Full AFC East Grades (Plus NY Giants) | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Full AFC East Grades (Plus NY Giants)

ckparrothead

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Hey all. These are the draft grades and write ups that I handed out to the AFC East for the happenings of the first two days of the Draft.

The Giants are included simply because I email back and forth with four other guys and one of them is a Giants fan. We all used to write for a site that doesn't exist anymore, that was AFC East oriented...and one day the guy that started the site said hey there's this guy, he's a Giants fan, wondering if we might let him in on the email chain, have him write for the site, etc. Since then, as far as these daily, constant emails back and forth that we've been writing for like 5 years, the Giants have been like an honorary member of the AFC East, lol.

If you could, I would only ask one thing. Please spare me any sanctimonious overreactions to various grades, be they Dolphins grades or Patriots grades or Jets grades or whatever. Respect that these are honest and true grades based on how I feel a franchise should be run, what leads to winning, what players I have good grades on, what players I do not, what players I have so-so grades on, what needs I perceived, etc.

And with that, I'll get to it.

Bills Marcell Dareus: A+
Comment: Good decision by the Bills' front office to take him, but even better that he was there. I thought Dareus was arguably the best talent in the Draft, and when I spoke on the radio with an Albany radio station I compared him with Pat Williams in terms of the kind of career he'd have. Early in his career Pat Williams was a disruptive defensive tackle playing on the outside, paired up with Ted Washington. As Pat got older and got dismissed from Buffalo (which was a mistake), he moved inside to a 1-technique position and became the kind of immovable rock you see in him today. Dareus' flexibility and movement skills are amazing at his size, and he has no shortage of power or explosiveness. He could even have a Ndamukong Suh-like impact.

Dolphins Mike Pouncey: C-
Comment: He's a decent player, especially as a Center, and I am relieved to hear that the Dolphins are keeping him at Center for now. Philosophically I think if you are going to take an interior lineman all the way at #15 with all the talents at other, more important positions still available, the guy had better be the next Nick Mangold as a Center, or the next Steve Hutchinson as a Guard. Anything short of that, and the pick is a failure. Though I honestly had Mike Pouncey rated better as a Center than I did his brother Maurkice, who I would insist did not have quite the rookie season some have made him out to have, I don't know that Pouncey is a Nick Mangold. We will have to see. I make fun of Pouncey's snap issues but in reality they don't figure much into my evaluation as I'm sure they were the result of simple inexperience and they can be ironed out. The Dolphins had the opportunity to match or beat Jacksonville's offer with the Redskins to move up to #10 overall for Blaine Gabbert or Christian Ponder. I also can't help but wonder if Gabe Carimi would have been a better pick as a Left Guard, if that was the direction they were dead set on going. This regime has now used a #1 overall pick (plus $70 million contract), a $42 million contract, a $25 million contract, a $30 million contract, a 4th round pick, a 6th round pick, a 3rd round pick, a 3 year contract of unknown value (believed to probably be worth $2-3 million a year), and a #15 overall pick on the offensive line. Tony Sparano is a former offensive line coach, and this does not strike me as a good sign of his ability to keep an area that should be his specialty running efficiently. If the offensive line is anything less than stellar, he should be fired, with cause.

Patriots Nate Solder: D
Comment: Solder should probably not have been a 1st round pick. He plays high and without very good leverage, and the problem with that is he's built high and so you wonder about his ability to be coached up. The only thing he does well is fire out to the second level with tremendous quickness, but that only ensures that he is at least another Tony Ugoh, it certainly doesn't make him another Jake Long. It is a fact that most of the independent talent evaluators were very down on him after a very poor Senior Bowl showing where he was repeatedly torched in practice and then did not show well in the games, and I heard several of them hint that it was hard to find any single Colorado game in which you could isolate him and say that he for sure played like a 1st round pick. Most of the independent evaluators began moving him up the boards as they got the sense that some teams, like the Giants and Patriots, continue to evaluate him highly despite his obvious problems. This is not a Sebastian Vollmer. Vollmer played with violence, physicality and pad level. Nate Solder does not play "heavy boned" as Bill Walsh would say. But he's got some natural athletic ability, and by all accounts he's a good character, hard worker. He could get better. Taking him at #17 is not exactly like taking him in the top 5 or 10 as some initially and misguidedly predicted way back in January. I'm tempted to give this an 'F'. The fact of the matter is, Prince Amukamara was on the board at this pick and he would have been a FAR better player for them to pair with Devin McCourty. Prince has the athletic ability and skill set to play in any scheme. Even if the Patriots were dead set on going with position instead of value, Anthony Castonzo would have been a better pick.

