Ridgelake
Footballguy
For some reason, I can't seem to find the thread with my mock from last year. But anyway, give this one a shot.
Second Annual Ridgelake Mock Draft:
1) Houston – Reggie Bush: Not a big surprise. Most explosive player to come out in years.
2) New Orleans – Mario Williams: He’s the consensus second best player in this draft. Its not a need for NO with 2 former #1 pick DEs on the roster. But Williams has been favorably compared to Reggie White and Julius Peppers. High praise indeed.
I can see the Saints trading down as a team (NYJ or Oak) wants the pick of the QBs.
3) Tenn – Now the fun starts. Late mocks have been projecting Vince Young here. I think that’s smoke. Leinart is the safer pick. And when you are picking #3, you really don’t want to bust. Especially on top of last year’s Pacman pick.
Another thing to note: Tom Condon, Leinart’s agent, is very adept at getting his clients drafted where they want to go. Leinart wants to be the #1 QB off the board. That would happen here. But on the other hand, I have to imagine that Leinart would really like to be in New York. “Madison Avenue Matt” would be a huge marketing machine. The endorsement dollars of being in NY would definitely supercede the difference between #3 and #4 pick money.
4) NYJ – D’Brickashaw Ferguson – One of the safest picks in the draft.
5) Green Bay – Another major shocker here, AJ Hawk. He just fits.
6) San Fran – The shocker parade continues with Vernon Davis.
7) Oakland is where things start to get interesting. They are rumored to want to move up to get Young. In some regards, he fits very well in Oakland. He’s fast. He’s a bit of a rebel. He’s a winner. In other regards, he doesn’t fit. He doesn’t have the strongest arm and the deep ball is not his forte. Another option would be Huff. They have a horrible secondary and he has speed to burn. But all in all, I can definitely see Al Davis having man-love for Young. Put him here.
8) Buffalo is where I think we see our first trade. They would be happy with any of Bunkley, Ngata, or Justice. They’ve publicly stated that they would be happy to move down. Somebody is going to want Cutler. Between Arizona, St. Louis, and Minnesota, there will be demand to take him.
Minnesota has the most ammo with two #2s (48 and 51 Miami) and two #3s (83 and 95 Seattle). A package of 17, 51, and 95 would be 1460 points compared to 8 with 1400 points. But would Buffalo want to drop all the way down to 17 and miss out on the 3 linemen? I have a hard time seeing value at 17 for Buffalo.
St. Louis at 11 makes more sense from Buffalo’s perspective. They drop down only 3 spots, still get a lineman, and pick up another 3rd rounder (77). That gives Buffalo 3 thirds this year. Buffalo sends back a 5th (143) to even out the points.
I think St. Louis wants Cutler more than Az. St. Lou is starting a new regime while Denny needs to win now in the Desert. I think Denny would have taken Cutler at 10, but won’t move up to take him.
At #8, Cutler goes to St. Louis. The new management team starts with their QB of the future.
9) Detroit takes Huff. Best defender on the board and the last guy who carries an elite grade.
10) Arizona takes Winston Justice. Sims is a consideration, but his concussions are too much of a risk for this spot. Justice fills a long-time need. Bunkley would also be a consideration to give Arizona a solid DT tandem with Dockett.
11) At 11, Buffalo now takes Bunkley. He is a much better fit for their Cover-2 scheme than Ngata. They have traded down, saved some money, picked up a 3rd, and still gotten the player that they most wanted.
12) Cleveland has a tough choice between Ngata and Wimbley. Both are big needs as Romeo fills out his 3-4 defense. Because of this indifference, I think they try to extort Baltimore who craves Ngata. The second trade of the draft is Baltimore moving up 1 spot to take Ngata and gives Cleveland a 4th (111) to do so. Baltimore still has another 4th.
13) Cleveland now takes Wimbley, the guy they wanted all along. He has excellent pass rush skills and will be able to learn from McGinnest. A big body to play NT can be found later in the draft. Pass rushers are harder to find.
14) Philly is disappointed that Justice, Bunkley and Ngata did not fall. Andy Reid is a guy who builds from the lines outward. Now, the lineman value is gone. I can see Philly trading out of this spot to a team wanting the first of the corners. And in fact, this will lead to the third trade of the day with New England moving up to take Tye Hill. New England sends Philly #21 and #52 and gets back #116 with #14. Hill is a NE type player. He’s smart, hard working, and can definitely play. NE is less worried about being short than most teams. They just want football players and Hill is definitely that.
