Nearly two months remain before the kickoff of the 2015 NFL Draft. That's plenty of time for the perceptions of draft prospects to change, at least among the media. NFL Network's Mike Mayock revealed his latest positional rankings, and while his opinions at several positions have stayed steady, others have seen major shakeups.
La’el Collins, Byron Jones rise in Mike Mayock’s 2015 NFL Draft position rankings
Draft season means Mike Mayock season.
Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Mayock, of course, works as NFL Network's draft guru. He supplies insight and commentary during the NFL Scouting Combine as well as the league's broadcast of the draft itself. During the season, he provides color commentary during Notre Dame Fighting Irish games on NBC. Between it all, he takes in an incredible amount of football, much more than some who cover the draft exclusively.
Below are Mayock’s latest set of rankings at each position, per NFL.com:
Quarterback
1. Jameis Winston, Florida State
2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon
3. Bryce Petty, Baylor
4. Brett Hundley, UCLA
5. Garrett Grayson, Colorado State
This is the same top five that debuted on Mayock’s initial rankings. Nothing that happened at the combine appears to have deterred him from believing in Jameis Winston as the top signal caller in his class.
Running back
1. Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin
2. Todd Gurley, Georgia
3. Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska
4. Duke Johnson, Miami (Fla.)
5. Tevin Coleman, Indiana
Likewise, these are the same five tailbacks in the same order as the first ranking. It appears the small hand measurements for Ameer Abdullah and Tevin Coleman (both 8⅝”) didn’t dissuade Mayock from favoring them over bigger backs like Boise State’s Jay Ajayi.
Wide receiver
1. Kevin White, West Virginia
2. Amari Cooper, Alabama
3. DeVante Parker, Louisville
4. Jaelen Strong, Arizona State
T-5. Dorial Green-Beckham, Missouri
T-5. Breshad Perriman, Central Florida
Here are the first big changes in Mayock’s positional rankings. The top three wide receivers remain intact, but Arizona State’s Jaelen Strong has fought his way into the picture on the back of an impressive combine performance. The wideout posted a 4.44 second 40 as well as a 42” vertical leap. Combined with his production with the Sun Devils, it’s easy to understand why Mayock boosted his ranking. Meanwhile, Dorial Green-Beckham drops a spot while Devin Funchess drops out of the top five entirely.
Tight end
1. Maxx Williams, Minnesota
2. Clive Walford, Miami (Fla.)
3. MyCole Pruitt, Southern Illinois
4. Blake Bell, Oklahoma
5. Nick O'Leary, Florida State
Mayock’s top two tight ends are the same, with Minnesota’s Maxx Williams leading the group by a wide margin. However, many high-pedigree players at the position, like Florida State’s Nick O’Leary, had poor showings at the combine, and Mayock has dropped them accordingly. Gone are Rutgers’ Tyler Kroft and Notre Dame’s Ben Koyack, in are combine stars MyCole Pruitt and Blake Bell.
Interior offensive lineman
1. Brandon Scherff, Iowa
2. Cameron Erving, Florida State
3. Laken Tomlinson, Duke
4. A.J. Cann, South Carolina
5. Tre' Jackson, Florida State
The group hasn’t changed since last time. It’s perhaps telling that Brandon Scherff, who played on the outside at Iowa, didn’t do anything at the combine to convince Mayock to rank him among the offensive tackles.
Offensive tackle
1. La'el Collins, LSU
2. T.J. Clemmings, Pittsburgh
3. Andrus Peat, Stanford
4. Ereck Flowers, Miami (Fla.)
T-5. D.J. Humphries, Florida
T-5. Cedric Ogbuehi, Texas A&M
La’el Collins entered the combine projected by some as a guard in the NFL rather than a tackle. Mayock wasn’t one of them, but he saw something out of Collins at the combine to justify moving him to the top of his rankings. The same cannot be said for Pittsburgh’s T.J. Clemmings or Stanford’s Andrus Peat, who both dropped down.
Interior defensive linemen
1. Leonard Williams, USC
2. Danny Shelton, Washington
3. Malcom Brown, Texas
4. Arik Armstead, Oregon
T-5. Jordan Phillips, Oklahoma
T-5. Eddie Goldman, Florida State
No change for the interior defensive linemen. USC’s Leonard Williams still reigns supreme and is positioned to become the first non-quarterback taken on draft day. Danny Shelton didn’t test well at the combine, but Mayock still believes enough in his tape to keep him at No. 2.
Edge rusher
1. Dante Fowler, Jr., Florida
2. Shane Ray, Missouri
3. Vic Beasley, Clemson
4. Randy Gregory, Nebraska
5. Bud Dupree, Kentucky
Shane Ray and Vic Beasley moved up, likely due to their combine measurements. Both played this past season at 230 pounds or less, too light for the NFL. However, Ray weighed in at 245 and Beasley at 246. Though Ray didn’t work out due to injury, Beasley put on a show, running a 4.53-second 40 with a 41” vertical to boot.
Linebacker
1. Paul Dawson, TCU
2. Eric Kendricks, UCLA
3. Stephone Anthony, Clemson
4. Benardrick McKinney, Mississippi State
5. Denzel Perryman, Miami (Fla.)
No player had a more disappointing combine than TCU’s Paul Dawson, but Mayock believes that the linebacker plays much faster than his 4.93 speed indicates. UCLA’s Eric Kendricks is the big riser here, jumping into the No. 2 spot after a solid showing at the combine.
Cornerback
1. Trae Waynes, Michigan State
2. Jalen Collins, LSU
3. Marcus Peters, Washington
4. Kevin Johnson, Wake Forest
T-5. Byron Jones, Connecticut
T-5. P.J. Williams, Florida State
Byron Jones made headlines by setting a world record in the broad jump at the NFL Scouting Combine. That helped catapult the Connecticut star into the top five of Mayock's cornerback rankings. Other major movements included LSU's Jalen Collins moving ahead of Washington's Marcus Peters, and Kevin Johnson moving up a spot.
Safety
1. Landon Collins, Alabama
2. Shaq Thompson, Washington
3. Derron Smith, Fresno State
4. Damarious Randall, Arizona State
5. Jaquiski Tartt, Samford
It wasn't a great combine for the safeties, but some guys have to end up in the top five. Alabama's Landon Collins remains top dog, with Shaq Thompson (who some believe will play linebacker or running back) coming in right behind him. Arizona State's Damarious Randall shot into the picture after not being ranked last time, doing so at the expense of Ibraheim Campbell.
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