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Draft or Sign? Part 3 – Defensive front seven

Welcome to the third article in my draft or sign series. In each piece, I compare the talent available in free agency and the draft at each position, as well as suggesting which teams may be interested. After highlighting some notable players, I finish with a simple question- if you need an upgrade at ______, is it better to draft or sign a player this offseason?

In the third instalment, I will be looking at the defensive front seven. As players roles and requirements vary greatly between schemes (a 4-3 defensive end does a very different job to a 3-4 DE), I have split the players into three categories- ‘interior defensive line’ (3-4 DL, 4-3 DT); ‘edge rushers’ (4-3 DE, 3-4 OLB) and ‘linebacker’ (4-3 LB, 3-4 ILB). If you missed the either of the first two pieces, which looked at offensive players, they can be found here and here. Make sure you also check out the rest of Last Word on Sports NFL Draft Coverage.

Interior defensive line

Who needs one? Falcons, Ravens, Bears, Packers, Colts, Dolphins, Patriots, Raiders, Steelers

There is a fantastic selection of free agent interior linemen available this offseason, with nine players on the market ending the year with a PFF grade of over 10 (no other position has more than six). The top player available is Miami’s Randy Starks, who can play well in both a 3-4 and 4-3, and excels against the run and pass. Other top players who will be in demand come March include Arthur Jones, Jason Hatcher, Paul Soliai and Henry Melton, although Melton and Hatcher have potential issues attached to them.

For the past three drafts, at least two interior linemen have gone in the first 15 picks. There is a decent chance of that happening again this year, with a wide variety of prospects available. The top two talents are Louis Nix (who projects as a monster nose tackle) and Rashede Hageman      (who played 0, 1, 3 and 5-technique while at Minnesota), who both have the physical tools and ability to be a menace in the pros. There is also a strong selection of lighter prospects, such as Aaron Donald (who dominated the Senior Bowl) and Timmy Jernigan (who was outstanding in the BCS championship game).

Draft or sign? Sign- Although there is a reasonably good selection of draft prospects available this year, there are a ton of fantastic free agents, including one of the best DTs in the league

Edge rushers

Who needs one? Texans, Falcons, Bears, Cowboys, Broncos, Jaguars, Vikings, Saints, Giants, Raiders, Eagles, Buccaneers

There is a strong selection of free agent pass rushers, with five finishing the regular season with 10 sacks or more. The players with the most sacks of the group is Greg Hardy, who took down the quarterback 15 times. Brian Orakpo, Michael Johnson, Michael Bennett and Hardy all finished the year with a PFF grade of over 24, and will all be looking to get big contracts. Other decent players who will be in demand include Lamarr Houston, Jared Allen, Justin Tuck and Shaun Phillips, although the last three are all over 30.

From elite players to lower round gems with a lot of potential, this draft class has everything you could ask for is you are looking for an edge rusher. The most talked about player is defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, who despite a lack of success this year and work rate questions has the past production and physical tools to be a star at the next level. At outside linebacker, the best players are Khalil Mack and Anthony Barr, who both finished the year with at least 10 sacks, 19 tackles for loss and 5 forced fumbles.

Beyond the three who expected to go in the top ten, there are countless other stars. Other candidates to go in the first round include Kony Ealy and Dee Ford, the latter of whom was one of the stars of the Senior Bowl. Some of the steals to be had in rounds 2 and 3 include Trent Murphy, Marcus Smith and Jackson Jeffcoat, who all finished the year with 13 sacks or more.

Draft or Sign? Either- I’d rather not ‘sit on the fence’, but you cannot loose whichever way you go this year.

Linebacker

Who needs one? Texans, Bills, Browns, Cowboys, Broncos, Lions, Colts, Giants, Jets, Washington

Compared to the other two groups in this article, the free agent options at linebacker as not as good. But there are still some top players, and leading the pack is Karlos Dansby, who missed only five snaps all season. The 32 year old ended the year with over 120 tackles and an incredible 19 pass deflected. Other ‘every down’ linebackers who will be popular include Daryl Smith and Wesley Woodyard. And although Brandon Spikes, Vincent Rey and Akeem Jordan all played less than 700 snaps, they were fantastic when on the field and would be an asset to any team.

Although this draft class does not include a star linebacker like Luke Kuechly, there is still an adequate pool of talent. The player with the best opportunity to go in the first 15 picks is CJ Mosley, who has been a four year starter in Alabama. Beyond Mosley, the two players with the best chance of going in the first are Ryan Shazier and Kyle Van Noy, who both project as outside linebackers in the NFL. Some of the better players in the lower rounds include Shayne Skov, Christian Jones and Yawin Smallwood.

Draft or sign? Sign- Beyond the top three, there aren’t many good options at linebacker in the draft. But this group of free agents has both a few top players and some lesser known gems.

Thanks for reading. If you have any feedback on the article, or suggestions for future topics, Make sure you send me over a tweet @N_1_C_K_F. While you are at it, check out Last Word on Sports on Twitter and Facebook as well. And don’t forget to listen to the site’s two partnered podcasts- Thursday Night Tailgate Radio and Overtime Ireland.

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