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Round 1 Notes

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  • #1

    Round 1 Notes

    NFC WEST
    • The Rams now have the best quarterback in the West, and I don’t think it’s even close. Charlie Whitehurst? Alex Smith? Matt Leinart? Every one of these guys was riding pine last season.
    • I have to give some grudging respect to the ***** for their off-season so far. They picked up two big, mean offensive linemen in the first round of the draft and recently acquired a deep threat in Ted Ginn for the measly price of a fifth rounder. Along with Frank Gore and Michael Crabtree, this starts to look like a scary offense…until you remember that they have Alex Smith at quarterback again.
    • Dan Williams was a fortuitous acquisition for the Cardinals. Very good value at #26 overall.
    • The Seahawks draft arguably the best offensive tackle in the draft, which isn’t going to help Chris Long’s stat line. However, if they were going to draft twice in the first round, I can’t help feeling a little better that one of them was a cover safety. I could be wrong, but I don’t think Earl Thomas is a game-changer.

    NFC North
    • Should the Lions feel lucky that the division rival Vikings were willing to let them move up without offering much compensation? Or disrespected because Minnesota clearly does not perceive them as even remotely threatening? Either way, the Lions landed an impact tackle and a big play runner. That Detroit team still has a long road ahead, but this will help.
    • The Vikings grade as incomplete. Trading out of the first round to move up in the fourth and pick up an extra 7th rounder has to rate as the least inspiring move of the day. Because of the format, teams are going to have all day Friday to consider whether they want to jump ahead of the Vikings. The minimal compensation makes them look pretty apathetic.
    • Hey, Chicago, how’s Cutler working out for you?
    NFC South
    • The Bucs D needed help badly. Their decision was obvious but good nonetheless. Likewise, the Falcons made a seemingly obvious choice in selecting Weatherspoon.
    • And with the 17th overall pick, the Carolina Panthers select…Everette Brown and Mike Goodson in last year’s draft. Brown has 2.5 sacks to his credit thus far. Goodson has 5 carries for 3 yards.
    NFC East
    • Shanahan knows what he likes on the offensive line. We’ll see if he can re-create some of that Denver magic in the former home of the Hogs.
    • Dallas and Dez Bryant kind of seem made for each other. Jerry Jones thinks the world revolves around him, and so does Dez Bryant. As long as they’re in the same stadium, it can revolve around both of them at the same time.
    AFC West
    • I like how the Broncos are able to get value out of their picks by liberal use of trades. I don’t like that McDaniels clashes with his players, so the organization spends more effort replacing talent than moving forward. Would this team honestly have a better offense with Tebow and Thomas than it did with Cutler and Marshall? I fully supported their decision to dump Cutler while his stock was high, but they didn’t need to trade up to sign a quarterback who is unlikely to supplant Orton as the starter anytime soon.
    • San Diego gave up too much for Matthews. Bad move in my opinion. Runningbacks traditionally have short shelf-lives, and it’s not like we’re talking about the next LT here.
    • McClain might be Oakland’s best choice in the last three years for all that’s worth.
    AFC North
    • I like that the Steelers had no qualms about taking an interior lineman in the middle of the first round. Some front office types might have felt compelled to take a player at a “skill” position, especially after shipping off Santonio Holmes.
    • Joe Haden at #7? My gut says reach. Also, “feed me”.
    • At first glance, the Tebow trade looked pretty lopsided against the Broncos, but the Ravens also dropped down 18 spots—well out of the first round—to pick up extra third and fourth round picks. Upon closer examination, this looks like an elusive lose-lose situation.
    • Jermaine Gresham is going to feel really out of place with the Bengals. First day he walks into the locker room, he’ll need to find the biggest, baddest dude around and beat the snot out of him. The coaches might throw him in solitary for a while, but then the other inmates--I mean teammates--will respect him.
    AFC South
    • Jags offer the surprise of the night. I’m not going to fault them for picking up Alualu, but I will fault them for failing to trade down. Looking at what the Broncos did starting from the very next pick, it seems highly likely that Jacksonville could have picked up a fourth round pick and two third round picks and still landed their guy—at a lower contract value to boot.
    • Think it’s a coincidence that all three of the teams in the same division as the Colts drafted defensive players in the first round?

    AFC East
    • The Bills are an enigma wrapped inside of a losing franchise shrouded in dwindling profit margins. With two 1,000-yard rushers on the roster and the entire rest of the offense suspect, the Buffalo Bills select…another runningback. I guess that means Marshawn Lynch is unofficially on the trading block, and the Bills are unofficially last place in the East again in 2010.
    • In the same vein, the Jets own the top ranked defense in the country and recently traded for Pro Bowl CB Antonio Cromartie. What do they do in the first round? Take another corner.
    Last edited by Goldenfleece; -04-23-2010, 12:55 PM.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: Round 1 Notes

    The Jets move actually makes sense to me. With all three of those guys in the backfield their linebackers will be free to blitz much more often. A secondary that can lock down each of their guys is extremely valuable, I like that pick.

