RiderOnTheStorm
Starter
1 Miami Dolphins - Jake Long, T, Michigan
Forget about the OLB/DE chat, Miami have only 2 tackles on the current roster and one of them was a free agent rookie pick up. Long solidifies a major area of need and now that Miami will have a power running game in 2008, his best attribute, run blocking, will help open up those lanes.
2 St. Louis Rams - Chris Long, DE, Virginia
With James Hall being cut and Leonard Little soon to turn 34, Long gets selected here to become an instant starter on at the DE spot opposite Little. Long's arrival will give the defense a much needed boost to the pass rushing threat of this team.
3 Atlanta Falcons - Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU
With Rod Coleman leaving, Dorsey has the opportunity to become a big cornerstone of the new look Atlanta defense. Atlanta can address other needs in the second round, and so Dorsey is the pick here.
4 Oakland Raiders - Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State
McFadden is the biggest competition to Gholston for the Raiders but Gholston gets the nod as Oakland need a pass rusher more than they need another RB.
5 Kansas City Chiefs - Ryan Clady, T, Boise State
The Chiefs need to rebuild its offensive line and Clady is the man they covet to assist in this rebuild. With the running game struggling and the QB situation in a state of flux, an improved offensive line is the biggest building block.
6 Dallas Cowboys (f/NYJ) - Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
Dallas watch Run DMC fall past Oakland so Jerry Jones pulls the trigger and send both first round picks to the Jets in exchange for the right to draft the most exciting player available in 2008. DMC becomes a nice compliment to Barber.
7 - New England Patriots - Keith Rivers. OLB, USC
A gut feeling here. With Bruschi and co in their thirties and Colvin being released, a vacancy for some young blood is needed in the LB group. Rivers comes from a pedigree college and is the hard worker that Belichick can mould. I could easily see the Pats trading down.
8 Baltimore Ravens - Leodis McKelvin, CB, Troy
Was a toss up between McKelvin and Ryan, but the lack of depth behind the CB starters is a cause of concern especially as injuries have been hitting them hard and McKelvin would also provide a boost to the return game.
9 Cincinnati Bengals- Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC
The interior of the Bengals line is nothing to write home about and Ellis is the best inside guy left available and should become an instant starter.
10 New Orleans Saints - Kentwan Balmer, DT, Nth Carolina
A reach here for the Saints but it does address an area of need and there is a drop in ability of DTs after Balmer. A CB is also an option but DT is the bigger need.
11 Buffalo Bills - Devin Thomas, WR, Michigan St
With no consistent and quality partner opposite Lee Evans, the Bills get a big receiver who compliments him and gives the Bills QB a genuine big play threat.
12 Denver Broncos - Chris Williams, T, Vanderbilt
The Broncos draft Jay Cutler's former team mate in the hope he steps in to replace the retired Matt Lepsis.
13 Carolina Panthers - Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College
The Panthers 'get lucky' as the teams before them decide to address other needs and the best QB available falls to them to become the long term replacement to Delhomme.
14 Chicago Bears - Brendon Albert, OG, Virginia
The Bears can upgrade a couple of positions on the o-line and by getting Albert here, they draft a player who could step in to play either guard or tackle.
15 Detroit Lions - Jonathon Stewart, RB, Oregon
Detroit look to replace Kevin Jones here and though a defensive body could be selected, the Lions will add a RB here. Mendenhall is also an option but Stewart is versatile and will give Detroit a big bodied RB.
16 Arizona Cardinals - Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tenn St
A tall, athletic corner who is also an excellent kick returner is drafted by Arizona to upgrade the corner spot now that Antrell Rolle has moved to play safety.
17 Minnesota Vikings - Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida
We all know about the interior of the Vikes defensive line but the outside spots have not produced as Minnesota would of liked. Harvey comes from a top program and has always been productive which is why the Vikings will pull the trigger on him.
18 Houston Texans - Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois
With Ahmen Green no longer being relied upon to be fully fit, the Texans arm its offense with an all round weapon that can be relied upon to carry the workload. Matt Schuab's life just got a lot easier.
19 Philadelphia Eagles - Limas Sweed, WR, Texas
Sweed has very good size and should slide in nicely opposite Reggie Brown. Not great speed but will make the tough and spectacular catches that will help McNabb out of any holes.
20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Mike Jenkins, CB, South Florida
A reciever is also an option for the Buccs but after letting Brian Kelly leave during free agency, Tampa do need to a quality youngster at the CB spot.
21 Washington Redskins - Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
With little depth behind Andre Carter and Phillip Daniels, the Skins go the hard working Merling to provide the future pass rushing threat in Washington.
