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2014 NFL Draft Rookie Update: Top-5 Picks

By @rickstavig

2014 NFL Draft

Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

Now that we’re nearly three-quarters of the way through the current football season, we’re starting to get a better idea whether or not the 1st rounders from the 2014 NFL Draft class were worth the hype or not. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still early in their careers and you shouldn’t assume a prospect has reached the pinnacle of their development, but we at least have an idea. So how are the top dogs looking? Here’s an update on the the top five picks.

Jadeveon Clowney (OLB, Houston Texans) was the number one overall pick and we know about as much now as we did before he ever took an NFL snap. Clowney has only played in three games this year due to a torn meniscus that sidelined him for the better part of two months. He logged the most minutes in a game of his career last week against the Cleveland Browns and says he feels great now, so we should start seeing more and more production as we close out the rest of the year.

Clowney played an OK game against the Browns, tallying two tackles and two hurries as he still hunts for his first career sack. He was also solid against the run, which has always been a strength of his. Remember, he’s still adapting to an entirely new position and the missed time has really slowed his development, but the raw skills are still stunning. His future is still as bright as ever, but it’ll be really interesting to see him progress moving forward, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him overtake Whitney Mercilus as starting ‘JACK’ linebacker.

Greg Robinson (OT/OG, St. Louis Rams) was picked second overall and has moved to LT full time after toiling inside at LG earlier in the season. Robinson looked good inside at OG but has struggled on the edge, especially last week against the Denver Broncos, who targeted his side with pressure early and often. His skill set still says he could be a Pro Bowl -caliber LT, considering his size, strength, footwork and athleticism, but he’s proving the critics right who said he’d need a lot of work fundamentally to reach his potential. It’s also been surprising he hasn’t been more effective run blocking on the outside, where he actually seems to be regressing.

Third overall pick Blake Bortles (QB, Jacksonville Jaguars) has predictably taken his lumps leading a young but talented team. Bortles has completed 63.3% of his passes for 1,921 yards to go along with a rough 8/13 TD to INT ratio. We knew going into this year that Bortles was a project, similar to Robinson, and that he’d need time to adapt to the pro game after playing his college ball at Central Florida. What has been impressive so far has been his leadership and pocket awareness, and he’s done a very good job making plays with his feet. He has some soft secondaries looming on his schedule to close out the year so don’t be surprised to see him make further strides.

Fourth overall pick Sammy Watkins (WR, Buffalo Bills) has had a bit of a roller coaster rookie season with very good performances some weeks and some not-so-good one’s other weeks. Still, Watkins leads the Bills in receptions (45), receiving yards (649) and TD’s (5). At his current pace, he’ll tally 72 receptions for just over a thousand yards and 8 TD’s, pretty darn solid considering the QB situation in Buffalo. He’s done a very good job blocking (rare for a rookie), but needs to continue improving consistency of his hands.

Khalil Mack (OLB, Oakland Raiders) was the fifth pick, and he’s probably been the Defensive Rookie of the Year so far. He hasn’t put up huge numbers (59 tackles, 1 sack, 1 FF) but has been living in opponents backfields (has 30 hurries compared to J.J. Watt‘s 29). He’s been strong against the run, generates consistent pressure off the edge and has been solid in coverage. He’s a monster already and the sky just may be the limit for him. One prominent stat site grades him as the third best OLB in the NFL, and he’s only 12 weeks into his career. Could be the best pick of the first round.

Rick Stavig is an NFL Draft Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @rickstavig or add him to your network on Google+.

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