First round for everybody, 7 for the Fins
Round 1
1 Oakland Raiders JaMarcus Russell QB, LSU Al Davis loves QBs with strong arms. IMO Russell could be the best QB in the draft, but Mr. Davis better get him some help
2 Detroit Lions Brady Quinn QB, Notre Dame The Lions will be tempted to pass on the QB, and I know what the rumors say, but Kitna and McCown are not franchise QBs.
3 Cleveland Browns Adrian Peterson RB, Oklahoma Even after his 1,000 yard season, Reuban Droughns does not have the explosiveness the Browns were hoping for when they traded for him.
4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Calvin Johnson WR, Georgia Tech Michael Clayton has been a non factor the past two seasons as has Ike Hilliard. You can't rely on Joey Galloway forever.
5 Arizona Cardinals Joe Thomas OT, Wisconsin Arizona will be thrilled if Joe Thomas falls to them. Truth be told, this is the one glaring weakness on the team, outside of a pass rush.
6 Washington Redskins Gaines Adams DE, Clemson Andre Carter gave them a bit of a pass rush towards the end of the season, but they still get little production from Phillip Daniels
7 Minnesota Vikings Jamaal Anderson DE, Arkansas Brad Chidress does not want to take a WR this early in the draft. I know the franchise won't want to draft a 5th DE in the last 3 years (including 2 first rounders), but the fact remains, they cannot get pressure on the QB.
8 Houston Texans LaRon Landry S, LSU The Texans have one good secondary player; Dunta Robinsn. The rest are lucky to be on a team, let alone starting.
9 Miami Dolphins Allan Branch DT, Michigan Our first pick, and here's the expanation. WE DON'T HAVE DT DEPTH. Traylor FA, Holliday FA, Wilkinson likely cap casulty, Manny Wright Who knows, Vickerson/R WRight/Evans, unproven. Plus if we go into next season with Vickerson,Wright,Evans, and Holliday (if we resign him), we're looking at a bunch of DTs that are barely 300lbs. CB is a possibility, but we can get a coule guys who are an the same level as Hall and Revis in the 2nd and 3rd round. DJ is a possibility as well, but Branch has a higher rating from most scouts so this is also a case of BPA
10 Atlanta Falcons Reggie Nelson S, Florida Lawyer Milloy is not getting any younger, and Chris Crocker, while solid, is not a ballhawk.
11 San Francisco 49'ers Dwyane Jarrett WR, USC two years ago the 49ers used their first two picks on WRs Reshaun Woods and Derrick Hamilton; neither is with the team. Antonio Bryant was solid, but he's a problem child. That leaves Arnez Battle and Bryan Gilmore as the WRs.
12 Buffalo Bills Patrick Willis LB, Ole Miss Don't say I never did you a favor Bills fans. The Bills need youth at MLB, and this seems to be the most popular pick.
13 St. Louis Rams Leon Hall CB, Michigan Ty Hill had an excellent rookie season for the Rams, and Ronald Bartell showed skills has a nickleback; but he struggled as a starter. Travis Fisher has struggled for a couple years now, so the Rams get his replacement.
14 Carolina Panthers Lawrence Timmons LB, Florida State Dan Morgan will get another concussion next year (like he always does). Thomas Davis still plays like a SS and not a LB, and the other LBs on the Panthers roster are average.
15 Pittsburgh Steelers Justin Blaylock OG/OT, Texas Kendall Simmons has been a bit of a disappointment,and Max Starks is a FA. The new RT will be either Essex or Colon, while the other replaces Marvel Smith at LT. Simmons is also likely to be a cap casulty
16 Green Bay Packers Marshawn Lynch RB, Cal Ahman Green is a FA, and the backups are... backups. Reuinte Lynch with Aaron Rodgers.
17 Jacksonville Jaguars Michael Griffen S, Texas Deon Grant is a FA, and Donovan Darius has been hit by the injury bug recently. It might be time to find a replacement
18 Cincinnati Bengals Paul Pozluzney LB, Penn State Let's see. Odel Thurman is not welcome back according to Marvin Lewis, Brian Simmons has regressed and is not a good leader, Landon Johnson and Caleb Miller are good but not great same ges for Hannibal Navies, Ahmad Brooks is good, and sadly David Pollack's career looks to be over. The Bengals need to draft a LB.
