2013 Draft: Top 30 Defensive Players

After countless hours evaluating the defense, I've finally ranked the top 30 overall defensive prospects for the Eagles. Remember: I'm ranking them based on how they fit in Philadelphia, not their overall skills. So players like Bjoern Werner and Sheldon Richardson are going to fall a bit.

Here's my rankings:

1. DL Star Lotulelei, Utah

Lotulelei is a disruptive force up the
middle and has elite versatility.

2. OLB Dion Jordan, Oregon

3. DE/OLB Ziggy Ansah, BYU

4. DL Sharrif Floyd, Florida

5. OLB Barkevious Mingo, LSU

6. CB D.J. Hayden, Houston

7. CB Dee Milliner, Alabama

8. OLB Jarvis Jones, Georgia

9. S Eric Reid, LSU

10. S Kenny Vaccaro, Texas

11. CB Xavier Rhodes, Florida State

12. ILB Arthur Brown, Kansas State

13. OLB Damontre Moore, Texas A&M

14. ILB Alec Ogletree, Georgia

15. DE/OLB Tank Carradine, Florida State

16. DE Datone Jones, UCLA

17. DL Sheldon Richardson, Missouri

If he checks out  medically
"Tank" has elite upside

18. S Matt Elam, Florida

19. DL Johnathan Hankins, Ohio State

20. S Jonathan Cyprien, FIU

21. ILB Kevin Minter, LSU

22. DL Kawann Short, Purdue

23. OLB Corey Lemonier, Auburn

24. CB Johnathan Banks, Mississippi State

25. DE Margus Hunt, SMU

26. OLB Bjoern Werner, Florida State

27. CB Desmond Trufant, Washington

28. OLB Jamie Collins, Southern Mississippi

29. CB Jamar Taylor, Boise State

30. CB Darius Slay, Mississippi State

What it means:

- Lotulelei, Ansah, Carradine, and Hankins are all higher on my list than most based on their versatility. The Eagles plan on running some type of hybrid scheme, so these players have added value. 

- I'm really not high on Missouri DL Sheldon Richardson. He has less-than-desirable size, 13 career starts, three career sacks and some character concerns. Not my type of player.

- D.J. Hayden is above Dee Milliner based on two things: his versatility (skilled in both man and zone coverage) and Milliner's lengthy injury bill.

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