This is a mock draft that I made up. it has its quirks but it's based on the current draft order right now. i got to say it's a lil hard making a mock draft this early but this is what separates the fans from the freaks like me. consider everything i say as a bold prediction because no one knows what'll happen in the future. for better or worse this is just what it looks like right now from my eyes. keep in mind that i'm acting like the draft were to start next week so.....
i'll do it in installments of 5 or so picks. i don't know if i'll finish today but by 2 or 3 days is my timeframe since the comments is going to take most of my time.
1. San Diego-Vince Wilfork
the best prospect as of now. San Diego needs to fix their OL and DL plus could use a linebacker. to me it's either him or Gallery with a 80 percent chance of leaning towards Wilfork. i guess them iowa losses really sputtered the buzz for Gallery. though i still think Gallery is a slightly better prospect then Wilfork. since i have heard Gallery has been one of the best offensive line prospects since Pace from a site as well as various others ranking him number one. plus i think tommie harris can make as much an impact as Wilfork will.
2. Arizona-Tommie Harris
i think in this case Arizona would rather trade down and get more picks then just get a player drafted high. but anyway Arizona has needs in QB which they will address and can address in the 2nd round. they also have needs at corner. i think there will be a corner who is late first round material that gets dropped to the Cards. defensive tackles are all the rage and can help them up the middle. but again it's most likely to be traded because they have many holes that not one player can patch up by himself.
3. Jacksonville-Roy Williams
they got things to fill in the defense but why not set up a nice go-to guy for future franchise QB Byron Leftwhich? Jimmy Smith might be on the decline and i wouldn't want to rely on JJ stokes as the past or future #1 WR.
4. Atlanta-Marlin Jackson
Cornerback is a glaring need. ray buchanan has obviously lost his step. i still think Jackson is the best cornerback in this class right now.
5. Chicago-Robert Gallery
again many people regard him as one of the best offensive line prospects since Pace. and i believe them after seeing a couple iowa games. despite them losing their luster as a team as of now Gallery is still a blue chip prospect. he'll help the running game considerably and give more time to Rex Grossman to find his targets.
6. Cincinatti-Sean Taylor
this is a tough draft pick. now that marvin lewis is in the fray i think he will want the bengals to trade down. that way they will still be able to get Taylor within the next couple of picks. or if Taylor is gone they can also get a DT in Randy Starks later on in the draft. i put Taylor in because i believe he is an all-around playmaker but not as high at this spot and especially not as good as Roy Williams is. however what's the difference if they pick him now or 3 picks later in the draft anyway for this mock's purposes?
7. Detroit-Derrick Strait
they really need to clamp down in their passing defense by a lot. i don't think they'll be causing unrest to the Michigan faithful by picking Chris Gamble so they'll go with Strait. also important to note that DeAngelo Hall is rising up the rankings now but i think it's mostly due to his special teams ability not to take away from his current day job or position of course.
8. New York Jets-Reggie Williams
needless to say the Jets has pressing needs in the defense especially in the linebacking corps and in the secondary. but i think reggie williams is too good to pass up. he's big, he's athletic plus about half of the people argue that he is the best wide reciever in this class over the other Williams. plus he's the best player in the board remaining.
9. Oakland-Eli Manning
ok ok we all know how much troubles oakland has. an aging team as a whole. however this is a much realistic pick. as much people like to brand him as overrated he still has the intangibles and every tool a quarterback needs to suceed. meanwhile they could add on to the WR corps later in the draft. and it's also important to note that the offensive line has been peppered with injuries so i still believe they will be a lot better next year in that department. a pick of Ben Roelithsburger would also be somewhat reasonable as the "thinking fan's" quarterback. but of course i'm willing to bet that Al Davis has a knack for flair and will lean on Manning instead. i also like the pick of Shane Andrews here.
10. San Francisco-Rashaun Woods
i see a lot of mock drafts like San Fran to pick a cornerback. it seems like they're not cutting their slack in that department even though they've got a decent pass rush. anyway i'd like to stray from the fray and pick Woods. of course what i really mean is stray from picking a corner because Woods can definitely be a potential top 15 pick. so basically TO and Garcia haven't been talking to each other. from what i've seen the past 2 years he isn't happy there so he'll likely up and go. Woods is the next best WR on the board so up and away he goes.
11. Pittsburgh-Kellen Winslow Jr.
does anyone see shades of blue as in Giants within Pittsburgh. they were only a year away from success but now they are merely wailing. there running game or at least their dedication to the run seems disappeared. now they're passing the ball too much in order to capture the Maddox-Burress-Hines connections of year's ole. well they can do two things here. one is to pick up the next best lineman in Shane Andrews to help with the protection. two is the somewhat dumb yet dreamable option of replacing Famous Amos and the Bus with Beaver Stephen Jackson. the third is to get Kellen Winslow Jr. why does this pick make sense? this will help create an easy outlet for Maddox. so now they have 4 very credible and dangerous threats to watch out for. their run game which Cowher can polish over the season. Plaxico Burress and Hines Ward both of whom had 1000+ yards and a versaitile Recieving tight end in Winslow Jr. from a coaching standpoint it's a dream to get a player like that to get mismatches against linebackers and to ease up on the opposing blitzes because of Winslow.
