drpatriot
Third String But Playing on Special Teams
I usually post this column-esque mock draft on the draft forum, but with the draft discussion beginning once again I thought it would be appropriate to post it in the main board.
The draft board gets a little bit neglected because it's not the main forum. For those interested in draft discussion, I encourage you to go check it out anyway, as there is a lot of discussion going on there about prospects for the Patriots.
Also, my weekly mock draft is posted over there, so yeah.
Here it is. For lazy readers like me, the Patriots picks are all in bold.
1 Oakland: JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU: Russell looks to be the next Byron Leftwich. I don’t think that this is a bad thing.
2 Detroit: Joe Thomas, OT, Wisconsin: Thomas would give a lot of help to the Lions’ offensive line, and a good QB prospect can come in later rounds.
3 Cleveland: Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame: The Browns’ future is not in Charlie Frye, and Quinn could do well in a similar offensive system with the Browns.
4 Tampa Bay: Calvin Johnson, WR, Georgia Tech: The best receiver in the draft, hands down.
5 Arizona: Gaines Adams, DE, Clemson: I don’t care what the experts say. Gaines Adams is the best defensive end in the draft. Not Jamaal Anderson. Wherever he came from.
6 Washington: Jamaal Anderson, DE, Arkansas: And so he hits the top of the Redskins’ board. Again. I still don’t understand it.
7 New York Giants (from Minnesota): Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma: If Peterson falls all the way to the Vikings, I can’t see them missing this opportunity to get a ton of draft picks with the Giants, for whom Peterson will seamlessly fill in after Tiki’s retirement. Minnesota receives the Giants’ first-round pick and second-round picks in 2007 and 2008.
8 Houston: Alan Branch, DT, Michigan: And most of Houston begins to cry as they miss out on Peterson. However, Branch should be a huge improvement to their run defense.
9 Miami: Leon Hall, CB, Michigan: The second Michigan man of the draft is Hall, who should improve Miami’s secondary immediately.
10 Atlanta: LaRon Landry, SS, LSU: Landry is a gift to the Falcons, who need a safety badly.
11 San Francisco: Dwayne Jarrett, WR, USC: The 49ers could really use a receiver like Jarrett, whose deep threat will add a new dimension to the 49ers offense.
12 Buffalo: Patrick Willis, MLB, Ole Miss: If London Fletcher (-Baker) leaves in free agency, Willis will be needed to fill his hole.
13 St. Louis: Amobi Okoye, DT, Louisville: The Rams need help on their defensive line, and Okoye is one of the most talented prospects on the line in the draft.
14 Carolina: Reggie Nelson, FS, Florida: The Panthers are looking for a safety to cover their defensive backfield, and Nelson has the skills to do so.
15 Pittsburgh: Justin Blalock, OG, Texas: Blalock should improve the inside of the Steelers line, who just suffered another loss with their center retiring.
16 Green Bay: Marshawn Lynch, RB, California: The Packers are just glad no one pulled a New York Giants on them.
17 Jacksonville: Lawrence Timmons, OLB, Florida State: Timmons’ speed would be a huge asset to the Jaguars on the outside.
18 Cincinnati: Darrelle Revis, CB, Pittsburgh: With recent arrests in the secondary of the Bengals and a desire for better performance in the defensive backfield, the Bengals update their secondary with new blood: Revis, out of Pittsburgh.
19 Tennessee: Ted Ginn, WR, Ohio State: Ginn will return kickoffs and catch passes for the Titans, who need serious help at wide receiver.
20 Minnesota (from New York Giants): Marcus McCauley, CB, Fresno State: Though McCauley is falling on most draft boards, the Vikings have enough leeway in the secondary to pick up this physical prospect in the first round.
21 Denver: Quinn Pit****, DT, Ohio State: Pit**** will give Denver a young presence up the middle that they have been lacking as of late.
22 Dallas: Sidney Rice, WR, South Carolina: Excuse me? Though the Cowboys don’t have a need at wide receiver, Rice is the ideal developmental prospect to help learn how to be an NFL star at wide receiver (and with Terry Glenn and Terrell Owens as mentors, probably the obnoxious way).
