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NFL MOCK DRAFT. another one.

1. Dolphins – Jake Long Alright this is a gimme. The Dolphins think he’ll solidify their left tackle position and allow Vernon Carey to move back to his natural position at right tackle.

2. Rams – Chris Long The long drop is over and the Rams select the feel good story of the year. The hardworking millionaire heir gets a few more tacos in his pocket.

3. Falcons – Glen Dorsey The speculation will be between Dorsey or Ryan. Most teams have this guy as the next Warren Sapp and there’s just too much riding on this pick to get it wrong (which they typically do anyway).

4. Raiders – Vernon Gholston Will they take Darren McFadden?? No! The secret weapon Michael Bush is about to be unloaded on the NFL.

5. Chiefs – Matt Ryan Herm Edwards gets his new Chad Pennington, a bright leader that loves to compete behind center who just doesn’t have the strongest of arms.

6. Jets – Darren McFadden McFadden is supposedly tops on a lot of people’s draft boards, but his multiple illegitimate children and inadvertent late night drunken brawls earn him just a few less million on his first contract. The good thing is that he’s a potential star in the biggest market in the nation. Hey Thomas Jones, get ready for your next Cedric Benson. Funny how history repeats itself.

7. Patriots – Leodis McKelvin This is a tricky pick, because the Patriots always make the non-obvious choice that always just seems to work out, a la Logan Makins. This could very well be the fast rising Brandon Albert, but I'm going with the top corner on the board after the departure of Asante Samuel.

8. Ravens – Ryan Clady Jonathon Ogden has told the Raven to proceed as if he'll retire. They do so, and pick the most athletic tackle in the draft with the highest ceiling.

9. Bengals – Sedric Ellis Marvin Lewis and whoever else working in Cinci thanks their lucky stars that the D Tackle they were hoping for falls right into their laps.

10. Saints – Keith Rivers Same situation. I don't know if there's a publication out there that doesn't have Rivers going to the Saints.

11. Bills – Mike Jenkins This pick is universally regarded as the Devin Thomas pick. No way. There's not a wide receiver in the draft worthy of this positions and Buffalo's Princeton graduate (Jauron) knows better.

12. Broncos – Chris Williams They had hoped Clady would be here, but no dice. It doesn't always work out the way you want. But Williams isn't far off, and he fits the profile of Broncos O-linemen.

13. Panthers – Brandon Albert Some have Albert going right to the top, I think teams will be a little discerning on draft day. He played guard in college, so can he do it? The Panthers will find out and bolster their O-line in the process.

14. Bears – Jeff Otah Yeah, everyone and their mother's has this. Real original. But, the thing is that the Bears of done a horrible job of covering up their top need. What, is John St. Clair going to play right tackle? Seriously?

15. Lions – Derrick Harvey Somethings are just too perfect. Derrick Harvey is going to learn how to work every down under the tutelage of Rod Marinelli.

16. Cardinals – Rashard Mendenhall If Mendenhall falls this far, the Cards will feel like the prettiest girl at the dance.

17. Chiefs – Gosder Cherilus They paid LJ a boat load last year and now he has no O-line to run behind. With their newly acquired second pick in the first round, they give LJ a little bit of road paving and Matt Ryan a little bit of pass protection.

18. Texans – Calais Campbell Mario Williams now seems like the genius pick of the last few drafts. Texans double down and get his book end twin. Show him how its done Super Mario, and tackle Peyton's ass.

19. Eagles – Domonique Rodgers-Cromartie DRC owes his cousin at least half of this signing bonus. At least.

20. Buccaneers – Brian Brohm OK, this may be a little bit of a strange pick. The Bucs have a bunch of QB's on the roster, but at a closer look they are little more than warm bodies to fill the roster and some trade bait. Gruden and Allen just signed three year extensions and this may be the time to groom the face of the franchise.

21. Redskins  – Devin Thomas The skins have been offering up trade proposals to the Bengals for Chad Johnson and to the Lions for Roy Williams. What do you think their need is? They are ecstatic that Thomas is still on the board. This is the point of the board where the WRs should be seen more valuable.

22. Cowboys – Quentin Groves The 'boys bolster their pass rush with a player some see as more complete than Gholston. After all, the way the Giant's fourth quarter pass rush ran over them in the playoffs should leave a lasting impression, mainly by being envious.

23. Steelers – Jonathon Stewart Stewart becomes one of the luckiest players in the draft as he falls to the perfect team. Who knew toe surgeries could produce such wonderful results.