19 Tennessee Titans Ted Ginn Jr. WR Ohio State Yes Ted Ginn will probably be here simply because he's not fully developed as a WR. This is one of the only places I can see him contributing right away because of Norm Chow
20 New York Giants Darrelle Revis, CB Pittsburgh Sam Madison and RW McQuarters are on the wrong side of 30.
21 Denver Broncos Levi Brown OT, Penn State George Foster can probably be labeled a bust fter getting benched in favor of Adam Meadows; a man who retired 2 years ago. You could also see D-Line here.
22. Dallas Cowboys Sidney Rice WR, South Carolina Aside from Patrick Crayton, the WRs on the Dallas Cowboys are either A)32 or older or B)Not very good.
23. Kansas City Chiefs Amobi Okoye, DT Louisville The youngest player in the draft goes to our old pal Herm. The DTs for KC are not very good, Okoye could go a lot higher based on his production, and his potential. Here's the scary part, he's not even 20 yet.
24. New England Patriots )f/SEA) Marcus McCauley, CB Fresno State Asante Samuels is going to get a huge payday, and Ellis Hobbs is all bark and no bite (I've never seen a corner talk so much and do so little). McCauley is a very inconsistent player, but will be a first rounder based on his measurables.
25. New York Jets Michael Bush, RB Louisville The J-E-T-S need an everydown back. If Bush is healthy enough for the combine, he'll sneak into round 1, and be a huge steal.
26. Philadelphia Eagles Jon Beason LB, Miami FL Trotter is a good LB, Gaither looks like he has some potential. That leaves Dhanti Jones and Matt McCoy battling for the 3rd LB spot. McCoy is not good against the run (nor was he in college), and sucks in coverage (which he excelled at in college), and Jones is nothing to write home about.
27 New Orleans Saints Aaron Ross, CB Texas A little high for Ross? Probably. But if you watched the Saints/Eagles game, you'd see that the Saints need some secondary help. Mike McKenzie is pretty good, but Fred Thomas is not.
28 New England Patriots Anthony Spencer DE/OLB, Purdue Is Spencer the best player available? No. Is he the best DE available? No. BUT he's the best DE/OLB available. I love LaMarr Woodley, but he'll be a strict DE in the pros more than likely due to his lack of a speed rush. Spencer needs to develop his coverage skills, but he's the best pure pass rusher available.
29 Baltimore Ravens Quenton Moses DE, Georgia Trevor Pryce is in his 30's and depth at DE is a concern.
30 San Diego Chargers Robert Meachem, WR Tennessee And I thought our WRs dropped a lot of passes. Bottom line, the San Diego WRs are not that good.
31 Indianapolis Colts Quinn Pit****, DT Ohio State Despite the fact I think Pit**** is highly overrated, he's the perfect UT for the Tampa 2.
32 Chicago Bears Rufus Alexander, LB Oklahoma This pick depends entirely on Lance Briggs. If he leaves, Rufus is the guy. If he stays, The pick would probably be a TE.