23 Kansas City: Levi Brown, OT, Penn State: The Chiefs need youth on their line and Brown is an excellent offensive lineman, as well as great value at the 23rd pick.
24 New England (from Seattle): Quentin Moses, OLB, Georgia: Moses will play the outside linebacker position for the Patriots, where he could be extremely well-suited.
25 New York Jets: Adam Carriker, DE, Nebraska: Until this pick stops making sense, the Jets will continue to make it on my mock. And it has only begun to make more and more sense after the Senior Bowl.
26 Philadelphia: Paul Pozluszny, OLB, Penn State: Pozluszny’s stock is falling, but the Eagles recognize a good defensive leader when they see one.
27 New Orleans: Daymeion Hughes, CB, California: The Saints need help in the secondary and Hughes should provide some of that help.
28 Tampa Bay (from New England): Charles Johnson, DE, Georgia: The Patriots don’t see any prospects that they like and trade down. They receive Tampa’s 2nd-round pick. Both teams swap 3rd-round picks. Johnson was a prospect that the Buccaneers liked for their defensive line and thought it was worth it to make sure they could get him.
29 Baltimore: Rufus Alexander, OLB, Oklahoma: If Adalius Thomas leaves, Alexander could be necessary to fill a hole on their defense.
30 San Diego: Dwayne Bowe, WR, LSU: The Chargers could use this talented WR to add a new dimension to their offense.
31 Chicago: Zach Miller, TE, Arizona State: Miller will add a new target to the Bears offense that they really could have used on Sunday.
32 Indianapolis: Buster Davis, ILB, Florida State: Davis is a leader and a tough prospect that should fit well with the Colts’ Cover 2 defense.
33 Oakland: DeMarcus Tyler, DT, N.C. State: The Raiders will eventually need to replace Sapp in the middle, and the Raiders like this tough prospect as their next up-the-middle prospect.
34 Detroit: Jarvis Moss, DE, Florida: The Lions need a pass rush. The Lions need a lot of things.
35 New England (from Tampa Bay): Aaron Ross, CB, Texas: The Patriots are happy that they got a good value CB to add to their somewhat pathetic secondary.
36 Cleveland: LaMarr Woodley, OLB, Michigan: Woodley is a strong linebacker who should add a level of toughness to the Cleveland defensive front 7.
37 New York Jets (from Washington): Michael Bush, RB, Louisville: Bush could give the Jets a new power runner for tough running situations.
38 Arizona: Tony Ugoh, OT, Arkansas: Ugoh is a big power blocker who should give Edgerrin James somewhere to run this year.
39 Houston: Brandon Meriweather, S, Miami: This tough safety prospect from the U should give Houston’s secondary a vast improvement.
40 Miami: H.B. Blades, MLB, Pittsburgh: Blades will give the Dolphins a sharp (no pun intended) presence in the inside when Thomas decides to pack it in.
41 Minnesota: Robert Meachem, WR, Tennessee: Meachem fell further than anyone expected, and the Vikings were happy to snatch him up early in the second round.
42 San Francisco: Michael Griffin, S, Texas: Griffin’s poor tackling form has taken him down a few notches in my book, but the 49ers think that he’ll do fine in their secondary.
43 Buffalo: Chris Houston, CB, Arkansas: The Bills could end up looking to fill a hole opened by a potential Nate Clements departure.
44 Atlanta: Anthony Gonzalez, WR, Ohio State: Gonzalez should give Atlanta another option for Michael Vick at WR.
45 Carolina: Troy Smith, QB, Ohio State: The Panthers hope that Smith will give them a new leader to depend on when Jake Delhomme takes off.
46 Pittsburgh: Fred Bennett, CB, South Carolina: Bennett will give the Steelers a new option at cornerback, where they are lacking depth.
47 Green Bay: Steve Smith, WR, USC: The Packers hope that Smith and Greg Jennings will give Brett Favre’s successor two targets to throw to.
48 Jacksonville: Drew Stanton, QB, Michigan State: The Jaguars want to be able to have the best quarterback possible start, and Stanton will add more competition for that position.
