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NFL Draft Grades: Cleveland Browns

Posted: Apr 28th 2008 10:06PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Browns, NFL Draft

Cleveland Browns 2008 Draft Picks:

Round 4 (104): Beau Bell, ILB, UNLV
Round 4 (111): Martin Rucker, TE, Missouri
Round 6 (190): Ahtyba Rubin, DT, Iowa State
Round 6 (191): Paul Hubbard, WR, Wisconsin
Round 7 (231): Alex Hall, DE, St Augustine

The Good: Even though the Browns didn't have a pick in the first three rounds, they added five players who all address current roster deficiencies. Beau Bell was considered one of the best inside linebackers in the country this fall, but he does have some medical issues that obviously scared off a lot of teams. Martin Rucker's presence could usher in more passing situations out of two-tight-end sets, something many teams in the league are moving to.

The Bad: It's tough to build a roster with Day-2-only selections, but general manager Phil Savage did pretty well with what he had, although Cleveland would've had a first-round pick if they hadn't traded it to Dallas for Brady Quinn a year ago. Quinn will be an NFL starter at some point in his career, but with Derek Anderson coming off a Pro Bowl season, the Browns could've used that pick to address other needs.

The Grade: C+. If you consider Corey Williams and Shaun Rogers the teams' second- and third-round picks -- which is what it cost to acquire them via trade -- the draft was a resounding success. If you're not a fan of watching three rounds go by without the team making a selection, you were less excited about how things played out.

Click here to read other Draft Grades.

NFL Draft Grades: New England Patriots

Posted: Apr 28th 2008 9:55PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Patriots, NFL Draft

5 COMMENTS

New England Patriots 2008 Draft Picks:

Round 1 (10): Jerod Mayo, ILB, Tennessee
Round 2 (62): Terrence Wheatley, CB, Colorado
Round 3 (78): Shawn Crable, OLB, Michigan
Round 3 (94): Kevin O'Connell, QB, San Diego State
Round 4 (129): Jonathan Wilhite, CB, Auburn
Round 5 (153): Matt Slater, FS, UCLA
Round 6 (197): Bo Ruud, OLB, Nebraska

The Good: Nary a mock draft had Jerod Mayo sniffing the top-10, but I'm willing to take Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli's word over a bunch of dorks who obviously spend their days "blogging" away in the mother's basements, no doubt wearing pajamas. Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite fill obvious needs in the secondary, and some scouts feel Wheatley could evolve into a shutdown corner. Ruud adds depth at another need position, and Belichick admitted that the Patriots had been interested in him for several years.

The Bad: Third-round pick, meet quarterback Kevin O'Connell. If any other team makes this selection, it would elicit an automatic F-minus draft grade, which, if nothing else, reinforces how silly the whole day-after grading idea really is. By all accounts, O'Connell is a solid player, but quarterback doesn't seem like an immediate need, what with Matt Cassel "capably" handling the backup duties. Actually, the Boston Globe's Mike Reiss made an interesting point: maybe the Patriots' draft board dictated that O'Connell was the best player available. Some 18 CBs had already been taken, but only a handful of QBs. What's the better value? Well, for New England, it was O'Connell.

Continue Reading NFL Draft Grades: New England Patriots

NFL Draft Grades: Oakland Raiders

Posted: Apr 28th 2008 9:28PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Raiders, NFL Draft

3 COMMENTS

Oakland Raiders 2008 Draft Picks:

Round 1 (4): Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
Round 4 (100): Tyvon Branch, CB, Connecticut
Round 4 (125): Arman Shields, WR, Richmond
Round 6 (169): Trevor Scott, DE, Buffalo
Round 7 (226): Chaz Schilens, WR, San Diego State

The Good: Well, the Raiders got arguably the most explosive player in the draft. They also landed a fourth-rounder for sending Fabian Washington to Baltimore, and promptly drafted the next Washington with Tyvon Branch. The team's second-round pick went to Atlanta for the rights to DeAngelo Hall, who, according to defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, makes up one half of the best cornerback tandem in the NFL. (Denver and Green Bay respectfully disagree.)

The Bad: JaMarcus Russell still doesn't have anyone to block for him, and the defensive line -- Warren Sapp-less and Tommy Kelly-ful -- didn't improve over the weekend. For as dynamic as McFadden should be, Glenn Dorsey might've made more of an impact, especially in the short-term.

The Grade: B-. It's hard to get too worked up about the holes the Raiders didn't fill because they now have McFadden to go along with Russell and Javon Walker. Let's just hope the patchwork offensive line can keep Andrew Walter on the bench.

Click here to read other Draft Grades.

