2. LB Cortez McDowell
Remember the career trajectory of Jalen Reeves-Maybin? He moved from safety to outside linebacker, became a special teams ace in 2013 and stepped into a major role the next season as a starting OLB and team leader in tackles. McDowell has already taken several of those steps, and he’ll have the opportunity to become a contributor on defense in 2015. It a bit unrealistic to expect him to have the kind of impact that JRM did in Year 2, but there have been signs that McDowell could be a really good player on defense in time. At the very least, expect to keep making an impact on special teams and to be a fixture on the two-deep at OLB, potentially seeing some meaningful defensive snaps next year.