Miami's Picks
1. Allan Branch DT Michigan Already made my explanation
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/dt/alanbranch.html
2.Joe Staley OT, Central Michigan Alabi could be the guy at LT, but I doubt our new coach is going to want to wait. Stale is extremely athletic for a LT, and is also very smart. I'd be very disappointed if we passed on him.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/ot/joestaley.html
3.Tanard Jackson CB, Syracuse Aside from some off the field issues, here are only two complaints about Jackson; elite speed, and bad hands. He's not slow by any means, but he's not a burner. Jackson is a 4 year starter at Syracuse, and is a very good tackler. He may not get a lot of INTs, but he'll improve our secondary
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/cb/tanardjackson.html
4.Manuel Ramirez OG Texas Tech Jeno James is in the final year of his contract, and could be a cap casulty before that. LJ Shelton could also be a cap casulty as well unless he takes a pay cut. Ramirez is a big dude, and a dominant run blocker. He' been given a first day grade by some, but will fall for a couple reasons 1.a bit of trouble in pass protection(not a big concern) and 2. Not many guards go in the first 3 rounds, and there are 3 better than ManRam (Blaylock, Beekman, and Grubbs). I know a lot of you want a QB/WR, but we do have holes on the o-line, and with this draft, we address two of the biggest holes.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/og/manuelramirez.html
6.Dallas Startz LB, USC Injury Concerns will push Startz to the bottom of the draft. If Startz proved anything when he played, he proved that he is a total package at LB. This past season he had 7 sacks despite not starting most of the season. While he's more of an LB, he can also drop to a 3-point stand and play DE if need be.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/olb/dallassartz.html
7.Matt Trannon WR, Michigan State Marques Colton proved last year taht a 7th rounder can be productive. Like Colston, Trannon should go higher, but injury concerns push him down the draft boards. At 6'6 235 lbs, he'd make the team for his red zone ability alone.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/wr/matttrannon.html
Thoughts on our draft: A lot of you might be disappointed with the picks I gave us, but if you think about them, they are smart choices. Rule number 1 in football; the game is won in the trenches. In the first round there is no QB worth taking at 9, unless Brennen blows up at the combine, or Russell/Quinn falls, and while Dwyane Jarrett and Reggie Nelson are tempting, the fact remains that Traylor,Holliday, and Zgonina are all FA's, and we can't rely on 7th rund picks that are barely 300 lbs to anchor our d-line. I like our young DTs, but we also need a bigger DT that can eat up blocks.
To go along with my theme of winning battles in the trenches. Everybody complains about weaknesses on our OL. Sure there are QBs w couldtake instead of Staley or Ramirez, but tey would not compete for a starting jo for a year. With Staley and Ramirez you get 2 guys who can come in and start right away.
Tenard Jackson is the perfect CB for our Scheme; 6'1, very physical, and able to play both Zone and Man. Sure our secondary had trouble getting INTs, ut the bigger issue was giving up the big play. Jackson does not give up the big play. He could easily compete with Goodman and Daniels to start across from Allen (Assuming we dn't land a CB in FA).
With Startz and Trannon you get 2 guys will a lot of talent, but injury concerns. Startz is a guy who could surprise and start from Day 1; literally, the only reason anybody has him low is injuries, and the fact he doesn't start a lot of games. Trannon could easily make the team based on height alone.
Round 1
1 Oakland Raiders JaMarcus Russell QB, LSU Al Davis loves QBs with strong arms. IMO Russell could be the best QB in the draft, but Mr. Davis better get him some help
2 Detroit Lions Brady Quinn QB, Notre Dame The Lions will be tempted to pass on the QB, and I know what the rumors say, but Kitna and McCown are not franchise QBs.
3 Cleveland Browns Adrian Peterson RB, Oklahoma Even after his 1,000 yard season, Reuban Droughns does not have the explosiveness the Browns were hoping for when they traded for him.
4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Calvin Johnson WR, Georgia Tech Michael Clayton has been a non factor the past two seasons as has Ike Hilliard. You can't rely on Joey Galloway forever.
5 Arizona Cardinals Joe Thomas OT, Wisconsin Arizona will be thrilled if Joe Thomas falls to them. Truth be told, this is the one glaring weakness on the team, outside of a pass rush.
6 Washington Redskins Gaines Adams DE, Clemson Andre Carter gave them a bit of a pass rush towards the end of the season, but they still get little production from Phillip Daniels
7 Minnesota Vikings Jamaal Anderson DE, Arkansas Brad Chidress does not want to take a WR this early in the draft. I know the franchise won't want to draft a 5th DE in the last 3 years (including 2 first rounders), but the fact remains, they cannot get pressure on the QB.
8 Houston Texans LaRon Landry S, LSU The Texans have one good secondary player; Dunta Robinsn. The rest are lucky to be on a team, let alone starting.
9 Miami Dolphins Allan Branch DT, Michigan Our first pick, and here's the expanation. WE DON'T HAVE DT DEPTH. Traylor FA, Holliday FA, Wilkinson likely cap casulty, Manny Wright Who knows, Vickerson/R WRight/Evans, unproven. Plus if we go into next season with Vickerson,Wright,Evans, and Holliday (if we resign him), we're looking at a bunch of DTs that are barely 300lbs. CB is a possibility, but we can get a coule guys who are an the same level as Hall and Revis in the 2nd and 3rd round. DJ is a possibility as well, but Branch has a higher rating from most scouts so this is also a case of BPA
10 Atlanta Falcons Reggie Nelson S, Florida Lawyer Milloy is not getting any younger, and Chris Crocker, while solid, is not a ballhawk.
