A look back at last year's draft | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

A look back at last year's draft

dlockz

dlockz

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I think we had a very good draft last year but I do think that too many people on this board feel like Saban is a superior talent evaluator to the rest of the league(hope they are right) but it is way too early too judge based on a draft where we had a high pick in each of the rounds. Lets look at the picks again.

1(2) Ronnie Brown RB (aub) Nick could have took any of the three backs and still been seen as a good pick. He could have taken Derrick Johnson from Texas who was selected 15th and he would have still had a great 2nd overall pick.There have been alot of busts at number 2 but in this draft there were alot more hits than misses possible at number 2.

2(46) Matt Roth(Iowa) Way too early to judge but dissapointed to a degree based on draft position. This guy was a possible 1st rounder on some boards
so based on value its a good pick but basically if you were to grade tis pick it would be incomplete.

3(70) Channing Crowder(Fla) Based on talent he should have went higher, another guy with late first round grades that we did not let fall any farther. Turned out to be a good rookie at times looks as good as Derrick Johnson.

4(104) Travis Daniels (LSU) Had to be a starter due to injuries and incompetence of Howard. Was a very good player for a fourth round pick. Was not crazy about the pick at the time but he knew his own player well enough to be able to use him.

5(162) Anthony Alabi(TCU) This is when he began reaching for players, which it is smarter to reach on day 2 than day one. who knows with Alabi, he never played but is looked at as a LT project much like Wade Smith was but Saban was smart enough to wait till day 2 unlike previous regime.

7(216) Kevin Vickerson(Mich St) Had some good comments about him in training camp but I hear that alot about players who never do anything. Its a seventh round pick so you can never fault a dart throw like this.

Also spent a fifth round supplemental pick on Manny Wright DT (USC) This I think was his smartest move because of the potential to get a day one type guy in the fifth round.

overall it seems he stays very true to taking players at projected value instead of trying to be smarter than anyone else and reaching in the early rounds. This will be the year we actually can make a better judgement on his drafting ability with more data in.
 
we definitely had a very good draft last year, I hope for the same this weekend
 
dlockz said:
I think we had a very good draft last year but I do think that too many people on this board feel like Saban is a superior talent evaluator to the rest of the league(hope they are right) but it is way too early too judge based on a draft where we had a high pick in each of the rounds. Lets look at the picks again.

1(2) Ronnie Brown RB (aub) Nick could have took any of the three backs and still been seen as a good pick. He could have taken Derrick Johnson from Texas who was selected 15th and he would have still had a great 2nd overall pick.There have been alot of busts at number 2 but in this draft there were alot more hits than misses possible at number 2.

2(46) Matt Roth(Iowa) Way too early to judge but dissapointed to a degree based on draft position. This guy was a possible 1st rounder on some boards
so based on value its a good pick but basically if you were to grade tis pick it would be incomplete.

3(70) Channing Crowder(Fla) Based on talent he should have went higher, another guy with late first round grades that we did not let fall any farther. Turned out to be a good rookie at times looks as good as Derrick Johnson.

4(104) Travis Daniels (LSU) Had to be a starter due to injuries and incompetence of Howard. Was a very good player for a fourth round pick. Was not crazy about the pick at the time but he knew his own player well enough to be able to use him.

5(162) Anthony Alabi(TCU) This is when he began reaching for players, which it is smarter to reach on day 2 than day one. who knows with Alabi, he never played but is looked at as a LT project much like Wade Smith was but Saban was smart enough to wait till day 2 unlike previous regime.

7(216) Kevin Vickerson(Mich St) Had some good comments about him in training camp but I hear that alot about players who never do anything. Its a seventh round pick so you can never fault a dart throw like this.

Also spent a fifth round supplemental pick on Manny Wright DT (USC) This I think was his smartest move because of the potential to get a day one type guy in the fifth round.

overall it seems he stays very true to taking players at projected value instead of trying to be smarter than anyone else and reaching in the early rounds. This will be the year we actually can make a better judgement on his drafting ability with more data in.
Click to expand...

Good post. While it should be self-evident, most people, when comparing drafts, don't bother to distinguish between where in each round guys are taken. A lot of people lament the Fins drafting over the years, and although they have had their share of misses, people often don't take into account that the majority of those picks were in the back half of each round.

You also have to look at who else was available at positions of need at the time of each pick. If I had been picking for the Fins last year, I would have taken Cadillac (after trying like hell to trade down), Odell Thurman, Ryan Moats (w/o knowing that Ricky would be back), and Jerome Mathis witht he first 4 picks. In terms of production, I think we might have gotten more overall with that group. It's not that the group we took wasn't good, just that at each pick there were other guys that were just as good.
 
nick1 said:
we definitely had a very good draft last year, I hope for the same this weekend
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THIS WEEKEND!!! I just got chills!! I can't wait...........is it Saturday yet??????
 
Great draft by Saban. A few of those picks probally made us go from a 5 or 6 win team to a 9 win team.
 
