Colts: A-
R1 Anthony Castonzo, OT Boston College
R2 Ben Ijalana, OL Vilanova
R3 Drake Nevis, DT LSU
R4 Delone Carter, RB Syracuse
R6 Chris Rucker, CB Michigan St.
As much as I hate the Colts, I have to respect how they consistently find a way to win at least 10 games every season. That mostly has to do with how successful they are in the draft every year. Their biggest need coming into the draft was fixing their offensive line that made Peyton Manning look like Rex Grossman for a lot of last season. Castonzo is a great blue-collar player who can play both right and left tackle. He will be a day one starter and should develop into the left tackle the Colts have been looking for since Tarik Glenn retired. Ijalana will probably play left guard or right tackle and will be another lineman to pair with Castonzo who should start for the Colts for a very long time.
The Colts’ have failed to find a decent starter at defensive tackle for a very long time and Nevis will get a shot at filling that role. The Colts have not drafted well at this spot in the past and they will hope that Nevis’ experience in the SEC will lead him to be successful in the NFL. Last year it seemed like the Colts never knew who was going to be starting for them at running back because at least one back was always injured. Carter is a short and stout physical running back who is elusive enough to take over the starting role for the Colts. Rucker is a good developmental corner. He has the size and speed to start in the NFL, but needs some time to develop and might have a hard time making this talented Colts team.
Four out of the Colts five picks could start for them this season and their fifth pick could turn into a starter down the line. They also hit on their most glaring need with their first two picks. I am sure they would have loved to get another receiver to help out Manning, but this is still a great draft.
Jaguars: B-
R1 Blaine Gabbert, QB Missouri
R3 William Rackley, OL Lehigh
R4 Cecil Shorts, WR Mount Union
R4 Chris Prosinski, DB Wyoming
R5 Rod Issac, DB Middle Tennessee St.
This draft will be entirely judged by whether or not Baline Gabbert becomes a franchise quarterback. It is strange that two quarterbacks got drafted before him, since he was considered by most to be the top quarterback in this draft. He was well worth the 10th overall pick based on his potential alone. Gabbert should be ecstatic going to Jacksonville since David Garrard can play for another season or two while Gabbert learns how to run a pro style offense. This is the perfect situation for a young quarterback and Gabbert will be given every opportunity to succeed.
Playing at Lehigh, Rackley did not play against elite competition, but he did dominate everyone he played against. He has a lot of potential and should develop into a starting guard for the Jags. Shorts looks best suited to be a slot receiver due to his precise route running skills and his ability to make the tough catches over the middle. He will never be a deep threat, but he should be a reliable target for Garrard or Gabbert. The Jags started a bunch of garbage players at safety last season and Prosinski will compete immediately for a starting role. Issac is a developmental safety and should be able to make this team due to a lack of depth at safety.
Despite having a lot of holes in this roster, the Jags still almost were able to beat out the Colts to win this division. If Gabbert lives up to half of his potential, he will turn out to be a heck of a player. The rest of this draft looks to at least add some depth to their roster and gives them some prospects who hopefully can develop into starters. However, it is unlikely that any of these players will start for the Jags in 2011, which is pretty disappointing considering how little talent this team has, especially on defense.
Texans: A-
R1 JJ Watt, DE Wisconsin
R2 Brooks Reed, OLB/DE Arizona
R2 Brandon Harris, CB Miami
R4 Rashad Carmichael, CB Virginia Tech
R5 Shiloh Keo, DB Idaho
R5 Taylor Yates, QB UNC
R7 Derek Newton, OL Arkansas State
R7 Cheta Ozougwu, OLB/DE Rice
The Texans’ pass defense was about as bad as it could have been. They lost numerous games in the last few seconds simply because their opponents were able to score on them with almost no time left on the clock. This area was clearly what they focused on in the draft. The Texans are switching to a 3-4 defense and did not really have a 5-technique defensive end on their roster, especially since they just announced that Mario Williams will be moved to outside linebacker, so this was a huge need for them. Watt has the rare size to play the position (6’5, 290 lbs). He should immediately upgrade their rush defense and he should be able to develop into an adequate pass rusher. The drafting of Reed in the second round seemed to be a perfect fit, until I found out Mario Williams will be playing OLB. Since it looks like Brian Cushing and Mario Williams will be playing OLB, I am not sure where Reed fits into this defense. Reed should be a starter and maybe they will move Cushing inside like they did last year and have Reed and Williams on the outside. Either way, Reed adds another elite pass rusher to this defense that with two picks went from the worst in the NFL to one of the most dangerous.
Their next three picks went to addressing their defensive backfield, which was appalling last season. They traded up to take Harris in the second round, which is good value because he could have been taken in the end of the first round. Harris should start immediately at one of the top two cornerback spots due to a complete lack of depth and talent there. Carmichael is another cornerback to add to their rotation and could see a prominent role for this defense. Keo is a big safety that will be a player to add to their rotation and should make an impact on run downs and special teams.