15) Denver is in the Javon Walker Sweepstakes, so this could easily change. But for now, give them Santonio Holmes, the WR probably most ready to play. If they do trade for Walker, using a second rounder, then they probably go passrush with Manny Lawson.
16) Miami can go a lot of different directions. DB, LB, OL, WR. Saban is of the Parcells/Billicheck mold of coaches. Defense first. I can sure see them going for a versatile secondary player like Jimmy Williams or taking a chance on Cromartie. But if in doubt, go pass rush. Give them a passrusher to pair with Taylor, Manny Lawson.
17) Minnesota has needs all over the board. They are reportedly not happy with CB Fred Smoot. They also could use a S, OL, QB, and possibly RB. Ernie Sims has dropped due to health concerns. But he is tailor made for the Cover 2 scheme WLB. Sims fits very well here and represents good value.
18) Dallas thanks their lucky stars that 1 of the 3 OLB prospects (Wimbley, Lawson, Carpenter) falls to them and takes the son of a former Parcells player. Carpenter is penciled in to play the strongside opposite of Ware.
19) San Diego needs DB help and the value of these guys is now good. They could go many different directions, but lets try Jimmy Williams.
20) Kansas City also needs DB help and rolls the dice a bit with Antonio Cromartie. Elite physical skills with not much experience. They would love for Tye Hill to have fallen here, but it didn’t happen. A potentially safer pick here at corner might be Jonathan Joseph or Ashton Youbouty. But lets give them Cromartie.
21) Philly is now on the clock and sticks to its roots of building from the line and takes the second best Olineman in the draft with Mangold. Philly was heavy into the LeCharles Bentley sweepstakes but came up short. Mangold is a nice consolation prize and is a much better value at 21 than at 14. He anchors their line for the next decade.
22) San Francisco made this pick in hopes of getting a 3-4 OLB. Greenway might tempt them, but everything I read about him tells me he is much better suited to a 4-3. But since the 3-4 OLB prospects did not drop, San Fran goes to Plan B and takes DeAngelo Williams. Mike Nolan coached DeAngelo at the Senior Bowl and reportedly fell in love with him much like Gruden did last year with Cadillac. DeAngelo is excellent value at 22 and will be an upgrade over both Gore and Barlow.
23) Tampa Bay could go a number of directions, including OL, WR, S, LB, and possibly CB. But the highest rated player still on the board also fits a need and Chad Jackson stays in state to give young Mr. Sims another target.
24) Cincinnati has a powerful offense and a developing defense. DL, WOLB, and S appear the biggest needs on defense. They’ve been mocked to take a TE, but with so much depth at that position, they can easily wait. The best value at this point is Donte Whitner. The former Buckeye stays in state and upgrades the Cincy secondary.
25) The Giants have addressed their LB needs with Arrington and Short. The value on the board is at RB now. They could go here with Greenway or DeMeco Ryans, but I suspect they go DB instead. The value is still here at that spot too. Jonathan Joseph represent good value here and helps match up against TO and Washington’s collection of #2 WRs. I would not be surprised if Indy trades into this spot to get Maroney. But for now, the Giants take Joseph.
26) Chicago has a reasonably solid team and it would not surprise to see them trade down. If they stay here, I can see them taking a CB, TE, and possibly a LB. Chad Greenway is on the board and would make a great complement to Urlacher and Briggs. He’s a defensive leader who has a lot of football sense. He will play in a 4-3, to which he is better suited. With this pick, Chicago will go TE in round 2.
27) Carolina is very happy when LenDale White falls to them. He is a beast of the Stephen Davis mold and will step in immediately to provide ball control.
28) Jacksonville could use help at LB, DE, Oline and DB. They might be tempted by Allen, Youbouty, Hali, or Kiwi. But DeMeco Ryans fills a need and is good value for them.
29) The Jets would have loved for Mangold to drop here. But Philly scooped him and so the Jets go with Curtis Martin’s eventual replacement, Lawrence Maroney.
30) Indy replaces Edge with versatile LSU grad Joseph Addai.
31) Seattle tries to get a bookend to Trufant and takes the last 1st round graded CB with Ashton Youbouty. He’s not spectacular, but he’s solid. The DEs Hali and Kiwi would not be a total shocker here, nor would an OLineman.
32) Pittsburgh closes out the first round replacing Chris Hope with Jason Allen. He’s a versatile DB with experience at both corner and safety who was also team captain at Tennessee. He is a medical risk, however, coming off a substantial hip injury. But he is the BPA and fills a need.

