Mock Draft, First Attempt
The Top 10:
1. Dolphins... Chris Long, DE, Virginia... Bill Parcells inherited a team with plenty of needs but a pass-rusher isn't a bad place to start.
2. Rams... Jake Long, T, Michigan... Maybe the safest pick in the draft.
3. Falcons... Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College... If you don't have a quarterback and one is available, you'd better get him.
4. Raiders... Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU... He can be the anchor for their defensive line that the just-retired Warren Sapp never was.
5. Chiefs... Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC... They can't pass up help along the defensive front.
6. Jets... Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas... The Jets get a potential steal if McFadden remains available for them.
7. Patriots... Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State... The Patriots really need more help at cornerback but can't pass up Gholston if he falls to them.
8. Ravens... Leodis McKelvin, CB, Troy... The run on cornerbacks begins.
9. Bengals... Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tennessee State... Small-time school, big-time talent.
10. Saints... Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas... Rivers could be tempting but cornerbacks have become oh-so-valuable in today's NFL.
The Rest:
11. Bills... Ryan Clady, T, Boise State
12. Broncos... Jeff Otah, T, Pitt
13. Panthers... Keith Rivers, LB, USC
14. Bears... Malcolm Kelly, WR, Oklahoma
15. Lions... Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida
16. Cardinals... Chris Williams, T, Vanderbilt
17. Vikings... DeSean Jackson, WR, Cal
18. Texans... Mike Jenkins, CB, South Florida
19. Eagles... Branden Albert, G, Virginia
20. Buccaneers... Limas Sweed, WR, Texas
21. Redskins... James Hardy, WR, Indiana
22. Cowboys... Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois
23. Steelers... Kenny Phillips, S, Miami
24. Titans... Lawrence Jackson, DE, USC
25. Seahawks... Jonathan Stewart, RB, Oregon
26. Jaguars... Brandon Flowers, CB, Virginia Tech
27. Chargers... Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
28. Cowboys... Kentwan Balmer, DT, North Carolina
29. 49ers... Early Doucet, WR, LSU
30. Packers... Gosder Cherilus, T, Boston College
31. Giants... Dan Connor, LB, Penn State
By Mark Maske |
March 14, 2008; 3:34 PM ET
| Category:
Draft
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Posted by: tommy | March 14, 2008 3:57 PM
It's so early yet, and it's hard to pinpoint people for teams in the 20s because so much can happen in front of them. But yeah, I do think he fits what they need.
Posted by: Mark Maske | March 14, 2008 4:54 PM
Mark,
This is one of the weakest group of WR's ever! Other than Sweed whose coming off an injury there's not any #1's. Everyone of them has some kind of flaw or question mark. The Redskins would be foolish to draft a WR with the pick 21 with other pressing needs. Drafting a #2 wr here would be like drafting a pass rushing DE who was poor at stopping the run and would only play on third downs.
Posted by: Lmyers | March 14, 2008 7:36 PM
You make valid points. I could definitely see the Redskins going for a cornerback, but I have the cornerbacks coming off the board very, very early. I could also see them going for a defensive lineman. You never know about receivers. We've seen so many years in which we thought it was a great, great group of first-round receivers and mostly they don't pan out. That's why it's so difficult to predict for a team in the 20s. If the right receiver, cornerback or defensive lineman falls to the Redskins, you could see them going in any of those directions.
Posted by: Mark Maske | March 15, 2008 12:34 PM
Mark,
What about the Skins taking Brandon Flowers or Kenny Phillips???????????/
Posted by: Tommy | March 15, 2008 4:54 PM
Mark - I saw on Mike Reiss's blog that in the ESPN mock draft he participated in, Ryan slipped past #7. The mock draft involved writers from each city and no trades. They had Long - Long - Dorsey - Gholston - Ellis - McFadden as the top 6. Reiss went for Talib, but said in that case, the Pats would likely trade down for someone looking for a qb.
Going through your mock draft, do you see a point at which someone would trade down to a team that wants McFadden, Ryan, or one of the others?
Posted by: jon | March 15, 2008 5:15 PM
If the Falcons don't take Ryan third, he could slip quite a ways, yes. The guys in the top six or seven are pretty interchangeable. You could see them going in a lot of different orders and combinations. McFadden, to me, is the one guy that really could have people interested in trading up. I don't know if a team will trade up for Ryan. Anyone who wants Ryan might just wait to see if he falls past the Falcons and then keeps dropping.
Posted by: Mark Maske | March 17, 2008 8:34 AM
If the Skins really wanted James Hardy, they could trade down a round and still get him.
I'd rather have Devin Thomas he has size and speed, while Hardy just has size.
In fact, I'd prefer any of the players you list going in the 1st round after the Skins pick -- we just don't need the running backs.
Mark, are you in love with Hardy or do you think the Skins are?
Posted by: rb | March 18, 2008 3:51 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
tjzukoski@yahoo.com,
Mark you like James Hardy, WR, Indiana for the Redskins?
Is he any good?