2010 NFL Draft Profiles - Arthur Jones, DL

All over SBNation, the college blogs are helping out the NFL folks by providing them with some handy-dandy profiles on the players most likely to be drafted in the first couple rounds of the NFL Draft.  Believe it or not, Syracuse actually has a couple guys that fall in that space. We begin with King Arthur.

Measurements: 6′3" 300 pounds 

40 time: 4.98

2009 Syracuse Stats: 18 tackles (12 solo), 1 sack, 2 fumble recoveries

Short Bio:You'll have to excuse Arthur's senior year stats.  They are not indicative of who he is as a player.  Jones' season was sandwiched by injuries, a torn pec muscle in January and season-ending knee injury in November. In his sophomore season, Jones notched 51 tackles (32 solo) and a sack.  His 17.5 TFL was the third-best output in Syracuse history and his 1.59 TFL per game average ranked ninth nationally.  2He was named a 2007 All-Big East Second Team selection.  As a junior, Jones has his best overall season (60 tackles, 33 solo and 3 sacks) and was named to the All-Big East First Team.  He was named Big East Defensive Player of the Week for a career-high 15 tackles and 1.5 sacks in Syracuse's win over Notre Dame.

With 38.5 career tackles for loss, Arthur ranks No. 1 in SU history for interior defensive lineman and third overall all-time.  His 145 career tackles are good for T-10th on the SU record list for tackles by a down lineman.

Strengths: Art is agile for a big man, speedier than you think and always finishes plays. His long arms and powerful lower body give him a huge advantage in a one-on-one match-up. Considering the fact that he played amongst some of the worst defenses in SU history, it's impressive he could put up those kinds of numbers.  Plus, he's just a good guy.  Came back to SU for his senior year when he could have left in part so that he could mentor his younger brother, Chandler.  And he can down lobsters like nobody's business.

Weaknesses: He's officially earned the "injury-prone" label, whether deserved or not.  The torn pec muscle is healed and shouldn't be an issue but the torn lateral meniscus in the knee is a huge warning sign for teams trying to determine if Art is worthy of first-round money.  Though he can create tackles for losses, he's not a big sack specialist.  He may have have to prove himself all over as an outside DE instead of an interior lineman given that his speed calls for it. 

Prognosis: If Art can stay healthy, he's among the top lineman in the draft and first-round ready.  If the knee injuries flare up or Jones isn't able to prove that he's recovered fully, he could drop and he could drop quickly.