Each and every year, plenty of NFL prospects enter the draft hoping to become among the best football players on the planet. Some live up to their potential. Some become enormous busts, earning the malaise of fans and team management alike. While looking for the next big thing is interesting, it’s even more fun to take a look at the biggest busts heading into each draft.
Below we take a look at our predictions for the top five 2016 NFL Draft busts. For more on the NFL Draft, check out our list of the most underrated prospects.
Christian Hackenberg has ideal NFL size and a big arm that can create some big plays. There are some teams who are drooling over drafting Hackenberg due to his stellar 2013 season when he threw for 20 touchdowns. But he’s a big liability considering he completed just 53.5 percent of his passes in his junior year. Hackenberg is a hit or miss prospect, one which has more chances of being a bust in this year’s draft.
Robert Nkemdiche
Robert Nkemdiche has the talent to be a Pro Bowl player. He has the size, strength and athleticism to be a major factor as a defensive tackle in the NFL. The only question comes in his maturity. He’s the type of person who could become a problem with plenty of time and money on his hands. He could be partying it up Manziel-style than really committing his full attention to his team.
Nkemdiche can still mature as a person and as a player when the time comes to be a pro. Nevertheless, he’s more likely to be a bust rather than a Pro Bowl player at this point. After all, he was arrested and suspended due to drug charges for this year’s Sugar Bowl.
Will Fuller
Pure speed can’t be thought, and Will Fuller has that lightning-like quickness to heat up the pro scene in the NFL. He clocked in a 4.32 second 40-yard dash in the NFL combine, the fastest among all receivers in attendance. Fuller has what it takes to blitz by opposing defensive backs, which should entice plenty of teams to grab him in the early rounds of the draft. But he could be a huge bust considering he can’t catch the football on a regular basis like a pro should.
Cardale Jones
Cardale Jones has that rare blend of size, athleticism and arm strength. He stands at 6-foot-5 and weighs 253 pounds. He’s most known for being the third-string quarterback who led his team to the National Championship two years ago, beating the likes of Alabama and Oregon. It’s even more impressive to note that Jones beat out last year’s No. 2 overall draft pick, Marcus Mariota, in the championship game.
Jones is one of the better quarterback prospects in this year’s draft. The only downside to him is he’ll need to be in the exact right system to truly develop his potential. Anything else has him falling into the bust category.
Carson Wentz
Carson Wentz is among the best quarterback prospects heading into the NFL Draft. He has a very strong shot at being drafted with the first two picks. He has ideal size, arm strength and plenty of intangibles which make him a pro-ready prospect. He looked like a genuine first overall pick at this year’s Senior Bowl not just with his game, but also his veteran presence asserting himself as the leader.
With all that said, Wentz may not be ready for the NFL despite all the hype. He tore up the collegiate scene, yes, but that was in the FCS. He may not have been able to handle the jump from the FCS to the FBS, let alone the NFL. Wentz will get picked second overall in this draft. But he’ll be the biggest bust of the year by far.
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