Giants Prince Amukamara: A+
Comment: This was not just the best player left on the board, but also a position I marked as one that could use some serious improvement for the Giants. I had previously been kicking around the question of whether to draft Jimmy Smith at this pick, or go ahead and work on the offensive line with Anthony Castonzo or Gabe Carimi. With Prince Amukamara on the board, that question became a no-brainer. I think Corey Webster has been very inconsistent in his career and he probably will continue to be inconsistent. Aaron Ross has never convinced me he is anything special, and Terrell Thomas is a good, physical corner that may be miscast in the Giants' scheme and better off in a more traditional Cover 2. Prince Amukamara should be the best corner on the Giants' roster within 2 years. The issues he had in deep coverage against the likes of Jermaine Kearse and Justin Blackmon were the result of a tendency to peek in the backfield, because Nebraska's lone defensive weakness was in defending the run against teams that could block and run downhill really well (hence the loss to Washington in the bowl game). I heard questions posed over and over again about what Prince would run, because of those deep plays he gave up. I knew what he would run, it was clear on tape that lack of athleticism was not a factor. He's as physical in underneath coverage as Darrelle Revis, and I believe that once you clean up his tendency to peek in the backfield, he has a chance to be as good in deep coverage as Revis as well. The Nebraska pass defense was one of the most ridiculous pass defenses I've ever seen in college football, and Prince Amukamara was a very big reason for that.

Patriots Trade Pick #28 to New Orleans for #56 and 2012 1st Rounder: A++++
Comment: The Patriots are one of the few teams that 'get it' in this league and they show that every single year. I don't know whether to attribute this to Bill Belichick, or Ernie Adams. I suspect the latter. What they have figured out, that so few teams understand, is that there is no time value associated with Draft choices. The rest of the league are like children trying to play at adult games, poorly mimicking complicated financial decisions with play-money. Jimmy Johnson once (misguidedly) formed a theory that a 2nd round pick today should be worth a 1st round pick next year, because the player you take today will have this year to play and learn, and so the extra year is worth the bump up in value. This jived with the jocks and simpletons that too often litter the NFL. After all, they think of it like an interest rate. A dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow. But a dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow due to the ability to invest that dollar in something that will produce more dollars over time. There are very few such opportunities with Draft picks, and none reliable to any degree. Meanwhile, yes a player you choose today will play and learn for you this year, whereas a Draft choice for next year won't net you a player until next year. But the player you take today, all things being equal, will have a career that lasts one year shorter on the timeline than the player you take next year. It cancels out. It boils down to this: is winning games today inherently any more valuable than winning games tomorrow? The answer is a firm 'no'. Fans, owners, coaches and media will put as much pressure on a team to win tomorrow as they currently put on you to win today. There are certainly situations where, due to 'window' considerations, a manipulation of the timeline can call for more value to be placed on a draft pick in a certain year versus another year. However, those situations are FAR more sparing than people commonly believe, and logically speaking the 'window' argument should apply as much in the other direction (making Draft choices tomorrow MORE valuable than today) as they do the common direction (Draft choices today being more valuable than tomorrow). In reality, the reason for the perpetuation of this misguided and childish belief that Draft choices today are worth a round more than Draft choices tomorrow, is due to fear. General Managers fear for their jobs, as do Head Coaches, and so they urinate team value down the drain out of pure fear and self-preservation. The Patriots are one of the few teams with the guts (partly owing to philosophy, partly owing to their being able to constantly stay competitive due to the presence of Tom Brady) to consistently take advantage of this PURE ARBITRAGE every year, and as a result they have an embarrassment of riches in the Draft every year. Theoretically, if a team were to trade every single allotted pick for a future pick one round above, every single year, the next effect of this commitment is to end up with an extra 1st round pick's worth of value every single year. The Patriots average this in their Drafts, because they never fail to take the opportunity when it arises. If I were an owner, people would call me a Dan Snyder or Jerry Jones, because I would put in place an inviolable moratorium on giving up a future pick for a present one unless they were in the same round. I would also insist that my General Manager seek opportunities to trade present picks for future ones. They could whine all they want, but my team will be better off for my having been smarter than 90% of the rest of the NFL. The terms of this particular trade look even MORE ridiculous than normal. The Patriots moved from #28 to #56, giving up 320 points worth of value on the traditional chart, and in return they got the Saints' 1st round pick in 2012. A 1st round pick on the chart is worth anywhere from 3000 points to 590 points, as per the chart. If the Saints win the Super Bowl (I don't find that likely), the Patriots at worst picked up an extra 270 points of value (last pick in the 2nd round). If the Saints pick at #16 or #17 (mid-1st), the Patriots will have picked up somewhere around 630 and 680 points in value. Again I reiterate, this is FREE VALUE, picked up through PURE ARBITRAGE.

