ESPN: D.J. Humphries one of 10 potential 2015 NFL draft busts
May 4, 2015, 6:15 PM | Updated: 6:15 pm
The Arizona Cardinals raised a few eyebrows with the selection of Florida tackle D.J. Humphries with their first-round pick Thursday night.
It’s not that the 6-foot-5 lineman lacks talent, but he played in 29 games for the Gators and tallied just 19 starts. He has potential, yes, but did not really play at a consistently high level in Gainesville.
Still, the Cardinals see Humphries, the 24th overall selection, as possibly the missing piece to a dominant offensive line, and thus have no reservations about bringing him into the fold.
That does not mean there aren’t any detractors. In fact, in an ESPN Insider piece, Gordon McGuinness of ProFootballFocus.com says Humphries is one of 10 potential 2015 NFL draft busts.
Humphries is one of the most athletic offensive tackle prospects in this class, but he simply didn’t live up to it on the field in 2014. Despite all that athleticism, he struggled in pass protection last year, with a pass-blocking efficiency rating of 96.7, tied for just 45th among offensive tackles in this draft class. Limited to 582 snaps last year, he had just five positively graded games against Power 5 opponents.
Indeed, the biggest question surrounding Humphries seems to be based on a fairly small body of work. Everyone seems to agree he has the kind of personality needed to be a successful lineman, and there’s no arguing the physical tools.
Can he put it all together and be a better player in the NFL than he was in college? The Cardinals are banking on it.
