2012 NFL Draft: Quinton Coples at the Senior Bowl

Quinton Coples is going to be an interesting player to watch of draft day. He could go anywhere from the top 10 to the end of the first round. There is no question that he has the talent to be a dynamic player at the next level, but some teams are concerned about his drop-off in production last season has some people scared of him.

One of the things that teams like about Coples is his versatility. Jerry Gray talked a lot about being versatile when he took the defensive coordinator job here last year, and adding Coples to the fold would give him the option to show multiple fronts.

Rob Rang of CBS Sports has a great article about Coples that talked about all of the different spots he played in college. The article mentions that Coples was considered a 4-3 defensive end by Butch Davis, but was moved inside after Marvin Austin was suspended before the 2010 season. He responded with a great season where he tallied 10 sacks. Last season he played end and came away with 7.5 sacks.

From Rang's article, here is what one "high-ranking team official" had to say about Coples:

"I still like him better inside," the official said. "He's got quickness and power and with those strong hands of his, he can turn interior linemen and get after it. I don't see the explosiveness to be a 10-plus sack guy off the edge in the NFL, but he gives you the flexibility to line him up anywhere... and there are very few guys that offer that kind of versatility."

I understand that versatility is all the rage on defense in the NFL right now, but the Titans already have one of those "versatile" guys, Jason Jones, and his move to end didn't work out so well. Coples and Jones are very similar in size, so I am hesitant to be really excited about him as a pass rusher. It probably doesn't really matter because he will gone before the Titans pick at #20.