Jets Muhammad Wilkerson: B
Comment: This is a player that I'd been sensing was picking up a lot of traction in the NFL, although I had better players available. Phil Taylor was surprisingly off the board, and truthfully I think the Jets' pick at the end of the 3rd round could go down better than this pick (more on that later). The Jets did stick with an area where I felt like they needed some help. The big question that will be talked about will be whether this pick should have been Cameron Heyward instead of Muhammad Wilkerson. I am a big fan of Ironhead's son. But I will say that Wilkerson in theory should fit Rex Ryan's aggressive style a little bit better than Heyward would have. I had Wilkerson pegged to the Ravens at #26 on that basis, since they run the same kind of system.

Patriots Ras-I Dowling: B
Comment: I like that the Patriots are still being aggressive with their corner position and not sitting on their laurels just because they found Devin McCourty. I have almost zero regard for the other corners they have on roster aside from McCourty. How they got away with Kyle Arrington and Darius Butler last year is beyond me. They should have picked up Prince Amukamara at #17 and because they didn't do that, they are going to suffer a good drop in pure talent level going from Prince to Ras-I Dowling. However, I believe Dowling is a good player. One could certainly make the argument that there were not going to be any Left Tackles available at #33 and so that is why they had to prioritize that first. That holds some water. But I doubt Matt Light HAS to be ditched quite yet, and Sebastian Vollmer proved at least a decent temporary fill-in at the position. They have extra picks every year, they could have covered the position fine while getting an opportunity to take a shutdown corner that I feel could end up on Revis' level eventually. I found it funny during the Draft coverage when suddenly they're talking about Ras-I Dowling and Chris Cook, and they're pointing out that he's better than Chris Cook. I thought so too. But last year they were saying the EXACT OPPOSITE. And I do mean exact. When Ras-I was evaluated by the Advisory Committee a year ago, he was given I believe a 4th round grade...and he hardly played any football this year, so I doubt anyone can say that he "raised" his grade this year by being hurt most of the year with serious injuries. I was a fan of Ras-I Dowling a year ago and that is why I remember the Advisory grade, and I also remember scouts specifically saying they don't like Ras-I Dowling and they're more interested in Chris Cook. I note with some amount of mirth, what a difference a year makes. Ras-I hardly plays any football, gets hurt with serious injuries, and those evaluations all get turned on their head. Have to love the Draft process.

Bills Aaron Williams: C-
Comment: I am not sure I see the value here, either from a talent standpoint or from a position need standpoint. Aaron Williams is not a bad talent, but he's not a very physical player and I wonder how that jives schematically with what the Bills will be doing on defense this year. Why more DBs? I just got done telling my Bills fan buddy that I feel like coverage is underrated relative to pass rush because the NFL has gone to such quick rhythm passing attacks that the pass rush doesn't even enter the equation anymore except on a certain percentage of downs, but it seems like the Bills take it to the opposite extreme, hoarding defensive backs while neglecting the pass rush. Marcell Dareus almost certainly helps the front seven but he's not purely a pass rush play, and the pass rushers are currently set to be Chris Kelsay (vastly overrated) and Arthur Moats. Maybe they feel like Moats has a future, but it seems risky to bank on it. Aaron Maybin almost certainly does not have a future. So the Bills add another defensive back that can't tackle particularly well, to a cadre of defensive backs that can't tackle particularly well. It's confusing to me. As confusing to me as the Dolphins grabbing Mike Pouncey at #15. If the players were any worse players, they'd draw worse than C- grades. It's the philosophy, with both picks, that makes me give them lower grades.

