NFL Soup|Tuesday, May 21, 2013

2013 NFL Draft Rankings | Inside Linebackers 

093012 schultz column

With Ray Lewis retiring, you can bet that the Baltimore Ravens will be looking for their next great inside linebacker.

Of course, there are middle linebackers in a 43 and inside linebackers in a 34 defense. Many of these are pure 43 players, but some have the potential to play both roles if asked.

1. Alec Ogletree, Georgia

Athletic linebacker who can cover. Not always a wrap up tackler, but has the best upside of this corps.

2. Manti Te’o, Notre Dame

Te’o is a great leader with good instincts and some play-making ability. He is not an elite athlete, however, and is somewhat over-hyped.

3. Kevin Reddick, North Carolina

Blitz specialist who finds the football and hits the hole. Above average in coverage, and has promising upside.

4. Kevin Minter, LSU

Physical linebacker who will meet backs in the hole. Not a sideline to sideline player which may hurt his value.

5. Nico Johnson, Alabama

Another physical linebacker who has big upside, but struggles with discipline when taking angles and reading plays.

6. Jonathan Bostic, Florida

7. Vince Williams, Florida State

8. Tom Wort, Oklahoma

9. A.J. Klein, Iowa State

10. Bruce Taylor, Virginia Tech

11. Michael Mauti, Penn State

12. Will Compton, Nebraska

13. Herman Lathers, Tennessee

14. Jake Johnson, South Alabama

15. Brandon Hepburn, Florida A&M

16. Jonathan Stewart, Texas A&M

17. Taylor Reed, SMU

18. Dwayne Beckford, Purdue

19. Kenny Demens, Michigan

20. Doug Rippy, Colorado

About the author: Keet Bailey

Keet Bailey heads the NFL Draft division of NFL Soup. Bailey’s 2012 NFL Mock Draft scored 12th overall among 112 participants according to The Huddle Report’s Annual Mock Draft scoring contest. An avid Cleveland Browns fan, Keet hails from and resides in Ohio. Follow Keet on Twitter @NFLSoupKeet

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