Best available players for day three of the 2013 NFL Draft

QB Matt Barkley, USC

QB Tyler Bray, Tennessee

S Shamarko Thomas, Syracuse

LB Khaseem Green, Rutgers

QB Jordan Rodgers, Vanderbilt

RB Kenjon Barner, Oregon

CB Jordan Poyer, Oregon State

DT Montori Hughes, Tennessee-Martin

OG Travis Bond, North Carolina

WR Corey Fuller, Virginia Tech

C Barrett Jones, Alabama

QB Ryan Nassib, Syracuse

CB B.W Webb, William and Mary

WR Ryan Swope, Texas A&M

WR Quinton Patton, Louisiana Tech

DE Joe Kruger, Utah

OLB Cornelius Washington, Georgia

OG Ryan Jensen, Colorado State-Pueblo

2013 all star football challenge

With football season rolling over into the NFL Draft, football junkies got a little taste of Americas favorite past time today in the 2013 All Star Football Challenge.

Some of the best college football prospects for the NFL were on display today. Yes, I get it, we're seeing these prospects in a controlled environment, no one is rushing the quarterback or trying to tackle or block anyone. We can't ascertain to much from their performance, however it's fun to watch the athletic ability of these future stars. It's great to see them up close without pads on.

This years group was impressive indeed with possibly seven prospects being selected in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. My ranking of the top seven:

1. OLB Damontre Moore, Texas A&M
2. WR Cordarrelle Patterson, Tennessee
3. S Kenny Vaccaro, Texas
4. LB Alec Ogletree, Georgia
5. DT Sylvester Williams, North Carolina
6. S Matt Elam, Florida
7. DE Sam Montgomery, LSU

The quarterbacks were on display first and fitting for this year, none looked impressive. Except maybe Green Bay Packer's Aaron Rogers little brother Jordan Rogers. Rogers, out of Vanderbilt is only 6' 1" tall, but he is very accurate and has a quick release much like his older brother.

FSU QB E. J. Manuel actually won the competition, he has a powerful arm and launched it 66 yards, but his accuracy leads something to be desired. His mobilty and ability to throw on then run will give him a good shot in the NFL though.

NC State's Mike Glennon continued his rapid spiral downwards in the draft process. His accuracy was abysmal, in the team drill at the end it took him about 7 attempts to throw the ball in the net. He's a tall, skinny kid with narrow shoulders and a long neck, for what its worth, he doesn't look the part either.

You have to give credit to North Carolina's defensive tackle Sylvester Williams. He was out there running with the much smaller defensive ends. At 6' 3" 313 pounds though he looked like a beast. NFL Draft Dog currently has him being selected at the end of the first round in their 2013 NFL Mock Draft. Look for him to rise up closer to the middle of the first round during the next update though.

OLB Damontre Moore from Texas A&M was on display, he is a lock to be a top five pick and you have to give him credit for even being out there risking an injury. He looked as explosive as his 2012 stats would indicate where he recorded 21 tackles for loss (TFL) and 12.5 sacks. He won the drill with a time of 21.3 seconds.

LSU DE Sam Montgomery looked the part, was quick, nice muscle tone and at 6' 5" 260 pounds ran his drill in 22.2 seconds. He might come off the board towards the end of the first round.

Texas DE Alex Okafor looked a little stiff during his drill. At 6' 4" 265 pounds he had difficulty hoisting the tire in the beginning and got his feet tangled up a bit later. He's still a great talent, just didn't have a great day. Last season he recorded 16.5 TFLs and 12.5 sacks, so I look for him to be a solid second round pick.

The safeties really shined catching the ball and exploding through their drills. This is a very strong safety class with Texas's Kenny Vaccaro and Florida's Matt Elam being solid first round draft picks. Vaccaro at 6' 1" 218 pounds is definitely a top 15 talent and has the skill set to be a pro bowl safety in the NFL. Elam, a possible late first rounder, is a little shorter at 5' 10" 202, but he will come up and hit you.

I wasn't real impressed with USC Safety T. J. McDonald however, he looked stiff and lanky, not a great change of direction. He had the worst time, it took him 32 seconds to complete his drill. He has the ideal size at 6' 2" 211 pounds. Mentally he should ahead of the game, he was well coached by the legend Monte Kiffin. He also has a good pedigree, his father Tim McDonald was a 13-year veteran and six-time Pro Bowl selection for the 49ers and Cardinals.