22 New York Jets (f.Dal) - Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas
Talib is a good sized corner that becomes the long term partner of Darelle Revis. Obviously stock has been hit in the build up but can the Jets lookaway from such a talent?
23 Pittsburgh Steelers - Gosder Cherilous, OT, Boston College With Faneca leaving and Starks being a transistion player, Pittsburgh need to draft an o-lineman or two. Cherilous comes from a program that is known for producing NFL linemen and should fit right in.
24 Tennessee Titans - Calais Campbell, DE, Miami
With Odom and LeBoy leaving, a vacancy at the DE spot has been created. Campbell is coming off a poor senior season but if the Titans can get him to reproduce his 2006 form, then this might be the biggest steal.
25 Seattle Seahawks - Dustin Keller, TE, Purdue
I can here the cry from here. What? Keller here? Seattle have brought in Julius Jones to become the featured back and Mike Holmgren knows what an athletic TE can do for this offense. The Hawks will hope that Keller can do for them what Antonio Gates has done for San Diego.
26 Jacksonville Jaguars - Kenny Phillips, S, Miami
By trading its second round pick to Miami for JT. Yeah you read that right. JT addresses the Jax need at DE giving them a top pass rusher which means they can then address other areas. Safety is one of those areas and Phillips is the best one available.
27 San Diego Chargers - Jeff Otah, T, Pittsburgh
With Shane Olivea leaving, Otah will step in at the RT spot and give the Bolts a long term pair of bookend tackles.
28 New York Jets (f/Dal) - Pat Sims, DT, Auburn
With DeWayne Robertson being trade bait and the Jets looking to solidify its defensive front, Sims is the pick here. Sims has potential and the Jets will like his upside, and thus he becomes the pick.
29 San Fransisco 49ers - Desean Jackson, WR, Cal
The 49ers need help at reciever, so Jackson is the pick here and he will bring top speed and an electrifying return game to San Fran.
30 Green Bay Packers - Sam Baker, OT, USC
Both Packers starting tackles are getting on in age, so its become time to groom a player for the future. Baker comes from a top uni and thus has experience against top competition. Does have good tools.
31 New York Giants - Reggie Smith, S, Oklahoma
Sammy Knight is only a stop gap replacement for Wilson. Smith can step in as a starter from day one. Will also assist stopping the run and can help in the return game.
Forget about the OLB/DE chat, Miami have only 2 tackles on the current roster and one of them was a free agent rookie pick up. Long solidifies a major area of need and now that Miami will have a power running game in 2008, his best attribute, run blocking, will help open up those lanes.
2 St. Louis Rams - Chris Long, DE, Virginia
With James Hall being cut and Leonard Little soon to turn 34, Long gets selected here to become an instant starter on at the DE spot opposite Little. Long's arrival will give the defense a much needed boost to the pass rushing threat of this team.
3 Atlanta Falcons - Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU
With Rod Coleman leaving, Dorsey has the opportunity to become a big cornerstone of the new look Atlanta defense. Atlanta can address other needs in the second round, and so Dorsey is the pick here.
4 Oakland Raiders - Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State
McFadden is the biggest competition to Gholston for the Raiders but Gholston gets the nod as Oakland need a pass rusher more than they need another RB.
5 Kansas City Chiefs - Ryan Clady, T, Boise State
The Chiefs need to rebuild its offensive line and Clady is the man they covet to assist in this rebuild. With the running game struggling and the QB situation in a state of flux, an improved offensive line is the biggest building block.
6 Dallas Cowboys (f/NYJ) - Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
Dallas watch Run DMC fall past Oakland so Jerry Jones pulls the trigger and send both first round picks to the Jets in exchange for the right to draft the most exciting player available in 2008. DMC becomes a nice compliment to Barber.
7 - New England Patriots - Keith Rivers. OLB, USC
A gut feeling here. With Bruschi and co in their thirties and Colvin being released, a vacancy for some young blood is needed in the LB group. Rivers comes from a pedigree college and is the hard worker that Belichick can mould. I could easily see the Pats trading down.
8 Baltimore Ravens - Leodis McKelvin, CB, Troy
Was a toss up between McKelvin and Ryan, but the lack of depth behind the CB starters is a cause of concern especially as injuries have been hitting them hard and McKelvin would also provide a boost to the return game.
9 Cincinnati Bengals- Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC
The interior of the Bengals line is nothing to write home about and Ellis is the best inside guy left available and should become an instant starter.
10 New Orleans Saints - Kentwan Balmer, DT, Nth Carolina
A reach here for the Saints but it does address an area of need and there is a drop in ability of DTs after Balmer. A CB is also an option but DT is the bigger need.
