This mock draft isn't what I predict teams will do on April 28th (too hard to predict), it's what I would do if I were the GM of each team. 1. Carolina Panthers: Marcel Dareus, 43DT/34DE, Alabama A) Panthers are in a division with Brees, Ryan and Freeman. They MUST put pressure on the opposing QB and be dominant at least vs the run to make the other team as one dimensional as possible. B) With a shortened off-season and a CS change it's pretty likely that if you sucked in 2010 you'll continue to suck in 2011. Not enough time to make significant changes... at this point why not give Clausen a chance in a new system and if he sucks it's pretty likely you'll be in an excellent position to draft Luck or Barkley next year. C) Dareus can play in a 43 or in a 34 giving Rivera flexibility and a cornerstone to bild his D around. D) This might be the last draft with insane money in the top 10... let's give it to a sure thing instead of a project QB. 2. Denver Broncos: Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU A) I'd be pissed because Dareus would've been a PERFECT pick. but no one wants to trade up... so I end up with the best player in the draft. B) Peterson + Bailey would be a nightmare for opposing teams... and the young kid can learn from one of the best CBs in the last decade, hopefully becoming a shutdown CB for 10+ years. C) I'm in a division with the Rams and Chargers, having 2 elite CBs would make it extremely difficult for them to play me. 3. Buffalo Bills: Robert Quinn, 43DE/34OLB, North Carolina A) I want the best pass rusher in the draft but I also want him to be able to play in both a 43 and a 34 since I'm not sure what my team will run... luckily Quinn is both versatile and one heck of a player (and Von Miller in my opinion is neither). 4. Cincinnati Bengals: AJ Green, WR, Georgia A) My priorities are convincing Palmer to come back and building an offense with no head-cases (Ocho&T.O) in case I bring in a rookie QB. B) AJ Green is the BPA and will be a stud WR for years to come. He'll also stretch the field and allow our O to breath a little vs the tough Ds in our conference. 5. Arizona Cardinals: Tyron Smith, OT, USC A) I'll have to go after a QB in FA (Bulger?) but let's not forget the Cardinals where the second worst team in surrendering sacks last year (50!!!). If I want to get the ball to my WRs I need an upright QB. B) Brown was overall a disappointment as a LT. C) I need pass rushers but having a healthy QB that can get the ball to Fitzgerald is more important. 6. Cleveland Browns: Julio Jones, WR, Alabama A) I want a big physical target that can develop with McCoy. He fits in the O my HC runs, he's very physical (good in a div with Ravens&Steelers) and will help open the run game. He can be a mean blocker too. 7. San Francisco 49ers: Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri A) Harbaugh gets the best QB talent available in the draft. I like Alex Smith and I think he can become a decent starter, but that's not a good reason to pass on a talent like Gabbert. Hopefully Smith comes back so Gabbert can sit for a year... history has shown you can never have enough talented QBs on the roster. 8. Tennesse Titans: Cam Newton, QB, Auburn A) Perfect fit for Newton. How do you defend his unique (both for good and for bad reasons) skill-set when he's in the same backfield with Johnson? If you concntrate too much on the pass one between CJ and Cam is going to take off, if you concentrate too much on the run Cam will find an open WR, not having to make a ton of reads. B) Unlike VY he's a leader. 9. Dallas Cowboys: Prince Amukamara, CB, Nebraska A) How many times did other teams torch my secondary? I have no doubt Ryan will bring pressure... but I need someone back there to set the tone on the opposing team #1 WR. 10. Washington Redskins: Cam Jordan, 34DE, Cal A) I need to bring pressure on opposing QBs badly. Jordan is better than Fairley and more polished than Watt. B) There's no QB worthy of the pick. 11. Houston Texans: Von Miller, OLB, Texas A&M Why am I taking Von Miller at #11 even though I'm in the Anti-Von miller club? Two reasons: Mario Williams and Wade Phillips. Those two can create the right opportunities to take advantage of the elite athleticism of Miller. 12. Minnesota Vikings: Nick Fairley, DT, Auburn Too much talent to pass up at #12. I have a lot of faith in my HC that he will get the most out of this head-case. Thanks god vagina-Childress isn't around anymore. 13. Detroit Lions: Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston College How much money do I have invested in Stafford? How many games has he been healthy for in 2 seasons? Enough said. This will move Backus the opportunity to play RT (much more suited for that) while giving Cherilus a year off to work on his technique. Castonzo might not be dominant but he's a starting LT for the next 10 years... exactly what Stafford (and Johnson and Best) needs. 