11 San Francisco 49'ers Dwyane Jarrett WR, USC two years ago the 49ers used their first two picks on WRs Reshaun Woods and Derrick Hamilton; neither is with the team. Antonio Bryant was solid, but he's a problem child. That leaves Arnez Battle and Bryan Gilmore as the WRs.
12 Buffalo Bills Patrick Willis LB, Ole Miss Don't say I never did you a favor Bills fans. The Bills need youth at MLB, and this seems to be the most popular pick.
13 St. Louis Rams Leon Hall CB, Michigan Ty Hill had an excellent rookie season for the Rams, and Ronald Bartell showed skills has a nickleback; but he struggled as a starter. Travis Fisher has struggled for a couple years now, so the Rams get his replacement.
14 Carolina Panthers Lawrence Timmons LB, Florida State Dan Morgan will get another concussion next year (like he always does). Thomas Davis still plays like a SS and not a LB, and the other LBs on the Panthers roster are average.
15 Pittsburgh Steelers Justin Blaylock OG/OT, Texas Kendall Simmons has been a bit of a disappointment,and Max Starks is a FA. The new RT will be either Essex or Colon, while the other replaces Marvel Smith at LT. Simmons is also likely to be a cap casulty
16 Green Bay Packers Marshawn Lynch RB, Cal Ahman Green is a FA, and the backups are... backups. Reuinte Lynch with Aaron Rodgers.
17 Jacksonville Jaguars Michael Griffen S, Texas Deon Grant is a FA, and Donovan Darius has been hit by the injury bug recently. It might be time to find a replacement
18 Cincinnati Bengals Paul Pozluzney LB, Penn State Let's see. Odel Thurman is not welcome back according to Marvin Lewis, Brian Simmons has regressed and is not a good leader, Landon Johnson and Caleb Miller are good but not great same ges for Hannibal Navies, Ahmad Brooks is good, and sadly David Pollack's career looks to be over. The Bengals need to draft a LB.
19 Tennessee Titans Ted Ginn Jr. WR Ohio State Yes Ted Ginn will probably be here simply because he's not fully developed as a WR. This is one of the only places I can see him contributing right away because of Norm Chow
20 New York Giants Darrelle Revis, CB Pittsburgh Sam Madison and RW McQuarters are on the wrong side of 30.
21 Denver Broncos Levi Brown OT, Penn State George Foster can probably be labeled a bust fter getting benched in favor of Adam Meadows; a man who retired 2 years ago. You could also see D-Line here.
22. Dallas Cowboys Sidney Rice WR, South Carolina Aside from Patrick Crayton, the WRs on the Dallas Cowboys are either A)32 or older or B)Not very good.
23. Kansas City Chiefs Amobi Okoye, DT Louisville The youngest player in the draft goes to our old pal Herm. The DTs for KC are not very good, Okoye could go a lot higher based on his production, and his potential. Here's the scary part, he's not even 20 yet.
24. New England Patriots )f/SEA) Marcus McCauley, CB Fresno State Asante Samuels is going to get a huge payday, and Ellis Hobbs is all bark and no bite (I've never seen a corner talk so much and do so little). McCauley is a very inconsistent player, but will be a first rounder based on his measurables.
25. New York Jets Michael Bush, RB Louisville The J-E-T-S need an everydown back. If Bush is healthy enough for the combine, he'll sneak into round 1, and be a huge steal.
26. Philadelphia Eagles Jon Beason LB, Miami FL Trotter is a good LB, Gaither looks like he has some potential. That leaves Dhanti Jones and Matt McCoy battling for the 3rd LB spot. McCoy is not good against the run (nor was he in college), and sucks in coverage (which he excelled at in college), and Jones is nothing to write home about.
27 New Orleans Saints Aaron Ross, CB Texas A little high for Ross? Probably. But if you watched the Saints/Eagles game, you'd see that the Saints need some secondary help. Mike McKenzie is pretty good, but Fred Thomas is not.