Second Annual Ridgelake Mock Draft:
1) Houston – Reggie Bush: Not a big surprise. Most explosive player to come out in years.
2) New Orleans – Mario Williams: He’s the consensus second best player in this draft. Its not a need for NO with 2 former #1 pick DEs on the roster. But Williams has been favorably compared to Reggie White and Julius Peppers. High praise indeed.
I can see the Saints trading down as a team (NYJ or Oak) wants the pick of the QBs.
3) Tenn – Now the fun starts. Late mocks have been projecting Vince Young here. I think that’s smoke. Leinart is the safer pick. And when you are picking #3, you really don’t want to bust. Especially on top of last year’s Pacman pick.
Another thing to note: Tom Condon, Leinart’s agent, is very adept at getting his clients drafted where they want to go. Leinart wants to be the #1 QB off the board. That would happen here. But on the other hand, I have to imagine that Leinart would really like to be in New York. “Madison Avenue Matt” would be a huge marketing machine. The endorsement dollars of being in NY would definitely supercede the difference between #3 and #4 pick money.
4) NYJ – D’Brickashaw Ferguson – One of the safest picks in the draft.
5) Green Bay – Another major shocker here, AJ Hawk. He just fits.
6) San Fran – The shocker parade continues with Vernon Davis.
7) Oakland is where things start to get interesting. They are rumored to want to move up to get Young. In some regards, he fits very well in Oakland. He’s fast. He’s a bit of a rebel. He’s a winner. In other regards, he doesn’t fit. He doesn’t have the strongest arm and the deep ball is not his forte. Another option would be Huff. They have a horrible secondary and he has speed to burn. But all in all, I can definitely see Al Davis having man-love for Young. Put him here.
8) Buffalo is where I think we see our first trade. They would be happy with any of Bunkley, Ngata, or Justice. They’ve publicly stated that they would be happy to move down. Somebody is going to want Cutler. Between Arizona, St. Louis, and Minnesota, there will be demand to take him.
Minnesota has the most ammo with two #2s (48 and 51 Miami) and two #3s (83 and 95 Seattle). A package of 17, 51, and 95 would be 1460 points compared to 8 with 1400 points. But would Buffalo want to drop all the way down to 17 and miss out on the 3 linemen? I have a hard time seeing value at 17 for Buffalo.
St. Louis at 11 makes more sense from Buffalo’s perspective. They drop down only 3 spots, still get a lineman, and pick up another 3rd rounder (77). That gives Buffalo 3 thirds this year. Buffalo sends back a 5th (143) to even out the points.
I think St. Louis wants Cutler more than Az. St. Lou is starting a new regime while Denny needs to win now in the Desert. I think Denny would have taken Cutler at 10, but won’t move up to take him.
At #8, Cutler goes to St. Louis. The new management team starts with their QB of the future.
9) Detroit takes Huff. Best defender on the board and the last guy who carries an elite grade.
10) Arizona takes Winston Justice. Sims is a consideration, but his concussions are too much of a risk for this spot. Justice fills a long-time need. Bunkley would also be a consideration to give Arizona a solid DT tandem with Dockett.
11) At 11, Buffalo now takes Bunkley. He is a much better fit for their Cover-2 scheme than Ngata. They have traded down, saved some money, picked up a 3rd, and still gotten the player that they most wanted.
12) Cleveland has a tough choice between Ngata and Wimbley. Both are big needs as Romeo fills out his 3-4 defense. Because of this indifference, I think they try to extort Baltimore who craves Ngata. The second trade of the draft is Baltimore moving up 1 spot to take Ngata and gives Cleveland a 4th (111) to do so. Baltimore still has another 4th.
13) Cleveland now takes Wimbley, the guy they wanted all along. He has excellent pass rush skills and will be able to learn from McGinnest. A big body to play NT can be found later in the draft. Pass rushers are harder to find.
14) Philly is disappointed that Justice, Bunkley and Ngata did not fall. Andy Reid is a guy who builds from the lines outward. Now, the lineman value is gone. I can see Philly trading out of this spot to a team wanting the first of the corners. And in fact, this will lead to the third trade of the day with New England moving up to take Tye Hill. New England sends Philly #21 and #52 and gets back #116 with #14. Hill is a NE type player. He’s smart, hard working, and can definitely play. NE is less worried about being short than most teams. They just want football players and Hill is definitely that.