2008 NFL FanHouse Mock Draft: Where Ryan Leafs Happen

Posted: Apr 25th 2008 10:00AM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: NFL Draft, NFL Fans

3 COMMENTS

Because there's always room for one more mock draft.

1.	Miami	Chris Long, DE. And by "Chris" we mean "Jake."
2.	St. Louis	Jake Long, OT. Unless Scott Linehan has a time machine, this probably won't happen.
3.	Atlanta	Glenn Dorsey, DT. One of the unintentional benefits of winning just three games is that no matter who you draft, they'll make the team better.
4.	Oakland	Darren McFadden, RB. Common sense suggests that the Raiders have greater needs. This is why McFadden will be the pick.
5.	Kansas City	Ryan Clady, OT. The Chiefs currently hold 13 picks and have roughly twice as many holes to fill. Addressing the o-line is a good start.
6.	New York Jets	Vernon Gholston, DE/LB. From FanHouse's Josh Alper: "... there's no one who makes as much sense given the Jets needs. That includes Matt Ryan, if you're wondering."
7.	New England	Keith Rivers, LB. The obvious pick here is quarterback. Preferably one who cares about winning.
8.	Baltimore	Matt Ryan, QB. I'm guessing this means that the Ravens don't expect Kyle Boller to ever mature into a competent NFL quarterback. Weird.

Continue Reading 2008 NFL FanHouse Mock Draft: Where Ryan Leafs Happen

FanHouse Mock Draft: New York Giants Select S Kenny Phillips No. 32

Posted: Apr 22nd 2008 2:00PM by Dan (author feed)
Filed under: NY Giants, NFC East, NFL Draft, New York

3 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

Can Jerry Reese and the New York Giants strike gold twice?

The defending Super Bowl Champions will head into draft weekend looking to do exactly what they did last year: select several players that will have an immediate impact on the team. It's a formula that obviously worked well for them and something they'll look to duplicate.

With so many pressing needs, New York will have several options when their turn finally rolls around. They could trade down for additional picks, draft a linebacker, cornerback or safety, or just go with the best player available.

Based on FanHouse's mock draft, Jerry Reese will actually get to do two of those things at once. Not only will he be able to draft the best player still available, he'll also be able to fill an area of need.

Kenny Phillips is considered by many to be a top-20 player in this year's draft and by far the best safety available. With the departure of Gibril Wilson to Oakland, New York desperately needs a young talent to help anchor that secondary. It's obvious that Sammy Knight is not the long-term answer, and despite an adequate Super Bowl performance, the organization cannot feel too comfortable with James Butler.

Phillips is a very physical and instinctive player with great hands. He plays well in both man and zone coverage's and does a good job against the run. He seems like a perfect fit for a Tom Coughlin run team and Steve Spagnuolo defense.

The Skinny:
Team Needs - CB, LB, S, OT
Player Selected - Kenny Phillips, S, Miami (FL.)
Also Considered - Dan Connor, LB, Penn State

Previous Pick: No. 31, Cheating, New England Patriots

FanHouse Mock Draft: New England Patriots Select Cheating No. 31

Posted: Apr 22nd 2008 8:58AM by Enrico Campitelli (author feed)
Filed under: Patriots, AFC East, NFL Draft, Boston

4 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

Continue Reading FanHouse Mock Draft: New England Patriots Select Cheating No. 31

FanHouse Mock Draft: Green Bay Packers Select CB Antoine Cason No. 30

Posted: Apr 21st 2008 5:08PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Packers, NFL Draft

0 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

The Packers won 13 games last season and pretty much everybody outside of the New York Giants figured they were headed to the Super Bowl after beating the Seahawks in the NFC Divisional round. Yeah, that didn't happen. Oh, and Brett Favre retired too.

But other than those two monumentally huge events, Green Bay is in pretty good shape heading into the 2008 season. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers seems ready to assume the full-time job from Favre, Ryan Grant came out of nowhere to become the Packers' feature back, and the wideouts are a nice mix of really old (Donald Driver) and new (Greg Jennings and James Jones).

On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle Corey Williams was traded to the Browns, but the hope is that 2007 first-rounder Justin Harrell can fill the void. Nick Barnett and A.J. Hawk are solid at the linebacker position (well, except when officials attack), but Brady Poppinga is better in rushing situations than in pass coverage.

Perhaps a bigger long-term need, though, is in the secondary. Al Harris and Charles Woodson are two of the most physical cornerbacks in the league, but they're also a combined 64 years old. At some point soon, the Packers will need to think about phasing them out.

With that in mind, Green Bay would do well to take Arizona's Antoine Cason. Like Harris and Woodson, Cason is known for his physicality, and NFLDraftScout.com compares him to Chris McAlister. If he's 85 percent the player McAlister is, this is a no-brainer selection.

The Skinny:
Team Needs: OLB, CB, TE
Player Selected: Antoine Cason, CB Arizona
Also Considered: Dustin Keller, TE, Purdue; Brandon Flowers, CB, Virgina Tech

Previous Pick: No. 29, Quentin Groves, LB, San Francisco

Next Pick: No. 31, New York Giants

FanHouse Mock Draft: San Francisco 49ers Select OLB Quentin Groves No. 29

Posted: Apr 20th 2008 8:00PM by Tom Mantzouranis (author feed)
Filed under: 49ers, NFC West, NFL Draft, San Francisco

5 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

The 49ers are in a rough spot here. In real life, with pretty much no viable options where need and value intersect, I think they trade back. Since that's not an option here, they have to reach.

Ideally, the team wants Gosder Cherilus to bookend the offensive line with Joe Staley. With him off the board, and Kentwan Balmer -- a defensive tackle who could play end in the 49ers' 3-4 -- gone as well, it's about the pass rush.

The 49ers like Quentin Groves, and he's got the measurables to play the pass-rush role in the 49ers' scheme opposite of Manny Lawson, but his actual game skills are slightly more cloudy. Worse yet is his reputation as having an inconsistent motor, which is a death blow when you want someone speeding towards the quarterback on almost every single down. Still, he's the best of what the 49ers need at this point. He can start from Week 1, but 49er fans will have to expect some sort of learning curve.

Calais Campbell is a backup plan to Balmer in case the team feels it's necessary to fix the end position, but that would really be a stretch. Likewise, the 49ers love Notre Dame's Trevor Laws. Though Laws played tackle in college, he's got the frame for a 3-4 end and all the intangibles Groves doesn't have. Still, he might likely last until the 49ers pick only 10 selections later at #39.

The Skinny:
Team Needs: DE, OLB, OT, OG
Player Selected: Quentin Groves, OLB, Auburn
Also Considered: Calais Campbell, DE, Miami; Trevor Laws, DT, Notre Dame

Previous Pick: No. 28,

Next Pick: No. 30, Green Bay Packers

FanHouse Mock Draft: Dallas Cowboys Select Aqib Talib No. 28

Posted: Apr 17th 2008 3:00PM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Cowboys, NFC East, NFL Draft, Dallas

0 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

Since my original selection of James Hardy, it seems, was already taken at #19 by the Eagles, I walk back to the draft podium, wearing my pink Big Ben jersey with my tail between my legs and make an alternate pick (thanks to commenter "IU Class of '91" for discovering the mistake).

Earlier in our mock draft, the Cowboys addressed their running back situation by picking Felix Jones. Now they can focus on receivers and cornerbacks.

Obviously, I wanted to bring in Hardy as a big possession receiver to be the heir apparent to Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn. With nothing else striking me as a great value at receiver here, let me go ahead and grab the first real problem child off the list: Aqib Talib.

No one doubts Talib's ability. He's one of those coveted playmakers at the cornerback position. He's got decent size, outstanding leaping ability and can make a big play for a defense. At the same time, he can give up a big play for the offense. Still, he's one of those talents that Dallas needs ... and covets.

Talib's stock has fallen a bit because of his past marijuana use while at Kansas (he reportedly tested positive for the hippie lettuce three times). Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will take a chance on a kid with some character issues -- more on that later. This is such a need for Dallas that they may overlook some past mistakes to fill the void.

Continue Reading FanHouse Mock Draft: Dallas Cowboys Select Aqib Talib No. 28

FanHouse Mock Draft: San Diego Chargers Select Gosder Cherilus No. 27

Posted: Apr 17th 2008 8:00AM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Chargers, AFC West, NFL Draft, San Diego

0 COMMENTS

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

The Chargers are one of those teams that doesn't have any glaring needs and who will use the draft to add depth to this year's team and long term stability. San Diego is one of the best draft teams in the NFL and will chose very wisely here.

One spot that could use a jolt is right tackle. If BC tackle Gosder Cherilus lasts this long, the Bolts will snatch him up.

Cherilus is a beast (6-6, 315) with long arms and excellent quickness. A guy like that is perfect for a team that utilizes the running back a lot and has a young QB. His long arms are great for pass blocking while his explosiveness in getting to the next level of the defense works great for a team with LaDainian Tomlinson. One knock on him is his technique ... but that can be learned.

The Skinny:
Team Needs: CB, OT, DT, RB, S
Player Selected: Gosder Cherilus, OT, Boston College
Also Considered: Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas; Kenny Phillips, S, Miami-FL

Previous Pick: No. 26, Kentwan Balmer, DT, North Carolina

Next Pick: No. 28, Dallas Cowboys