Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay weigh in on Alabama draft prospects
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The NFL Draft is quickly approaching, and it won’t be long until several former Alabama players find out their next destinations. Before the first round kicks off on Thursday, ESPN draft analysts Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay took an hour and a half to talk to the media during a teleconference Monday. Here’s what the two had to say about a few Alabama prospects.
Kiper on Jonah Williams
"Jonah, I think, can be a left tackle. His arm length, he’s got longer arms than Andre Dillard, who everybody’s putting at left tackle. Yet there’s Jonah Williams who everybody wants to move to right tackle or guard, and I thought he held his own against (Clelin) Ferrell in the playoff game."
Kiper on Damien Harris being a later option for the Chicago Bears
"Third round possibilities would be Damien Harris from Alabama, who we thought in August would be a first. He could drop into the third. He could go in the second but could possibly be there in the third."
McShay on Deionte Thompson
"Deionte got off to a great start this past year. I thought his play was a little bit up and down toward the end of the year. He had some opportunities to take the ball away and didn’t. He didn’t finish the way I expected him to based on the beginning of the season. But with that said, and even though he didn’t run a 40 and probably will not… he may fall. It may be the fourth round, late third, four-round range. I still think he’s going to be a good player in the league.
"He has range, and I think he’ll continue to get better. I think, just like Coach Saban would, that he probably would have been better off going back for another year and continuing to develop. I do think over time that Thompson is going to outplaying where he’s eventually going to be drafted."
McShay on Saivion Smith
"I like Saivion on tape, I really did. Six-one, 200 pounds, but he ran a 4.64, and that’s going to hurt. He ran that at the pro day. He was somewhere depending on the scout at 4.61, 4.65, that range. As a corner speed is so important, so I think that’s going to wind up hurting him. He’s probably going to be a fifth-round pick, somewhere in that range. But again, a little like Deionte (Thompson), I think both guys are both better football players than where they’ll probably wind up getting drafted."