NFL Draft Update
The smoke has cleared a bit on the free agency period. There are still plenty of moves to be made, but some of the moves already made have clarified the positions of the top 5 picks...
1) Raiders -- JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU. The Raiders failed to grab a free agent QB. Trading Moss to the Packers for Aaron Rodgers is still a slim possibility, but it seems that if the Raiders wanted to do that, they would have done it already. The Raiders also appear to be making no effort to hang onto Tui, their #3 QB. This would leave only Andrew Walter on their depth chart. Look for the Raiders to draft Russell and pick up an aging veteran to mentor the youngsters. Walter should begin the season as the starter, and Russell will work in practice to pass him up, which could take anywhere from a few weeks to a few years.
2) Lions -- Joe Thomas, OT, Wisconsin. Nothing changes here. The Lions still badly need help on their front line. Thomas fits the bill. Quinn is a possibility here, but I would expect Millen to be a bit more conservative this year.
3) Browns -- Adrienne Peterson, RB, Oklahoma. Okay, now it makes sense. Trading Droughns makes room for Peterson, who will be an upgrade and will remind some fans of Jim Brown. He will fit nicely into Cleveland's offensive scheme and become a star in this league.
4) Bucs -- Calvin Johnson, WR, Georgia Tech. The Bucs have addressed their QB problem in free agency with Jeff Garcia, who will give them two or three good years while they figure out whether Chris Simms will ever be a worthy NFL starter, or whether they need to look in a different direction. (I'm guessing the latter). I think Garcia will be a great acquisition for the Bucs...he reminds me a bit of Rich Gannon, and we all remember what Gruden was able to do wtih Gannon. Johnson should see playing time right away, and be one of the league's top WR's by 2010. WR's rarely make an immediate impact their rookie year, but Johnson may be an exception to this rule.
5) Cardinals -- Gaines Adams, DE, Florida. I think that someone trades up here to grab Brady Quinn if he is still on the board...but if that doesn't happen, the Cardinals will take the best player left on the board, and that should be Florida DE Gaines Adams, who reminds me a lot of Jevon Kearse. He is the kind of holy terror DE who keeps offensive coordinators up at night, and the Cardinals currently have nobody of that nature on the defensive side of the ball. The Cards would rather have Joe Thomas here to replace departed Leonard Davis, and will obviously take him if he is available. (This is a possibility if someone trades up to the #2 spot with the Lions to take Quinn -- the Browns and Bucs would likely take Peterson and Johnson anyway).
Other Thoughts --
-- The Bills will take Marshawn Lynch at #12 after dealing troubled back Willis McGahee to the Ravens for a couple of third round picks and a seventh rounder...which, by the way, was a great deal for the Bills. This might leave the Packers out of luck in terms of backs...with Green gone, Morency appears to be their only option in the backfield, and he isn't going to cut it. Maybe the Packers think that Favre can just throw the ball on every down.
-- The Texans are heavily rumored to be in the Quinn market. They are now secure at RB with Ahman Green and Wali Lundy. Haven't heard anything about a possible trade of David Carr to the Raiders, but that trade would make a lot of sense for both teams if the Texans truly want Quinn. If the Texans are interested in Quinn, they might have to make a move to get him, as he is not likely to slip past the Vikings at #7.
-- Paul Posluszny is going to be a late first round steal for some smart team. With the departure of Tully Banta-Cain, he would be a smart pick for the Patriots...and he should be available at either of the Pats picks, #24 or #28. Maybe the Pats go with Greg Olsen if he's around at #24, and then Posluszny at #28 -- that would be an amazing start to this year's draft for New England.
-- This draft is heavy at the OT position. Tony Ugoh, a first round quality guy, might be available for the Raiders at the top of the second round. Ditto Joe Staley. Ryan Kalil, the top center in the draft, is another first round quality guy who may well be available in the early second round. Any of them would be a steal as second round picks. There is some chance that the potential for availability of these guys in the second round could hurt the stock of Joe Thomas, an OT who should be a top five pick. If teams think they can get Staley or Ugoh at the top of round two, they might be less inclined to spend a top 5 pick on Thomas in round 1.
-- Remember the name Mkristo Bruce. He probably won't go until the third round, and he will make a lot of teams regret passing on him.
