Scouting 2006 draft: Peeking ahead at next year's Top 32

It's official. The NFL Draft is the second most-watched sport in the country.

OK, that's pushing it. But did you see the nuts sitting at the draft in New York as the seventh round came to conclusion?

Do something. Go eat a slice of Ray's Pizza. Go to a Broadway show. Run the steps up the Empire State Building. Shop. Take a run in Central Park.

DeAngelo Williams is drawing comparisons to Ronnie Brown and Carnell Williams. (Getty Images)

Do anything but sit inside as seventh-round picks get their names called.

The NFL Draft makes for strange scenes and passion that would make a nighttime soap envious.

So even though teams are still signing free agents who weren't drafted as we write this, and fans are still dissecting all of their team's moves, isn't it time to take a first look at the 2006 draft?

We thought so, so we have an early top 32 for the draft junkies out there. It's a preliminary list, one that is bound to change -- except at the very top.

Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart will be the top player taken next spring, save for a serious injury. He would have been the first pick in this draft had he come out.

Aside from Leinart, this board is bound to change as the year rolls along. Some of these players will fall off, while others will emerge.

It's a starting point for all the draft junkies out there. As we found out this past month, their appetites are insatiable.

1. Matt Leinart, QB, Southern California: He would have been the first player picked in this year's draft. Barring an injury, he's the top player next year.

2. D'Brickashaw Ferguson, T, Virginia: He's a huge tackle with great athletic ability. If he had come out this year, he would have been a top 10 pick.

3. DeAngelo Williams, RB, Memphis: An explosive runner with good size and the ability to make people miss. Williams is in the Ronnie Brown-Carnell Williams class.