Article on two of your favorite players (NC St duo)

This is an article I wrote on two of the guys that are getting a lot of mention around here, Mario Williams and Manny Lawson, figured that it could shine some light on them for those who don't really know who they are.

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http://nfldraftalmanac.com/index.php?c=2&a=165


It's great accomplishment for any college football program when it has a player chosen within the early half of the first round, but on the rare occasion they have two such players in the same year, it's special. Over the past ten or so years, just a handful of defensive teammates have found themselves at the top of the draft boards together, so we are truly lucky to have one such pair this season. Mario Williams and Manny Lawson from North Carolina St. have been terrorizing opposing ACC Quarterbacks for years as bookend defensive ends, though both have taken very different roads to reach this, the pinnacle of the draft world.

Mario Williams, a 6-7 295 pound junior out of Richlands, North Carolina has been seen as a future star since the moment he stepped on campus. Drawing comparisons to another collegiate star in the state of North Carolina, Julius Peppers, Mario possesses a rare combination of size and speed. Throughout his career he's played, and dominated, at both Defensive End and Defensive Tackle, not so much because it was necessary for NC State, but because he's just so versatile it would have been a waste not to. The majority of defensive ends in the draft will have issues adding on weight and maintaining it through the workout process and at the same time not have their agility tests affected. Williams on the other hand not only showed up at a cut 295, he blew away many players that are as much as 30 pounds less than him, running a blistering 4.66 40.

Of course, him showing up at the combine and dominating was a surprise to no one, considering the way he's played his entire career. Before ever arriving at NCSU, he already gained national attention As a freshman he was a unanimous Freshman All American by several major publications, leading the team with 13 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. As a sophomore, he was equally impressive, earning first team all conference and on some accounts, All American honors, but it was his junior year that really announced to the world what he's capable of. 24 tackles for loss, 14.5 sacks, and a whole mess of players and coaches that are glad he decided to take his show to the NFL.

With talent such as his, you have to wonder, what's going to stop him from becoming the next generation's Reggie White? Nothing; at least in terms of outside forces. There's something about dominant players who have consistent motivation as their only "weakness". Either the writer of the profile didn't have anything to really criticize, or the player in question was just so good that it became difficult to find a real challenge at the collegiate level. Whatever the case for Mario, it's really not something worth worrying about. When you have a player the level he is, you draft him first, then worry about all the little things.

Manny Lawson, a 6-5, 245 pound senior from Goldsboro, North Carolina, did not find his path to stardom quite as easy as his former linemate. Lawson is the tweener type that many people usually stick their nose up at; all they hear is "too small to play defensive end, and not experienced enough to drop back and play linebacker". Pigeon holing talent such as Manny's will help a team gather a collection of prototype talent for their defense, but at the same time miss out on some very special talent. Two of the leading defensive rookie of the year candidates a year ago, Shawn Merriman and Demarcus Ware, are players like Lawson, that is 3-4, stand up pass rushers. Up until about a month ago, many wondered if Lawson had enough to sneak up into the first round in a very talented linebacker class, but after posting a ridiculous 4.43 40 time at the combine, it'll be very hard to put him anywhere below the top 16 picks.

Arriving as a relatively unheralded, raw talent, Manny needed to carve his own niche on the roster. After being considered at Defensive End and Tight End, he was placed officially at Linebacker. Seeing action if special teams mostly, he made the most of his opportunities, blocking three punts on the season, not to mention netting 9 tackles in just 21 snaps during the Gator Bowl win over Notre Dame. The next year, he saw twice the snaps, and tallied 7 tackles for loss, just flashing the skill that would become evident over the next two seasons. Moving back to Defensive End, where he played in High School, Lawson started 11 games in 2004, making the most of having a developing Mario Williams opposite him along with a veteran secondary, and was able to put up double digit TFL and 7 sacks. This past season he forced his way onto the national scene, with 19 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, making just about everyone's All ACC lists, even with the rest of the terrific DE talent in the conference, including Williams, BC's Mathias Kiwanuka, VT's Daryl Tapp, and Clemson's Gaines Adams.

In terms of weaknesses, you have the obvious. Though Lawson played some Linebacker in his time at North Carolina St., playing the position in the NFL is vastly different than garbage time at the collegiate level. With Lawson's speed and athleticism, the key to his transition is going to be how he mentally adjusts to the NFL. In an ideal world, he will be drafted by a team that specializes in the 3-4, that way his pass rushing talents will not just be utilized, they'll be featured. One thing you certainly not question is his decication, both to the team and improving himself. Whether it be on special teams, just pass rush situations, or every down, the team that selects Manny Lawson will be getting a player that gives all he has, every snap.

Now that we've looked at the Wolfpack duo in serious depth, it's only natural to examine at their place in recent draft history. Scanning over the last ten years or so, there are just a few pairs that really have the type of impact on the draft that these two this year have. In some cases, they are basic copies of Williams and Lawson, that is the natural talent and the workout riser, but at the same time there are those who were just out and out dominant their entire careers.

One of the more recent duos to take the draft by storm was a pair of Hurricanes, pun most definitely intended. Safety Sean Taylor and Linebacker Jonathan Vilma were both selected within the first twelve picks, Taylor at #5 to Washington and Vilma to the Jets at #12. It is, however, a bit unfair to limit what the Canes did that year to just these two, after all, Linebacker D.J. Williams was taken just 5 picks later at #17, and Defensive Tackle Vince Wilfork went at #21. All four are, at the very least, significant contributors to their squads, a rare occurrence among the groups on this list.

In 2002, we saw two different pairs of college defensive linemates have a serious impact, North Carolina's Julius Peppers and Ryan Sims and Tennessee's John Henderson and Al Haynesworth. Both Sims and Hayneworth saw significant late pushes to have their value peak where they were inevitably selected, while Peppers and Henderson spent much of the year, and their careers, seen as future top prospects. It's not surprise that Henderson and Peppers are among the best three or four players at their position, while the other two have yet to approach their huge potential.

Lastly, and easily the greatest of examples, occurred in 2000, when one of the fiercest tandems in college football history went 1-2, in Courtney Brown and Lavarr Arrington. Brown, a senior defensive End, was a pass rush specialist, big, fast, strong, just a natural at the position; he was chosen by Cleveland first overall to provide a dominating presence on a young Defense. Arrington, an underclassman linebacker, was just an incredible talent, drawing many comparisons to the great Lawrence Taylor, the Redskins didn't have any choice but to take him at #2. Neither has turned out to be the player they should have, and both found themselves being released by their original teams. It does seem like Brown has turned it around in Denver though, and it's very possible the same will happen for Lavar wherever he goes.

Finally, what would make this complete without a quick glance at some other tandems that have a shot at being quite good in this coming draft. The best pair arguably is Ohio State's AJ Hawk and Bobby Carpenter. Hawk is a top ten pick without any bit of doubt, he brings a lunch pail type mentality along with all world physical gifts; many even consider him the best LB prospect since Arrington. Carpenter suffered a broken leg very late in the season, but could still see himself taken in the first if he can show he's recovering. Florida St. has DT Broderick Bunkley, DE Kamerion Wimbley, and CB Antonio Cromartie; it's rather likely that two of them will end up in the first. Also, Miami is boasting a trio of talented Cornerbacks, Kelly Jennings, Devin Hester, and Marcus Maxey, all of which should go first day.

That's all for the great defensive duos, if you want to talk about the NCSU guys, think there's a pair that I missed, or just want to make a comment on those that I have, feel free to email me at chrisharring@nfldraftalmanac.com , or just head to the message board page, http://s14.invisionfree.com/covertdraft/index.php?showtopic=627 .