We were going to do a 4 rounder as prep for after the combine when we'll do a 7 round mock, but we encountered some road blocks that we are going to have to smooth out before the big 7 rounder.
I ended up picking the same players as I did in our previous mock, which wasn't intended. I actually wanted to go o-line in the first, but the way things fell I felt I had to pick the same players.
Draft results
Live Draft:
1st Round:
1. St. Louis (1-15)- Kong Suh, DT, Nebraska
My pick for the Rams since before I knew we we're getting the first overall. It won't change because we're no worse off now than we were this time last year at QB, we are just more aware of our QB situation. I'm not convinced we won't bring Bulger back at a reduced contract but I'm not depending on it for this pick. I just think we value Suhs upside more than Bradford or Clausens. I'm now convinced we won't be able to trade down. I'm sure I'm in the minority on this but I think in the long run, Snead, McCoy, or Lefevour are all serviceable starters. One of them will do fine, even if we're not in the Locker stakes next year.
2. Detroit (2-14)- Geral d McCoy, DT, Oklahoma
Gerald McCoy DT Oklahoma. No brainer here. BPA meets need. Explosive DT, good motor, good intangibles, no injury history. Russell Okung is a consideration here as well, but for me Gerald McCoy is the guy. I picked Russell Okung in the 1st because I believe that he is the best LT in this draft & will fit into the Shannahans ZBS. He has been compared to Ryan Clady, another LT who Shannahan took in the 1st rd. With the terrible line that the Redskins have now, I think that Okung would step in immediately as the starter as Chris Samuels will be forced to retire because of serious neck issues. I believe that Okung will anchor the Redskins line for the next decade just as Samuels, who was the 3rd pick overall ten years ago has done for the past decade.
3. Tampa Bay (3-13)- Eric Berry, S, Tennessee
4. Washington (4-12)- Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State
5. Kansas City (4-12)- Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama
Rolando McClain ILB Alabama - The chiefs had a terrible year in many areas but to win in this league you have to be able to stop the run. A NT is a huge reach here and Brandon Albert played lights out for the second half of the season last year. Once Jamaal Charles took over at running back and we switched to a zone blocking scheme Albert's abilities really showed, he practically shut down Dumervil in the last game. Our offensive line needs improvement but it needs it in the form of a C, RG and a T for depth and i believe Pioli will not draft a RT, RG or a C this early in the draft. NT is considered but Dan Williams is just not dominant enough to warrant this high of a pick. McClain will be the field general of the Chiefs defense for many years to come.
6. Seattle (5-11)- Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame
7. Cleveland (5-11) Joe Haden, CB, Florida
8. Oakland (5-11)- Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa
The Raiders are in big need of offensive tackle help. On the right side, Cornell Green is a free agent and is terrible in any case. On the left, Mario Henderson started out incredibly strong, but faltered as the season went along. Bulaga has the athleticism and skill to challenge Henderson for the starting left tackle spot as well as the size and versatility to be able to shift to the right side. I gave serious consideration to Anthony Davis, but am not sold on him as a hard enough worker.
9. Buffalo (6-10)- Anthony Davis, OT, Rugters
10. Denver (7-9)- Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State
11. Jacksonville (7-9)- Mike Iupati, OT/OG, Idaho
12. Miami (7-9)- CJ Spiller, RB, Clemson
13. San Francisco (8-8)- Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma
14. Seattle- Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland
15. New York Giants (8-8)- Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech
16. San Fransisco- Brandon Graham, OLB, Michigan
17. Tennessee (8-8)- Brian Price, DT, UCLA
18. Pittsburgh (9-7)- Earl Thomas, S, Texas
19. Atlanta (9-7)- Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma
With most of the value currently available being for 3-4 defence teams: 2x nose tackles (Cody, D. Williams), 3x OLBs (Kindle, Sapp, and Hughes), perfect 3-4 DE (Odrick), or skill positions TE (Gresham ....we traded this yrs 2nd rd pick for Tony Gonzalez), RBs (Best, and Dwyer), and all except one WR still available (we currently have two former #1 picks as our starting WRs) , the plan would be to trade down. Sure we have a need at CB and DE, but few realize that we spent our top 4 picks on the defensive side last yr, and checking out out websitewww.thefalcoholic.com they have been doing a "retrospective" on those players, both top pick Peria Perry DT, and William Moore SS got hurt for the year while signing their contracts, but most of the fans are happy with 3rd round CB Chris Owens, and 4th round pick DE Lawrence Sidbury. We didnt want too many young players on one side of the ball. We currently have a LT, Sam Baker, who is much like Jeff Backus (LT lions) sorta average, but just good enough that we likely wont replace him for the next 8-10 yrs. Trent Williams proved that the LT position (Sr year) might be too much for him to handle, but seems to have an excelent blend of speed and power for the RT side ( Jr year). Protecting Matt Ryan is very important to us, and we feel with proper protection, he can take advantage of his pro-bowl caliber players at WR, TE, and TB.
