The real question is whether Stephone Anthony and Max Unger are as good as Jimmy Graham (and whoever Seattle takes with their new 4th rounder, I suppose).
Pretty boring 1st round, though. Only two trades and they were between 15/17 and 23/28, not exactly earth-shattering. No real fun surprises or reaches… I guess the Rams taking Todd Gurley was the most interesting one.
My cable company dropped NFLN recently, so I had to watch it on ESPN. Even they seemed more subdued than last year (at least Gruden’s incessant MANZIEL, TAKE MANZIEL was amusing). Now that I think of it, there were no viewpoints into the ‘command rooms’ of the teams like we’ve seen in the past… not sure if that’s an NFL-exclusive thing, or what, but I kinda missed it. Mainly for this: The Jags war room - Imgur
Going forward, I hope that 1) the Raiders draft nothing but linemen and DBs (does this make me the person SenorBeef hates?), and 2) Brett Hundley ends up on the Eagles where he can become New Mariota.
The Packers are already set at safety, with Morgan Burnett and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, and they are planning to use Randall more as a cornerback (a weaker position for them). Randall apparently was moved to safety at Arizona State due to it being a need for the team.
Quoth Ted Thompson:
“We felt fortunate that we were able to draft Damarious Randall that late,” Thompson said. “We think he’s a very versatile player. We’ll probably line him up as a corner. But in Dom’s system, those defensive backs are all over the place. It’s hard to keep up with who’s playing what.”
I trust Ted Thompson; he and his staff are better at player evaluation than I could ever hope to be and his track record is pretty good.
But I just watched Randall’s game tape against Oregon State and it was bad. He’s beaten in coverage, he’s getting juked by running backs, he’s shying from contact, and he’s not tackling well. There are certainly some nice spots (he’s fast enough for sure), but I was severely disappointed in the game tape.
I watched the Stanford game too, and it was better. He was better in coverage, almost had an interception, was a game changer on special teams, and it’s fun watching him blitz, but he still doesn’t look like a first round talent to me. But, like I said, they know more than I do.
The Bears drafts have been great and the Packers poor as witnessed by the fact the Packers have had only two starting quarterbacks over the last twenty, or so, years and the Bears twelve or fifteen.
As a Packer fan living in NY I have witnessed the Jets making bad pick after bad pick over the years. I kind of feel sorry for their fans. Maybe getting the draft away from MSG will be good for them.
I hope they regret the pick. MG3 had one of the three or four best years a college football running back has ever had and Gurley sat out much of the season with injuries. Gurley is heftier and might stand up better to NFL pounding. We’ll know in two years which team, San Diego or St. Louis made the better pick.
Signs point to him being their Nickel. Probably the best fit for him since it’ll keep him out of the box and he probably won’t be matched up with big physical leapers on the outside.
I hope he’s a turd, we’ll see. He’s definitely not prototypical and isn’t that versatile, but in a dismal draft for secondary players getting a starting Nickelback would be a win.
I agree, and said so in the thread preceeding this one. I just think he is immature and he’s never experienced failure on the football field. The first time he gets benched, or realizes that the NFL is a different beast and 4th qtr comebacks aren’t par for the course against most NFL teams (vs mid-tier ACC teams), I think he implodes.
This was just brutal.
This fascinates me. Everyone says he isn’t a suspect, but I read today that he may not be drafted AT ALL! His agent apparently asked the league to let him enter the supplemental draft so this could sort itself out, and the NFL said no. If he is truly innocent, this has cost him untold millions.
But something doesn’t fit with the “not even a suspect” tag-line.
Thought this was too high, but if healthy and if he has a line, he could be a great back. But too many ifs here, and I wouldn’t have taken him as the first RB.
Interesting… He was a guy I really liked, but I didn’t do much research on him… Given his productivity at the beginning of the year against lesser opponents, I agree with you that he may not be as great as I thought. I didn’t realize that.
Not happy with this pick. For the 3rd straight year, Colbert takes a LB in the first. He is to LB’s what Matt Millen was to WR’s in Detroit.
Right now, Steeler fans are thrilled because he wasn’t supposed to be here, but this is the 3rd straight year I’ve heard the same thing after their 1st pick. Jarvis Jones is a bust, and Shazier has yet to see any real time… So far, he’s made of glass.
I want to know why he slid so far. If he tuens out to be great, well, great! But Colbert has shown a poor ability to judge defensive talent, especially in the draft and FA signings.
FTR, i wanted a CB. They have to take CB the next two picks. Their secondary is awful.
Didn’t understand this pick. He drops a lot of passes.
As long as I get one of those guys I’ll be happy. Maybe even happy enough to charitably forget an earlier bad draft pick. If I get over of those top three, the 49ers will have one 1st Rounder selected with their first two picks.
Our they’ll pick Dorial Green-Beckham, the rest of the fanbase will exalt while I scrounge around my desk to gather enough pieces of paper to toss up in frustration.
I am coming around on this pick a little. As a LB next to Kuechly and Davis. On Special Teams. Maybe even occasionally on offense. Guy’s a good football player, if not concrete at one position. There was no viable LT at that spot. I think they can get a speed WR in 2nd round.
Just to point it out, he HAS experienced failure on the football field — and very embarrassing failure, in fact. (In that same game, his coach threatened him with benching.)
And wouldn’t it be nice to be so rich that you don’t have to bother learning the last name of one of your consensus top two most in-demand prospects in your league?
This isn’t exactly the type of failure I am talking about. And he WASN’T benched.
I want to see how he reacts if he is benched after throwing his 3rd pick in a half. If he can’t complete 50% of his passes and is booed by the home fans… If he can’t outrun NFL defenders like he could in college.
He has NEVER been consequenced for bad behavior. He ALWAYS has an excuse or someone is willing to jump in and defend him. I have seen this movie before. Last year, in fact. Johnny Football. The fact is, and history bears it out, that these guys rarely change from what they are.
If I am wrong, good for TB. But he is just too close to home for me to think he will have any chance.
Indeed! Doesn’t know the kid’s name, doesn’t care to know the kid’s name!
Well that’s unfortunate. Browns traded back. Seems like Strong/Gregory would’ve been steals here. I was happy to see so many tempting players fall to their pick, and then they jumped back from it. They must have someone in particular in mind.