Giants Marvin Austin: B
Comment: The only reason this isn't an 'A' is because I am continually confused by the Giants' crowding of the defensive line. You have Justin Tuck, Barry Cofield, Chris Canty, Rocky Bernard and you drafted Linval Joseph. All can play the defensive tackle position on either 1st/2nd down, or 3rd down. Tuck is usually better off at end but in a position that also holds Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul, I would think that on pass rush downs you would be tempted to get Justin on the inside. I do understand that Cofield is considered to be as good as gone in free agency. Due to the makeup of this particular player though, I do somewhat like that the position is crowded. I think it's good for Marvin to have to fight his way for playing time, because when he is motivated, he can be something special. He had a year off football to get fat and potentially be lazy, but when he showed up to Shrine practices he was fit as a fiddle, explosive, somehow an even better player than what he was in 2009 without even having played a down of football in 2010. He was highly motivated, because he wanted money and draft position. His ability to achieve when motivated is as remarkable as his ability to get complacent and take things for granted. If he wants to make it through the system and earn playing time from among such a crowded field, he will know that he has to be on his best behavior. He can't afford to be in anyone's dog house. I think Linval Joseph may be disappointing the Giants a little, and that may have played into this pick. I consider Austin to be a far better player.

Patriots Shane Vereen: B-
Comment: He is not Jahvid Best, but Vereen has speed and big play ability. The Patriots have very recently adopted the idea of filling their backfield with role players and using them in the roles for which they're best suited. Vereen can compete on that basis. Some people don't like him, I'm a bigger fan of him than a lot of people. I do not necessarily think it was a mistake to take Vereen before Mikel LeShoure. I take issue with LeShoure's vision and hesitation in the backfield, and it's what has prevented me from truly evaluating LeShoure as a 1st round type of tailback. I think this was a good round to find the tailback that speaks to you, and so Vereen was a good shout for the Patriots, a solid player that can play a role in the offense.

Patriots Trade #60 to Texans for #73 and #138: D
Comment: This is the kind of trade that I don't necessarily cotton to, as opposed to the other kind of trade above which I absolutely adore. The Patriots did not actually get value according to the chart in this trade. The #60 is worth 300 points whereas the #73 and #138 picks are worth 262 points. That loss of value is like just giving away a high 5th round pick, and if you're the team doing the trading down, I wonder why you do that? The Patriots come off looking afraid to actually use a Draft choice, which is a criticism that has been levied at them before (with reason). There were some good players left on the board that went before pick #73. In fact, I think the Dolphins may have traded up for Daniel Thomas specifically because the Patriots traded out of that #60 pick, and they wanted to jump solidly ahead of New England to make sure they don't take him as yet another role player in their backfield. The best way to evaluate this jump is simply to look at the caliber of player that went between #60 and #72. Between Brandon Harris, Daniel Thomas, Randall Cobb, Dontay Moch, Nate Irving and Martez Wilson...these were GOOD players.

Dolphins Trade #79, #146 and #216 to Redskins for #62: B+
Comment: I'm evaluating the trade in itself separately from the pick. The trade was much along the lines of the Patriots' trade down in that the team doing the trading down did not get value. The bundle of picks the Dolphins gave the Redskins add up to 233 points on the chart, whereas the #62 pick is worth 284 points. This is 51 points of surplus for the Dolphins, the equivalent of a late 4th round pick in value. That's a good deal. And again, looking at the quality of players that went from #62 through #79, you can see that trading up was the way to go. Daniel Thomas, Randall Cobb, Dontay Moch, Nate Irving, Martez Wilson, Ryan Mallett and John Moffitt are all good players, ranging from 'pretty good' to 'really really good'. This was a very smart trade for the Dolphins.