24. Titans – Felix Jones McFadden's platoon mate meets his next, LenDale White.

25. Seahawks – Philip Merling Best player available, and a great pick to start opposite Patrick Kerney if he lasts this long.

26. Jaquars – Athyba Rubin The Jags nasty D, needs some help on the D-line after losing some good players. Rubin fits the mold.

27. Chargers – John Greco As we move into the world of the teams that do it the right way, the Chargers take the unheralded (by the media) guard prospect that should fit right in with their pro bowl laden roster.

28. Cowboys – Malcolm Kelly Cowboys on the board again. Can you stand it? The 'Boys are a height and speed kind of team. They want em big and fast. One outta two aint bad. Plus, Jerry Jones likes dealing with head cases.

29. 49ers – Dan Conner This guy could do wonders for the 9ers defense. Rather than have the intellectually challenged Patrick Willis call the plays, Dan Connor comes in as a rookie leader, and lets him fly around and do what he's good at.

30. Packers – Donnie Avery They've got the big and physical wide recievers down. Now they get their short and shifty one that can blow up their return game.

31. Giants – Kenny Phillips Word outta NY is that this is exactly who they are targeting and no one is saying he won't be there.

 

BAM! Write it down.  Thats how they fall. Just don't quote me on that. 

Posted: Thursday, April 24, 2008 7:47 PM by TheGoose with 1 comment(s)

It All Starts Now!

My own personal holiday is fast approaching and I’d like to share a few thoughts with you, my friends. Its April now, the month of the NFL draft. Cue the orchestral music. The off-season has proceeded along as its supposed to: Senior Bowl, Combine, Pro Days, Free Agency, and the Owner’s Meeting. The later of which is wrapping up with week in Palm Beach, Florida. It is with the closing of that meeting that the most important aspect of draft preparation begins. The stacking of the boards, that is by the professionals, the front offices. It’s from here on out that scouts, coaches, and general managers will spend nearly endless hours pouring over tape, arguing over potential vs. production, and avoiding sunlight at their own professional peril. The hope is that the isolation from the outside media hype machine of certain prospects can uncover the true diamonds in the rough. It’s in this final process that the draft will truly take hold. Up until this point, its been Mel Kiper, $10.99 magazines, draft websites, and the average draftniks (like me) hitting every blog and message board on the internet to proclaim how their hero is destined to be a first round pick. Well, its April now, and its time for the cream to rise to the top. The hype may roll on outdoors here in the real and virtual worlds, but it’s the goings-on in those front offices that certainly will have some team’s fans standing table top on April 22nd, wondering what happened. How many of us really thought that it wouldn’t be Reggie Bush drafted No. 1 overall instead of Super Mario? How could the Dolphins draft Ted Ginn with the 9th overall pick? The reason such seeming anarchy happens on draft day is because what’s going on in the media world is not necessarily what’s going on behind the doors the NFL teams. This final valuation stage will have front offices looking at their own individual needs, what players are available at the premier positions, who are the top-flight athletes, and of course, following the perennially changing trend of how to building your team (nearly always the result of how the Super Bowl team won it all). Now, some of these questions have too many answers. But, the premier positions, though open to some debate are Left Tackle, Quarterback, Right Defensive End, and Cornerback. Those are the positions that teams will focusing on because their importance to production is so much higher. As far as the trend to building your Super Bowl team? Well, after the Bears Super Bowl, it was all about building a two running back system, and getting a ridiculous kick return specialist. So everyone ran out and got themselves two backs to spell each other, and Tedd Gin made a ton of money off of Devin Hester’s production. This year, you can expect an early run on pass rushers as team salivate over the destruction that the Giants laid on the supposedly infallible Patriots. So, expect the final draft order to be considerably different from what you’re thinking right now. The true prospect evaluation period is just now beginning. Don’t be surprised to see some of the bulletproof prospects that you’ve been hearing about, take a tumble. Will a right tackle prospect (Jake Long) be chosen ahead of a premier left tackle prospect (Ryan Clady), maybe not. Will Darren McFadden, a 4.33 40 running back with thin legs and a penchant for off field trouble, get a taste of top 5 money? Maybe not. Will Brian Brohm, who had his best college career in 2007 really fall into the second round after being considered for a top 5 pick last year? Maybe not.

Posted: Thursday, April 03, 2008 9:48 PM by TheGoose with 1 comment(s)