49 Cincinnati: Marcus Thomas, DT, Florida: The Bengals didn’t address their need at tackle in the first round, so they look to make an upgrade with Marcus Thomas.
The draft board gets a little bit neglected because it's not the main forum. For those interested in draft discussion, I encourage you to go check it out anyway, as there is a lot of discussion going on there about prospects for the Patriots.
Also, my weekly mock draft is posted over there, so yeah.
Here it is. For lazy readers like me, the Patriots picks are all in bold.
1 Oakland: JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU: Russell looks to be the next Byron Leftwich. I don’t think that this is a bad thing.
2 Detroit: Joe Thomas, OT, Wisconsin: Thomas would give a lot of help to the Lions’ offensive line, and a good QB prospect can come in later rounds.
3 Cleveland: Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame: The Browns’ future is not in Charlie Frye, and Quinn could do well in a similar offensive system with the Browns.
4 Tampa Bay: Calvin Johnson, WR, Georgia Tech: The best receiver in the draft, hands down.
5 Arizona: Gaines Adams, DE, Clemson: I don’t care what the experts say. Gaines Adams is the best defensive end in the draft. Not Jamaal Anderson. Wherever he came from.
6 Washington: Jamaal Anderson, DE, Arkansas: And so he hits the top of the Redskins’ board. Again. I still don’t understand it.
7 New York Giants (from Minnesota): Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma: If Peterson falls all the way to the Vikings, I can’t see them missing this opportunity to get a ton of draft picks with the Giants, for whom Peterson will seamlessly fill in after Tiki’s retirement. Minnesota receives the Giants’ first-round pick and second-round picks in 2007 and 2008.
8 Houston: Alan Branch, DT, Michigan: And most of Houston begins to cry as they miss out on Peterson. However, Branch should be a huge improvement to their run defense.
9 Miami: Leon Hall, CB, Michigan: The second Michigan man of the draft is Hall, who should improve Miami’s secondary immediately.
10 Atlanta: LaRon Landry, SS, LSU: Landry is a gift to the Falcons, who need a safety badly.
11 San Francisco: Dwayne Jarrett, WR, USC: The 49ers could really use a receiver like Jarrett, whose deep threat will add a new dimension to the 49ers offense.
12 Buffalo: Patrick Willis, MLB, Ole Miss: If London Fletcher (-Baker) leaves in free agency, Willis will be needed to fill his hole.
13 St. Louis: Amobi Okoye, DT, Louisville: The Rams need help on their defensive line, and Okoye is one of the most talented prospects on the line in the draft.
14 Carolina: Reggie Nelson, FS, Florida: The Panthers are looking for a safety to cover their defensive backfield, and Nelson has the skills to do so.
15 Pittsburgh: Justin Blalock, OG, Texas: Blalock should improve the inside of the Steelers line, who just suffered another loss with their center retiring.
16 Green Bay: Marshawn Lynch, RB, California: The Packers are just glad no one pulled a New York Giants on them.
17 Jacksonville: Lawrence Timmons, OLB, Florida State: Timmons’ speed would be a huge asset to the Jaguars on the outside.
18 Cincinnati: Darrelle Revis, CB, Pittsburgh: With recent arrests in the secondary of the Bengals and a desire for better performance in the defensive backfield, the Bengals update their secondary with new blood: Revis, out of Pittsburgh.
19 Tennessee: Ted Ginn, WR, Ohio State: Ginn will return kickoffs and catch passes for the Titans, who need serious help at wide receiver.
20 Minnesota (from New York Giants): Marcus McCauley, CB, Fresno State: Though McCauley is falling on most draft boards, the Vikings have enough leeway in the secondary to pick up this physical prospect in the first round.
21 Denver: Quinn Pit****, DT, Ohio State: Pit**** will give Denver a young presence up the middle that they have been lacking as of late.
22 Dallas: Sidney Rice, WR, South Carolina: Excuse me? Though the Cowboys don’t have a need at wide receiver, Rice is the ideal developmental prospect to help learn how to be an NFL star at wide receiver (and with Terry Glenn and Terrell Owens as mentors, probably the obnoxious way).
23 Kansas City: Levi Brown, OT, Penn State: The Chiefs need youth on their line and Brown is an excellent offensive lineman, as well as great value at the 23rd pick.