14. St Louis Rams: DeQuan Bowers, DE, Clemson He'll have one year to get fully healthy while sharing snaps with veteran Hall. Could wreak havoc with Spags as his DC. TRADE! Dolphins to 18, Chargers to 15 15. San Diego Chargers: JJ Watt, 34DE, Wisconsin The Chargers are afraid of the Jaguars and the Patriots, both of which could be looking for pass rushing help. For this reason they move up two spots at a small price to get the last elite 34DE prospect. 16. Jacksonville Jaguars: Ryan Kerrigan, 43DE, Purdue The Jags need help on the pass rush bad... Kerrigan fits the scheme and is also the BPA. 17. New England Patriots: Aldon Smith, 34OLB, Missouri Pass Rush help is needed and the Patriots get one hell of a prospect... he falls a bit because of medical concerns but the Pats don't care. 18. Miami Dolphins: Kyle Rudolph, TE, Notre Dame A dominant, do-it-all TE such as Rudolph could really help Henne and the Dolphins O improve. Rudoplh is a great prospect that's flying under the radar... it's a gutsy move drafting him this high but he can be a difference maker and hopefully turn Henne into a consistent QB. 19. NY Giants: Mike Pouncey, LG/C, Florida Giants have uncertainties at both positions... Pouncey will be the answer for one of them. TRADE! Colts at 20, Buccaneers at 22 20. Indianapolis Colts: Derek Sherrod, OT, Mississippi St LT already is an important position on a normal NFL team... but the Colts ARE it's QB, without Manning the Colts don't exist... so it might be a good idea to keep him protected. They decide to jump the Chiefs (who need OTs) for a small price and get a solid LT. 21. Kansas City Chiefs: Akeem Ayers, OLB, UCLA The Chiefs have nothing opposite Hali, and they might lose him as well... so they get a very good OLB who has fallen a little... 22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Justin Houston, DE, Georgia Help at DE is needed and Houston is the BPA. Clayborn is considered but after the Talib case Morris decides he doesn't want another possible head case. 23. Philadelphia Eagles: Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado You can't play the Cowboys and the Giants twice a season with no one opposite Samuel. The kid has character concerns but he'll get help from Asante. 24. New Orleans Saints: Adrian Clayborn, DE, Iowa Pass rushing help is needed and Clayborn's talent is too much to pass up at #24. 25. Seattle Seahawks: Christian Ponder, QB, Nevada Hasselbeck is slowing down... how about a little competition to see who succeeds him? 26. Baltimore Ravens: Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois The Ravens get a steal here as Liuget is excellent value this low in rd 1. Not a perfect fit for a 34D but his talent is too much to pass. TRADE! Bills to #27, Falcons to #34 27. Buffalo Bills: Colin Kapaernick, QB, Nevada The Bills are well aware Belichick would like to trade away it's #28 pick and there are so many QB needy teams at the top of rd 2, so they decide to make this move. Perfect QB for Gailey's O... and doesn't need to start right away as Fitzpatrick is a competent QB. Falcons are ok with it as they're targeting a WR. 28. New England Patriots: Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama The Patriots get a very solid RB that can move the chains for them. Ingram + Green-Ellis + Woodhead is an interesting combination of skillsets. It will also keep Ingram healthy. 29. Chicago Bears: Nate Solder, OT, Colorado Protection is needed for Cutler... and Solder is a good prospect. 30. NY Jets: Brooks Reed, OLB, Arizona We need a pass rushing specialist so.... pass rushing specialist, welcome to NY! Rex will find a way to make the DL work creating enough space for our LBs... 31. Pittsburgh Steelers: Gabe Carimi, OT/OG, Wisconsin They have to protect Big Ben somehow and Carimi also fits very well in what they're trying to do run-wise. 32. Green Bay Packers: Cameron Heyward, DE, Ohio State Nice way to replace Cullen Jenkins imminent departure huh? Other Jets pick: #3-94: Kenrick Ellis, DE/NT, Hampton - Big fat man ready to learn from Pouha or Ellis depending on where we want him to play. Versatile albeit with character concerns (but our DL is full of really good guys). EDIT: What about Jerrel Powe here? He seems to have fallen a little bit... #4-126: Vincent Brown, WR, SD State - a solid weapon with extremely reliable hands for Sanchez. #5-161: Alex Henery, K, Nebraska - Finally a reliable kicker? #6-194: Chris Rucker, CB, Michigan - A big project at CB in case Cromartie leaves. Phsyical CB. #7-???: Keith Williams, OT/OG, Nebraksa - Slauson 2.0?
2. Denver Broncos: Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU A) I'd be pissed because Dareus would've been a PERFECT pick. but no one wants to trade up... so I end up with the best player in the draft. B) Peterson + Bailey would be a nightmare for opposing teams... and the young kid can learn from one of the best CBs in the last decade, hopefully becoming a shutdown CB for 10+ years. C) I'm in a division with the Rams and Chargers, having 2 elite CBs would make it extremely difficult for them to play me. - Rams aren't in the AFC West - Chiefs or Raiders you mean?
Cam Newton is the best possible pick for Carolina. That team is in shambles - the organization needs a face. If you're going to pump money into a player, it needs to be a QB...not a defensive tackle. As far as the Jets' mock goes, I'd be kind of upset. Cameron Heyward would be the smarter first round pick. Brooks Reed is an intriguing prospect, but he's a little overrated on this board, just like Heyward is a little underrated. If this team drafts a kicker, I will shit. "Finally a reliable kicker" - AYFKM, Mambo? Folk got the job done when it mattered most. That's reliable in my book. This team needs depth in too many spots to draft a god damn kicker. It's the shakiest position in the league. I'll always be a little biased when it comes to Kenrick Ellis. He's a head case. I think he's got what it takes to be a heck of a player in this league, but he's not a safe choice. Vincent Brown will be a solid wideout in this league. I don't really have a problem with that pick - a solid slot guy is needed. I see Chris L. Rucker as more of a safety. Keith Williams would be a solid pick in the seventh, but he'll more than likely be gone by then.
Good stuff, can tell you put a lot of work into this. I can't see Newton dropping to 8 though. For the Jets side, I wouldn't be a fan of a kicker in the 5th.
Dolphins and Chargers swapping first rounders in back to back years ? And with all the holes Minnesota has on its offensive line/qb/secondary/linebackers (aka their entire team minus halfback/defensive line) it makes little sense for them to draft Fairley. They just have so much talent on that defensive line, that this move just boggles my mind. And I also dont see the Pats drafting a HB in the first. They got plenty of holes on defense, and possibly a few on their offensive line that will need filling. Wouldnt be thrilled with that draft for the Jets. It doesnt do enough to address our front 7 on defense imo
You know I agree with the pick I just dont agree with the reasoning. If you draft a QB in the first round he better be your franchise qb and not competing for it.
Gotta disagree with you. Most of the projections I've seen for Minny have them taking a DT if the QB they like isn't available or they can't trade down. Supposedly, according to at least one "expert" they really like Locker, but #12 is too high to take him. One or both of their DTs is getting up in years and I believe Kevin Williams is going to be suspended for 4 games. In the same division as GB and Chicago, I could easily see Minny loading up on its DL and pass rush. As far as the Jets, who would you take if the draft fell that way? Reed is probably the best OLB left at that spot and getting Kenric Ellis at the bottom of the 3rd would be a steal. Adding both an excellent OLB and NT prospect wouldn't be doing enough to address the front 7? Considering where the Jets draft and with no 2nd round pick, I think that would be as good as they could be expected to do. I wouldn't take a kicker, although Henery is supposedly the best K prospect in the draft. I like adding OL depth, and CB depth. Instead of Henery, I would definitely have looked to add a S prospect like maybe Joe Lefege or added OL depth there, and then with one of my lower picks looked to add Bruce Miller or Gabe Miller. Good job, Mambo.
Ops... well then the reasoning loses a bit of strength. Still though, the NFL is becoming a passing leauge... Thanks for the sharp eye I was torn between Heyward and Reed... even though I think Heyward is the better prospect Reed isn't that far off and he plays a more impact position. But Reed and Heyward where 1 and 1a. Hehe I'll admit the K selection was a bit of a provocation. I wouldn't mind replacing Folk with such an interesting prospect but yeah I'd be ok if Folk stayed another year. Still the importance of a K in a play-off team is underrated... how many times does it get down to those missed FGs in the play-offs? I selected Rucker because we need help both at CB and at S. If he doesn't work out as a CB he will still find a role as a DB... I know, but in the 7th it's such a crapshoot... let's pretend he'll be available. Since we're on topic, what do you think of the other OG coming out of Nebraska, Ricky Henry? Imo he'll be a UDFA and we'll take a look at him... Why not, it makes sense to do it this time around and the Chargers have extra picks to spend to move up and down. joeklecko answered perfectly to your 2nd point (thank you). Ingram would be excellent value at #28 and Belichick has proven he doesn't really care much about injuries in the recent drafts (Tate&Gronkowski). I was really tempted to go with Carimi but I'm not sure they want to move Vollmer to LT and I don't think Carimi will be a LT... at least not in what the PAtriots like to run on O. 2 out of 6 picks isn't enough? + 1 OLB... Well I said competing because I'm sure Carroll wouldn't shoot himself in the head if Whitehurst turned out to be a solid starter... but if they're drafting Ponder they'll be relying heavily on him to succeed Haselbeck. It could turn out to be like a Rodgers scenario... Hehe... well let me be clear. For what they did on the field of course Fairley is a better prospect than Jordan. But when you take into account the work ethic, the personality etc etc Jordan looks to me like he's the better prospect. If I'm the Redskins I'm scared to death about adding a potential Haynesworth 2.0... I need someone reliable to build my front 3 around... As for Watt I like him very very much too but I think Jordan is a little ahead of him on terms of NFL readiness...