11 Buffalo Bills - Devin Thomas, WR, Michigan St
With no consistent and quality partner opposite Lee Evans, the Bills get a big receiver who compliments him and gives the Bills QB a genuine big play threat.
12 Denver Broncos - Chris Williams, T, Vanderbilt
The Broncos draft Jay Cutler's former team mate in the hope he steps in to replace the retired Matt Lepsis.
13 Carolina Panthers - Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College
The Panthers 'get lucky' as the teams before them decide to address other needs and the best QB available falls to them to become the long term replacement to Delhomme.
14 Chicago Bears - Brendon Albert, OG, Virginia
The Bears can upgrade a couple of positions on the o-line and by getting Albert here, they draft a player who could step in to play either guard or tackle.
15 Detroit Lions - Jonathon Stewart, RB, Oregon
Detroit look to replace Kevin Jones here and though a defensive body could be selected, the Lions will add a RB here. Mendenhall is also an option but Stewart is versatile and will give Detroit a big bodied RB.
16 Arizona Cardinals - Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tenn St
A tall, athletic corner who is also an excellent kick returner is drafted by Arizona to upgrade the corner spot now that Antrell Rolle has moved to play safety.
17 Minnesota Vikings - Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida
We all know about the interior of the Vikes defensive line but the outside spots have not produced as Minnesota would of liked. Harvey comes from a top program and has always been productive which is why the Vikings will pull the trigger on him.
18 Houston Texans - Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois
With Ahmen Green no longer being relied upon to be fully fit, the Texans arm its offense with an all round weapon that can be relied upon to carry the workload. Matt Schuab's life just got a lot easier.
19 Philadelphia Eagles - Limas Sweed, WR, Texas
Sweed has very good size and should slide in nicely opposite Reggie Brown. Not great speed but will make the tough and spectacular catches that will help McNabb out of any holes.
20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Mike Jenkins, CB, South Florida
A reciever is also an option for the Buccs but after letting Brian Kelly leave during free agency, Tampa do need to a quality youngster at the CB spot.
21 Washington Redskins - Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
With little depth behind Andre Carter and Phillip Daniels, the Skins go the hard working Merling to provide the future pass rushing threat in Washington.
22 New York Jets (f.Dal) - Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas
Talib is a good sized corner that becomes the long term partner of Darelle Revis. Obviously stock has been hit in the build up but can the Jets lookaway from such a talent?
23 Pittsburgh Steelers - Gosder Cherilous, OT, Boston College With Faneca leaving and Starks being a transistion player, Pittsburgh need to draft an o-lineman or two. Cherilous comes from a program that is known for producing NFL linemen and should fit right in.
24 Tennessee Titans - Calais Campbell, DE, Miami
With Odom and LeBoy leaving, a vacancy at the DE spot has been created. Campbell is coming off a poor senior season but if the Titans can get him to reproduce his 2006 form, then this might be the biggest steal.
25 Seattle Seahawks - Dustin Keller, TE, Purdue
I can here the cry from here. What? Keller here? Seattle have brought in Julius Jones to become the featured back and Mike Holmgren knows what an athletic TE can do for this offense. The Hawks will hope that Keller can do for them what Antonio Gates has done for San Diego.
26 Jacksonville Jaguars - Kenny Phillips, S, Miami
By trading its second round pick to Miami for JT. Yeah you read that right. JT addresses the Jax need at DE giving them a top pass rusher which means they can then address other areas. Safety is one of those areas and Phillips is the best one available.
27 San Diego Chargers - Jeff Otah, T, Pittsburgh
With Shane Olivea leaving, Otah will step in at the RT spot and give the Bolts a long term pair of bookend tackles.
28 New York Jets (f/Dal) - Pat Sims, DT, Auburn
With DeWayne Robertson being trade bait and the Jets looking to solidify its defensive front, Sims is the pick here. Sims has potential and the Jets will like his upside, and thus he becomes the pick.
29 San Fransisco 49ers - Desean Jackson, WR, Cal
The 49ers need help at reciever, so Jackson is the pick here and he will bring top speed and an electrifying return game to San Fran.
30 Green Bay Packers - Sam Baker, OT, USC
Both Packers starting tackles are getting on in age, so its become time to groom a player for the future. Baker comes from a top uni and thus has experience against top competition. Does have good tools.
31 New York Giants - Reggie Smith, S, Oklahoma
Sammy Knight is only a stop gap replacement for Wilson. Smith can step in as a starter from day one. Will also assist stopping the run and can help in the return game.
