The 2007 NFL Draft…The Morning After
Yeah, yeah…we won’t know how well each team drafted until three years down the road. Whatever, if we’re not here to give our opinions, what good are we?
5 Drafts I liked…
San Francisco 49ers
As the resident fan of the NFL’s most successful franchise, I could not be happier with the results of this 48 hour talent windfall. Mike Nolan views LB Patrick Willis as a Ray Lewis clone, and I think he was the second best defensive player in the draft behind LSU safety Laron Landry. Joe Staley is penciled right in as the starter at left tackle allowing Jonas Jennings to move back to the right side. San Francisco recouped the 2008 1st round pick they will send to New England from the Colts in the 2nd round. Ray McDonald of the national champion Gators is a classic nose tackle who more than held his own following the dismissal of the much more publicized Marcus Thomas. Sending a 4th round pick to Seattle for the oft injured, but ultra-talented Darrel Jackson, was a no-brainer. If Alex Smith makes the expected progression of a 3rd year starting QB, the 49ers could be the favorites in the NFC West.
Oakland Raiders
What I like about the Raiders draft is that the risks they took have a very high ceiling. The Silver and Black learned their lesson and did not pass on QB’s this year. It must have been tempting to take Calvin Johnson. Jamarcus Russel is going to be a very good QB. RB Michael Bush is a 1st round talent if he can stay healthy and would make Lamont Jordan expendable after next season. Trading a 4th round pick for QB Josh McCown and WR Mike Williams was smart. For a team with a young QB, Williams is a better fit than Randy Moss, and Williams thrived under coach Lane Kiffin at USC. WR Johnny Lee Higgens can flat out fly, and was ultra productive at UTEP. DE Quentin Moses is an undersized pass rushing specialist in the mold of Derick Burgess. Safety Eric Frampton is a head hunter at safety.
Baltimore Ravens
Ben Grubbs is an excellent guard. Yamon Figurs is a big play machine on special teams. Antwan Barnes brings attitude to the table at OLB. QB Troy Smith will be playing with a chip on his shoulder for a long time due to his 5th round selection, and he gets to be mentored by Steve McNair, a consummate professional. LB Prescott Burgess is slow, but always made a ton of plays at Michigan.
Minnesota Vikings
Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor are going to make each other much better. WR’s Sidney Rice and Aundrae Allison bring different sets of skills to the table. If not for the off the field issues, CB Marcus McCauley is a 1st round talent.
Dallas Cowboys
The majority of my adoration for the “Boys” two days was picking up a likely Top 5 pick from Cleveland for the 2008 draft. Anthony Spencer is going to be a QB terror and likely take Greg Ellis’ job a year from now.
5 Drafts that left me scratching my head….
Green Bay Packers
The team entered the weekend with Vernond Morency as their starting RB. The Packers exit the draft with Morency and the overrated Brandon Jackson out of Nebraska. DT Justin Harrell would have been on the board 10 picks later in the 1st round. This isn’t the type of draft that will make Bret Favre want to stick around much longer. I do like Aaron Rouse, the safety out of Virginia Tech. WR depth and RB were really not addressed.
San Diego Chargers
WR Craig Davis was a major reach in the 1st round. Trading 5 picks for CB Eric Weddle was questionable. I do like LB Brandon Siler as a 7th round sleeper out of Florida.
Tennessee Titans
Floyd Reese must have been laughing his butt off from the ESPN studios. Was Vince Young making this picks? The Titans desperately needed a CB or a WR in the 1st round. Instead, they took Vince’s teammate Michael Griffin, the second best safety available. Chris Henry is hardly a replacement for Travis Henry at RB. Chris Henry had great post season workouts, but was largely unproductive at Arizona. This was arguably the worst draft in the league.
Houston Texans
I feel like the Texans had too many holes not to trade down. They did not address the need for a #2 WR, the tackle position received no immediate help, and it appears that CC Brown will remain the starter at safety. Amobi Okoye had better be really special.
Denver Broncos
Denver some how managed to turn 4 1st day picks into 3. Jarvis Moss is one dimensional as a pass rusher. Tim Crowder was a perennial underachiever at Texas. They did not address their lack of depth in the secondary.
The Rockets and Jazz are tied at 2 games each. Let’s take a look back at the pre-series analysis.
#4 Utah vs #5 Houston
No pressure Rockets, but despite the fact that your records are nearly identical (52-30 to 51-31), and you lost 3 out of to Utah this season, there is no excuse for you not to win this series. You have the two best players in the series (Yao Ming & McGrady). You have two elite perimeter defenders in Shane Battier and T-Mac. You have surrounded Yao Ming with a full complement of 3 point gunners (Luther Head, Battier, Rafer Alston) to help space the floor. You have the home court advantage for the 1st time in the career of your superstars. Your opponent has less playoff experience than you do. The Jazz will not beat themselves. They will play smart and continue to exploit Yao Ming’s lack of mobility in pick-and-roll defense. Matt Harpring, Paul Millsap, and Gordon Giricek give the Jazz a more consistent scoring punch off the bench. But my money is on Tracy McGrady making this more than just a one and done experience for your hometown hoopers.
Prediction: Rockets in 7.
That’s pretty darn accurate, don’t you think? No pressure T-Mac, but this one is all on you.
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