Top NFL draft analyst looking for more from Myles Murphy, Bryan Bresee at next level

NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah is looking for more from the two former 5-stars in Bryan Bresee and Myles Murphy.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sun Feb 26 07:00:19 GMT-04:00 2023

The Tigers have a strong draft class this season, with seven players declared. Three of these players have the potential to get drafted in the first round, with defensive end Myles Murphy highly regarded as a top-10 prospect. NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah assessed Clemson’s top draft prospects recently.

Myles Murphy - Defensive End

“Myles Murphy is a tricky one because it’s all in there. He has it all in his body. He hasn’t got it all figured out just yet, but between his (combination) of length and explosiveness, I think there’s more there,” Jeremiah said. “I think he is going to develop more as a rusher.”

As is reflected through his commentary, Jeremiah doesn’t see Murphy as highly as some of the other analysts covering the draft. Despite that, in his most recent mock draft, he has Murphy going No. 6 overall (which is a typical projection for Murphy) to the Detroit Lions. The junior defensive end would provide any team with a quality edge rusher with big play ability, which is evident by the fact that he is the only player in the FBS to have at least 10 tackles for loss and at least one forced fumble over each of his three years at Clemson. Thus, he has consistently played at a high level.

Bryan Bresee - Defensive Lineman

“He is a little bit of a polarizing player. I am a little lower on my top 50 on him than where (I) even had him going in the mock draft,” Jeremiah said. “To me he is a tough player to evaluate because you see flashes of it. You see some of the flash (of his) quickness … I think there’s some stiffness there, and maybe some of it is injury-related, but he is not the most loose athlete. They move him around up and down the line of scrimmage, but I didn’t see somebody that was really, really explosive and fluid and loose … I have talked to teams that really like him, and I have talked to teams that aren’t nearly as high and don’t see him as a first round player.”

In his mock draft, Jeremiah has Bresee doing No. 24 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars, but in his list of the top 50 prospects overall, Bresee is ranked No. 43. Like he mentions, Bresee has dealt with a lot of injuries which may impact his performance. These injuries probably account for the variations in how different teams view him as a player. That variance is something that Jeremiah emphasized.

“But, again, he is a guy that has a wide variance of where he could go. There’s a wide range. There’s some guys you look and say, I feel he is probably going to go in this three, four (spot). He has a very broad range of where he could go,” Jeremiah said. “I wouldn’t be shocked if he went much higher or much lower.”

Trenton Simpson - Linebacker

In Jeremiah’s current mock draft, he does not have linebacker Trenton Simpson getting drafted in the first round. However, that doesn’t mean that Simpson isn’t a first-round prospect. Discussing Simpson, Jeremiah seemed excited by how he would perform during the NFL Combine, as well as with his vision on the field.

“Trenton Simpson is going to run. He is probably going to run in the 4.4s. He is going to jump out of the gym. I think he will put on a Devin White-type workout show,” Jeremiah said. “Sometimes if you get clear sight lines, he can see it, he can go, you will see that burst. He is off the edge. You’ll see him blitz. You will see him chase plays laterally. He has tremendous, tremendous juice. It’s just sometimes in the trash there you kind of get lost a little bit amidst all those bodies. That’s the only knock on him. That’s the only concern. I would not be shocked at all if he went in the first round.”

Honestly, he should go in the first round and according to Jeremiah’s own compilation of the top 50 prospects, Simpson is a first-round player being ranked No. 30 overall. He spent a lot of time discussing Simpson’s value spying the quarterback, something that is becoming more and more important in the NFL with running quarterbacks like Jalen Hurts with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Davis Allen - Tight End

Davis Allen is someone that is not as widely talked about in regard to tight end prospects for this draft. However, according to Jeremiah, the 2023 NFL Draft has a rich class of tight ends that could see Allen drafted on the second day of the draft.

“I’m probably higher than most of the league on Davis Allen. I was hoping he would do a little bit more at the Senior Bowl than I saw there, but he is a smooth, easy mover. He flashes some power after the catch to run through guys. He understands how to set up (a) route,” Jeremiah said. “So, I’m a little higher on him than some buddies in the league. I thought he would be a Day 2 guy. Some people in the league think he will go Day 3.”

Regardless of whether he goes day two or day three, he seems like a player who is poised to get drafted. A talented tight end is highly valued in the NFL, particularly given the inconsistency many teams have had at that position for a number of years. Realistically, the only team that has had a healthy and consistent tight end is the Kansas City Chiefs with Travis Kelce, making Allen that much more of a valuable prospect for NFL teams.

KJ Henry - Defensive End

Defensive end KJ Henry had himself a solid day in his performance at the Senior Bowl playing not only not defense but also being seen on special teams, showing his versatility he possesses. Defensively, he is someone that can make game-changing plays and that ability was not lost on Jeremiah.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he went in the second round. He destroys tight ends,” Jeremiah said. “First play of the game against Georgia Tech, drills a quarterback, ball pops up and gets picked. He can shoot gaps. I think he is instinctive. You’ll see him on the edge. He’ll be able to see jet sweeps coming from the other side and be able to naturally just widen out and make plays. He has a nice little counter-rush.”

The Combine starts on February 27 and goes through March 6; television coverage of the event starts on March 2 (3 p.m./NFL Network).