Prisco says OJ Atogwe is the NFL's most underrated player.

[Bald_81]

He wrote an article on who is the most overrated and underrated player in the league, and then extended it to which player it is on every one of the 32 teams. Here is the beginning of the article, as well as who he chose for overrated and underrated (no surprise here) for the Rams:

Is two years in the NFL enough to earn somebody overrated honors?

It is for Reggie Bush.

Bush came into the league as a player many expected to be a Marshall Faulk-type of runner, a home-run threat every time he touched the ball, a star in the passing game. Two seasons into his career with the New Orleans Saints, Bush is a runner who tiptoes into the hole, a player who is far more hype than production.

When the Saints used the second pick in the 2006 NFL Draft to take Bush, some speculated he could be a 2,000-yard rusher. They meant in a season. He's just over halfway to that number in two.

Bush, who has 1,146 rushing yards in two seasons, gets the nod this year as my most overrated NFL player. In 28 NFL games, Bush has one 100-yard rushing effort. His 3.7 career average per rush is not impressive at all. He does have 161 catches in two seasons, but the Saints expected a lot more with him running with the football when they selected him.

What's bigger: Bush as a disappointment or his girlfriend's (Kim Kardashian) ample behind?

We expected to see those electrifying, make-the-defensive-coordinators-sweat runs that he put on display at Southern California. Instead we have had a tentative, between-the-tackles runner who sure doesn't make us think of Gale Sayers, which the experts said he would.

While Bush is this year's most overrated player -- Vince Young should thank him -- St. Louis Rams safety O.J. Atogwe is the league's most underrated player.

Atogwe had eight interceptions, one returned for a touchdown, and 75 tackles in 2007 for the Rams. He has 32 starts in his three-year career and at 26 is just scratching the surface of his potential.

Atogwe can become an unrestricted free agent after the 2008 season if the Rams don't get him signed to a long-term deal by season's end. If the Rams are smart, they'll get him locked up before that happens. He's that good.

Two interesting things about Atogwe are that he is from Canada and his given name is Oshiomogho. He was given the O.J. nickname when he started playing football at the age of 7.

O.J. is a lot easier to remember for people -- and this is a player we shouldn't forget.

Here are the overrated-underrated players for all 32 teams.

St. Louis Rams

Overrated: WR Drew Bennett. The Rams paid a lot to bring him in as the third receiver and he disappointed. Now he's penciled in as a starter, which is a concern.

Underrated: S O.J. Atogwe. He played at a Pro Bowl level last season, and should be even better now in his second full season as a starter. He had eight interceptions. The one knock could be he sometimes takes poor tackling angles.

You can view the rest of the article here:

Overrated/Underrated

[LeBulger]

Great read, and I couldn't agree more on the O.J front. I'm so excited about what he can do alongside a vastly improved defense we have going into next year. O.J himself along with Spoon and Long should hopefully make the massive impact they're all capable of on defense.

I think O.J was hard done by to miss the Pro Bowl last year, he was simply fantastic. With 9 INT's last season, I only see him improving even more in 2008. He's the perfect guy to have in our secondary - a guy who can make plays at any given time, and helps the guys around him play better too. Hopefully some of Atogwe's good play might rub off on Hill, Brown and Bartell too. I really like the look of our secondary this year.

We just can't afford to make the mistake of not locking this kid up. I don't mind when, but anytime before the end of next year, we have to sign him to as long a contract as possible. It's not that often you find a guy like him in the 3rd round and hopefully he can be the core of our secondary for years to come.

Whatever you fo FO, DO NOT LET HIM GO!

[general counsel]

I like OJ, but i dont think he is as good as some others do. I think he missed plenty of tackles last year and dropped several potential INT.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

[txramsfan]

I think right now we have two players on defense....Spoon and O.J. We have two potentials in Carriker and Long, a maybe in Ryan and an I don't know in Hill.

O.J. throughout the season had a learning curve off the charts. I agree with Prisco. Especially the Bennett statement.

[Ramer]

I liked when we picked up Bennett last year, only to be extremely disappointed. I hope he turns things around this year.

[HUbison]

Yea, Bennett sucks for being injured. He's a witch, burn him.

Bennett ain't as bad as all that. He disappointed last year. Will he repeat it?
Atogwe ain't as good as all that. He wowed last year. Will he repeat it?

[txramsfan]

I don't know about burning him.....awww...what of it? It's only money.

[live4ramin]

Most underrated: Witherspoon. When WW can't get there, we're in big trouble.

Overrated: I refuse to answer on the grounds that it will incriminate me.

But his name starts with B...ulger. Oops.

[Mooselini]

I couldn't have agreed more. I think the second underrated player on our squad is Will Witherspoon. He's such an important part of our defense.

But I have to say, that Bennett is an overrated player by a long shot

[shower beers]

It's great that he's getting some well deserved recognition, but with more and more hype, comes more and more money, along with certain performance expectations.

Good for him, though. He earned it last year.

[laram0]

A homer is a homer is a homer and yes I'm a homer.

Most underrated going into the 2008 season:

Our entire ST. LOUIS RAMS team!

We will surprise......

[Keenum]

Spoon and OJ are both underrated, O.J. just being more underreated in my opinion (some people at least know Witherspoon's name).
If the defense as a whole can start to play well, then their names will become more known. Playing for a defense with a bad rep in recent history doesn't help.

[VegasRam]

Originally Posted by HUbison

Yea, Bennett sucks for being injured. He's a witch, burn him.

Bennett ain't as bad as all that. He disappointed last year. Will he repeat it?
Atogwe ain't as good as all that. He wowed last year. Will he repeat it?

Exactly. I like Atogwe and think he will be very good, but last year, (much like Cromartie), his interceptions were more screw-ups by the QB than any super play on his part.

And Bennett never really had a chance, (Torry's knee notwithstanding). There's injuries and then there's injuries.

[YodaRam]

Originally Posted by live4ramin

Most underrated: Witherspoon. When WW can't get there, we're in big trouble.

Overrated: I refuse to answer on the grounds that it will incriminate me.

But his name starts with B...ulger. Oops.

AW....now you've done it. Calling Bulger overrated is......well......absolutely....correct! Rex Grossman could have filled his shoes nicely last year. Maybe even Ryan Leaf. If i hear one more comment about it was all because of our weak offensive line I'm gonna kick my dog right in the Netherlands! And i love my pup so don't make me do it.

RAM ON!

[ramsbruce]

Originally Posted by YodaRam

AW....now you've done it. Calling Bulger overrated is......well......absolutely....correct! Rex Grossman could have filled his shoes nicely last year. Maybe even Ryan Leaf. If i hear one more comment about it was all because of our weak offensive line I'm gonna kick my dog right in the Netherlands! And i love my pup so don't make me do it.

RAM ON!

I don't think anyone here thinks it was "all" because of our O-Line, but there is no denying it was a huge part of the problem.