{"id":1683,"date":"2018-04-23T03:33:07","date_gmt":"2018-04-23T03:33:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/?p=1683"},"modified":"2018-04-23T03:44:10","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T03:44:10","slug":"defensive-tackle-class-features-talented-prospects-with-early-nfl-starting-grades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/defensive-tackle-class-features-talented-prospects-with-early-nfl-starting-grades\/","title":{"rendered":"Defensive Tackle Position Features Talented Deep Class of Prospects with Early NFL Starting Grades"},"content":{"rendered":"

Defensive Tackles<\/em><\/strong> – Grade: A<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Defensive Tackle class is one of the premier groups in recent years and one of the strongest positions this year and probably the best along with the cornerback from the defensive side of the ball.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\u00a0 \u00a0 Defensive Tackle\u00a0 –\u00a0 Nathan Shepherd –\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Ft. Hays (Ks)<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Draft Insiders’ 2018 Yearbook – over 300 In-depth Scouting Reports – Available now – Order Online<\/em><\/h4>\n

Defensive tackle class has 25 in depth scouting reports at a position which will dominate the first two days of the NFL Draft 2018<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Positional Overview<\/u><\/em><\/strong>: <\/strong>
\nThis year’s tackle class is a very strong group after an average draft class last spring. It is especially deep overall through the top 100-125 prospects, though not an especially top-heavy position. Vita Vea and Da\u2019Ron Payne are two highly rated prospects who figure to go in the top 15 selections. Both are NFL ready and should press for rookie starting roles. Taven Bryan, Maurice Hurst, Harrison Phillips and Tim Settle are first round bubble prospects. Phillips and Bryan are tweener linemen and scheme diverse to play inside and outside. Hurst worked out well on his pro day after some medical heart issues arose at the NFL Combine. He is a high level three technique tackle with an early starting grade. Settle is a huge lineman who fits the zero and one technique to become an anchor in the middle. He is expected to be selected in the top 40 overall choices. They could see 8 to 10 chosen from the middle of the first round through the top 100 picks. The highest rated prospects are all graded from the mid-1st through the 3rd round area. Juniors head this class with seven of the top ten prospects underclassmen. B.J. Hill and Nathan Shepherd are fast rising defenders with some scheme flexibility and well-rounded talent who figure in the 2nd day. Shepherd is an impressive small college prospect with an excellent skill set to play inside and outside. He is the highest rated small college defender in this class and ranks in the top 100 prospects. Hill is a fast rising prospect who had an impressive final performance which has him rising in the early rounds. Juniors R.J. McIntosh, Trenton Thompson and Kendrick Norton have NFL starting talent and are fine middle round additions. Small college prospects, Bilal Nichols and P.J. Hall were impressive vs top competition and performed well in workouts. They have moved into the middle rounds in this deep class. This tackle group should provide many 3rd day selections who can become good value choices – like Justin Jones and Greg Gilmore. All carry starting grades and expected to be available in the 3rd day. As many as 15 prospects chosen in the top 150 overall picks. Expect as many as 25 DTs chosen over the 7 rounds. <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>NFL Teams in need:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n
      \n
    1. Cowboys \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a05. Browns<\/strong><\/li>\n
    2. Patriots\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a06. Jets<\/strong><\/li>\n
    3. Colts\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a07. Bengals<\/strong><\/li>\n
    4. Dolphins\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a08. Broncos<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0NFL Premier Player<\/strong> <\/em>
      \n\u00a0\u00a0 Aaron Donald <\/em><\/strong>
      \nBlue Chip – Vita Vea
      \nBlue Chip – Da\u2019Ron Payne
      \nRed Chip – Taven Bryan
      \nRising – Nathan Shepherd
      \nFalling – Derrick Nnadi
      \nUnderrated – Justin Jones
      \nOverrated – Folorunso Fatukasi
      \nSleeper – \u00a0P.J. Hall
      \nBoom\/Bust – Trenton Thompson
      \nReady to Play – Da\u2019Ron Payne
      \nHidden Gem – Nathan Shepherd
      \nOver drafted – Tim Settle<\/p>\n

      Positional Traits<\/em><\/strong>
      \nBest Athlete – Vita Vea
      \nBest Pass Rusher – Maurice Hurst
      \nBest Run Stuffer – Vita Vea
      \nPursuit – Taven Bryan
      \nShed Blocks – Da\u2019Ron Payne
      \nRecognition – Maurice Hurst
      \nBest Intangibles – \u00a0Harrison Phillips
      \nBall Instincts – Taven Bryan
      \nStrongest – Da\u2019Ron Payne
      \nToughest – Harrison Phillips
      \nMost Developed – Vita Vea<\/p>\n

      Top Defensive Tackle Prospects<\/em><\/strong>
      \n1 * Vita Vea \u2013 Washington
      \n2 * Da\u2019Ron Payne \u2013 Alabama
      \n3 * Taven Bryan \u2013 Florida
      \n4 Maurice Hurst \u2013 Michigan
      \n5 * Harrison Phillips \u2013 Stanford
      \n6 * Tim Settle \u2013 Virginia Tech
      \n7 B.J. Hill \u2013 North Carolina St
      \n8 Nathan Shepherd \u2013 Fort Hays St. (Ks)
      \n9 * R.J. McIntosh \u2013 Miami
      \n10 * Trenton Thompson \u2013 Georgia
      \n11 Deadrin Senat \u2013 South Florida
      \n12 Justin Jones \u2013 North Carolina St
      \n13 Derrick Nnadi \u2013 Florida St
      \n14 * Kendrick Norton \u2013 Miami
      \n15 P.J. Hall – Sam Houston St.
      \n16 Lowell Lotulelei \u2013 Utah
      \n17 Bilal Nichols \u2013 Delaware
      \n18 Folorunso Fatukasi – UConn<\/p>\n

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      Defensive Tackles – Grade: A The Defensive Tackle class is one of the premier groups in recent years and one of the strongest positions this year and probably the best along with the [read more…]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,22,43],"tags":[32],"class_list":{"0":"post-1683","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-in-the-huddle","7":"category-nfl-draft-prospects","8":"category-nfl-headlines","9":"tag-draft-insider-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1683"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1692,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1683\/revisions\/1692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/draftinsiders.com\/DraftInsiders\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}