While he could reshirt and come back to play next season, Oklahoma tight end Jermaine Gresham has decided that he will enter the 2010 NFL Draft after this season. Gresham is one of the top prospects at the tight end position in at least the past five years. His combination of size, speed, and athleticism, as well as his reliable hands, makes him a terror for the defense to try and defend. Gresham’s stock is down at the moment, considering he is sitting out the season with torn cartilage in his knee, however if he is able to bounce back and have good offseason workouts, I think that he can still be in the discussion in the middle of the first round.

- Here’s my latest article for the Washington Post, on how the Wildcat offense has started to revolutionize the game of football.

It’s being reported that USC running back Stafon Johnson should make a full recovery, however he is out for the season. It’s hard to say this early how it will affect his draft status, and if he is even able to continue to play, so we’ll keep an eye on this situation.

Meanwhile, it’s also being reported that talented Oregon cornerback Walter Thurmond is out for the season after tearing his ACL, MCL, and PCL. This is awful news for Thurmond, who may not be able to workout during offseason workouts. A second-round pick in my eyes before the injury, Thurmond could drop to as far as the fifth or sixth round. With reconstructive surgery for Thurmond’s knee, it’s hard to know now whether or not he’ll be the same player that he was after the injury. We’ll continue to update you if we hear of any updates on either player.

Yesterday at USC, Trojans running back Stafon Johnson was just starting a set of bench press lifts when he apparently lost control of the bar and it landed on his neck. He was reportedly spitting up blood and was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where surgery began sometime around 2 p.m. It’s uncertain as of now how this will affect Johnson’s season assuming he is able to make a full recovery. It’s also a bit too early to be worried about what will happen to his draft stock as a result of this freak accident.

Other news:

- You can view my latest article for the Washington Post right here.

- One of the top offensive guard prospects in Texas Tech’s Brandon Carter was suspended indefinitely by Raiders head coach Mike Leach. After losing to Houston it was pretty clear that several of the team’s players were upset, as two different players’ Twitter accounts reacted in negative ways regarding the game. It’s unknown as to how long Carter will be suspended, but from a scouting perspective, this isn’t good news.

- Just a week after beating USC, Washington and quarterback Jake Locker returned to earth in their loss to Stanford. Locker, who has seen his draft stock skyrocket as high as any other player’s in the country, threw two interceptions in the game. I’m hoping to go back and watch each game and see what the problem was with both Locker and the Washington squad.

- Cincinnati wide receiver Mardy Gilyard had nine receptions for 177 yards and two touchdowns this past weekend in the team’s win over Fresno State. Gilyard has had an outstanding start to the season, and in my opinion, there’s no doubt that Gilyard and Eric Decker are the top two senior receivers in the nation. Gilyard is an electric player with terrific explosion in the open field. He could be of very good value in the early-second round next spring.

- After receiving a mid-round grade last year, Kentucky cornerback Trevard Lindley decided to return to school to attempt to raise his draft stock for 2010. Thus far, Lindley appears to be on track to be one of the top senior cornerbacks taken in the 2010 draft.

This year, I’ve decided to add a new section to the website. As you can see with my first two articles, Draft Headquarters is staying committed to bringing you the best NFL Draft coverage on the web. Now, starting Monday, I’ll be posting my first-ever “Monday Morning Roundup”. This will be an article that I’ll post once a week following the weekend’s game. It’ll review the college games on Saturday, the NFL games on Sunday, and talk about what draft implications occured over the weekend. I’m excited to bring this new addition to the site, and hopefully you will be to. Check back Monday morning for the first Monday Morning Roundup!

This morning I talked about how Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead needed to have a good night against South Carolina in order to maintain his status as a 2010 first round pick. To put it simply, he didn’t come anywhere close. That was pretty obvious as many watched the nationally televised game in which Ole Miss was upset by the Gamecocks. This morning, I said this: “Snead’s performance tonight could have a swing effect on the rest of the season. A win and a good game by the quarterback, and his momentum could swing towards winning even more games this season and continuing to be talked about as a Top 10 pick. They lose, and Snead is going to have questions to answer.”

On Thursday night, Snead struggled, but it wasn’t completely his fault. His offensive line was awful against South Carolina’s terrific pass rush, and you can guarantee that Eric Norwood has the attention of the NFL after tonight’s game. Snead’s receivers also weren’t helping him. They were not able to consistently get open down the field. However, Snead also had a number of passes that were either high, low, or just completely inaccurate. While this isn’t a good sign, accuracy is something that can be worked on. He has a very strong arm and he has the tools, intangibles, and confidence to play in the NFL. He’s just a bit further away as a prospect than we thought.

