• Laiatu Latu may be the best edge defender in the class: Latu’s PFF grade last season was 96.3, and his pass-rush win rate was an absurd 26.2%. Only Chase Young has ever recorded a higher win rate over a single season with that kind of workload, and it was Latu’s second consecutive season of top-tier production.
• Troy Franklin is undervalued in a deep WR class: Troy Franklin is seen as a fringe first-round player, but his draft stock should be higher than that. One of the most productive receivers in college football has a profile that compares very well to the consensus fourth-best receiver in this draft.
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With the 2024 NFL Draft approaching, it’s worth looking at which players seem to be undervalued —potential bargains to be picked up when a team is on the clock.
For a sense of where a player’s draft stock is, I will be referring to the consensus board.
Here are the five most underrated players in this draft:
EDGE Laiatu Latu, UCLA
There is nuance to the concept of being underrated. Latu is No. 16 on the consensus board, seen as a mid-first-round pick, but he is the third edge rusher and clearly viewed by many as a notable step down from the truly elite edge rusher prospects of the last decade.
The PFF grading and his college production, however, suggest he belongs higher than that and with those top-tier prospects.
Latu’s PFF grade last season was 96.3, and his pass-rush win rate was an absurd 26.2%. Only Chase Young has ever recorded a higher win rate over a single season with that kind of workload, and it was Latu’s second consecutive season of top-tier production. His athleticism was a question for many — certainly when compared to an elite athlete like Dallas Turner — but Latu’s workout at the NFL combine was better than people expected and his in-game athleticism as measured by tracking data and turned into PFF’s proprietary athleticism score — PFF GAS — was consistently elite. Latu scored in the 97th and then 99th percentile over the last two years in that area. His injury history is a concern, but on the field, Latu should be seen not only as the best edge rusher in this class but a top-10 selection overall.
WR Troy Franklin, Oregon
Brian Thomas Jr. is the consensus WR4 in this draft while Franklin is ranked four spots below that and 21 spots lower on the overall consensus board. However, over the last two seasons in similar roles, Franklin has been the more productive player. Even focusing on the 2023 season alone you could argue Frankin was the better player, though Thomas scored three more touchdowns and can at least rival him in some other statistical categories.
Franklin averaged 3.32 yards per route run in 2023, more than half a yard higher than Thomas.
Even as designated deep threats, it’s hard to understand the discrepancy between the two receivers. Thomas again scored more touchdowns than Franklin on deep targets this season, but outside of that, their numbers were remarkably similar, as Franklin dealt with a quarterback significantly less inclined to take those deep shots (Bo Nix) than Thomas (Jayden Daniels).
It’s fair to say that Franklin hasn’t been the most well-rounded receiver in the game and wonder how that translates to the next level, but the same criticisms apply to Thomas, and while the LSU product did run a faster 40 time (4.33 seconds vs. 4.41), both players displayed high-end NFL speed.
Troy Franklin is seen as a fringe first-round player, but his draft stock should be higher than that. One of the most productive receivers in college football has a profile that compares very well to the consensus fourth-best receiver in this draft.
RB Blake Corum, Michigan
If the last tape we had on Blake Corum was his 2022 season, he would be viewed very differently. That season, Corum earned a 96.2 PFF grade, marginally out grading Bijan Robinson, who was one of the best running prospects to come along in years.
Each player scored 18 touchdowns, with Robinson averaging 6.1 yards per attempt and 4.17 after contact while Corum averaged 5.9 overall and 3.35 after contact.
Corum had 22 breakaway runs of 15 or more yards while Robinson had 21. It was one of the best single seasons from a running back PFF has graded, but a knee injury diminished that player in 2023.
Last year’s version of Corum averaged a full yard per carry less and broke fewer than half the tackles from the season before. He scored more touchdowns, but that was more a product of situation and opportunity on the national champion Wolverines than anything.
Corum was still good in 2023, but he wasn’t great.
His knee injury wasn’t a devastating one, though, and Corum was looking more like his old self by the end of the year. The idea that we have seen a permanent debilitation of one of the best backs in the nation seems baseless, and if Corum bounces back to his old levels of play, he could be an elite back in the NFL.
Right now he ranks No. 71 on the consensus board and is the third running back on the list. That has him coming off the board at the top of the third round if teams stick to that order. If that happens, Corum will be one of the steals of the draft.
WR Jermaine Burton, Alabama
It’s hard to find fault with Jermaine Burton’s game on the field. The issues with him as a prospect are off the field (and sometimes extending to being on the field too if that’s how you designate slapping a fan).
As a receiver, he does everything well, with the athleticism and nuance to his game to be a threat at all levels of the defense. He hasn’t had the overwhelming production of other receivers in this class, but that has largely been down to opportunity, which may itself be affected by his relationship with coaches at multiple college programs.
More than any other position, there is a track record of receivers with off-field concerns becoming successful NFL players, at least for a time, and Burton could be the next in that line. His concerns will likely scare some teams away from him entirely — have him removed from draft boards — but the teams that do believe in him could find a steal that is being overlooked and undervalued relative to his talent level.
OT Patrick Paul, Houston
This is a very good draft for offensive tackles, particularly in the first round, but once you get beyond those top prospects, you quickly get into the world of project developmental tackles.
Generally speaking, those players have the athletic traits and physical tools to be quality players at the next level, but they don’t have the tape of the top prospects.
One player who is closer to possessing both than many of his competitors is Houston’s Patrick Paul. At 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds, Paul has extremely long arms (36 ¼ inches, 98th percentile) and better than average measurables across the board.
He also had an 89.8 PFF pass-blocking grade in true pass sets last season and allowed nine total pressures all season.
Paul is currently 64th overall on the consensus board and the tenth tackle ranked, but he has a profile that projects as somebody that could be valued significantly higher than that.
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