Originally Posted by mayoclinic

I would agree. There are some nice OT prospects next year, but this year's class appears deeper. One of the reasons that I prefer Barwin/Beatty/Delmas over Barwin/Maualuga/Delmas (in some order) is that there are a lot of solid SILB candidates next year, many of whom should be available in the 2nd or 3rd round. If I had to choose between getting my SILB prospect or my OT prospect this year, I'd go OT. Plus Adalius Thomas always gives us options inside as well.

Originally Posted by mayoclinic

I know it's not even the 2009 draft yet, but as we are debating about which positions to prioritize, I've been thinking about 2010.

As I've mentioned before, 2010 appears to be loaded for 3-4 DE candidates. Among the possibilities:

- Ndamdukong Suh (senior), Nebraska, 6'4", 310#
- Gerald McCoy (junior), Oklahoma, 6'4", 295#
- Marvin Austin (junior), North Carolina, 6'3", 305#
- Lawerence Marsh (junior), Florida, 6'5", 305#
- Carlos Dunlap (junior), Florida, 6'6", 290#
- Arthur Jones (senior), Syracuse, 6'3", 295#
- Vince Oghobasse (senior), Duke, 6'6", 310#

Even assuming we pick at #32, it is unlikely that one or more of these guys won't fall to within reach. Some will be top 10, but some will fall a bit. There's just too many top talents.

Another area to think about is SILB. Personally, if Brandon Spikes had come out I would have strongly considered him at #23 this year. I think he's a much better complement to Mayo than Maualuga would be. He'll be out next year, and possibly also Rolando McClain. If we end up trading one of our 2nd round picks into 2010 then we may have some ammo to move up. But there are also a lot of possibilities who should be available later. I had my eye on Eric Norwood from South Carolina, a DE who also played LB, who almost came out this year. He's a 6'1" 260# fire hydrant. Obi Ezeh from Michigan may also come out. Micah Johnson from Kentucky is yet another option. They all have the size to play SILB for the Pats. So there may be more depth at this position than there is in 2009, and it may not make sense to jump to fill SILB rather than continue with Mayo/Guyton/Bruschi for another year.