Dolphins Daniel Thomas: D-
Comment: After engaging in a very smart trade, the Dolphins botched their good fortune by failing to take Ryan Mallett. This is borderline unforgivable. We are not talking about a significant investment, in the late 2nd round. We are not talking about a significant risk, in the late 2nd round. This is a guy that is the most pro-ready quarterback in the Draft, some argue the best passer in the Draft period, a guy that is a coach's son, football junkie that simply cannot be worn out or exposed in any way whatsoever on the whiteboard, and he fell because as a young man he made some bad choices with drugs (not unlike past and present U.S. Presidents), and because people aren't happy with his elocution. So be it. He was the #1 quarterback on the Patriots' entire draft board for a reason, so I don't particularly care if anyone tries to act like there is a consensus within the NFL or scouting community on Mallett, because there is most certainly not. The Dolphins will regret the decision and when Tony Sparano, and perhaps the entire front office as well, are ultimately cleaned out in favor of Bill Cowher, they will understand that in this league you have to have a quarterback to succeed, and a series of band-aids at the position is not going to help you stay un-fired, or help you win games on a consistent basis. The Dolphins' management have failed, and they will be fired. You can mark that. Write it down, whine about it, cry about it, it doesn't make a difference. There are no good options for the Dolphins in free agency. Vince Young IS the sociopath that Ryan Mallett is not. Kevin Kolb will be a complete waste of resources for whomever trades for him. After failing to take a passer, despite all the speculation, the Broncos will not make Kyle Orton available in trade. Mike Brown has vowed to stare Carson Palmer down, straight into retirement. Given his history, that's a highly credible threat. Donovan McNabb is not better than Chad Henne. Speculation about David Garrard is just people spinning their wheels, because the Jaguars will want to give Gabbert some time to get the kinks worked out of his game. Matt Hasselbeck is an extremely short term band-aid, and a highly questionable one at that, especially coming from the West Coast Offense he's played quite literally his entire career. When Brett Favre tried to make that transition, it did not work out so hot with him. When he went back to the West Coast Offense, he had a career year before his body (and mind) finally gave out. With the Dolphins' passing on this quarterbacks class, they have in effect re-taken Chad Henne, and that is a mistake. Henne is quite literally one of the very worst starting quarterbacks in the NFL, and it is difficult to win if you have that millstone hanging around your neck. The only reason this grade is not a full blown 'F' is because I kind of like Daniel Thomas. He's slow, like LeGarrette Blount, but without quite Blount's viciousness. He does have creativity to his game, and the guy most certainly can run the Wildcat as he did in college. He did not impress me in 2009, but when I re-visited him in 2010 his pad level seemed to come down, and he looked a lot more instinctive, like a true tailback, rather than playing like an athlete. He will be an excellent toy for Bill Cowher to play with.

Bills Kelvin Sheppard: D+
Comment: I am glad the Bills are addressing the linebackers, because they most certainly needed help there. Nobody in that linebackers unit can play. I know Simon is a huge fan of Kelvin Sheppard's and believes he is one of the most instinctive linebackers he's seen. I do not see that. I see a guy that generally has a slow trigger, is prone to wasting steps, and that is not overly athletic. Taking Sheppard here while Martez Wilson was on the board, makes no sense to me. Martez Wilson is both a better athlete and sees plays, pulls the trigger quicker than Kelvin Sheppard. Wilson is coming into his own as far as running the offense, and he would have been a much, much, much better pick at this spot. The Bills love Sheppard, and rumors have had them taking him in the 3rd round for literally months. I don't like that word can be that solidly out on your aims, but the fact of the matter is, I'm not sure anyone cared, because I don't know that any other team would have taken Kelvin prior to the 4th or 5th round. Again, I have to give credit to the Bills for addressing a position where they could use an infusion of fresh chance, and I also tend to like when a team really falls in love with a guy and makes sure they get him. But, taking Sheppard over Wilson makes very little sense to me and so I can't give them a high grade.

Patriots Stevan Ridley: D
Comment: Again, I can see why the Patriots took the position. They're looking for role players in their backfield and they already got one type of player in Vereen, and so they're picking up more of a powerful, one-cut guy in Ridley. They missed out on Daniel Thomas. Miami's lunacy turned into the Patriots' boon one pick later, but the lunacy cost them with this pick as Daniel Thomas would have fit perfectly here if they were looking for this type of player. Delone Carter will be a better back than Stevan Ridley, and he is the same type of runner. So again, even if this was a very position/role specific pick, there was a better player on the board. In the mean time, with a talent like Leonard Hankerson on the board, I think they could and probably will regret not taking him. If the team is looking for an outside pass rusher, Chris Carter would be an excellent player to take and work into that role. Greg Cosell agrees. And as for the defensive line, Kenrick Ellis is going to be a monster one day, and so they will regret passing on him as well.

