Matty's Big Board Prospect Countdown: 19!

Hey folks, the Super Bowl is behind us and it's time to focus on the next big event and that is the all powerful and mighty draft, which has the ability to take a team from the bottom of the barrel and turn them into a playoff caliber team (ex. Dolphins and Falcons). What I plan on doing is twice a week until draft weekend, I'll be counting down my top 25 prospects, discuss their strengths, weaknesses, overall impact in the NFL and potential landing spot. So, without further delay, I bring you the player who ranked number 19...

19. Michael Johnson, DE Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

2008 Season Stats:
45 tackles, 9 sacks, 1 INT and TD

Career Stats:
103 tackles, 20 sacks, 2 FF, 1 INT and TD

Personal Stats:
6'7" 258 lbs. SR

Strengths:

Michael Johnson has impressive size and range for a guy his size, he uses his speed and athleticism to his advantage combine that with his freakish size and long arms and he is a very disruptive pass rusher in the sense of getting to the quarterback and knocking down passes. He has a lot of untapped potential and upside as a prospect as he is still learning the game and considering his natural ability to get to the quarterback, chase down running backs and play sideline to sideline Michael Johnson has the strength and versatility to be a solid player in various different schemes.

Weaknesses:

His weakness is that he is weak, he allows himself to get overpowered by stronger offensive lineman, he doesn't stack up particularly well against the run and tends to disappear. Johnson relies primarily on his sheer ability but his instincts are not as well developed as they should be and he tends to over run plays or take himself out of them. He needs to get stronger to handle offensive lineman better to stack and shed blocks and he also needs to play disciplined to not get caught out of position and keep everything in front of him where he is able to make plays.

Overall:

I believe Michael Johnson will be a great defensive end in the NFL down the line, but it won't be right away. He'll need time to mature, get stronger and learn the ins and outs of not only getting to the quarterback but playing the run and even dropping into coverage because I do believe he has the potential to be a RE in a 4-3 or a Rush OLB in a 3-4 as he has the speed and ability to do so. But the upside for Michael is his potential as he has all the intangibles and measureables to make for a scary defender if he learns to harness his gifts.



Projected NFL Destination:

With the 12th selection, the Denver Broncos select...









There you have it folks, be sure to tune in later this week for Prospect #18!