Georgia linebacker Alec Ogletree was on display. Mel Kiper has him being drafted 8th overall. That might be a little high in my opinion. He has great feet, but at 6' 3" 237 pounds looks a little tall and lanky. He didn't overly impress me in these drills.

Watch out for Rutgers LB Khaseem Green. He could sneak up into the top of the second round. At 6' 1" 236 pounds, he is athletic, stocky and has great balance. ESPN NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay said there was a lot of buzz about him among scouts right now. Last season he recorded an amazing 136 total tackles.

I got a good look at Tennessee WR Cordarrelle Patterson. I really like this kid. After going back and watching game film of him I believe he is destined for stardom in the NFL. He can do it all, last season he caught passes, ran the ball, returned kicks and punts. He ended up with 1,858 all purpose yards. Every time he touched the ball he averaged 18.77 (yards per play). Seeing him without pads makes you appreciate him any more. He's not just a sprinter playing football. He has a strong, powerful body.

Last but not least is North Carolina's RB Giovani Bernard. Short and stocky he reminds me of Ray Rice. Not great straight line speed, but he can cut on a dime. Great hands also, he finished the season with 1,228 yards and 12 TDs. His 6.67 yards per carry average was particularly impressive as was his 198 all purpose average yards per game.

Is Ray Lewis guilty?

The press came out this week accusing Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis of using a banned substance. The banned substance he was accused of using is IGF1. Insulin Like Growth Factor or IGF-1. It is a prescription drug normally prescribed to children who are having growth problems. IGF-1 has been shown to build muscle and repair ligament and tendons. 

The problem is Ray Lewis was accused of using deer antler velvet extract and there is no scientific evidence to date confirming that this product even contains IGF-1.

Deer Antler Velvet is considered a food supplement. It's sold at health food stores around the country and therefore is not regulated by the FDA.

Walk into any health food store, you'll see various products making all sorts of outlandish claims.  Horney Goat Weed supposedly increases your sex drive, Raspberry Ketones helps you lose weight. Products that claim to raise testosterone or block estrogen or increase growth hormone, the list goes on and on, but if you look at the bottom of each bottle you'll see a disclaimer saying "This product has not been evaluated by the FDA". Most of these products are a sham.

Don't you think if deer antler velvet extract really contained IGF-1 then every bodybuilder wannabe in the country would be on it?

For the press to jump on the story that Ray Lewis was taking IGF-1 a week before the Superbowl without any proof was irresponsible. That's the kind of trashy reporting that turns people off on the press.

Robert Bryant
Follow me on Twitter @nfldraftdog

Superbowl XLVII Preview

Baltimore Ravens vs San Francisco 49ers

For the first time in NFL history and most likely the last, we have two head coaches that are brothers (John Harbaugh of the Ravens & Jim Harbaugh of the 49ers) facing off against one another for the right to call themselves world champions. The media will romanticize this story in a hundred different ways so I won't speak on it for very long, although I would be remiss if I didn't mention it at least once. You are 3x more likely to become a U.S. Senator than you are a NFL head coach and the fact that brothers are facing off in the Super Bowl is nothing short of remarkable. 

As a lifelong football fan and a bit of a NFL history buff, this game is a match made in football heaven. These are two of the most physical teams in the NFL led by their defense with an offense built around the running game. Each team has a first ballot hall of famer fighting for the chance to go out a champion - Randy Moss of the 49ers and Ray Lewis of the Ravens.

Season summaries:

Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens had more of a "storybook" season than the 49ers with plenty of ups and downs throughout the entire season. The Ravens former owner Art Modell passed away four days before the start of the regular season and the team dedicated the season in his honor. Baltimore began the year on a tear at 9-2 before losing 4 of their last 5 games to limp into the playoffs. The fans, media, and NFL circles thought this was going to be a short postseason for the Ravens. Terrell Suggs, the team's best pass rusher, went down with a torn achilles in the off-season and it was said that he would miss the entire season. Suggs came back quicker than any NFL player ever has from such a devastating injury, only five months after the tear. Later in the season Suggs tore his bicep muscle and only missed one game. This is one of the least talked about storylines heading into the big game, but one of the more astonishing. What is even more incredible in that this wasn't the most amazing comeback from an injury this year or even on his own team. 