Patriots Ryan Mallett: A
Comment: This is the kind of forward thinking that makes you forgive and forget when the Patriots screw up a particular draft pick by taking a player that doesn't end up doing much for them. Ryan Mallett was the #1 overall quarterback on their draft board, and they got him in the 3rd round. Tom Brady is one of the players that Mallett has studied throughout his career and tried to learn from, and now he will get to do so up close. This story could very well end like the Favre/Rodgers story in Green Bay. As Michael Lombardi said, there were 6 other quarterbacks taken ahead of Mallett, and so 6 teams have to be pretty nervous now that in whatever time Mallett gets in New England, in that good system they have there with very smart coaching, he doesn't end up looking better than the guy they drafted. I have never gotten the feeling that Brady is going to be playing for Belichick's Patriots until he is 40 years old. Brady may even retire well before then, focusing on his family. The Patriots have to look at this like an investment, spend a 3rd round pick on Mallett now, get a 1st round pick for him tomorrow. Or, he could flat out take over for Tom Brady some time in the next three years. And if Brady's knee gives out again, or his shoulder finally goes, I think teams are going to have their eyes glued to the tape to see how Mallett does in that situation. The rich get richer.

Giants Jerrel Jernigan: C-
Comment: This is the only pick of the day for the Giants that I don't like/love. Jernigan is a nice physical player with a lot of quickness. However, he's not nearly as fast as some people projected him to be. I say some people because when I watched him on tape, I did not see that kind of speed. I saw a guy that I knew would run maybe just below a 4.5 and that's exactly what he did at the Combine. There was a time people thought he might run a 4.3 and/or be the fastest man at the Combine. This, I never understood. He reminds me a little of Emmanuel Sanders but I think he's more physical and not as fast. What I don't quite understand is the need, and I truly hope the Giants are not under the mistaken impression that Jernigan's return value makes him a worthy get here. Special teams are dead. The NFL has killed them. Punt returns were already on the ropes, with fair catch percentages the highest they've ever been. Touchback percentage on kickoffs over the last two seasons running were already the highest they've ever been, with upward trajectory promising for it to climb even higher. But then the NFL decides to move the kickoff mark from the 30 to the 35 yard line. This is going to open the floodgates on touchbacks, and I expect about half of all kickoffs to end in touchback. When the NFL made its decision, they used bad assumptions based on outdated information. They simply calculated the touchback percentage back when they originally had kickoffs at the 35, and figured well they'll rise by maybe 10 or 15 percent, no big deal. Kicking is more skilled than ever. There are already place kickers that can nail touchbacks on half their kicks, from the 30 yard line. Now it will be easier. A lot of the returns you'll see could even be on purpose, as coverage teams corner a ball trying to get you down before the 20 yard line. If the kickoff team fears a returner's ability at all, they'll just boot it through the uprights. Jernigan is not a thoroughly experienced punt returner, he's been mostly a kickoff return man.

Patriots Trade #92 and #125 to Raiders for #219 and 2012 2nd Rounder: A++
Comment: Again, the rich get richer. Every time the phone rings and it's Al Davis, you get the impression Bill Belichick is in the background saying "Who is it? Is it Al Davis? Gimme! Gimme the phone!". The Patriots gave up 175 points of value this year for a 2nd round pick which will be worth somewhere between 580 and 270 points of value next year. And since it's the Raiders, as opposed to the Saints, I think you forecast an expected value a little higher than median. This means they got about 300 points, the equivalent of a late 2nd rounder, in FREE VALUE...picked up on PURE ARBITRAGE. The fact that they can do this every year, and every year the entire league looks longingly at the Patriots' plethora of draft picks trying to figure out how they do this, is truly one of the more marvelous feats of mass stupidity in the NFL today. This isn't a trade like the one from #60 to #73 where the Patriots come off looking afraid to make a pick. This is just yet another example of the Patriots being the team that plays chess while everyone else plays checkers, with respect to present and future pick values.