24 New England (from Seattle): Quentin Moses, OLB, Georgia: Moses will play the outside linebacker position for the Patriots, where he could be extremely well-suited.
25 New York Jets: Adam Carriker, DE, Nebraska: Until this pick stops making sense, the Jets will continue to make it on my mock. And it has only begun to make more and more sense after the Senior Bowl.
26 Philadelphia: Paul Pozluszny, OLB, Penn State: Pozluszny’s stock is falling, but the Eagles recognize a good defensive leader when they see one.
27 New Orleans: Daymeion Hughes, CB, California: The Saints need help in the secondary and Hughes should provide some of that help.
28 Tampa Bay (from New England): Charles Johnson, DE, Georgia: The Patriots don’t see any prospects that they like and trade down. They receive Tampa’s 2nd-round pick. Both teams swap 3rd-round picks. Johnson was a prospect that the Buccaneers liked for their defensive line and thought it was worth it to make sure they could get him.
29 Baltimore: Rufus Alexander, OLB, Oklahoma: If Adalius Thomas leaves, Alexander could be necessary to fill a hole on their defense.
30 San Diego: Dwayne Bowe, WR, LSU: The Chargers could use this talented WR to add a new dimension to their offense.
31 Chicago: Zach Miller, TE, Arizona State: Miller will add a new target to the Bears offense that they really could have used on Sunday.
32 Indianapolis: Buster Davis, ILB, Florida State: Davis is a leader and a tough prospect that should fit well with the Colts’ Cover 2 defense.
33 Oakland: DeMarcus Tyler, DT, N.C. State: The Raiders will eventually need to replace Sapp in the middle, and the Raiders like this tough prospect as their next up-the-middle prospect.
34 Detroit: Jarvis Moss, DE, Florida: The Lions need a pass rush. The Lions need a lot of things.
35 New England (from Tampa Bay): Aaron Ross, CB, Texas: The Patriots are happy that they got a good value CB to add to their somewhat pathetic secondary.
36 Cleveland: LaMarr Woodley, OLB, Michigan: Woodley is a strong linebacker who should add a level of toughness to the Cleveland defensive front 7.
37 New York Jets (from Washington): Michael Bush, RB, Louisville: Bush could give the Jets a new power runner for tough running situations.
38 Arizona: Tony Ugoh, OT, Arkansas: Ugoh is a big power blocker who should give Edgerrin James somewhere to run this year.
39 Houston: Brandon Meriweather, S, Miami: This tough safety prospect from the U should give Houston’s secondary a vast improvement.
40 Miami: H.B. Blades, MLB, Pittsburgh: Blades will give the Dolphins a sharp (no pun intended) presence in the inside when Thomas decides to pack it in.
41 Minnesota: Robert Meachem, WR, Tennessee: Meachem fell further than anyone expected, and the Vikings were happy to snatch him up early in the second round.
42 San Francisco: Michael Griffin, S, Texas: Griffin’s poor tackling form has taken him down a few notches in my book, but the 49ers think that he’ll do fine in their secondary.
43 Buffalo: Chris Houston, CB, Arkansas: The Bills could end up looking to fill a hole opened by a potential Nate Clements departure.
44 Atlanta: Anthony Gonzalez, WR, Ohio State: Gonzalez should give Atlanta another option for Michael Vick at WR.
45 Carolina: Troy Smith, QB, Ohio State: The Panthers hope that Smith will give them a new leader to depend on when Jake Delhomme takes off.
46 Pittsburgh: Fred Bennett, CB, South Carolina: Bennett will give the Steelers a new option at cornerback, where they are lacking depth.
47 Green Bay: Steve Smith, WR, USC: The Packers hope that Smith and Greg Jennings will give Brett Favre’s successor two targets to throw to.
48 Jacksonville: Drew Stanton, QB, Michigan State: The Jaguars want to be able to have the best quarterback possible start, and Stanton will add more competition for that position.
49 Cincinnati: Marcus Thomas, DT, Florida: The Bengals didn’t address their need at tackle in the first round, so they look to make an upgrade with Marcus Thomas.
