Mock Draft 2.0 First Round
As always, lots of hard calls. I wanted to make a statement with my placement of Andre Smith and Michael Johnson of where I value, not necessarily the NFL at large, although I think Im closer than the conventional wisdom right now. I wanted to introduce some new names as potential first rounders that weren't in the first of my 1.0 mock like Clay Matthews, Connor Barwin, and Donald Brown, and have a few consensus first rounders drop out (as always) - this time its Harvin and Wells. I also gave Vontae Davis a slot right around his best case after doing one with his worst case (falling out of the first) last time.
As always, feedback is more than welcome, this is one of the best groups of homers in the football world and I highly value y'alls thoughts.
As always, lots of hard calls. I wanted to make a statement with my placement of Andre Smith and Michael Johnson of where I value, not necessarily the NFL at large, although I think Im closer than the conventional wisdom right now. I wanted to introduce some new names as potential first rounders that weren't in the first of my 1.0 mock like Clay Matthews, Connor Barwin, and Donald Brown, and have a few consensus first rounders drop out (as always) - this time its Harvin and Wells. I also gave Vontae Davis a slot right around his best case after doing one with his worst case (falling out of the first) last time.
As always, feedback is more than welcome, this is one of the best groups of homers in the football world and I highly value y'alls thoughts.
i like jason smith or monroe to the rams at 1.2... probably the talk about barron to LT & bell to RT is draft posturing (& even if not, neither may be long term solutions)...& if not, i'd be very OK with curry, probably crabtree, too...the LTs, curry & crabtree are similar grade-wise (i realize there is some debate even there, but blue chip LTs very hard to find, & j. smith & monroe clearly seem to be the cream of the crop, in terms of overall grade, including physical tools, athleticism, character, work ethic, intangibles), the rams have gaping holes at all three positions... you could make a strong case that all three are viable alignments or intersections of BPA/team need... the picks are ALMOST interchangeable, & they should defininitely get better no matter which direction they go...curry & maybe crabtree SLIGHT separation in terms of BPA grade...j. smith & monroe SLIGHT separation in terms of team need (& the pick being recommended on a positional scarcity basis)...* just to cover all bases & for fun, a scouting report i wrote on curry recently, after looking at his highlight reel (case for taking curry based on BPA)...curry - "wow... WOW!!! this was the guy that really roared off the screen... not saying we shouldn't take monroe, but if we pass, somebody else might be getting a serial pro bowler, & possibly the next ray lewis... the complete package... great instincts... shockingly FAST with proverbial sideline-to-sideline range... EXPLOSIVENESS really stands out on film... finds the ball carrier, always around the ball, good at avoiding blocks, great balance & stays on his feet... barbaric, medieval striker, people invariably go backwards when he makes contact... BLOWS... THEM... UP (curry is a BAD man... a patient pigskin professor who tirelessly instructs dense ball carriers with continuous object lessons in applied physics... 254 lbs. + 4.54 40 = OUCH)... yet plays under control... disciplined & rarely out of position (well, these were the HIGHlights, not the lowlights package... )... plays with great field awareness & football smarts, i was impressed with one sequence where he was not fooled by misdirection & made the play... looks fluid in coverage, can stay with receivers downfield... didn't see him blitz much, but was terrifying when given the chance... ZERO doubt in my mind he could add this to his arsenal & repertoire if given the chance... imo, not a difficult or controversial projection to MLB, looks like he can do it all... elite, superb conditioning, never seems to change speed (MAXIMUM!), no matter what time of the game it is... will give your thesaurus a workout trying to come up with creative superlatives & descriptive terms worthy of the physical tools, athleticism, talent & overall skill set of this prodigy & phenom... more torn than ever between monroe & curry, the gap is nearly closed & the picks are virtually indistinguishable... if we opt away from LT, i like him even better than crabtree... only LBs with the rarest talent should be taken here... curry falls into this category... legit candidate as the #1 overall prospect in the draft, wouldn't fault DET for taking him (i definitely would over stafford, a no brainer), though, like us, they could be powerfully drawn to the LTs... also, after seeing him on path to the draft, liked the fact that his "models" who he patterned his game after were the original LT & **** butkus... nice role models! was also impressive, and oozed charisma while being interviewed briefly by paul burmeister at the combine... if we don't go LT, i can't imagine being any more sold on this guy."** team fit (case for taking curry based on team need)..."the STL new suddenly more competent & effective front office/coaching staff/scouting dept brain trust could also be thinking this is almost certainly a several year rebuild, & if curry is the best player in the draft & smith/monroe aren't elite prospects, better to take the sure thing & go after another OT next year... again, if LT, LB & WR roughly similar needs, they may think that the defense needs more help than offense... the defense in some ways is coming off their worst season in franchise history... curry could be a serial pro bowler, the rams ray lewis, who when paired with second year chris long, is capable of being one of the faces of the stop unit, changing the culture & identity of the oft maligned defense into one that is tougher, more hardnosed & physical, making his teammates play better with his intensity & example & elevating the play of the entire defense... that would be a welcome development to long suffering rams fans!"
While Mack would certainly be worth that selection, this crop of Cs doesn't seem to have a very steep drop from Mack to, say, Eric Wood or Caldwell. You and I have talked about this already, and I'm not sure I wouldn't be happier with them just taking Jamon Meredith over Mack.(anything to get competition for Colon, at this point.) Or....the closer we get to the draft and the more tape I get to see on him.....Jarron Gilbert for the DL.
If the Eagles we're able to nab Moreno i'd be happy with that. I didn't think Britton's stock would rise that much but if Detroit passes on him (which I doubt they will, they need offensive line help bad) then Moreno i'd be OK with and then grab Beatty with 27.
As to the Eagles, I certainly would be happy as a fan to see Moreno and Beatty. That said, I really don't see it happening that way. Of course, part of my view is based on my hope/belief that Anquan Boldin is coming to town [and will cost one of those 1s].I liked your DHB ahead of Crabtree if only because it would be a classically dumb move by Oakland and par for Al Davis' course. 