Jets Kenrick Ellis: A+
Comment: I know that Ellis has his issues. He grew up in a tough neighborhood and he made some mistakes at South Carolina with respect to drugs. He missed a game at Hampton because his buddies got involved in a fight and he jumped in. It was taken care of in-house. Hampton can produce some pretty good defensive linemen. The Dolphins know, they're very happy to have taken Kendall Langford out of Hampton. When I saw Ellis play in the NFLPA Game, he looked to my eyes to be purely on talent the 2nd most talented defensive tackle in this Draft, ahead of Nick Fairley and a host of others including Phil Taylor. You just don't find guys with this size, that move this well, and use their hands this effectively and violently. He seems to like football, he seems to be a good kid despite his mistakes. I think there's a very strong possibility that if he gets through the forest of his own indiscretions, which includes a jury trial in July for the aforementioned fight, he ends up not just a starter in the NFL, but one of the better starters in the league. That's a tremendous pickup at the bottom of the 3rd round! As for the jury trial, it's hard for me to forecast him getting jail time when Tony McDaniel did basically the same thing to a guy (broke his face) with even less cause during a pickup basketball game where Tony just sucker punched the guy and walked away, and as far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong) he didn't do any jail time. I know that Hampton had sort of a trial-like proceeding to sort out the incident and they decided that Ellis would only miss one game, for whatever that's worth.
 
Great post CK! I agree that this regime now has a ticking clock over their heads and it reaches zero the Monday after week 17. What other person would ignore a direct mandate from their boss. Insanity!
 
Good read. Very depressing though that the pats already have four picks in the first two rounds next year. That raider pick is bound to be a reasonably high one too. I agree that us trading up was great......but them we bombed the pick. Not saying he wont be a good player, and the same with pouncey, but I feel like there were much better options at the time. It very much concerns me that sparano is using so many high picks and so much money on his area of expertise. A "guru" should be able to do more with less. Anybody go out and buy an offensive line. But again, thanks for the write up...very good read.
 
I think you are letting your want of Mallett influence the grade on Thomas CK

Disagree. He may be a good player, but there was much better available. And, if brady/mallet even remotely resemble the favre/rodgers situation, we're in a hell of a lot of trouble because the pats wil kick *** for the next 15-20 yrs.
 
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Mallett may have been a risk, but his ceiling was higher than any of the 2nd rounders we've thrown at the position. Well worth taking a shot late in the 2nd round. You save money, and at worst your franchise stumbles to 7-9 again if he's out of the league in a year. Pats will get another ring before we do. FML, and this FO.

Good work, CK.
 
I agree with almost everything you post, but I disagree with these grades. Both of these picks are at least a B. Several analysts had Thomas rated as their third best running back and we got him. And who knows what kind of vibe teams got from Mallett behind the scenes. Apparently a lot of teams were unimpressed, because he went to a team that didn't need a QB.
 
bills are having a decent draft

patriots raped al davis and the rest of the league again. i can not believe these fools fall for it every year.

fu#$ the jets

unless chad henne puts up numbers, sparano and ireland will get canned.
 
With all due respect, I think these grades are pretty harsh. I thought in your draft winds piece you and your other colleagues thought Pouncey was easily the best interior lineman in the draft? You also expected we would take him, so it can't come as a huge shock. I thought I remember the draft winds piece being very complimentary of Thomas - a "poor man's Eddie George," "physically punishing." The guy has only been rushing for 2 years and I think some of his issues can be corrected with good coaching. I would have liked Mallett, but he couldn't start now anyway. I certainly wouldn't peg our draft as a C/D so far as a result of not getting him. Just my $.02.
 
disagree ck...your whole grade on thomas is based on ryan mallett. you put all that work in for mallett and we or no one else willing to take therisk. I think you just are biased in this regard.

Your c- on pouncey tells me you dont like drafting OL very much. i remember you thought Long was not a LT. wrong again....

I appreciate all you do ck but just plain disagree here. this will play nicely to all the naysayers here in finhell.
 
I gave three D's to the Patriots and a D to the Bills but because I gave a D to the Dolphins oh I must be this emotional wreck that is purely upset about Ryan Mallett. LMFAO.

Yeah. Give me a break. Fanboys will be fanboys, I guess.
 
BTW, patriots keep trading and doing not much with it. not impressed. our draft is much better and will have more impact. Iam with clayton on this one.

Mike Mayock after we took gates...." I like what miami is doing."
 
I think you are letting your want of Mallett influence the grade on Thomas CK

This. I understand the displeasure with Mallett but they don't believe he's a fit then why select him just to select a QB. You have said this before if you believe in a guy select the guy. The Daniel Thomas pick was right around where he should of come off the board. I would give it a B/C+ grade due to my desire for Mallett. But a D?
 
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