28 New England Patriots Anthony Spencer DE/OLB, Purdue Is Spencer the best player available? No. Is he the best DE available? No. BUT he's the best DE/OLB available. I love LaMarr Woodley, but he'll be a strict DE in the pros more than likely due to his lack of a speed rush. Spencer needs to develop his coverage skills, but he's the best pure pass rusher available.
29 Baltimore Ravens Quenton Moses DE, Georgia Trevor Pryce is in his 30's and depth at DE is a concern.
30 San Diego Chargers Robert Meachem, WR Tennessee And I thought our WRs dropped a lot of passes. Bottom line, the San Diego WRs are not that good.
31 Indianapolis Colts Quinn Pit****, DT Ohio State Despite the fact I think Pit**** is highly overrated, he's the perfect UT for the Tampa 2.
32 Chicago Bears Rufus Alexander, LB Oklahoma This pick depends entirely on Lance Briggs. If he leaves, Rufus is the guy. If he stays, The pick would probably be a TE.
Miami's Picks
1. Allan Branch DT Michigan Already made my explanation
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/dt/alanbranch.html
2.Joe Staley OT, Central Michigan Alabi could be the guy at LT, but I doubt our new coach is going to want to wait. Stale is extremely athletic for a LT, and is also very smart. I'd be very disappointed if we passed on him.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/ot/joestaley.html
3.Tanard Jackson CB, Syracuse Aside from some off the field issues, here are only two complaints about Jackson; elite speed, and bad hands. He's not slow by any means, but he's not a burner. Jackson is a 4 year starter at Syracuse, and is a very good tackler. He may not get a lot of INTs, but he'll improve our secondary
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/cb/tanardjackson.html
4.Manuel Ramirez OG Texas Tech Jeno James is in the final year of his contract, and could be a cap casulty before that. LJ Shelton could also be a cap casulty as well unless he takes a pay cut. Ramirez is a big dude, and a dominant run blocker. He' been given a first day grade by some, but will fall for a couple reasons 1.a bit of trouble in pass protection(not a big concern) and 2. Not many guards go in the first 3 rounds, and there are 3 better than ManRam (Blaylock, Beekman, and Grubbs). I know a lot of you want a QB/WR, but we do have holes on the o-line, and with this draft, we address two of the biggest holes.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/og/manuelramirez.html
6.Dallas Startz LB, USC Injury Concerns will push Startz to the bottom of the draft. If Startz proved anything when he played, he proved that he is a total package at LB. This past season he had 7 sacks despite not starting most of the season. While he's more of an LB, he can also drop to a 3-point stand and play DE if need be.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/olb/dallassartz.html
7.Matt Trannon WR, Michigan State Marques Colton proved last year taht a 7th rounder can be productive. Like Colston, Trannon should go higher, but injury concerns push him down the draft boards. At 6'6 235 lbs, he'd make the team for his red zone ability alone.
http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingreports/wr/matttrannon.html
Thoughts on our draft: A lot of you might be disappointed with the picks I gave us, but if you think about them, they are smart choices. Rule number 1 in football; the game is won in the trenches. In the first round there is no QB worth taking at 9, unless Brennen blows up at the combine, or Russell/Quinn falls, and while Dwyane Jarrett and Reggie Nelson are tempting, the fact remains that Traylor,Holliday, and Zgonina are all FA's, and we can't rely on 7th rund picks that are barely 300 lbs to anchor our d-line. I like our young DTs, but we also need a bigger DT that can eat up blocks.
To go along with my theme of winning battles in the trenches. Everybody complains about weaknesses on our OL. Sure there are QBs w couldtake instead of Staley or Ramirez, but tey would not compete for a starting jo for a year. With Staley and Ramirez you get 2 guys who can come in and start right away.
Tenard Jackson is the perfect CB for our Scheme; 6'1, very physical, and able to play both Zone and Man. Sure our secondary had trouble getting INTs, ut the bigger issue was giving up the big play. Jackson does not give up the big play. He could easily compete with Goodman and Daniels to start across from Allen (Assuming we dn't land a CB in FA).
With Startz and Trannon you get 2 guys will a lot of talent, but injury concerns. Startz is a guy who could surprise and start from Day 1; literally, the only reason anybody has him low is injuries, and the fact he doesn't start a lot of games. Trannon could easily make the team based on height alone.