This morning I also said this, “I’m itching to move Locker into the top quarterback spot and it’ll have to take a good performance by Snead tonight to convince not just me, but hundreds of NFL scouts that he has what it takes to be a starting quarterback in the NFL.”

As you can see by my updated quarterback rankings, Jake Locker has taken over the top spot among the quarterbacks for the 2010 draft. While he may not even be thinking about the draft, his status as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation continues to climb. If he is able to consistently play at the level that he did against USC, then Locker should have the top quarterback spot locked up. If I had to rank the quarterbacks as a whole, not factoring in their status as a senior or junior, it would be this:

1. Jake Locker

2. Colt McCoy

3. Jevan Snead

4. Tim Tebow

5. Sam Bradford

We still have plenty of season left, but these first few weeks have already shown us things that we didn’t see coming heading into the 2009 season. Two weeks ago, did the nation know who Jake Locker was? Did they have any idea that Sam Bradford could go down and still have Oklahoma’s starting quarterback set the school record for touchdowns in a game? Did the nation think that Monte Kiffin’s defense could show just how much of a system quarterback Tim Tebow is? We have begun to get several answers to the questions that we had at the beginning of the year. It’s now up to the players to continue to claw their way up the rankings as we head closer and closer to draft season. It should be a fun ride. I plan on updating the mock draft soon with Locker on top and Snead’s status still to be determined. Continue to check back at Draft Headquarters for continued updates!

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With Jake Locker’s rise up the draft draft boards, tonight’s game between Ole Miss and South Carolina becomes a bit more intriguing. This is the first game of the season in which Rebels quarterback Jevan Snead, and one of my top quarterback prospects, will face a legitimate defense. South Carolina has plenty of playmakers on the defensive side of the ball and it’ll be interesting to see how they try to get pressure on Snead.

In the nationally televised game against Memphis, Snead started out slow before coming on strong at the end of the game with a pair of touchdown passes. What I like about Snead is his strong arm, his leadership, and his ability to win games. However, I’m itching to move Locker into the top quarterback spot and it’ll have to take a good performance by Snead tonight to convince not just me, but hundreds of NFL scouts that he has what it takes to be a starting quarterback in the NFL.

In my opinion, the top of the draft this year is going to be a competition between Locker and Snead. While the casual fan may think that Sam Bradford should be up there, there are too many reasons why he won’t be. I can’t give all those away, as they’ll be a part of my 2010 Draft Preview, but I can guarantee that Bradford won’t be my top quarterback when the draft rolls around next April.

Snead’s performance tonight could have a swing effect on the rest of the season. A win and a good game by the quarterback, and his momentum could swing towards winning even more games this season and continuing to be talked about as a Top 10 pick. They lose, and Snead is going to have questions to answer. He needs to work on becoming a better decision maker in order to have a chance of making it at the next level.

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With Washington’s upset victory over USC, there is one player who has seen his draft stock rise dramatically thanks to the win. Starting quarterback Jake Locker, a junior, has elevated his stock and now may be in line to become a Top 10-Top 5 pick next April.

Last season I had Locker on my radar until he broke his thumb in week four and was sidelined for the rest of the year. An outstanding athlete who can beat you with his arm and his legs, Locker has a chance to elevate his stock as much as anyone this season. In his performance against USC, Locker displayed excellent leadership and poise and led his team down the field for the game winning field goal. Situations like these are what scouts drool over. Matt Ryan ring a bell? Locker has positioned himself perfectly to have a good season and enter the 2010 draft as one of the top prospects available. He has all of the tools needed to be a very good player in the NFL.

Other news of note:

- This past weekend Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd broke his collarbone as he went up to grab a touchdown pass out of the air. With the news that he could be out for the season, it’s time to begin looking at the future for Floyd. After having amazing production last season for a freshman, Floyd has shown scouts that he has what it takes to play in the NFL. With next season being his junior year, I would be surprised if Floyd opted to stay at Notre Dame rather than leave for the draft. The 2011 wide receiver class has the potential to be among the best in years if sophomores Julio Jones, A.J. Green, DeAndre Brown, and Floyd all decide to leave for the draft. Teams looking for a receiver of the future may want to wait a year.

- The Ravens have traded linebacker Prescott Burgess to the Patriots for a conditional seventh-round pick. New England adds Burgess to a linebacking core that includes former Michigan teammate Shawn Crable.

- South Florida quarterback Matt Grothe is out for the season after tearing his ACL in his left knee last weekend. While Grothe isn’t that high of a prospect for the NFL, he was the savior of the South Florida football program and is one of the key reasons why they’ve been so competitive the past few years.

- With 27 tackles and three interceptions in his first three games, Notre Dame safety Kyle McCarthy has certainly raised his draft stock so far this season.