    Comment

    • #3
      Re: Round 1 Notes

      The Jets are going to have the best secondary in the NFL. Oh man. Scary.

      Comment

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      • tomahawk247
        New draft format can benefit Rams
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        Previously the draft was held over two days, a Saturday and a Sunday, with last year seeing the first and second rounds on the Saturday and the remaining rounds on the Sunday

        This year, the draft takes place over three days. Thursday evening will be the first round, Friday the second and third rounds, and the remaining rounds will be on the Saturday.

        Usually between the two days of the draft a team will analyse the players left to pick, analyse those that they have already picked and then re-set their draft board. They may decide that they like one particular player, and go about making trade offers to move up and get him. This is what happened last year between the first and second days of the draft. The New York Jets fell in love with Shonn Greene, and decided that they would have to move up in the draft to take him. The Jets traded their 12th pick in the third round as well as fourth and seventh round picks to move up to the first pick in the third round. Some say this was because the Rams were sure to take Greene if he was still on the board. Its also clear that this trade only happened because the Jets had the night to think on what they wanted with the draft pick.

        This year, with the Rams picking at the top of each round, they pick first on all three days. So if a team has fallen in love with a player and wants to grab him, they could definitely offer the Rams a trade. The second round pick, for example, could garner a lot of interest. Last year the Panther and Broncos both traded future first round picks for second rounders, and the Titans and Jaguars both traded future second rounders to New England for third round picks. Picks higher in the draft are certainly a benefit to a rebuilding team like the Rams

        Also, there are a couple of QB prospects that may be good choices for the Rams in the second round, but who would be reaches if picked right at the top of round 2 (at the moment), but who likely wouldnt last until the top of round 3. Guys like Tony Pike and Dan LeFevour. The Rams could entertain a trade which involves a move down in round two, picking up maybe a third rounder in the process, and still being able to grab their future QB.

        All it takes is a team to think too much overnight, and the Rams could end up with a very good deal on their hands.
        -02-11-2010, 01:03 AM
      • Nick
        NFP Sunday Blitz: Post-Draft Edition
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        What just happened in the draft? We've got you covered, including an inside look at the Chargers drafting of Te'o.
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        April 28, 2013, 05:30 AM EST


        Second round picks aren’t supposed to be the stars of the draft. But no player generated more buzz over the three day draft than Manti Te’o.

        His profile was so high, in fact, that the Chargers felt they had to trade up seven spots to the sixth spot in the second round in order to secure him. They gave up a fourth round pick to do the deal. But he was well worth it in the mind of new general manager Tom Telesco because he valued Te’o as a first round pick.

        “When he didn’t go off in the first round, I came in Friday morning and started making some calls to people in front of us to see if anyone was willing to move down,” Telesco told me. “Just by looking at that second round, I didn’t know if there were many teams in front of us who would take him. I was more concerned about teams behind us that may have come up to get him. Especially because he was more high profile. We were able to get up and get him and I’m really happy about it.”

        Telesco’s knew more about Te’o than most GMs, and he subsequently felt more comfortable with him. He was hired by the Chargers three months ago. Previously, he worked as the personnel director for the Colts, where his office was about a two hour drive to Notre Dame. He watched Te’o play a game in person every year of his college career, and maybe saw six college games of his live.

        What’s more, he went to college and played football with the Notre Dame assistant who knew him as well as anyone. Telesco and former Irish special teams coach Brian Polian, son of Bill, were teammates at John Carroll University. They even knew each other when they were in high school.

        “We get to spend some time with these kids, but the college coaches are with them every day,” Telesco said. “The coaches who recruited them knew them in high school. They know the families well. If you have people you trust and you know they are giving you the real thing, you feel a lot more comfortable. Brian was the point guy in recruiting him. He was making trips every other week to Hawaii in the recruiting process. When they have been around the kid for a number of years, they have a feel for the kid. There was no smoke out there at all. We knew he loved football.”

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        They also were not scared off by the 4.81 40 yard dash he ran at the combine. “I never thought he was a 4.55, 4.60 linebacker,” Telesco said. “I wasn’t expecting him to run fast. I think his pro day time (4.71) was more reflective...
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        -GRADE: A

        Brian Leonard, RB/FB, Rutgers
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        Jonathan Wade, CB, Tennessee
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        OVERALL GRADE: B
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        -05-01-2015, 09:21 PM
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