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PA Season Ticket Holder
04-15-2003, 04:47 PM
As deep as the defensive line group is, the linebacker class is the opposite. There is very little to be excited about when it comes to linebackers this year. There are no Ray Lewis-type inside players, and on the outside, the best player may wind up at safety before his career is over.

But there's something that makes the shallow list of linebackers interesting. The group of teams that desperately need a linebacker is short, but not short enough to satisfy everyone. From what I have been able to gather in my discussions, no more than 10 linebackers will get their name called on the first day. The first round should be the home for one inside linebacker and one outside 'backer. A team like the Eagles could grab a third linebacker late in the first round, but that's not likely.

There is a consensus top outside linebacker and a top inside linebacker in this draft, and they have both stayed on top since the college season ended. Boss Bailey, brother of Washington Redskins cornerback Champ Bailey, has been the top OLB prospect since January. E.J. Henderson has defended the top inside spot for the same period of time.

As deep as the defensive line group is, the linebacker class is the opposite. There is very little to be excited about when it comes to linebackers this year. There are no Ray Lewis-type inside players, and on the outside, the best player may wind up at safety before his career is over.

But there's something that makes the shallow list of linebackers interesting. The group of teams that desperately need a linebacker is short, but not short enough to satisfy everyone. From what I have been able to gather in my discussions, no more than 10 linebackers will get their name called on the first day. The first round should be the home for one inside linebacker and one outside 'backer. A team like the Eagles could grab a third linebacker late in the first round, but that's not likely.

There is a consensus top outside linebacker and a top inside linebacker in this draft, and they have both stayed on top since the college season ended. Boss Bailey, brother of Washington Redskins cornerback Champ Bailey, has been the top OLB prospect since January. E.J. Henderson has defended the top inside spot for the same period of time.

http://nfl.com/draft/analysis/expert/kirwan/lb