Reactions to the Jermaine Cunningham Selection

[captain stone]

There's exactly one draft decision at OLB the past few years that struck me as a no-brainer at the time and that I've continued to wish the Pats have done since, and that's Barwin at #40 last year. Not Matthews, a pure workout warrior in the 1st round; not Kindle, who had a list of red flags a mile long; not even Hughes, who I liked but who will be a much better fit with the Colts' defense (and having 3 quality CBs warms my heart). But Barwin in the 2nd, yeah, I'll fault them for that one.

No argument here, though I place Bill's bypassing of Cliff Avril in favor of Chicken Legs a clear, yet not-so-distant 2nd.

 

[patchick]

No argument here, though I place Bill's bypassing of Cliff Avril in favor of Chicken Legs a clear, yet not-so-distant 2nd.

Yeah, I would have taken Avril over Crable too, but I think that's a different category of decision -- it's not about ignoring the OLB position, but which player to take. Plus it's hard to call Avril a "no-brainer" there, given that the Steelers (who know a thing or two about drafting OLBs) picked a few slots later and passed on him in favor of Bruce Davis!

 

[captain stone]

Yeah, I would have taken Avril over Crable too, but I think that's a different category of decision -- it's not about ignoring the OLB position, but which player to take.

Plus it's hard to call Avril a "no-brainer" there, given that the Steelers (who know a thing or two about drafting OLBs) picked a few slots later and passed on him in favor of Bruce Davis!

I agree with your distinction btwn Barwin/Brace and Avril/Crable. Twin sons of different mothers, if you will.

Just goes to show that even LB-savvy teams like Pits-dirt could learn something from you folks on the Draft Board.
(Maybe Avril was seen as more a 4-3 DE than a 3-4 OLB; but I thought that his agility workouts showed that he could transition to playing in space, and his Perdue pedigree showed that what he did in college could translate to the pros.)

 

[truetodablues]

Another word on Cunningham I liked seeing was relentless. I believe it was Reiss who descibed him as such.