It sorta makes sense over OLine, they went twice on OLine in the first round last year and tho young their line is improving. They need secondary, OLB, a QB and another WR.
Staley just needs to stay healthy, Davis will hopefully improve since the talent is there, same for Iupati and Rachal is a capable RG. What they need is a C but I'm sure one can be had via FA or later in the draft.
Cam Jordan- DUI/suspension in 2008. Nick Fairley- Jerk on the field and hits some people late. Yeah, what a horrible villain Fairley is. And I'm not really sure about all these concerns about his work ethic, considering you don't just go from spot starter to the best defensive player in the nation by half assing practice.
Well of course I'm basing my evaluation on what media outlets say and on the few times I heard these guys speak in some interview... I have never met (and probably never will) Fairley or Jordan so I have no idea what their actual personality is. From a GM point of view I wouldn't be eccessively worried about a 18/19 year old doing something stupid and getting a DUI. On the other hand I would be worried about a 23 year old with what is considered a bad attitude and bad work habits. But then again I'm not sure Haynesworth has ever had a "good" attitude or a great work ethic and he was killing it when with the Titans. I'm not stating outright that Fairley will never do anything in this league (that's why I have him going at #12) but I think that Jordan, even with inferior physical skills, will turn out to be the better pro. Fairley will be much better off in Minnesota. The scheme suits him more, he has a Pro Bowl DT playing next to him and Frazier seems like a coach that can get the most out of his players... especially on D.
I've been trying to stay out of this so as to continue to foster the positive image you've been building of late with your posts/threads. I do, however, wish to point out that the line about the importance of playoff kickers is what got us Mike Nugent. You just don't draft kickers unless you have extra picks to spare. We don't have that luxury.
Haha oh well thanks for the thought but you're welcome to join in anytime and bash anything you don't agree with. What do you think of the Jets pick, are you on the Heyward over Reed bandwagon (like Mr E)? As for the Kicker as I've said before it's was kind of a provocation to see what TGG reaction was. IF Henery is as good as they make him out to be why not give him a shot? Folk is solid but he's upgreadable. And Westy has never been an extremely big fan of his... Also Nugent was drafted waaaay before he was supposed to. Unless you're drafting god there's no way a team should spend a 2nd rd pick on a K... a 5th (a low one too) makes much more sense. PS and hey if Kenrick Ellis works out who knows what we can get in exchange for Pouha in 2012!
Solid attempt at a mock, just have a few things to say: I just don't see the Dolphins trading down 3 spots and taking a tight end. I could definitely see them trading down, but it would more than likely be to grab a QB, interior lineman (Pouncey), or falling RB (Ingram). If Sherrod, Carimi, and Solder are all still on the board at 20, the Colts better damn well be in love with one the three to jump one team. Just doesn't make sense to me. As for the Jets pick, maybe i'm just not drinking the Brooks Reed Kool-Aid as much as everyone else but if Heyward and Wilkerson are on the board, I pull the trigger on one of them, and if given the choice i'd go Heyward. I've said in other threads that my top three unless someone makes a monumental fall are Heyward, Wilkerson, and Ayers. Heyward is a hell of a player and I think his injury is skewing the view of him a bit at the moment because he couldn't participate in post season workouts and his play during the season was also effected by injury. But when given time off to rest and heal up, what did he do? Dominant Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl and win MVP of the game.
1) For the Dolphins... I think Rudolph is a better prospect than both Pouncey (who isn't as good a prospect as his brother) and Ingram (who will need to be in the right system to succeed and isn't top 20 worthy). I gave a long hard thought to Mallett... but in the end opted against it... 2) there is a very good reason for that... when I finished the mock I realized I had forgotten Aldon Smith and I had to redo some picks -.-". That said I think Sherrod is much more suited than Solder for the Colts (Solder might have a higher ceiling but Sherrod is NFL readier and Manning isn't getting any younger). I'm not a big fan of Carimi... I think he'll be a RT only. A good one, but he'll never be a solid LT. 3) I was very torn between Reed, Heyward and Wilkerson. In the end I went with Reed because I think Rex will be able to get some production out of veterans Ellis/Pryce and unproven guys like Pitoitua/Dixon/Gilbert/Kenrick Ellis. With good coaching you can get good production out of Dlineman... with OLBs talent is much more important. But I can totally see where you're coming from... PS With the Steelers, Packers and Patriots picking behind the Jets I would feel very uncomfortable in trading down as all of them could be looking to upgrade their 34D.
