NFL 2013 Risers and Fallers

Dec 22, 2012; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith (89) makes a catch in the second quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

After the East-West Shrine Game, the NFLPA game, and the

first practices of the Senior Bowl, we begin to see players

rising up boards and, yes, some falling. We’ll take a quick look

at some of these.

Eric Fisher OT, Central Michigan

Across the board the player standing out most is Eric

Fisher from Central Michigan. He has already shot up many

boards and most have him moving from the second half

of the first round to the top ten of their boards. He has

handled Alex Okafor in practices for the Senior Bowl to

the point that it’s causing Okafor to drop spots. If it had

not been for  Luke Joeckel OT, Texas A & M being a top

5 pick then Fisher could easily move into the top 5.

Lane Johnson OT, Oklahoma

Johnson is another big gainer now that Jake Matthews

OT, Texas A & M has chosen to stay in school for another

year. Look for the Carolina Panthers to give him some

consideration if Jonathan Banks CB or Jonathan Hankins

DT are off the board.

Desmond Trufant CB, Washington

Desmond (brother of Marcus) has been a late 3^rd or

early 4^th round pick until the first 3 practices of the

Senior bowl. He’s by far the best of the 12 DBs at

the Senior Bowl and has now comfortably moved up

to middle of the second round.

Marques Goodwin & Quinton Patton WR’s

Both receivers, Goodwin from Texas and Patton from

Louisiana Tech, were on most boards somewhere

in the 4^th or 5^th rounds. Each has stood out in practices

and if either follow that with good games on Saturday,

will jump up at least one round.

Ezekiel Ansah DE, BYU

This guy is a beast. Raw in some skills but is beginning

to dominate. Ansah will probably jump to the front

of the DEs even though some big names are ahead

of him by draft day. Two weeks ago he was an early

2^nd rounder and is now a top 15 pick.

Mike Glennon & Ryan Nassib QBs

Glennon, NC State and Nassib, Syracuse are two of

the 6 QB’s at the Senior Bowl and both have struggled

in early practices. Glennon  measured out in cleats just

under 6’8” and 220 lbs. and Nassib has continued to

get air under the ball and overthrow his receivers.

Couple this with the fact they are both pocket passers.

They have both been shown on boards as early as the

1^st round and as late as the 5^th round and will need

solid games to overcome their showings in practices.

Both are suited for a team like Buffalo, who will

most likely be looking for a replacement for Ryan

Fitzgerald if he ends up elsewhere.