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By Russ Lande
Sporting News


A quick look at hot topics in NFL personnel departments surrounding prospects for the 2011 draft:

-- When the '10 season began, Minnesota QB Adam Weber was not a highly thought of prospect and had an undrafted grade from many NFL teams. After taking a closer look at Weber's game film, his stock has risen with us and with numerous scouts for NFL teams. It's not that he's flying up draft boards, but his play in '10 should get him drafted in the late rounds.

Weber (6-1, 221) is a three-year captain who has been productive despite having played for multiple head coaches and coordinators. Weber is smart and understands passing concepts and consistently shows the ability to make good decisions. He does not panic under pressure.

NFL coaches and personnel men are sure to fall in love with him during the interview portion of the NFL Scouting Combine because of his smarts, leadership and knowledge of passing schemes.

He lacks prototypical NFL size and physical tools, but he has many of the traits to become a top-line NFL backup.


-- Some draft analysts have talked up Oklahoma S Quinton Carter as a possible second-round pick, but after breaking down his game film it's hard to see what they're excited about. To us, his play was disappointing in '09 and again in '10.

Carter (6-1, 196) is well built and can deliver hard hits, but he is inconsistent coming up and making strong and physical tackles. At times, he tends to slow up before contact and becomes a "catch" tackler and gets driven backward too often by ballcarriers.

He does flash the ability to close quickly on passes in front of him and to deliver hard hits. He simply is not as athletic or productive as an elite safety must be. He should consider himself lucky to be even drafted, let alone in the top half of the draft.


-- Hillsdale College WR Andre Holmes jumped off the film last year when we were scouting Hillsdale OT Jared Veldheer, a third-round pick of the Raiders who already has become a solid NFL left tackle.

Holmes (6-4, 203) performed even better in '10, catching 104 passes for 1,368 yards and 11 touchdowns. Holmes is a tall receiver with explosive quickness and home-run speed who can turn short passes into big plays. He was more consistent in '10, making big plays in key situations.

He certainly will be at least a late-round pick, but he could fly up boards in the spring with some standout pre-draft workouts.


-- Syracuse C Ryan Bartholomew (6-0 3/4, 296) is not an elite prospect because of his limited athleticism and lack of height, but he is growing on scouts around the league. Even though he is a bit short, he has good arm length and blocks with great leverage and uses his hands well to tie up and control defensive linemen. Bartholomew never will be a dominant NFL center, but he has many of the tools to be effective in a zone-blocking scheme.


-- With so many NFL teams using a 3-4 defense, many defensive tackles too big to be productive in a 4-3 scheme have seen their draft value rise. Baylor nose tackle Phil Taylor fits that mold.

Taylor (6-3, 340) has the size and strength to be a real force at the point of attack when playing with good leverage and using his hands well. He also is an underrated athlete who has the quickness and athleticism to defeat one-on-one blocks and blow up plays in the backfield.

Of course, his NFL future is dependent on his ability to keep his weight under control. Because of weight concerns, Taylor could fall into the back half of the draft but could prove to be a steal, a la the Browns' Ahtyba Rubin, a '08 sixth-round pick who has become a good NFL starter.
 
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