It's goes without saying we're a long ways from the 2012 NFL Draft, but it's never NOT a good time to look ahead, right?  I mean it is the middle of May and fall camps don't open for another two-and-a-half months.  No worries though because NFL.com's Gil Brandt came out today with his Top 100 list of draft eligible players for the 2012 draft.

As we found out a couple weeks ago in the 2011 draft, it's hard enough to project where these guys will end up after a full year's evaluation, the combine, and their pro days, so trying to do it nearly a year in advance is close to impossible, but hey, you have to start somewhere.

As much as anything, this is a solid list of the players that figure to have a huge impact for their respective teams during the 2011 season, regardless of where they're being projected among NFL prospects.  If you're trying to figure out who's going to be All-Conference for the upcoming season, this list is probably a good place to start.

As it relates to the draft, it is interesting to note that two of the top three players mentioned, Justin Blackmon and Landry Jones, will only be juniors and will have a big decision to make following this season.

It's hard not to envision both throwing their names in the draft after this year, especially Blackmon who gave some consideration to leaving after his fantastic sophomore season.  Jones could find himself in a similar position to that of Sam Bradford a couple years back.  Bradford won the Heisman after his junior season, came back, and was injured the first game and missed the rest of the season except for a few plays in the Texas game.  That's not to say Jones will win the Heisman, but at the very least, he should be in for a huge junior season.

Here is Brandt's full list of prospects with those from the Big 12 outlined below.

Two quick observations from the list.  Michael Egnew from Missouri is too high.  Brandt says it in his comment regarding Egnew, "He was a better receiver than blocker last year." There is little question he's the best receiving tight end in the Big 12 and probably the entire country.  But you have to block as a tight end in the NFL, something that's not exactly required in Missouri's offense.  Just ask past great Mizzou tight ends Chase Coffman and Martin Rucker about that.  They have a combined five catches in their NFL careers and have struggled to stay on any active roster.  If a team is going to use a high round draft pick on Egnew, he'll have to show between now and then he's capable of blocking at the next level.

The second prediction? Kendall Wright should and very well will be ranked higher when next year's draft officially rolls around.  What will hold Wright back in NFL scout's eyes will be the fact he's only listed at 5'10".  But if Ryan Broyles can make a living at 5'11" (and be a possible first round choice), there's no reason to believe Wright can't have the same type of success in the NFL.  I'm not necessarily putting Wright in the same category as Broyles, yet, but playing at Baylor definitely hasn't help him get maximum exposure.  I'll be surprised if he doesn't have a huge season with Robert Griffin at quarterback again for the Bears.  Wright already has 194 catches in his career and I could see him adding another 100 to that total in 2011.

And for those still keeping track of those two other teams, they have a few prospects, as well.