LB Ray Lewis tore his triceps muscle on October 14th and missed just ten games. Before Lewis returned from the injury he also announced that this would be his last season playing football. Lewis knew exactly what he was doing with the timing of his announcement. The team limped into the playoffs with no momentum. With Lewis's retirement at the forefront of the team's mind, it supercharged the entire franchise and infused a sense of urgency only a decision of this magnitude could have done. Not only was he coming back early from a normally season-ending injury, this was the last time #52 will suit up for the Baltimore Ravens. With emotions riding high entering the playoffs the Ravens went on to beat the Indianapolis Colts, the #1 seeded Denver Broncos and the red-hot New England Patriots - both on the road.

At this point, Baltimore's team is being led by the most inspiring leader in sports history and a young, talented quarterback finally coming into his own in Joe Flacco. If you believe in momentum and emotion effecting the outcome of a game you have to give the edge to the Ravens. This team seems destined to end the year as world champions.  

San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have had a bit of a different journey to Super Bowl XLVII. The team had the #3 ranked defense in the NFL and ranked 6th in time of possession at 31:46 a game during the regular season. These two stats make up the basic identity of this team. The 49ers dominate at the line of scrimmage and have a stable of running backs to throw at you all game long. Their defense is led by imposing players on every level (defensive line, linebackers, secondary) and they are flat-out punishing. Defensive end Justin Smith partially tore his left tricep muscle in week 15 but opted against surgery in order to come back in time for the playoffs. His presence is critical for the 49ers and his toughness sets the tone for the entire unit. It also allows linebacker Aldon Smith to avoid double teams which gives one of the league's top pass rushers free reign to harass the quarterback. 

Running the ball and playing great defense were the 49ers staples, that is until Jim Harbaugh made the gutsy decision to bench their starting quarterback Alex Smith for 25 year old 2nd year man Colin Kaepernick in midseason. While this was an extremely controversial decision that took serious conviction, it proved to be the absolute right decision. Kaepernick came on strong right away, playing with poise well beyond his years. These playoffs have made Kaepernick a budding superstar, headlined by his NFL record 181 rushing yards against the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round. At this point you can make the case that the 49ers are the most complete team in the entire NFL with their ability to pass, run, and play defense on an elite level.


Key Matchups
LBs Terrell Suggs and Paul Kruger vs QB Colin Kaepernick - Since naming Kaepernick their starting quarterback, the 49ers have incorporated the "Pistol" into their offense and NFL teams were nowhere near ready for what has ensued. Kaepernick has run this offense since college and is the ideal player for the system. The 49ers also run a zone read option out of this and it is predicated on what the outside linebackers/defensive ends do. Kruger and Suggs will be the keys to the entire game because they will have to decide to key on Kaepernick or whoever the running back is on the given play. The Green Bay Packers took away the running backs and Kaepernick set a NFL record for most rushing yards ever by a quarterback. The Atlanta Falcons decided to take away Kaepernick, so RB Frank Gore and RB LaMichael James took over instead. It will be fascinating to see which way the Ravens decide to go in defending the 49ers dynamic offense.

LBs Patrick Willis and Navorro Bowman vs RB Ray Rice - When Baltimore's offense is at it's best, running back Ray Rice is the focal point. Whether it be Rice running the ball or catching it out of the backfield, he is the offense's workhorse and best player. QB Joe Flacco has proven he can get the job done, yet in a game of this magnitude it is crucial that Baltimore gets Rice going early. Linebackers Patrick Willis and Navorro Bowman are two of the best inside linebackers in the NFL today and one of them at a time will be tasked with shadowing Rice everywhere he goes. If Willis and Bowman can prevent Rice from being a major factor, their chance of shutting down the rest of this offense raise significantly.

The final questions remain: Does Ray Lewis ride out into the sunset like John Elway, Michael Strahan, and Jerome Bettis did by winning a Super Bowl in his last game? Or does San Francisco win their record-tying 6th Super Bowl? This may be the only time Pittsburgh Steelers fans will be rooting for the Ravens in order to remain the only team in history with six Super Bowl victories. February 3rd can't come fast enough.

Super Bowl XLVII prediction - Ravens 27 49ers 26. This is a matter of me going with my heart over my head. My logic tells me the 49ers have a better team but my heart tells me this is Baltimore's year.

By Brandon Thorn
@OneDayGM

+NFL Draft Dog