Reggie Ragland's status for the 2016 NFL Draft has been affected by a medical concern.
The former Alabama linebacker was flagged for an enlarged aorta and some NFL clubs have lowered Ragland on their draft boards as a result, people close to the player and officials with seven teams toldĀ NFL Media insider Ian Rapoport. The seven teams don't see the condition as something that will affect his football career, however, and consider it something that will merely bear close watching, Rapoport added.
Ragland was a two-year starter for the Crimson Tide and anchored one of the nation's dominant defenses during that stretch. He is regarded as the draft's top pure inside linebacker and remains a first-round projection.
Ragland made 195 stops with 17 tackles for loss over the last two years at Alabama. NFL Media draft expert Mike Mayock has projected Ragland to the Green Bay Packers with the No. 27 overall pick of the draft, a selection that would allow the club to move star veteran linebacker Clay Matthews back to his natural outside linebacker spot.
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