Position Breakdown: Defensive Tackle

1. Tim Jernigan (JR) 6'2 300 Florida State
Analysis: Stout at point of attack. Rarely moved off his spot. Elite run defender. Can play in any scheme. Good speed and quickness. Underrated pass rusher. Best fit in a 4-3.
Projection:  2nd Round

2. Aaron Donald (SR) 6'1 285 Pittsburgh
Analysis: Explosive athlete.  Prototypical 3 tech DT. Had monster 2013 Season. Uses quickness to disrupt pocket. Small size hurts him vs run. Limited scheme fit.
Projection:  Top 10

3. Louis Nix (JR) 6'2 331 Notre Dame
Analysis: Elite strength. Very good quickness and speed for size. Can play in a one or two gap system. Lacks stamina. Only a 2 down player right now.  Can play in 3-4 or 4-3.
Projection:  2nd Round

4.  Stephon Tuitt (JR) 6'5 304 Notre Dame
Analysis: Versatile player who can play multiple positions in multiple schemes. Elite speed and quickness. Solid anchor. Better at DT than DE in 4 man front. Finesse player. Inconsistent.
Projection:  Top 50

5. Dominique Easley (SR) 6'2 288 Florida
Analysis:  Explosive and disruptive player.  Stout at the point of attack. Non stop motor. Short arms makes it hard to disengage from blocks. Coming off of ACL surgery. Fits only as 3 tech in the 4-3.
Projection:  Day 2

6. Ra'Shede Hageman (SR) 6'6 310 Minnesota
Analysis:  Physical freak. Can flat out dominant games with quickness and strength, but can also disappear completely. Versatile. Can play in any scheme and multiple positions. Relies too much on athletic ability.
Projection:   Top 50

7. Kelcy Quarles (JR) 6'4 297 South Carolina
Projection: 3rd Round

8. DaQuan Jones (SR) 6'4 322 Penn State
Analysis:  Stout at the point of attack. Uses hands to shed blocks. Displays good power. Good recognition skills. Average speed and quickness. Doesn't have much pass rush. High motor guy.
Projection:  3rd or 4th Round

9. Will Sutton (SR) 6'0 303 Arizona State
Projection: 4th or 5th Round

10. Daniel McCullers (SR) 6'7 352 Tennessee
Analysis:  Massive size. Stout at the point of attack. Can penetrate vs single blocker. Hard to move. Flashes playmaking ability. Below average athlete. Below average pass rusher. Not an every down player
Projection:  Day 3

Player Profile: Louis Nix

Height:  6'3
Weight:  340
School:  Notre Dame
Position:  Defensive Tackle
Ranking:  #2 Defensive Tackle
Projection: First Round

Strengths
-Prototypical size for a nose tackle
-Experienced.  Played over 36 games in his three year career.
-Very explosive player for somebody his size
-Quick off the ball and attacks the offensive lineman before they get to him
-Very powerful.  Strong bull rush allows him to push guards back into the quarterback
-Strong punch jolts offensive lineman and allows him to push the pocket
-Uses his strength and power to cover gaps on both sides of him
-Good closing speed.  Can chase a back down the line for a tackle
-Displays good agility that allows him to stunt and twist with other defenders
-Scheme flexable.  Can play in a one or two gap scheme and either a 4 or 3 man front
-Doesn't quit on plays.  Played hard entire game in blowout loss to Alabama

Weaknesses
-Weight.  Would be better served to be around 315-320.  Was up to 368 at one point.
-Not an every down player.  Has to be taken off the field to prevent him from wearing down
-Struggles to anchor in.  Can be pushed off his spot.  Especially against double teams
-Over aggressiveness can be used to take him out of the play
-Isn't a great tackler.  Will try to arm tackle too much. 
-Knee issue caused him to miss the final three games of the season
-No pass rushing moves.  Relies on strength and quickness

Summary
When you see a player with the size of Louis Nix your first thought is that he's just a space eater clogging up the middle of the line.  However Nix is so much much more than that.  For a player that is a legit 340 pounds he has the speed and quickness of some of the smaller defensive tackles.  Nix uses that explosiveness to disrupt and push the pocket from the middle.  He is near impossible to block man to man and regularly pushes guards back into the quarterback.  His stat line is never going to impress you, but his impact on the game doesn't show up there.  Nix has the ability to play in a one or two gap scheme and either the 3-4 or the 4-3.  But the problem that lies with Nix is his weight and endurance.  He's too big at 340 in my opinion.  If he can get into the 320's his endurance should go up and he can stay on the field longer.  Because of his snap count limitations he likely goes at the bottom half of the first round, but he's a much better player than that.  Keep an eye on New England who could take him as the heir apparent to Vince Wilfork.  He's that type of player.

2014 Draft Rankings: Defensive

Defensive End
1.  Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina
2.  Anthony Barr, UCLA
3.  Adrian Hubbard, Alabama
4.  Aaron Lynch, South Florida
5.  Trent Murphy, Stanford
6.  Jackson Jeffcoat, Texas
7.  Scott Crichton, Oregon State
8.  Morgan Breslin, USC
9.  Demarcus Lawrence, Boise State
10. Kareem Martin, North Carolina

Defensive Tackle
1.  Stephon Tuitt, Notre Dame
2.  Tim Jernigan, Florida State
3.  Louis Nix, Notre Dame
4.  Anthony Johnson, LSU
5.  Will Sutton, Arizona State
6.  Ra'Shede Hageman, Minnesota
7.  DeAndre Coleman, California
8.  Daniel McCullers, Tennessee
9.  Chucky Hunter, TCU
10. Travis Raciti, San Jose State

Outside Linebacker
1.  Kyle Van Noy, BYU
2.  CJ Mosley, Alabama
3.  Ryan Shazier, Ohio State
4.  Christian Jones, Florida State
5.  Jeremiah Attaochu, Georgia Tech
6.  Shayne Skov, Stanford
7.  Jake Ryan, Michigan
8.  Jonathan Brown, Illinois
9.  Ron Powell, Florida
10. Lamin Barrow, LSU

Inside Linebacker
1.  AJ Johnson, Tennessee
2.  Tony DePriest, Alabama
3.  Max Burrough, Michigan State
4.  Yawin Smallwood, UConn
5.  Andrew Jackson, Western Kentucky
6.  Chris Borland, Wisconsin
7.  Eric Kendricks, UCLA
8.  Caleb Lavey, Oklahoma State
9.  AJ Tarpley, Stanford
10. Andrew Wilson, Missouri

Cornerbacks
1.  Bradley Roby, Ohio State
2.  Loucheiz Purifoy, Florida
3.  Jason Verett, TCU
4.  Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Oregon
5.  Aaron Colvin, Oklahoma
6.  Marcus Roberson, Florida
7.  Quandre Diggs, Texas
8.  Justin Gilbert, Oklahoma State
9.  Damian Swann, Georgia
10. Andre Hall, Vanderbilt

Safety
1.  Ed Reynolds, Stanford
2.  Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix, Alabama
3.  Hakeem Smith, Louisville
4.  Tevin McDonald, Eastern Washington
5.  Jordan Richards, Stanford
6.  Tre Boston, North Carolina
7.  Kenny Ladler, Vanderbilt
8.  Craig Loston, LSU
9.  Dion Bailey, USC
10. Vinnie Sunseri, Alabama