15) Denver is in the Javon Walker Sweepstakes, so this could easily change. But for now, give them Santonio Holmes, the WR probably most ready to play. If they do trade for Walker, using a second rounder, then they probably go passrush with Manny Lawson.
16) Miami can go a lot of different directions. DB, LB, OL, WR. Saban is of the Parcells/Billicheck mold of coaches. Defense first. I can sure see them going for a versatile secondary player like Jimmy Williams or taking a chance on Cromartie. But if in doubt, go pass rush. Give them a passrusher to pair with Taylor, Manny Lawson.
17) Minnesota has needs all over the board. They are reportedly not happy with CB Fred Smoot. They also could use a S, OL, QB, and possibly RB. Ernie Sims has dropped due to health concerns. But he is tailor made for the Cover 2 scheme WLB. Sims fits very well here and represents good value.
18) Dallas thanks their lucky stars that 1 of the 3 OLB prospects (Wimbley, Lawson, Carpenter) falls to them and takes the son of a former Parcells player. Carpenter is penciled in to play the strongside opposite of Ware.
19) San Diego needs DB help and the value of these guys is now good. They could go many different directions, but lets try Jimmy Williams.
20) Kansas City also needs DB help and rolls the dice a bit with Antonio Cromartie. Elite physical skills with not much experience. They would love for Tye Hill to have fallen here, but it didn’t happen. A potentially safer pick here at corner might be Jonathan Joseph or Ashton Youbouty. But lets give them Cromartie.
21) Philly is now on the clock and sticks to its roots of building from the line and takes the second best Olineman in the draft with Mangold. Philly was heavy into the LeCharles Bentley sweepstakes but came up short. Mangold is a nice consolation prize and is a much better value at 21 than at 14. He anchors their line for the next decade.
22) San Francisco made this pick in hopes of getting a 3-4 OLB. Greenway might tempt them, but everything I read about him tells me he is much better suited to a 4-3. But since the 3-4 OLB prospects did not drop, San Fran goes to Plan B and takes DeAngelo Williams. Mike Nolan coached DeAngelo at the Senior Bowl and reportedly fell in love with him much like Gruden did last year with Cadillac. DeAngelo is excellent value at 22 and will be an upgrade over both Gore and Barlow.
23) Tampa Bay could go a number of directions, including OL, WR, S, LB, and possibly CB. But the highest rated player still on the board also fits a need and Chad Jackson stays in state to give young Mr. Sims another target.
24) Cincinnati has a powerful offense and a developing defense. DL, WOLB, and S appear the biggest needs on defense. They’ve been mocked to take a TE, but with so much depth at that position, they can easily wait. The best value at this point is Donte Whitner. The former Buckeye stays in state and upgrades the Cincy secondary.
25) The Giants have addressed their LB needs with Arrington and Short. The value on the board is at RB now. They could go here with Greenway or DeMeco Ryans, but I suspect they go DB instead. The value is still here at that spot too. Jonathan Joseph represent good value here and helps match up against TO and Washington’s collection of #2 WRs. I would not be surprised if Indy trades into this spot to get Maroney. But for now, the Giants take Joseph.
26) Chicago has a reasonably solid team and it would not surprise to see them trade down. If they stay here, I can see them taking a CB, TE, and possibly a LB. Chad Greenway is on the board and would make a great complement to Urlacher and Briggs. He’s a defensive leader who has a lot of football sense. He will play in a 4-3, to which he is better suited. With this pick, Chicago will go TE in round 2.
27) Carolina is very happy when LenDale White falls to them. He is a beast of the Stephen Davis mold and will step in immediately to provide ball control.
28) Jacksonville could use help at LB, DE, Oline and DB. They might be tempted by Allen, Youbouty, Hali, or Kiwi. But DeMeco Ryans fills a need and is good value for them.
29) The Jets would have loved for Mangold to drop here. But Philly scooped him and so the Jets go with Curtis Martin’s eventual replacement, Lawrence Maroney.
30) Indy replaces Edge with versatile LSU grad Joseph Addai.
31) Seattle tries to get a bookend to Trufant and takes the last 1st round graded CB with Ashton Youbouty. He’s not spectacular, but he’s solid. The DEs Hali and Kiwi would not be a total shocker here, nor would an OLineman.
32) Pittsburgh closes out the first round replacing Chris Hope with Jason Allen. He’s a versatile DB with experience at both corner and safety who was also team captain at Tennessee. He is a medical risk, however, coming off a substantial hip injury. But he is the BPA and fills a need.