MLB's - Curtis Lofton - field mouse
I wonder what REALCHRISM opinion is on this guy.
Seek and ye shall find...LOL...just kidding..anyway, I was surprised to see Lofton come out but not because of lack of talent or anything. There was just no indication that he would declare. That being said, Lofton is a phenomenal player. Think Troy Polamalu or Bob Sanders at MLB. I use that comparison because when Troy came out of USC, there were some questions on his size and whether or not he would be able to play at a high level in the NFL. The same questions were out there about Bob Sanders to an even greater degree. But when you looked at both on film, you saw just pure football players. That's what you get in a guy like Curis Lofton. He's a pure football player and a guy with a nose for the football. He tackles VERY WELL and, for a guy his size, he can lay you out. His game will remind you a bit of Jon Beason who now plays for the Panthers but I actually believe that on the field he plays faster than Beason and has better awareness and reactionary skills. He knows how to keep himself clean and does not give up on a play. Lofton is just a football player who you cannot keep off the field. He will fit somewhere and that somewhere for him has been at MLB. Some guys become compromised by size when they make it to the pros. Like Troy and Bob, that won't be the case for Lofton and fully expect that he will become a solid MLB in the NFL.
While I think he should carry a first round grade, he's likely an early to mid second rounder. I liken his situation more to Bob Sanders than I do Troy Polamalu. Troy was a guy I think was given more a benefit of the doubt coming out of USC than Sanders was given coming out of Iowa. Even though Lofton is coming from OU, a big time program, I do not believe the reputation is there in terms of producing top flight MLBs for teams to overlook his measureables. I will say that last year it worked out well for Jon Beason so it could work out well for Taylor. Taylor could very well move up into the mid part of the first round with a great workout. If that is the case, and the Saints were able to trade down to get him, I would not be upset with that selection.