in this class when it comes to making the grab and he should settle in as excellent depth with a chance to excel in a good passing offense.
NFL Comparison: Jordy Nelson
40. Chris McGaha, WR, Arizona State - McGaha’s hands, body control, routes, effort, and overall football savvy are NFL starting quality, but he lacks the speed or quicks to create consistent separation at the next level. Still, part of me thinks that he’ll work his way up the depth chart with his consistent execution and ability to make the most out of what he has by setting up defensive backs over the course of a game.
NFL Comparison: Greg Camarillo
41. Joe McKnight, RB, USC - McKnight hasn’t been the gamebreaker Trojan fans envisioned when he showed up as part of a monumental RB class, but he did reinvent himself as a tough inside runner in 2009 when USC’s inexperience at QB demanded a more robust running game. McKnight is versatile and he will be at least good depth, if not a minor RBBC member in the pros, but not more.
NFL Comparison: Mewelde Moore
42. Ben Tate, RB, Auburn - Tate has been a hot commodity since the combine because of his measureables, but I don’t see the creativity and crisp cuts and decisions in his running style for his long speed to come into play. He’ll be fine NFL, but Tate won’t play up to his size/speed potential.
NFL Comparison: Glen Coffee
43. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas - McCoy’s gamesmanship, athleticism, toughness, and winning ways will draw a team into taking him in the second round, but I am worried about McCoy playing within his abilities in the NFL. He already tended to bite off more than he could chew with his limited arm strength at Texas, in the pros, he’ll have to be much more disciplined. In the right system, he could flourish, but he could also be just another A.J. Feeley.
NFL Comparison: Jeff Garcia
44. Tim Tebow, QB, Florida - I’m not convinced that we’ll see Tebow on the field before 2012, and I don’t see the kind of QB who will be a fantasy force (at least in his current form), but Tebow should be re-engineered to have a more compact delivery and quick-twitch thinking to attack defenses. The team that takes him will be a Tebow believer, so he’s very likely to get the keys to a franchise before his rookie contract is up.
NFL Comparison: Steve McNair
45. Jeremy Williams, WR, Tulane - Williams is a technician in his routes with great hands and run after catch instincts. He lacks the size, speed, or raw athleticism to get a team excited about his prospects as a playmaker, but he could be very productive in a west coast offense.
NFL Comparison: Earl Bennett
46. Rennie Curran, LB, Georgia - Every time I watched the Bulldogs I came away impressed with this seek-and-destroy LB who is always around the ball. 5’10” 230 LBs are considered too small to make it in the NFL, and the cover 2 scheme that favored speed over size is fading, but I wouldn’t bet against Curran cracking starting the lineup down the line.
NFL Comparison: Quincy Black
47. Riley Cooper, WR, Florida - Cooper is still a work in progress, but he’s massive, athletic, and physical, and he should be a good red zone threat even if he doesn’t develop the consistency to start in the NFL.
NFL Comparison: Michael Jenkins
48. Dezmon Briscoe, WR, Kansas - Briscoe’s lanky frame and ball skills will make him an excellent jumpball threat downfield, but the quickness and speed that Briscoe needs to become a more well-rounded receiver just aren’t there, so his upside his limited.
NFL Comparison: Malcom Floyd
49. David Gettis, WR, Baylor - Gettis’s size/speed combo of 6’3” 215 and a 40 time in low 4.4’s will make a team devote a few years to developing his game. Gettis needs to become a natural hands catcher and polish his route running, but if it all clicks, his rare physical ability could make him a starting NFL WR.
NFL Comparison: Ben Obomanu
50. Ed Dickson, TE, Oregon - Dickson has WR-like agility and hands, with TE size and strength. He will still likely be a one-dimensional pass catching threat in the NFL, and he’ll need to land in the right offense to be relevant for fantasy.
NFL Comparison: Travis Beckum
