Are you an NFL franchise in need of a defensive lineman? Good news, the 2015 NFL Draft is full of them.
One prospect who is shooting up draft boards and is a busy member on the pre-draft visit circuit is Oregon defensive lineman Arik Armstead.
The 6-foot-7 prospect has often been mentioned in the first round but, due in part to his size, is starting to receive even more love from scouts as they study him even more thoroughly with the draft just a few weeks away.
"When you look at Arik Armstead, you look at somebody who has elite traits. He has elite size, he has elite strength at the point of attack," NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah said on NFL Network's "Path to the Draft." "I think he has some upside as a pass rusher. I know people look at him and say he's not an elite pass rusher, lacks some of that quickness. Not what he was asked to do in that Oregon scheme.
"I think he definitely is going to be a much better pass rusher at the next level, and that's why I say he could go all the way up in the top 10."
Armstead is all over the board in NFL.com mock drafts but nobody has him higher than No. 15 overall to the San Francisco 49ers (a team he visited with this week). Some of that could be attributed to the lineman's lack of eye-popping numbers during his time in some Ducks uniforms but a lot of it may also be the result of what Jeremiah thinks is popping on the tape and seeing the raw tools to be a top-flight defender in the league.
"I challenge people who say he can't rush the passer," the analyst added. "Some of that stuff is going to be fixed just on how you line him up. I think he could have a career like Calais Campbell"
Armstead recently rose to No. 2 among defensive linemen on NFL Media analyst Mike Mayock's updated positional rankings and might just be a prospect who is climbing up draft boards into that top-10 range despite the draft being full of talented players in the trenches.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
