Draft Picks:
R1 Tyron Smith, OT USC
R2 Bruce Carter, LB UNC
R3 DeMarco Murray, RB Oklahoma
R4 David Arkin, OL Mississippi St.
R5 Josh Thomas, DB Buffalo
R6 Dwayne Harris, WR East Carolina
R7 Shaun Chapas, FB Georgia
R7 Bill Nagy, C Wisconsin
Despite the fact that their pass defense was the biggest weakness of this team last year, the Cowboys only drafted one defensive player and focused on giving Tony Romo every opportunity to make this one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. They started off by taking the top tackle in the draft in Tyron Smith. He can play on the right side, like he did in college, and let Doug Free man the left side for at least another year. Bruce Carter would have been a high first round pick if it weren’t for his injury concern. Murray is one of my favorite running backs in this draft. He is big, strong, and has elite speed. He is a great pass protector and has the best hands of any running back I have seen coming out of college in a long time. Despite how stacked the Cowboys are at running back, Murray could develop into the best of the bunch. At the very least, he should be an elite third down back. Arkin is a bit of a project as an interior lineman, but he has a lot of potential and could develop into a starter. Thomas is a solid cover corner and will fill in for the Cowboys in nickel or dime packages, which is great value in the fifth round. Harris is a hard working player who could develop into a decent slot receiver once they part ways with Roy Williams, which will probably be sooner rather than later. Chapas could immediately start for the Cowboys as a fullback. He has reliable hands and is another boost to the Cowboys run game. Nagy will try to work his way onto the roster as a backup interior lineman.
The Cowboys opted for the strategy that they will try to outscore every team they play, instead of actually trying to stop someone of defense. They do have possibly the best pass rusher in the entire NFL in DeMarcus Ware so maybe if they can get a lead early in their games, he will make the Boys’ defensive backs more productive than they were last year. I really like the players they drafted, but the fact that they did not address their two biggest needs on defense (corner back and defensive line) is why they get a B. However, I am excited to watch this team on offense this year.
Eagles: B-
Draft Picks:
R1 Danny Watkins, OL Baylor
R2 Jaiquawn Jarrett, DB Temple
R3 Curtis Marsh, DB Utah St.
R4 Casey Matthews, LB Oregon
R4 Alex Henery, K Nebraska
R5 Dion Lewis, RB Pittsburgh
R5 Julian Vandervelde, OL Iowa
R6 Jason Kelce, OL Cincinnati
R6 Brian Rolle, LB Ohio St.
R7 Greg Lloyd, LB Connecticut
R7 Stanley Havili, RB/FB USC
Let’s start off with the fact that they drafted a kicker in the forth round. No, that’s not a misprint: the FORTH ROUND. If this guy does not become a pro bowl kicker, this will be a horrible pick. I understand they need a replacement for David Akers since he is 36 and had some horrible kicks that cost them their playoff game, but that is way too high to take a kicker. Also, it’s a much safer bet to take a veteran kicker than a rookie because rookie kickers are almost never ready for the pro game. They also reached for Watkins in the first round while players like Gabe Carimi and Derek Sherrod were still on the board. Watkins will be a guard in the NFL and it’s much easier to find guards than tackles like Carimi and Sherrod. They are apparently ok with another disappointing season from their right tackle, Winston Justice, who got benched in their playoff game. The other two lineman they drafted, Vandervelde and Kelce, are developmental interior lineman and will most likely not have an impact on the team in 2011. Michael Vick will be running for his life again behind that line in 2011. Jarrett will immediately start at one of the safety positions and Marsh will either be the number two or three cornerback on their defense. Cornerback is still a huge need for them since they have literally no one behind Asante Samuel.
Casey Matthews is a great pick in the forth round and will be an immediate upgrade over most of their linebackers. He is not nearly the athlete his brother is, but he brings the same intensity and hard work that have made his brother such a successful player. Dion Lewis played with LeSean McCoy at Pitt and is a similar type of running back. Rolle is another tough linebacker that could fill in for an injured player and will be an asset to their special teams. Greg Lloyd is the son of the famous Steelers linebacker with the same name, but will probably only help out on special teams. Havili is my favorite of the Eagles’ picks. Havili is like a young Leonard Weaver and can play a similar role for the Eagles’ offense in case Weaver gets injured again. Even if Weaver is healthy, Havili can be used as a third and short running back, who is a threat to earn some tough yards up the middle as well as catch a pass out of the backfield. It’s been a long time since the Eagles have had a big running back for their goal line packages.
It’s about half and half with these picks: half of them I love and half of them I hate. They filled a lot of holes with all of these picks, but if they don’t protect Vick and defend the pass better than they did last season, they could end up not even making the playoffs this year.