With their first pick on the offensive side of the ball, they take a Yates who projects to be a solid backup in the NFL. He ran a pro style offense in college so he could start the season as Houston’s number two quarterback. Newton is a swing offensive lineman who can play numerous positions and adds some depth. Ozougwu is this year’s Mr. Irrelevant: the last player taken in the draft. He is a linebacker who will have to make the roster through special teams, but could develop into a solid situational pass rusher.
I really love what the Texans did with this draft. They managed to get good value with all of their picks, yet still were able to fill a lot of needs for this team. Watt should be able to play defensive end for them for over a decade. I question his pass rushing abilities, but he should at least be an above average starter and a force against the run. Reed should turn into an elite pass rusher and has the potential to have the same type of impact that Clay Matthews has for the Packers, which is extremely impressive for a second rounder. Cornerback was possibly their biggest need and they seem to have landed two solid corners who should be able to contribute right away and possibly develop into quality starters for them. The rest of their draft was helping out the depth at some positions. The Texans’ offense is extremely dangerous and if Wade Phillips can shore up that defense, this could FINALLY be the year that the Texans make it to the playoffs.
Titan: D+
R1 Jake Locker, QB Washington
R2 Akeem Ayers, OLB UCLA
R3 Jurrell Casey, DT USC
R4 Colin McCarthy, LB Miami
R4 Jamie Harper, RB Clemson
R5 Karl Klug, DL Iowa
R6 Byron Stingily, OT Louisville
R7 Zach Clayton, DT Auburn
R7 Tommie Campbell, DB California (PA)
To me, the surprise of the draft had to be the Titans taking Locker. This team is in the process of getting rid of a quarterback who is a better athlete than passer and that is exactly what they are drafting in Locker. Yes, Locker is a much better leader than Vince Young ever was, but Young was also a much more polished passer than Locker is coming out college. I really believed that Locker could fall completely out of the first round because he looks like a running back who wants to play quarterback. Locker is a dangerous runner, but he is probably the most inaccurate college quarterback to ever be drafted in the top 10. He started four years at Washington and did not have a single season in which he completed even close to 60% of his passes. In the Holiday Bowl last season, Locker did not even complete his first pass until the third quarter. They did beat Nebraska, which was a huge win for the Huskies, but he is not going to win a single game in the NFL by not completing a pass until halfway through the game. Locker is much less pro ready than Tim Tebow was coming out of college last season, and people thought Tebow was a reach at the end of round 1.
Locker was leading an offense in which he was the only halfway decent player, but that still does not explain his erratic play. I would much rather have Vince Young as my starting quarterback than spend a top 10 pick on Locker. This pick also forces them to find a veteran quarterback to start this season, while Locker takes time to develop. Locker is an extremely hard worker, but he has a very long road to becoming even a decent starting NFL quarterback.
The Titans then went on to try to fix their defense that has really slipped in the past few years. Akeem Ayers was of good value for them at the top of round two, but I have a hard time seeing how he fits into their defense. He is too small and does not have the strength to play defensive end, but he is too slow and lacks the agility to be very effective in coverage. His best position is OLB in a 3-4, but since the Titans run a 4-3 he will probably play strong side linebacker for them. However, 4-3 linebackers mostly drop into coverage and Ayers could be a liability for them. Also, his best skills are rushing the passer, which he will not get too many opportunities to get to do if he plays linebacker. The Titans always find ways to utilize their player in the best way possible, but it will be interesting to see how they move around Ayers in their defense. Jurrell Casey would have been a first round pick had he come out of college last year, so the Titans really got solid value with this pick. Casey should be able to start day one for them at defensive tackle and gives them a three down player who is equally solid against the run and pass. McCarthy has the abilities to immediately compete for a starting spot at one of the Titans’ linebacker spots, which is one of the biggest weaknesses of this team. He should at least be a force on special teams.
Harper has impressive quickness for a running back his size (230+ lbs). He is a tough, physical runner who should be a great compliment to Chris Johnson. He should be able to wear down defenses and then let Johnson run wild past exhausted defenders. Klug is a versatile defensive lineman who can play tackle and end for the Titans. Stingily, Clayton, Campbell all add depth to positions of need for the Titans.
Besides taking Locker with the 8th overall pick, the rest of this draft could turn out to be pretty solid. However, I cannot give them anything higher than D+ because I really cannot justify taking a player in the top ten that most likely will not have a positive influence on you team for at least a year or two. People will say that the Redskins were most likely going to draft him with the 10th pick, but that does not mean that it was a good idea. Vince Young cost Jeff Fisher his job and he was there for SEVENTEEN years. How long do you think it will be until Locker’s inconsistent play takes Mike Munchak’s job? The Titans have been spoiled by Fisher’s excellent coach abilities and they might find life without him is much more difficult than they expected.
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