Defense continues....

****Cornerbacks****:
Johnthan Banks, Senior, Mississippi State (Overall Pos. Rank: 2)
Banks is a big corner who plays tough and isn't afraid to hit you. The Saints need that. His approach to the game would match Corey White's too. Banks might be the closest thing you get to a true No. 1 corner in today's NFL.

Xavier Rhodes, Junior, Florida State (Overall Pos. Rank: 3)
Rhodes is just another supremely talented player on that stacked Florida State defensive roster. No. 27 in the programs has all the talent you want from a corner. He is just a little inexperienced and raw. If he goes to a place where is well-coached, he could actually become the best corner to come out in quite some time.

Jordan Poyer, Senior, Oregon State (Overall Pos. Rank: 4)
Poyer is an interesting prospect. He has played some safety at Oregon State, which makes sense since he plays the corner spot with a safety-type mentality and has the congruent instincts. In that sense, he is similar to Corey White.

Leon McFadden, Senior, San Diego State (Overall Pos. Rank: 5)
McFadden is a kid I find to be super underrated. At the risk of sounding like a homer, SDSU has produced some really good NFL prospects in the past few years, and McFadden has a chance to be among the best of them. He is a playmaker, but also a shutdown corner (again with the caveat, if such thing existed in today's game). He reminds me a lot of my favorite corner to ever come out of college, Alterraun Verner who is now hands down the Tennessee Titans' best secondary player.

Desmond Trufant, Senior, Washington (Overall Pos. Rank: 6)
As the brother of Seahakws corner Marcus, Desmond Trufant has good genes and talent. He did not join his brother in Pullman, instead opting for the rival school. But he ought to join his brother in making an NFL roster and sticking in the league for awhile.

****Safeties****
T.J. McDonald, Senior, Southern Cal (Overall Pos. Rank: 1)
McDonald has every trait and characteristic a scout looks for in a safety. He has great range deep, can come up to make a tackle and can cover man-to-man. Finally he makes plays. He is solid. The Saints could do a lot worse. He also has great genes, based on the fact his father played in the NFL, and his brother Tevin plays at crosstown rival UCLA.

Kenny Vacarro, Senior, Texas (Overall Pos. Rank: 2)
If McDonald is a bit of a wild card (which I don't believe he is, but some do), Vacarro is a sure thing. Vacarro may never become a star but it's also extremely unlikely to bust. He can play man-to-man, in the box and deep coverage all equally well.

Matt Elam, Senior, Florida (Overall Pos. Rank: 3)
Elam is a player with great ability and great production. I actually like his teammate, Josh Evans, better in some regards. But I know Elam will be taken well above Evans.

Eric Reid, Senior, LSU (Overall Pos. Rank: 4)
Reid is a highly disappointing player to me when I put the film on. He is constantly taking bad angles to the football and just not making enough plays for a top-end safety prospect. Still I know he will be taken high. I would probably stay away if I were the Saints, though. Hence, the reason he's four here.

Bacarri Rambo, Senior, Georgia (Overall Pos. Rank: 5)
Rambo is a player who is very talented and lives up to his talent on the field. Now if he can only stay out of trouble off the field, a team may find something special.

Others I Love: D.J. Swearinger, South Carolina; Josh Evans, Florida; Damion Stafford, Nebraska

This post was edited on 1/7/13 at 3:37 pm