Our own rabblerousr gave the NFL Network's Mike Mayock a first round grade as a top draft analyst, so when Mayock says something about the prospects in the upcoming draft, we at least take a look at what he has to say.
Late on Friday, Mayock updated his top-fives by position, which he had originally published on January 25th. Some of the highlights after the break:
Quarterbacks: Despite the recent hype over Cam Newton, Mayock has Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert and Washington's Jake Locker ahead of Newton. From a Cowboys perspective, any and all QB hype is a good thing, if it leads to a blue chip prospect falling to the ninth spot.
Offensive Tackles: Mayock has moved Anthony Castonzo, from Boston College, into the top spot ahead of Nate Solder. Tyron Smith rounds out the top three, followed by Gabe Carimi. The Cowboys showed a strong interest in Castonzo early on and sent their scouts to Boston to watch Castonzo in the first game of the 2010 college football season.
Defensive Ends: Big surprise here and a big jump by J.J. Watt, who has been linked to the Cowboys in a couple of recent mocks and who finds himself in the second spot behind Da'Quan Bowers, but ahead of Clayborn, Jordan and Quinn - in that order. For what it's worth, Wes Bunting has Watt ranked number seven on his DE positional ranking.
Safeties: Rahim Moore and Ahmad Black top the list as expected, but injury concerns drop Deunta Williams to the fifth spot on the list amid talk that he might not participate in the Combine due to his injury.
Check out the rest of the list and let us know anything else you find noteworthy in Mayock's Top Five.