Mark Pszonak contributed to this report.
The mid-point of the NFL is upon us, which means it's time to take a look at the league's top rookies. We start our top 15 today with Nos. 13-15, led by a former No. 1 Rivals.com prospect.
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The skinny: McGlinchey committed to Notre Dame after taking an unofficial visit to South Bend during his junior season. He picked the Irish over Wisconsin, Penn State, Virginia, Maryland and others. After redshirting in 2013, McGlinchey had a memorable collegiate career while playing both right and left tackles. Drafted with the ninth overall selection by San Francisco, McGlinchey has started every game at right tackle for the 49ers this season.
Farrell’s take: I was down on McGlinchey after his last season at Notre Dame even though many still had him projected as a first-round guy and the 49ers decided he was worthy of a top-10 pick. He has trouble with outside speed and I worried he might not be effective at left tackle as a result. In high school, I thought we might have under-ranked him, however, even though he was very tall and a tad awkward and lacked upper-body strength. His footwork, length and willingness to be physical made me think this could be a five-star and future first-rounder. But I went conservative. Now, based on his draft status at least and the start he has had this year, I was wrong. He’s been very impressive.
The skinny: Darnold kept his recruitment rather silent, but then suddenly committed to USC a few weeks after getting offered following a workout in front of the coaching staff. Oregon, Northwestern, Duke and Utah were some of the other schools involved at the time of his decision. Darnold passed for 7,229 yards and 57 touchdowns during his two seasons as a starter at USC before being selected with the third overall pick by the New York Jets. He started immediately with the Jets and has struggled, as New York is 3-6 and Darnold has a league-high 14 interceptions while completing 50 percent or less of his passes in five of his nine starts.
Farrell’s take: Darnold slipped in our final rankings after a rough week at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, but being No. 8 at dual-threat quarterback isn’t so shabby. Some of the things we worried about in high school are still there (turnovers, etc.), so it will be interesting to see how his NFL career plays out. I’m not in love with his potential as others are, but the Jets are banking on him being their franchise guy.
The skinny: While Michigan was considered the favorite for a majority of his recruitment, Hand committed to Alabama during his senior season after taking an official visit to Tuscaloosa in October. As a former five-star, Hand had his fair share of struggles at Alabama, but showed enough potential and star power during his senior season to be drafted in the fourth round by Detroit. He has impressed in the early going with the Lions by totaling 22 tackles, three tackles for a loss, two sacks, and two forced fumbles.
Farrell’s take: His college career is still puzzling to me as Hand was so special and athletic from a young age I thought for sure he would be a superstar at the college level. His career at Alabama was a disappointment, but as with many on these lists, he was still drafted fairly high in the NFL Draft because of his potential. Now he’s become one of the best rookie interior linemen in the NFL and is showing that potential we saw back in the day.
