Somewhere in the dark, Mike Mayock continues to plow through game tape. The NFL Network draft analyst unleashed his fourth round of position-by-position prospect rankings Friday, with three big names shooting up the chart ahead of this month's 2013 NFL Draft:
» The biggest shift comes at offensive tackle, where Central Michigan's Eric Fisher has jumped ahead of Luke Joeckel of Texas A&M atop that position's list. Kansas City Chiefs general manager John Dorsey told NFL.com's Albert Breer this week that Kansas City has narrowed its list of potential No. 1 picks down to four players, and both Fisher and Joeckel are expected to belong to that select group. Oklahoma's Lane Johnson sits at No. 3 in Mayock's rankings, giving tackle-needy teams plenty to choose from.
"This is no way an indictment of Luke Joeckel; I think he's going to be an All-Pro three years from now," Mayock told NFL Network's "Path to the Draft" on Friday. "It's more an indication of my belief that there's just a little bit more upside with Eric Fisher. He's a little bit longer, I think he has better feet and he's a little bit more athletic."
Mayock heaped high praise on Fisher, Joeckel and Johnson, saying, "I believe that all three of these guys have the natural athletic ability to be every bit as good as (Cleveland Browns tackle) Joe Thomas or better."
2013 NFL Draft: Position rankings
With the draft right around the corner, NFL.com ranks the top prospects available at every position on offense and defense. **More ...**
» BYU's Ezekiel "Ziggy" Ansah has overtaken Florida State's Bjoern Werner as Mayock's top 4-3 defensive end. Ansah is a raw, powerful edge-rusher expected to go in the top 10 later this month. Werner, meanwhile, slips to No. 2 with Texas A&M's Damontre Moore at No. 3 and Sam Montgomery of LSU in the fourth spot.
» Sleeping in doesn't always hurt, by the way. After running back Christine Michael of Texas A&M overslept and missed a pair of meetings with teams at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, his character came under fire. But Michael's tantalizing performance at the combine was memorable. Mayock thinks enough of Michael to vault him to No. 3 at the running back position behind Alabama's Eddie Lacy and Montee Ball of Wisconsin.
Are these the last of the tweaks as we head toward the draft? Not a chance, my friends.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.