Giants: A-
Draft Picks:
R1 Prince Amukamara, CB Nebraska
R2 Marvin Austin, DT UNC
R3 Jerrel Jernigan, WR Troy
R4 James Brewer, OL Indiana
R6 Greg Jones, LB Michigan St.
R6 Tyler Sash, SS Iowa
R6 Jacquian Williams, LB South Florida
R7 Da’Rel Scott, RB Maryland
Prince is one of my favorite players in this draft and I cannot believe he fell all the way to the 19th pick. He should have been a top ten pick, but the run on quarterbacks left some great players on the board late. He should develop into a shutdown corner, who has the size and speed to run with any receiver in the league. Austin was another steal for the Giants in the second round. He has elite pass rush skills and is solid against the run. The Giants have great defensive ends and they finally have a player in the middle that will make their defensive line one of the most dangerous in the NFL. Jernigan is a solid slot receiver and is a security pick in case their receiving corp is hit with the injury bug again or Steve Smith does not recover fully by the start of the season. Brewer was a steal in the forth round since he has the ability to develop into a left tackle. However, he is very raw and might not be ready to start for another year. In a weak linebacker class, the fact that they could land Greg Jones in the sixth round is astonishing. Jones could start day one at middle linebacker for the Giants and has the intelligence to run the defense from that position. Sash is a physical safety to add to their rotation and will hopefully help out the Giants’ terrible kick and punt coverage that might have cost them the division and a shot at the playoffs last season. Williams is another player who will help out on special teams. Scott is another insurance pick incase they lose Ahmad Bradshaw or Brandon Jacobs in free agency.
Considering they landed possibly 4-5 starters for an already solid team with not a lot of high draft picks is astounding and is another win for possibly the most under appreciated General Manager in the NFL, Jerry Reese. This grade would be an even A if it weren’t for the fact that they did not get someone who can help out their offensive line this year. However, if Brewer develops quickly, the Giants could see themselves becoming one of the NFC’s elite teams once again.
Redskins: B+
R1 Ryan Kerrigan, DE Purdue
R2 Jarvis Jenkins, DL Clemson
R3 Leonard Hankerson, WR Miami
R4 Roy Helu, RB Nebraska
R5 Dejon Gomes, DB Nebraska
R5 Niles Paul, WR Nebraska
R6 Evan Royster, RB Penn St.
R6 Aldrick Robinson, WR SMU
R7 Brandyn Thompson, DB Boise St.
R7 Maurice Hurt, OL Florida
R7 Markus White, DE Florida St.
R7 Chris Neild, NT West Virginia
Remember when the Redskins did not have enough picks to help rebuild their depleted roster and lacked a second round pick that could be used to find a starter? Well the Redskins traded back numerous times and gathered up more picks than Redskins’ fans ever dreamed possible. The Redskins’ biggest need was probably at receiver and they managed to draft not one, not two, but THREE receivers in this draft, all of which look to contribute immediately to this team. Hankerson and Paul are big, physical receivers with great hands who will be reliable assets to whoever ends up as their starting quarterback. Robinson is a speedy small receiver who could develop into a dangerous slot receiver. The Redskins’ first two picks went to finding starters for their 3-4 defense that looked terrible last season. Kerrigan is a high motor player who is a team leader and should start immediately across the field from Brian Orakpo, despite never playing outside linebacker before. Despite being a bit of a reach in the second round, Jenkins will immediately be the best 3-4 defensive end on the Redskins’ roster and can move inside on passing downs.
Running back was another need for the Redskins with all the injuries and mediocre play they had at the position last year. Helu is the perfect fit for Shanahan’s zone blocking scheme. He is big and physical with good speed and above average hands. Royster is the all time leading rusher at Penn St. and is another strong, physical back with good value in the sixth round. Gomes and Thompson will play on special teams and work their way into nickel and dime packages. White and Neild could help out that struggling 3-4 defense if they are able to make the roster.
I love everything the Redskins did in this draft except that they ignored the quarterback position. With all of their picks, they couldn’t find a single quarterback to compete with Rex Grossman? That seems impossible. I think they were hoping that they would still be able to land Christian Ponder with the 16th pick, since they liked him more than Gabbert who they handed to the Jags. Unfortunately for the Redskins, the Vikings also had a high grade on Ponder and they made the surprise move of the draft taking him with the 12th pick. Since retaining McNabb does not seem to be an option at this point, they will have to find another veteran to hopefully start for them, since Grossman will not win more than 5-6 games with this team. You think the Eagles would be willing to trade another quarterback to the Redskins? Seems to have worked out for them once already…
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