2013 NFL Draft Top 64 Big Board

The Southeastern Conference is featured heavily in our first big board of the year. Half of the top 10 consists of SEC players. In the entire 64, 24 players are from the SEC. That’s quite the feat considering in this year’s NFL Draft, the SEC accounted for 14 of the first 64 picks.

Leading the way is LSU pass rusher Barkevious Mingo. This season, Mingo may not eye gouging statistics (16 tackles, two tackles loss and a sack), but his athleticism is elite. Mingo often garners double teams or chip blocks and gets rotated in LSU’s deep defensive line group. For the Tigers, Mingo often lines up at left defensive end. In the NFL, he’s probably more suited as a rush linebacker, similar to how the Denver Broncos use Von Miller. Mingo’s line mate, Sam Montgomery also places high No. 5 overall. Montgomery has much better stats is a natural 4-3 end.

Our rankings shouldn’t be an indicator of where a player will be drafted in April. That’s why someone like Alabama guard Chance Warmack rates fourth overall.

West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith, arguably the hottest riser of the season, comes in at No. 13. We still have him behind Southern California’s Matt Barkley, but the distance between the two is fading. In the top 64, there are just four quarterbacks, but only Barkley and Smith are rated highly. Instead, defensive tackles and pass rushers are more highly considered. That will be a recurring theme throughout the rest of the evaluation process.

And it should be noted that this is only a process. As the college football season progresses, our rankings will remain fluid. Expect ranking updates every few weeks.