Who are the potential late round sleepers in the 2012 NFL Draft? Before we start the list, we should define what a "late round sleeper" is - a prospect drafted usually toward the later rounds of the draft or completely undrafted that overperforms his draft selection with his production in the NFL.
The best Cleveland Browns example of a late round sleeper since the Browns returned to the league in 1999 - Atybha Rubin. Rubin was the selected in the sixth round, 190th overall, in the 2008 NFL draft and has been a productive starter since 2010. Finding a multi-year, productive starter in the sixth round is not a normal occurance, but success in this area could mean a quicker path to improvement for a team that needs to improve at almost every position.
My list of potential sleepers for the 2012 NFL Draft:
James Carmon (OT) Mississippi State
Height:6'6" | Weight: 330 lbs
Began his career playing defensive lineman and converted to left tackle playing 13 games for Mississippi State. If you look at his performance at tackle, you would not be overly impressed but Carmon has loads of potential upside as a developmental project. For his size, he is athletic and coordinated but extremely short on experience and technique.
Scouts feel his upside is enormous and fully expect Carmon to make an NFL roster in one form or another this coming season - Tony Pauline, Sports Illustrated
He's the type of lineman I would love to have/develop on my practice squad for a year and see how far he can come. He’s very raw as a former defensive lineman, but the skill set is there. - Wes Buntin, National Football Post
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Dale Moss (WR) South Dakota State
Height: 6'3.5" | Weight: 213 lbs
Moss was under scholarship to play basketball for four years and returned for a fifth year to play his only year of collegiate football at wide receiver. He was not invited to the combine but had 61 catches for 949 yards (he only started 9 games) in that single year, but really shined in his pro day workouts. His 6.35 time on the three cone drill would have beat the all-time record at the combine and all of his other drills were nearly as impressive.
Pro Day Performance:
40 yard dash: 4.45 (one scout timed him at 4.38)
Vertical: 41.5" (2nd best height among WR at the combine)
Broad Jump: 10'10" (2nd best distance among WR at the combine)
20 yard shuttle: 4.08 (6th)
60 yard shuttle: 10.82 (this was the fastest time in the last five years at the combine)
3 cone drill: 6.35 (beats the fastest time recorded at the combine)
Moss has the rare size, speed, athleticism similar to Stephen Hill, but lacks experience in route running and has not been tested against top NFL-ready defensive backs. The best competition he faced this year was against Cal Poly's Asa Jackson, who will be drafted this year by an NFL team, and Moss caught 8 passes for 106 yards.
His uncle was Heisman Trophy winner, Johnny Rodgers (ranked #44 in College Football News' 100 Greatest Players of All-Time). On potential alone, he is worth risking a later round pick.
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Micah Pellerin (CB) Hampton
Height: 6'1" | Weight: 195 lbs.
For a late round, small school corner prospect, Pellerin seems like one of the better candidates to add because of his size, speed, and hip flexibility. He was a high character leader at Hampton as a defensive back and contributed on special teams as a gunner. Hampton plays in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, so Pellerin did not go head-to-head with elite college receivers and seemed to rely on his athleticism. Pellerin will need to refine his technique and improve his footwork to be successful in an NFL secondary. He was regarded as one of the better cornerbacks at the Shrine Game and receivers had difficulty separating from him during workouts.
I suggested taking Micah Pellerin at the beginning of the sixth round but his potential might tempt a team to take him earlier. The New England Patriots, who are limited to workout 30 individual prospects prior to the draft, decided to host him for a workout.
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