NFL Draft

[noptov52]

Who here is planning on watching the draft? (Sadly?) I will probably watch the first round and leave the TV on it for rounds 2-3 while I play WoW.

My team, the 'Skins, holds the 9th pick and they have recently said they won't trade down. I personally am hoping that's just part of the pre-draft BS that every team throws out. With several needs and no 2nd round pick a trade down would make sense. I hope they don't end up drafting Adam "Pac Man" Jones like everybody seems to be predicting, if for no better reason as it would be horribly predictable.

In other draft intrigue I feel like Mike Williams seems to be slipping, his poor 40 times and the comparison to Keyshawn aren't helping his cause.

My personal draft favorite is Matt Jones who is an absolute physical freak and a competitor to boot. Stick him at WR and see how few corners can stop a 6'6" 240lb 40" vertical leap 4.4 monster. Can anyone say "throw the fade"?

Runner up (no pun intended) is definitely Darren Sproles an undersized midget back with the moves of Barry Sanders. Another 3-4 inches and he would be the top pick overall, he's just that good. It'll be interesting how far he drops but I'd be shocked if he didn't go first day. His diminunitive stature will keep him from ever being a starter, but he'll be one hell of a change of pace back.

I also like Adrian McPherson who has very limited college experiance and character issues in the past (causing him to be dismissed from the Florida State team). His upside however is hard to ignore: Physical specimen who absolutely lit up the Arena league (61 TDs to 5 INTs) and seems to have really turned his life around (maturity, what? hear that Mr. Clarrett?).

Breaking news: Just in the time I was typing this it hit the news that the Redskins have traded for the 25th overall pick from the Broncos. This pisses me off for two reasons: 1) Rumor is they are going to use the pick for a QB, when Patrick Ramsey is a decent starter already and could develop into a good QB 2) The Redskins paid a steep price (next year's 1st and 4th, this year's 3rd) in a draft that is not considered to have a lot of first round value players. IMO trading for a high second round pick would get them a player of the same caliber for a much cheaper price. The Redskins are actually pretty good a drafting players, they just keep trading their picks away so they don't have enough.

My only solace will be if they draft Matt Jones (speed/moves of Vick, ups of Randy Moss, strength of TO, and half a foot taller).

What are your draft thoughts, hopes, and such?

[Erudite]

My Steelers are picking 30th. I don't really know what to think - so much that happens above them will change their strategy.

They seem to like Heath Miller, the TE out of Virginia. With Burress gone to the Giants (suckers), they'll be looking to give Roethlisberger more receiving targets - and Miller is clearly the best receiving TE of the draft. The Jets are supposed to be interested in him, though, so he may well be gone by the time the Steelers are on the clock.

Matt Jones is indeed intriguing. The Steelers do have a history of taking college quarterbacks and turning them into good receivers (see Hines Ward, Antwaan Randel-El, and Kordell Stewart before somebody told him he really was a quarterback), so Jones isn't a stretch for them in that regard. There's even talk that he could bulk up a bit and line up at TE. He's a complete mystery though - he could go in the top 15, or not until the 3rd or 4th round. I would love to see him drafted by the Steelers.

One player I hope the Steelers stay far away from is Marlin Jackson, the CB out of Michigan. I think he's overrated as a CB - his run-support skills are outstanding, but his man-cover skills are suspect - especially at the NFL level. He'd make an outstanding safety, I think, but he's not cracking the Steelers starting lineup as long as Troy Polamalu is wearing black and gold.

Vincent Jackson, the WR out of Northern Colorado, is a prospect the Steeler may look at towards the end of the 2nd round if he's still around and the WR need hasn't been filled in the first round. He's big (nearly 6'5" and 240 lbs), with decent speed (4.55 40). He's very athletic, very strong, a good leaper, and attacks the ball in the air. He also played basketball at NC, which is becoming a trendy selling point on receivers and TEs. He played against weaker competition in college, though, and has some off-the-field issues that will scare a lot of teams - especially the Steelers.

And I would love Pac-Man Jones, but there's no way he falls to 30. :lowrazz: