SCU Mock 2009 NFL Draft v2.0

Here is the link to v1.0.

We are under a month for the draft, and I wanted to update my original draft with the rest of my first round picks, and to reflect the recent action of the Cutler deal. People would like to think that things have changed, but I don’t really think they have all that much. Im not going to go into much more explanation outside of the top 10, so forgive me for not being a Mel Kiper wannabe.

1. Detroit Lions – QB Matt Stafford, GEORGIA

Well, despite their best interests, I think Matt Stafford is probably going to go number one. Jason Smith or Aaron Curry should be here, but they wont be. Stafford is the best QB in the draft, and the Lions are going to start anew with him. He may start from day one which is a nightmare situation, but I guess there is no alternative. Oh wait, Jay Cutler? No? Well, yeah, you are screwed then.
Prev Pick: Jason Smith, BAYLOR

2. St Louis Rams – OT Jason Smith, BAYLOR

The Rams need a guy that can take the place of Orlando Pace, and Jason smith is going to be better than Pace. He is a strong and speedy tackle, and should be a great asset to a line that has struggled to protect Bulger. It is a Tackle heavy draft, but its always nice to get the best one. These guys are starters from day one, as also said before, and the Rams will need that.
Prev Pick: OT Eugene Monroe, UVA

3. Kansas City Chiefs – LB Aaron Curry, WAKE FOREST

Man, Curry is a beast. The guy just has a ton of potential at linebacker for the Chiefs, especially on a defense that really needs the help. I originally thought Maybin would be here as the consensus pick, but the combine wasn’t as friendly to him as it could have been. Curry has as much upside as Patrick Willis, and should be quicker and and better at a key position.
Prev Pick: SAME

4. Seattle Seahawks – OT Eugene Monroe, UVA

The Seahawks need everything but a WR, and we may even see them reach for a RB or QB here, or trade down to avoid paying for one. Monroe is one of the best tackles behind Smith, and you never pass up a talent at OT, but the Seahawks are hurting everywhere. This is a toss up if Stafford goes #1.
Prev Pick: Matt Stafford, GEORGIA

5. Cleveland Browns – OLB, DE Aaron Maybin, PSU

Maybin was as high as number one on some boards, and I don’t think the Browns could pass up one of the best players in the draft, especially with their ailing defense. Maybin will be a star, and has put on some weight since the combine, so you can expect that many a big hits are in his future. He could be the next big name on defense, I would be shocked if he was a bust.

Prev Pick: SAME

6. Cincinatti Bengals – WR Michael Crabtree, TX TECH

Crabtree is the best player in the draft in my opinion, and the foot injury isnt a bad enough thing to keep him out of the top 10. If he falls this far, he wont get past Cincy, who just lost their best receiver. The guy is a ridiculous talent, and may be on the same level of potential as Calvin Johnson was. I would think this guy could be a 100 catch 15TD player down the road, and boy does this team need him.
Prev Pick: SAME

7. Oakland Raiders – WR Jeremy Maclin, MISSOURI

Wow, what a crapfest the Raiders have become. Thank you Al Davis. The Raiders have no one left in their receiving corps, and Maclin could be that big play guy they are looking for to help out Russell. God knows he needs it. They could also go OLine here, but im not sure if the Raiders draft people are that smart. Maclin is a rocket off the line with a 4.4 40, and you can expect that the upside on him will be enough for the Raiders to take him.
Prev Pick: SAME

8. Jacksonville Jaguars – OT Michael Oher, OLE MISS

Jacksonville needs some playmakers to help Garrard, but they also need to protect him. Their line has been suspect over the years and Oher may be the guy to fix it. I would have put Smith here, but the guy is a washout, much to Oher’s benefit. If Maclin makes it down here, the Jags will take him, but I would expect them to definitely want to shore up problems up front as well.

Prev Pick: SAME

9. Green Bay Packers – DE Brian Orakpo, UT

The Packers may be switching to a 3-4 next year, and Orakpo should fit into that scheme from what I have seen. He has the speed and the know how to be a great OLB or DE, and you can believe that the Packers need the help with their awful rush defense from last year.

Prev Pick: SAME

10. San Fransisco 49ers – QB Mark Sanchez, USC

Holy crap, this pick could be the most up in the air for the entire draft. The Niners have a huge amount of holes and a QB that hasn’t had a healthy season since he was drafted. I didn’t think that Sanchez would go here before, but I have a feeling that after his great pro day, he will. Sanchez has the tools to be a good fit in the NFL, pro style offense, etc, but may not be an elite prospect. San Fran may wait one more year for Bradford or the others, but who knows.

Prev Pick: DE BJ Raji, BOSTON COLLEGE

11. Buffalo Bills – DE BJ Raji, BOSTON COLLEGE

12. Denver Broncos – DE Everette Brown, FLORIDA

13. Washington Redskins – OT Andre Smith, ALABAMA

14. New Orleans Saints – CB Malcom Jenkins, OSU

15. Houston Texans – LB Brian Cushing, USC

16. San Diego Chargers – DT Robert Ayers, TENNESSEE

17. New York Jets – QB Josh Freeman, KSU

18. Denver Broncos – DE Michael Johnson, GTECH

19. Tampa Bay Bucs – RB Knowshon Moreno, GEORGIA

20. Detroit Lions – CB Vontae Davis, ILL

21. Philidelphia Eagles – RB Chris Wells, OSU

22. Minnesota Vikings – WR Percy Harvin, FLORIDA

23. New England Patriots – LB Ray Maualunga, USC

24. Atlanta Falcons – DT Peria Jerry, OLE MISS

25. Miami Dolphins – TE Brandon Pettigrew OSU

26. Baltimore Ravens – DT Evander Hood, MIZZOU

27. Indianapolis Colts – LB Clay Matthews, USC

28. Philadelphia Eagles – OT Eben Britton, ARIZONA

29. New York Giants – WR Hakeem Nicks, UNC

30. Tennesee Titans – CB DJ Moore, VANDY

31. Arizona Cardinals – RB LeSean McCoy, PITT

32. Pittsburgh Steelers – C Alex Mack,

That’s my first round, so far, and again, I have no experience doing this. Please take that into consideration when looking at this. The draft is pretty up in the air this year, and I hope it goes well for my team. I love watching the draft, no doubt, and maybe ill come close to what I predicted. I don’t think that the teams really have a set draft plan either, other than position needed and their board, so I assume that when the pick comes, they may have just as much of a problem as I did when I was writing this.

NFL DRAFT: Vikings On The Clock

Im going to be focusing a lot on the draft coming up, mainly because there is nothing else. This time, I want to discuss who I think the Vikings should pick for their spot at 22. There is a lot of draft that happens before they get on the clock, and I think there is a lot of people that could be there when they pick. There are some players that I would consider to be a good investment for the team, and a bunch of others who arent. Again, let me state that I am in no way a draft guy, I just like reading about it.

Offensive Tackle – Eben Britton, Andre Smith, or a Plethora Of Others

I always think an offensive tackle is a great investment, especially when you can get top talent in the lower picks of the first round. As it stands right now, the line upgrade we would get from one of the tackles in the draft is invaluable, and would do nothing but help this team. We just lost Matt Birk, which I think was a horrible fucking decision to not throw cash at him for a few more years, and now this position is even more important.

On the other hand, I DO NOT WANT ANDRE SMITH. He may have talent and upside, but the attitude and work ethic has already been shown to be very very poor. If you cant get a good tackle here, there are plenty later in the draft.

Center – Max Unger, Alex Mack

Despite having the name of a long forgotten Nickelodeon character, Mack is a great pick to replace Matt Birk for years to come. He is just what they need, however, you don’t pick a center in the first round. Its not worth it. Center is not one of the positions that make or break a team, but it can definitely hurt if it is not addressed. Vikings need a center, but they need other things more. If they pick Mack or Unger, I wont be angry, I will just think there should have been more thought, as one of these guys should be around when the Vikings pick comes around again.

Wide Receiver – Percy Harvin, Darrius Heyward-Bey, Hakeem Nicks

Hobby wise, I hope they pick one of these guys so I have someone to collect. Team wise, I think Harvin is a great pick if he is there, but I would wait on the other players. See, when it comes to WRs, you either have a legit number 1 or you have a support guy. Sad thing is that the Vikings’ receivers are all support guys. Harvin could be great, but he isnt Maclin or Crabtree who will both be #1 guys. Its very easy to be a good RB in this league, its not easy to be a good WR, especially when Sage or Tjack are throwing you the ball.

However, I think this is the best investment for the team based on Childress’ current outlook. He doesn’t want a QB, he is also a complete jackass.

Quarterback – Mark Sanchez, Josh Freeman, Pat White

I don’t think there is any question in most of the fan’s minds that this is the way the Vikings should go if any of them had a brain. They should have given up their draft for Cutler or at least try to trade up and get Sanchez or Freeman. Childress refuses, but he also has proven that his mind is complete crap when it comes to building an offense. There were two things that prevented the Vikes from going further into the playoffs, first is lack of a QB, and there is no way around it. If Jackson had been Cutler, that last drive against philly would not have been an excersize in futility. You cant deny that Jackson is not an NFL level talent, and both Sanchez and Freeman will be. Good QBs don’t come in the draft often, most other positions do. Next year will be rich in QBs, but it also prevents a year on the bench, something that is needed for most QB draft picks. Normally, I would say its not too much of a problem to wait, but I don’t think the Vikings have that luxury. Without a QB drafted in this round or signed/traded for, the Vikings will be doomed to continual first round mediocrity.

This is where I want them to go. They wont. I hate being a Vikings fan during the draft. Adrian Peterson as the exception, the fans pick never gets the nod, and most of the time, the fans have been right with who they wanted.

Cornerback – Vontae Davis, among others

I do not want them to go corner, but they probably will if not OT. Corners are a dime a dozen, and I actually think this is a better position addressed via free agency, but of course, they wont agree. Vontae Davis is great, he will be similar to Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie from this past year, but honestly, there is one of them in every stage of the draft. First round corners are not as hard to find as first round WRs or QBs. I would avoid this pick as a way to improve the team. Its complete nonsense.

The only advantage to selecting someone like Davis, is you automatically upgrade your return game too. Davis would step in immediately at KR and PR, so that would be great. However, I still don’t support this type of pick.

Linebacker – James Laurinitis (sp?), Others

If they have the chance to draft a good linebacker, you can never have enough good people in this position. Although it is not a direct need, there may not be anyone else worth drafting at this spot by the time the picks come around. I wouldn’t necessarily support going this direction, but drafting best available – corner or not – may be a reality.

Personally, I think this years draft will be a lot of fun, with a lot of trades. Its going to be fast paced, and I think there will be a lot of surprises. Hopefully the Vikings can come out on top.