:D
It sure will be interesting to see how Nick does from the middle of the draft versus the top of the draft. Will require him to become a little more flexible with his choice selection and perhaps make him consider a few more options depending on what falls to him. Will be fun to watch regardless. And who knows, maybe we'll get to see how he does from the last spot in the 1st round next year!
 
JFoxx said:
:D
It sure will be interesting to see how Nick does from the middle of the draft versus the top of the draft. Will require him to become a little more flexible with his choice selection and perhaps make him consider a few more options depending on what falls to him. Will be fun to watch regardless. And who knows, maybe we'll get to see how he does from the last spot in the 1st round next year!
Click to expand...
:D
 
1. Ronnie Brown: Of the three top RBs, Caddy was said to be a more consistant and better Runner (Yet Ronnie was the one with a better Yards Per carry average), Ronnie was supposed to be a better Receiver and Blocker (which he showed to be true), as for Benson, he was supposed to be the most NFL ready and Toughest inside runner (but because of injuries and some inconsistency, out of 8 games he played in, he was only able to crack the starting position once. Other then Caddy only Shawne Merriman could speak of having as successful a 1st year as Brown. He was as good as advertised, and more...... A

2. Matt Roth: He did not have a good 1st year, and there were a bunch of players that could have been better picks, but I really think in the long run this is going to be a monster pick. Roth problem is that he does not have the size yet to go with his intensity, Heart, and non stop motor (things you can not teach or fix), but as the year went along he did start to look better, with an added 15-20 pounds of muscle, this is man that could be a nightmare for QB/RB, because like Jason he will not stop, but unlike Jason, Matt wants to pound someone hard into the ground, and has a look like he went to the Bobby Boucher school of playing foosball. There is a reason why some experts thought of him as a Late 1st rounder. This is his year to prove himself, there will be no excused if he can not crack the starting prosition....Incomplete

3. Channing Crowder: What more can be said about Crowder, started from day 1 and was 2nd in tackles in his rookie year, he was out of position was less then you would expect of a rookie, and he did all this in a new position on the outside. Most experts said that he needed 1 more year to reach his potential, and maybe they were right, but he learned enough on the Job in the NFL to be considered one of the top defensive Rookies last year. You can tell he still has way more potential to reach, but considering what he did, as a 3rd rounder.....A

4. Travis Daniels: He was not supposed to be a starter, he was not supposed to be the Better or the two starting Corner (That distinction was supposed to be Corey Webster's), and what did he do, he was thrown to the lions as a starter (How many times was he picked on? And then remember with the few times he was picked on, he was a rookie), and out performed Corey Webster, and played well enough that even if Miami gets good production from Poole and Allen, Daniels still has to be considered in the Mix as a starter. A much better then solid pick.......B

5. Anthony Alabi: This player was picked up to be a developmental player, and to hopefully in two or three years, have him starting, he was a player that Houck wanted, and when Miami took him according to some reports, Bill Parcells got a bit upset. He has good size, is able to move around pretty well, and had good mechanics coming in, and was written to maybe never be a starter, but a very valuable reserve (With Houck as his Coach, we hope for more then that).......C

7. Kevin Vickerson: Word out of camp was that he was looking pretty good before he got hurt, and could be considered at the very least a very good backup to have. If you consider he was a 7th round player, and if he continues to stick around with the team, and even get some playing time, this is a very good pickup, but that is still to be determined.....C+

Supp. Manny Wright: Started off slow, but by the final few games you could see how good a pass rusher he was from the DT position, while still being pretty tough against the run. Like Crowder you can tell he still also has ton of potential to reach, but of what I have seen of him so far, he is going to be fun to watch.......B-

*All in all, this was a great 1st Draft for Saban and Company, if you look at all those players, there is a good chance in 3 years, all of them are still in the NFL and maybe with us, and most of them actually starting...When was the last time you could actually say that about a Wanny lead Draft?
 
I thought that last years draft was the best one that I ever saw. I'm not that old but wow. It was the first time that I didn't watch the draft but when I called home and found out that Roth, Crowder, and Daniels were all drafted by us I was astonished. Thats three first round picks (including Brown) based on value and Daniels will become a nice CB. I was a little upset at the lack of offense but the draft turned out great.
 
Fineas said:
Good post. While it should be self-evident, most people, when comparing drafts, don't bother to distinguish between where in each round guys are taken. A lot of people lament the Fins drafting over the years, and although they have had their share of misses, people often don't take into account that the majority of those picks were in the back half of each round.

You also have to look at who else was available at positions of need at the time of each pick. If I had been picking for the Fins last year, I would have taken Cadillac (after trying like hell to trade down), Odell Thurman, Ryan Moats (w/o knowing that Ricky would be back), and Jerome Mathis witht he first 4 picks. In terms of production, I think we might have gotten more overall with that group. It's not that the group we took wasn't good, just that at each pick there were other guys that were just as good.
Click to expand...

No disrespect to your picks, they were good, but for me personally, I like who we took way more then the guys you hoped we would take.
 
tay0365 said:
1. Ronnie Brown: Of the three top RBs, Caddy was said to be a more consistant and better Runner (Yet Ronnie was the one with a better Yards Per carry average), Ronnie was supposed to be a better Receiver and Blocker (which he showed to be true), as for Benson, he was supposed to be the most NFL ready and Toughest inside runner (but because of injuries and some inconsistency, out of 8 games he played in, he was only able to crack the starting position once. Other then Caddy only Shawne Merriman could speak of having as successful a 1st year as Brown. He was as good as advertised, and more...... A

2. Matt Roth: He did not have a good 1st year, and there were a bunch of players that could have been better picks, but I really think in the long run this is going to be a monster pick. Roth problem is that he does not have the size yet to go with his intensity, Heart, and non stop motor (things you can not teach or fix), but as the year went along he did start to look better, with an added 15-20 pounds of muscle, this is man that could be a nightmare for QB/RB, because like Jason he will not stop, but unlike Jason, Matt wants to pound someone hard into the ground, and has a look like he went to the Bobby Boucher school of playing foosball. There is a reason why some experts thought of him as a Late 1st rounder. This is his year to prove himself, there will be no excused if he can not crack the starting prosition....Incomplete

3. Channing Crowder: What more can be said about Crowder, started from day 1 and was 2nd in tackles in his rookie year, he was out of position was less then you would expect of a rookie, and he did all this in a new position on the outside. Most experts said that he needed 1 more year to reach his potential, and maybe they were right, but he learned enough on the Job in the NFL to be considered one of the top defensive Rookies last year. You can tell he still has way more potential to reach, but considering what he did, as a 3rd rounder.....A

4. Travis Daniels: He was not supposed to be a starter, he was not supposed to be the Better or the two starting Corner (That distinction was supposed to be Corey Webster's), and what did he do, he was thrown to the lions as a starter (How many times was he picked on? And then remember with the few times he was picked on, he was a rookie), and out performed Corey Webster, and played well enough that even if Miami gets good production from Poole and Allen, Daniels still has to be considered in the Mix as a starter. A much better then solid pick.......B

5. Anthony Alabi: This player was picked up to be a developmental player, and to hopefully in two or three years, have him starting, he was a player that Houck wanted, and when Miami took him according to some reports, Bill Parcells got a bit upset. He has good size, is able to move around pretty well, and had good mechanics coming in, and was written to maybe never be a starter, but a very valuable reserve (With Houck as his Coach, we hope for more then that).......C

7. Kevin Vickerson: Word out of camp was that he was looking pretty good before he got hurt, and could be considered at the very least a very good backup to have. If you consider he was a 7th round player, and if he continues to stick around with the team, and even get some playing time, this is a very good pickup, but that is still to be determined.....C+

Supp. Manny Wright: Started off slow, but by the final few games you could see how good a pass rusher he was from the DT position, while still being pretty tough against the run. Like Crowder you can tell he still also has ton of potential to reach, but of what I have seen of him so far, he is going to be fun to watch.......B-

*All in all, this was a great 1st Draft for Saban and Company, if you look at all those players, there is a good chance in 3 years, all of them are still in the NFL and maybe with us, and most of them actually starting...When was the last time you could actually say that about a Wanny lead Draft?
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Sorry, dude, but if you're going to hand out grades, you have to give Roth a grade- he wasn't hurt and had every opportunity to shine. Now, you can Vickerson an incomplete; there's really no opportunity to judge him as he missed the season due to injury. But let's face it, even though Roth could improve, last year was a disappointment. I'd give him a C-/D+ for where he was picked. I'd expect a high 2nd rounder to win the starting job.
 
I really think this is the year where Saban has to show his eye for talent. I dont think there is as much talent coming out of the draft this year, and I think that us not picking high in each round will have an effect on the players we get. I agree that Saban did a great job last year getting Rookie's that we could actually plug into starting roll's but this year is where I see Saban having to show his absolute talent.

His picks are limited this year so he has to make every pick a worthy pick, his picks are lower this year, and he's 2 years removed from the NCAA which will also be another small challange.

I think that Saban has a great eye for talent and this year in my eyes is his opportunity to really show his stuff.
 
tay0365 said:
2. Matt Roth: He did not have a good 1st year, and there were a bunch of players that could have been better picks, but I really think in the long run this is going to be a monster pick. Roth problem is that he does not have the size yet to go with his intensity, Heart, and non stop motor (things you can not teach or fix), but as the year went along he did start to look better, with an added 15-20 pounds of muscle, this is man that could be a nightmare for QB/RB, because like Jason he will not stop, but unlike Jason, Matt wants to pound someone hard into the ground, and has a look like he went to the Bobby Boucher school of playing foosball. There is a reason why some experts thought of him as a Late 1st rounder. This is his year to prove himself, there will be no excused if he can not crack the starting prosition....Incomplete
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rofl.:sidelol:
 
A real solid draft last year. Im tired of still hearing I would have taken Cadallac over Brown, Brown was rated higher and looks like the one who will have a better nfl career. Roth and wright I cant wait to see what they will do, I think both are incomplete grades. Daniels is solid also.
 
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