The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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16 THE WOLVERINE MAY 2017 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS What They're Saying About Defensive End Taco Charlton "In a class loaded with exciting edge rushers, Charlton's upside stands out. A twitchy athlete with prototypical length, burst and bend off the edge … scouts are optimistic that he might just be scratching the surface of his potential." — CBS Sports draft expert Rob Rang, who pro- jected Charlton to be selected ninth overall in his April 17 mock draft "Charlton might never be an elite player, but he doesn't have many weak- nesses. I like how he showed up against top competition in 2016, compil- ing 5.5 sacks against Penn State, Wisconsin, Ohio State and Florida State." — ESPN draft expert Todd McShay, explaining why he has Charlton coming off the board at No. 21 to the Lions in his April 12 mock draft. What They're Saying About Safety Jabrill Peppers "Some say he has poor ball skills. Are they nuts? Have you seen the way he adjusts to passes and punts? He catches the ball very cleanly." — Anonymous scout in Pro Football Weekly's 2017 NFL Draft Guide "Peppers doesn't fit into a defined role, but could they use him like Honey Badger [All-Pro safety Tyrann Mathieu] in Arizona? Go make plays." — The Big Lead's Jason Mc- Intyre after predicting Peppers to the Colts at No. 15 in his mock draft MICHIGAN In The NFL Draft BY RYAN TICE By The Numbers 10 Is the school record for former Michigan players taken in the NFL Draft, set in 1972 and 1974, both of which featured 17 rounds. U-M should easily surpass that to- tal in this year's seven-round event, set for April 27-29. 14 Is the number of Wol- ve r i n e s t h a t we re given seventh-round draft grades or better in CBS Sports expert Dane Brugler's NFL Draft Guide; 14 is the all-time record for most picks from one school, set by Ohio State in 2004. 26 Is where Pro Football Focus ranked corner- back Jourdan Lewis in its top 100, the highest of any Michi- gan product. No. 36 Taco Charl- ton, No. 41 Jabrill Peppers, No. 79 Delano Hill and No. 99 Jake Butt also made the cut. 143 NFL personnel — at least one from every team — attended Michi- gan's Pro Day March 24, includ- ing eight NFL head coaches (the Ravens' John Harbaugh, the Steelers' Mike Tomlin, the Jets' Todd Bowles, the Lions' Jim Caldwell, the Patriots' Bill Belichick, the Saints' Sean Pay- ton, the Titans' Mike Mularkey and the Bengals' Marvin Lewis) and three general managers. "Basically the whole NFL is here," NFL Network assignment editor and field producer An- drew Groover tweeted. 2005 Wa s t h e l a s t time U-M had multiple players selected in the first round — wideout Braylon Edwards was taken third over- all by the Browns, while cor- nerback Marlin Jackson was picked 29th by the Colts. The Wolverines have produced multiple first-rounders seven times in its history; Charlton and Peppers are popular first- round picks in several notable mock drafts. • "My scouts on the ground at pro days have been doing this talent-evaluation cir- cuit for a long time … they had never seen as many NFL evaluators at one pro day as they did in Ann Arbor. The number of Michigan players that could be drafted will likely challenge the most ever from one school in any one year. The number that could end up on NFL rosters this summer could be in the 20s." — NFL.com's Gil Brandt • "This class really is a special class for the Wolverines. … When you look at each round, they could be represented in every round, and you never see that. I think it's a testament obviously to the program, but especially Coach [Jim] Harbaugh and what he's been able to do to develop these play- ers from what they were two years ago to what they are now and how optimistic scouts are about the talent coming out of Ann Arbor." — CBS Sports NFL Draft senior analyst Dane Brugler • "[Jake Butt] reminds me a lot of Jason Witten, a player who has enjoyed a tre- mendously long and productive NFL ca- reer. Even if he's not ready for the start of the 2017 campaign, I personally believe he's worth a late second-round pick. I be- lieve the team that drafts him will look back in a few years and be very happy with that selection." — NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah THE HEADLINERS Michigan's highest-drafted defensive end: Curtis Greer (No. 6, 1980) Michigan's last first-round defensive end: Brandon Graham (No. 13, 2010) Michigan's highest-drafted safety: Thom Darden (No. 18, 1972) Michigan's last first-round safety: Darden PHOTOS BY LON HORWEDEL Quotables "[Channing Stribling] is small and he doesn't have speed, but he has the best ball skills of any corner in the draft." Anonymous scout in Pro Football Weekly's 2017 NFL Draft Guide