12. New Orleans-Chris Gamble
their offense is in tip-top shape but their defense is the one that's keeping them down. like many teams above they too need help in the secondary. that's why they will pick up the Buckeye's Chris Gamble. many mocks put him from the low top 10 to top 15 on average. this is a sensible pick at this point because they need help at this position. also important to note that they also need help in defensive tackle and linebacker. also, is it just me or is Karlos Dansby and DJ Williams aren't getting as much press as i expected. anyhow those LBs will prolly do better as the season progresses so i wouldn't be surprised if their stock will rise close to their preseason rankings and get picked somewhere along the lines here.
13. Houston-Shane Andrews
David Carr and basically anyone carrying the ball for their offense needs some protection from the opposing team's defense. that's why Andrews will be picked right here. 6 foot 5 and a mammoth 370 pounds of humanity and right now undoubtedly the 2nd best offensive lineman in the draft. for the fashionable pick i'm still toying with Stephen Jackson getting picked here too. of course it would make no sense to get another running back because Jackson can't run through people like the invisible girl of the fantastic four or something.
14. Philadelphia-Karlos Dansby
who would have thunk that Philly would have lost to Dallas and is at number 14 right now. of course it's considering that it's about close to the halfway point. a lot of mocks put Dansby in the 20's but i think he's good enough to be picked right here. of course they could also go with a WR or running back ahem....another Stephen Jackson reference?!?! ok i'll stop. another interesting pick would be to go with Will Smith at DE to take place of Hugh Douglas' void but it's a little late for that now. plus i'd always dreamed of TO going to Philly with a love-hate relationship. that would be so awesome to see. but i think Dansby will upgrade the Philly defense just a bit to give McNabb and company more oppurtunities to get the ball to the endzone.
15. New York Giants-DJ Williams
again not hearing much about him so far but it would be nice to strengthen the defense further with the addition of Williams uniting him with fellow Cane William Joseph. but i've also got to be concerned with their offensive line. will it hold up in the future? but i really think they can pick up a solid o-line prospect later in the draft.
16. Washington-Randy Starks
the Redskins main trouble here is defending up the gut or in the defensive tackle position. that's why they'll get someone nearby like Starks who goes to Maryland. he's a good player who'll collapse the pocket. maybe now the linebackers can get freed up to make plays.
17. Buffalo-Will Smith
i don't know what's up with the Bills. i heard they haven't scored in the first half in so many plays or something like that. that's why i think it would be a good idea for them to trade up to get to Winslow. hot damn now that's an offense that should put fear into everyone's hearts. but at this position they can strengthen their defense even more with the addition of Will Smith. another really extremely good pick here is adding Nat Dorsey to the offensive line. Williams and Dorsey opposite of each other look very good.
18. Cleveland-Nick Leckey
i'll say it. Cleveland really needs to improve their linebacking corps further to suceed in the NFL. that's why it would be a good idea to trade up to get to Williams or Dansby. though i think there is a really good chance that the Dansby and Williams can still fall in this postion in the real draft. their other needs such as safety and linebacking can't really be justified here. Everage as well as Lehman aren't good enough to pick in the top 20 just yet. if they really want to get a safety then i wouldn't be surprised to see them pick Brimmer as well. he's somewhat of a reach but is favored around the mid-late first round anyway. it remains to be seen whether or when his stock will dramatically rise. but getting a gaurd will address another one of their premium team needs. right now Leckey looks to be better than Carey right now as most mocks put him above.
19. Green Bay-David Pollack
johnson was a big dissapointment for the Pack. they really need to reconfigure a good portion of their defensive line. that is where Pollack comes in. most mocks put him around this area which makes him rated fairly in this one. meanwhile they can get another lineman, perhaps a DB and an apprentice for Favre later in the draft.
20. St. Louis-DeAngelo Hall
Lovie Smith needs a new corner in St. Louis. Hall will be the guy they go to. i've seen drafts rate him as high as a top 10 pick to a late first rounder so i think it's reasonable enough to put him here. he obviously can keep up with almost anybody and not a bad kick returner and punt returner to boot.
21. New England-Stephen Jackson
now they get the playmaking running back they have so desired ever since Robert Edwards was drafted. but it's important to note that most drafts have him in the top 20's and 15's.
22. Tampa Bay-Kevin Jones
Tampa Bay just like New England finally solidifies their running game with Heisman hopeful Kevin Jones. this makes Tampa even more of a contender for at least one or two years. Jones has shown in most of his games that he has the tools all the tools needed to become a complete running back.
23. New England-Jammal Brimmer
to replace Lawyer Milloy they'll pick up Brimmer. this gives them a very good safety yet is underrated because of the fact that he plays in UNLV. another pick I was toying with was getting Clayton but i'm sure Belichick could be content with the group he has right now. though it would be nice to get Clayton to pair up with Brown opposite. nice to imagine but right now i think it's too much of a luxury to warrant a pick. Patten and Branch will hold up for now.
24. Tennessee-Nat Dorsey
Improving the offensive line as well as WR and maybe LB is what the team is looking for. Dorsey has fallen enough. he's 350 pounds that can quickly make way for Eddie George running or muscle opposing linemen. this is another entertaining pick where big play WR Michael Clayton can be tempting to choose.
Copyright Max AKA Nature7100
Any reproduction of this work is prohibited without my written consent.