20. Houston (9-7)- Dan Williams, NT, Tennessee
Dan Williams had an incredible Senior Bowl week. He looked great in practice and commanded double teams during the game. He would fit in on a really good Texan D line. Big strong Williams next to smaller and quick Okoye. Its a dream come true.
21. Cincinnati (10-6)- Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma
22. New England (10-6)- Sergio Kindle, OLB, Texas
23. Green Bay (11-5)- Taylor Mays, S, USC
24. Philadelphia (11-5)- Everson Griffin, OLB, USC
25. Baltimore (9-7)- Carlos Dunlap, DE, Florida
26. Arizona (10-6)- Brandon Spikes, ILB, Florida
27. Dallas (11-5)- Golden Tate, WR, Notre Dame
I was actually angling for an o-lineman here, but since there was a run on them early I decided to pick Golden Tate again. Tate would make the Cowboys offense truly dangerous working the other side of the field opposite Austin. He is a WR in a rb's body, as he is a former rb, and is very dangerous after the catch because of that. Coming from a pro-style offense at Notre Dame he can step in immediately and replace Roy Williams, as I'm wagering Jerry will not want to pick up his 9.5 million dollar option. Tate's return abilities will also have special teams coach DeCamillis drooling.
28. San Diego (13-3)- Jonathon Dwyer, RB, Georgia Tech
29. New York Jets (9-7)- Jerry Hughes, OLB, TCU
Jerry Hughes OLB TCU with the JETS coming within a CB of the superbowl, the jets select possibly the best edge rusher in the draft.Most mocks dont have Hughes in the first round ,but he is a Rex Guy nonstop motor never takes a play off and someone who has a very explosive first step to get to the QB. The Vernon Gholston project is still alive but with selecting Hughes,its actually on life support.
Sean Weatherspoon, OLB, Missouri. The Vikings middle linebacker, E.J. Henderson, is trying to recover from a broken leg. His backup, Jasper Brinkely, finished the year for the Vikings at middle linebacker. We hope, but are not 100% sure that Henderson or Brinkley will be able to play at a high level for the Vikings in 2010. Additionally, starting outside linebacker Ben Leber's contract expires in 2011. Leber is a good linebacker, but sometimes he hasn't made a play when it was there. Weatherspoon will push for playing time right away at middle linebacker and outside linebacker, and could conceivably start for much of the year at either position. He can also contribute on special teams.30. Minnesota (12-4)- Sean Weatherspoon, OLB, Missouri
31. Indianapolis (14-2)- Charles Brown, OT, USC
32. New Orleans (13-3)- Navarro Bowman, OLB, Penn State
2nd Round:
33- St. Louis- Jason Pierre-Paul, DE/OLB, USF
Best Player available at a position of need. Still no QB because who I want will be available in the 4th round. I would probably go offense next round though.
34) Detroit Lions – Maurkice Pouncey, C, Florida
Maurkice Pouncey C/OG Fla. As the draft was falling I was gunning for Jason Pierre Paul to slide here. Alas, the Rams love them some DL so I scrambled, going with talented Maurkice Pouncey. The Lions have had a glaring hole at LG for the past decade? Maurkice has the versatility to fill that spot or center for the next decade. Pouncey is athletic, has good size, good technique, is a good pass protector, can get to the second level.
35) Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State
36) Kansas City Chiefs – Terrence Cody, NT, Alabama
Terrence Cody NT Alabama - This pick seemed logical at the time that i made the lists but the more i look into it and how the picks fell i am rather disappointed with it. Cody is a run stuffer and an immovable object on 1st and 2nd down. We use a nickel package for the most part on passing downs so he wouldn't have to play so much and would help our young DE's improve and grow into a dominant front 3. I would be happy with this pick as i think Haley and Crennel would be able to work with him and make him into a very good player in this league.
37) Washington Redskins – Chad Jones, S, LSU
I picked Chad Jones, FS from LSU because I think that other than Eric Berry, he is the best Safety in this draft. Altho our D was very good last year, FS was a huge disappointment with Chad Jones replacing Laron Landry so that he can move back to his natural position which is SS.
38) Cleveland Browns – Damian Williams, WR, USC
39) Oakland Raiders – Devin McCourty, CB, Rutgers
McCourty was not my first, second or even third choice to pick at this slot, but I'm by no means disappointed in getting him. I think Chris Johnson would make an excellent nickel corner, but I think McCourty would be a better option as starter. Then too, the Raiders kickoff return game was just abysmal in the 2009 season and McCourty is an instant help there.
40) Seattle Seahawks – Lamarr Houston, DT, Texas
41) Buffalo Bills – Demaryius Thomas, WR, Georgia Tech
42) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (from Chicago) – Arrelious Benn, WR, Illinois
43) Miami Dolphins – Brandon LaFell, WR, LSU
44) New England Patriots (from Jacksonville) – Jon Asamoah, G, Illinois
45) Denver Broncos – Arthur Jones, DL, Syracuse
46) New York Giants – Nate Allen, FS, USF
47) New England Patriots – Selvish Capers, OT, West Virginia
48) Houston Texans – Perish Cox, CB, ok. State
Cox has good size and speed for a corner and will also help out in the return game. Playing Peyton Manning twice a year calls for the type of defensive back that Cox showed he can be in the Senior Bowl.
49) San Francisco 49ers – Jahvid Best, RB, Cal.
50) Kansas City Chiefs (from Atlanta) – Jarod Shipley, WR, Texas
Jordan Shipley WR Texas - Many chiefs fans really want him but looking back at the draft i'll probably adjust this pick. A WR is a need on this team but the fact is we need somebody with potential to be a #1 or #2 in this league and Shipley simply isn't that. He is a slot receiver and frankly that position is important to Weis and Haley as a coach so i could see this pick happening. He has sure hands and can help in the return game. This pick becomes more likely if the Chiefs resign Chambers as he showed to be a decent #2 this year. Bowe needs to get back to the great player he was his first 2 years and i believe he does that.
51) Carolina Panthers- Taylor Price, WR, Ohio
First off I wanted a wr with speed, Price runs the 40 in under 4.4 so check. next I wanted a wr that`s team oriented with no character concerns and can block again I feel Price offers all these qualities, he has good senior bowl practices and is on several teams radars and has some analysts predicting top 60 selection, Kiper and cbs rank him at around the 75 range so yes was a reach but was the guy I wanted. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1123712
52) Pittsburgh Steelers – Kyle Wilson, CB, Boise State
53) New England Patriots – Rob Gronkowski, TE, Arizona
54) Cincinnati Bengals – Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati
55) Philadelphia Eagles – Morgan Burnett, S, Georgia Tech
56) Green Bay Packers – Donovan Warran, CB, Michigan
57) Baltimore Ravens – Dexter McCluster, WR, Ole Miss.
58) Arizona Cardinals – Jason Fox, OT, Miami
59) Dallas Cowboys – Vladimir Ducasse, OT/OG UMASS
OT/OG Vladimir Ducasse has great size, arm length, power, and feet. He was also extremely productive and dominated the competition. Unfortunately for him that competition was Division II players. Moreover, as a recent immigrant from Haiti he is not that well developed and has poor technique. Despite all of this a lot of draftniks like Todd McShay and Scott Wright have him rated as a first day prospect (first three rounds) based on his size and potential. And with his great work ethic and willingness to put in long hours in the film room he should live up to that potential.
60) San Diego Chargers – Dezmon Briscoe, WR, Kansas
61) New York Jets – Pat Robinson, CB, Florida State
With the Deep Talent pool of cornerbacks the Jets look to fill the Opposite corner position , across from the best corner in football.Falling all the way to 61st and knowing that NFL QB will be looking to Throw against him Pat Robinson shows up with a chip on his shoulder. He has great top end speed and reads the qb well, needs some work but he fills a big void in jets secondary. The Jets focus on defense with first two picks , first reason being Braylon Edwards actually caught a pass verse the Colts, secondly , why pass when you can run. Christmas comes early for Rex as he continues to build on the Best Defense in Football
62) Minnesota Vikings – Myron Rolle, S, Florida State
Myron Rolle, Safety, Florida State. Rolle adds depth to the safety position for the Vikings. It seems likely that he could play either strong safety or free safety. He even played some cornerback in college. Rolle could push for playing time at either safety position, and perhaps even as a cornerback. He can also contribute on special teams.