-- Seriously...the 49ers really need to grab Ted Ginn, Jr. He will almost certainly be available at #11.
1) Raiders -- JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU. The Raiders failed to grab a free agent QB. Trading Moss to the Packers for Aaron Rodgers is still a slim possibility, but it seems that if the Raiders wanted to do that, they would have done it already. The Raiders also appear to be making no effort to hang onto Tui, their #3 QB. This would leave only Andrew Walter on their depth chart. Look for the Raiders to draft Russell and pick up an aging veteran to mentor the youngsters. Walter should begin the season as the starter, and Russell will work in practice to pass him up, which could take anywhere from a few weeks to a few years.
2) Lions -- Joe Thomas, OT, Wisconsin. Nothing changes here. The Lions still badly need help on their front line. Thomas fits the bill. Quinn is a possibility here, but I would expect Millen to be a bit more conservative this year.
3) Browns -- Adrienne Peterson, RB, Oklahoma. Okay, now it makes sense. Trading Droughns makes room for Peterson, who will be an upgrade and will remind some fans of Jim Brown. He will fit nicely into Cleveland's offensive scheme and become a star in this league.
4) Bucs -- Calvin Johnson, WR, Georgia Tech. The Bucs have addressed their QB problem in free agency with Jeff Garcia, who will give them two or three good years while they figure out whether Chris Simms will ever be a worthy NFL starter, or whether they need to look in a different direction. (I'm guessing the latter). I think Garcia will be a great acquisition for the Bucs...he reminds me a bit of Rich Gannon, and we all remember what Gruden was able to do wtih Gannon. Johnson should see playing time right away, and be one of the league's top WR's by 2010. WR's rarely make an immediate impact their rookie year, but Johnson may be an exception to this rule.
5) Cardinals -- Gaines Adams, DE, Florida. I think that someone trades up here to grab Brady Quinn if he is still on the board...but if that doesn't happen, the Cardinals will take the best player left on the board, and that should be Florida DE Gaines Adams, who reminds me a lot of Jevon Kearse. He is the kind of holy terror DE who keeps offensive coordinators up at night, and the Cardinals currently have nobody of that nature on the defensive side of the ball. The Cards would rather have Joe Thomas here to replace departed Leonard Davis, and will obviously take him if he is available. (This is a possibility if someone trades up to the #2 spot with the Lions to take Quinn -- the Browns and Bucs would likely take Peterson and Johnson anyway).
Other Thoughts --
-- The Bills will take Marshawn Lynch at #12 after dealing troubled back Willis McGahee to the Ravens for a couple of third round picks and a seventh rounder...which, by the way, was a great deal for the Bills. This might leave the Packers out of luck in terms of backs...with Green gone, Morency appears to be their only option in the backfield, and he isn't going to cut it. Maybe the Packers think that Favre can just throw the ball on every down.
-- The Texans are heavily rumored to be in the Quinn market. They are now secure at RB with Ahman Green and Wali Lundy. Haven't heard anything about a possible trade of David Carr to the Raiders, but that trade would make a lot of sense for both teams if the Texans truly want Quinn. If the Texans are interested in Quinn, they might have to make a move to get him, as he is not likely to slip past the Vikings at #7.
-- Paul Posluszny is going to be a late first round steal for some smart team. With the departure of Tully Banta-Cain, he would be a smart pick for the Patriots...and he should be available at either of the Pats picks, #24 or #28. Maybe the Pats go with Greg Olsen if he's around at #24, and then Posluszny at #28 -- that would be an amazing start to this year's draft for New England.
-- This draft is heavy at the OT position. Tony Ugoh, a first round quality guy, might be available for the Raiders at the top of the second round. Ditto Joe Staley. Ryan Kalil, the top center in the draft, is another first round quality guy who may well be available in the early second round. Any of them would be a steal as second round picks. There is some chance that the potential for availability of these guys in the second round could hurt the stock of Joe Thomas, an OT who should be a top five pick. If teams think they can get Staley or Ugoh at the top of round two, they might be less inclined to spend a top 5 pick on Thomas in round 1.
-- Remember the name Mkristo Bruce. He probably won't go until the third round, and he will make a lot of teams regret passing on him.
-- Seriously...the 49ers really need to grab Ted Ginn, Jr. He will almost certainly be available at #11.
posted by AdmiralLando at 11:43 AM
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