2015 NFL Draft Grades: Ben Koyack & Neal Sterling

2015 NFL Draft grades keep rolling with Neal Sterling and Ben Koyack who are two big players at wide receiver and tight end, respectively. Both are seventh round draft picks for the Jacksonville Jaguars, with the Jags having moved back a couple of spots earlier in the draft.

Let’s get to grading these picks right away with co-editor Daniel Lago.

Neal Sterling

Daniel Lago

I won’t pretend to know much about Neal Sterling, a massive wide receiver out of the football powerhouse Monmouth, but this is usually how the 7th round goes – names we’ve never heard of before coming off the board. Sterling is a huge target at 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds, so I wouldn’t be surprised if his role is more of a move tight end than traditional wide receiver. This is the area in the draft where you take a chance on a project, so why not?

Luke Sims

There were other, better players available when Dave Caldwell seemingly decided he wanted to do something different than drafting from major school. Sterling has a big body and is a precise route runner, but bringing him in doesn’t seem like an upgrade at wide receiver or at tight end (where he could play a hybrid role). I would have preferred seeing the Jaguars go after a player like Louisville’s other safety Gerod Holliman who tied the FBS record with 14 interceptions last year.

Ben Koyack

Daniel Lago

David Caldwell decided to double dip on tight ends with his final two picks in the 2015 NFL draft, and I don’t have a problem with that at all. Caldwell employed a similar strategy with cornerback in 2013 and Demetrius McCray has turned into an effective starter, so hopefully the same will happen with tight end here. Koyack is more of a known commodity coming out of Notre Dame than Neal Sterling, and he also projects as a more traditional inline tight end who can block. Koyack has the skill set to contribute right away in certain packages, and you can’t really ask for much more in the 7th round. Another solid pick to round out a really strong draft.

Luke Sims

Getting a quality run blocking tight end was wise by Dave Caldwell. He is bringing in a guy who can block and grow as a receiver after getting receiving tight end Julius Thomas in free agency. Marcedes Lewis won’t be with the Jaguars forever and Caldwell may have found his replacement as a tight end blocker with receiving potential in Koyack. He’s raw, but he represented great value in the seventh round with a fifth or sixth round grade. Good choice by the Jaguars.

What do you guys think?