Carl Lawson led Auburn with nine sacks, 13 ½ tackles for loss and 24 quarterback hurries in 2016.

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At 6-foot-2 and 261 pounds, the defensive end ran the eighth-fastest 40-yard dash (4.67 seconds) and had the most bench press reps (35) of any defensive lineman at last week’s NFL Combine.

So does Lawson think he’s worthy of being a first-round pick in April’s NFL Draft?

“Oh yeah, easily,” he said after Auburn’s Pro Day on Friday. “If you followed me throughout my career, I watch film all the time and watch NFL film. I’m a guy who could consistently win one-on-ones on the edge, so I definitely feel like I’m a first-round talent.”

A number of draft pundits disagree with Lawson. The former Auburn star has been penciled into the second round of more mock drafts than the first.

In January, NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said Lawson has the talent level of a top-15 pick, but that durability concerns — he missed all of 2014 with a torn ACL and half of 2015 with a hip injury — give him more of a second-round grade.

Lawson, though, said he does not pay much attention to what is said about him on the Internet.

“Are they currently scouts? No,” he said. “None of those people are scouts. Even the guys who are ex-scouts are not scouts.

“They don’t work for a team and all different teams have different opinions. So, it’s hard to tell what type of information is right and what’s wrong, and people get caught up in it because football is America’s sport, but at the same time, I’m going to control what I can control.”

Lawson didn’t go through any of the measurable drills — vertical, bench press, 40-yard dash or broad jump — on Friday, instead choosing to represent himself with the numbers he posted at the combine last week in Indianapolis. But it was clear he had drummed up some interest.

Among the NFL personnel that were in attendance on Friday were Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and outside linebackers coach Joey Porter, who spent a lot of time speaking with Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn, defensive coordinator Kevin Steele and Lawson himself.

"I think Carl will be drafted high," Malzahn said. "He's earned that and he's one of the best players in our league. He's just very talented, great person, great motor, great family. He's got everything you look for."

The Steelers have the 30th pick in the upcoming draft and are reportedly in the market for an edge rusher.

“I was trying to tell him that I could drop (into coverage), and he was like, ‘Nah, I need you to rush the passer,’” Lawson said of his interaction with Tomlin. “I was like, OK, that’s what I do best.”

Lawson played mostly buck defensive end in Auburn’s 4-3 defense, but it’s possible a number of NFL teams — like the Steelers — will view him as more of 3-4 outside linebacker.

It’s a position he’s never played, but one he said he’s comfortable learning. That what he’s spent the two months since his final game in blue and orange in New Orleans on Jan. 2 — that he’s “more than qualified” to do it.

And, in his opinion, qualified to hear his name called on the first night of the NFL Draft on April 27.

“The main thing that I take is that everybody has a different opinion on you,” Lawson said. “Not everybody is always going to be in your corner, but there’s some people who are going to be in your corner. At the same time, I don’t know who is, so that’s the main thing I’ve taken from it. I just want to be able to put my best foot forward all the time.”