Day 2 Analysis: NFL Draft

Post #1 » by **PhilipNelsonFan** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 11:42 pm

A very interesting draft day for sure; let's get into the thick of it, shall we?

77th overall: Pat Sims, DT, Auburn.

Hallelujah! Another major need filled with a very talented prospect to boot. It sounds like, from the scouting reports, Sims projected as a 4-3 DT, which makes him a potential monster in the middle with Peko by his side. I personally would've wanted Dre Moore, but Sims appears to have all the tools to succeed.

The biggest question related to him is character, which should be a huge question mark in Cincy but appears to be put off for now. Sims literally quit his team in 2005 and had a jump in production so great in one year that people are labeling him a one-year wonder. But the scouting reports...damn. He seems equally comfortable stopping the run and rushing the pass, he's quick, and he plays nasty...exactly what you want out of your DT. What's in his head, though, is yet to be seen. In the meantime, it's a nice pick and it fills a huge need.

97th overall (Compensatory): Andre Caldwell, WR, Florida.

Wait...didn't Cincinnati just draft a wide receiver in round 2? Didn't he have great physical tools and production?

Well, yeah, and it appears the front office went Best Player Available on this one...my God, did they ever. In his senior year, Caldwell went to the end zone once for every eight passes he caught, and he runs a 4.37 40. Marvin Lewis must be anticipating some competition in the race to find a No. 2 WR should Chad leave. But if he doesn't, this may be the best group of WRs in the NFL.

I worry about Caldwell a bit because he came out of a decidedly Tebow-centric offense in Florida and could not often use his tools to the greatest advantage...but damn, he projects well at the VERY least.

112th overall: Anthony Collins, OT, Kansas.

Good pick. OL had to be addressed in some fashion and no one would have blinked had this kid gone in round 3. Mike Pollak would have been ideal but the Colts hurriedly snatched him up to lessen the damage from Jeff Saturday's departure (a very smart move). Collins, meanwhile, is raw but toolsy; quick and powerful, the scouting reports need, but needs to improve footwork and consistency on leverage. Those, of course, can come with coaching and I doubt he would get the world's best at Kansas, so he's probably in a good situation for himself.

Will he contribute right away? I'd say no, but we'll see what happens with Willie Anderson, Levi Jones, Andrew Whitworth and (next year) Stacy Andrews, who will probably leave for a bigger payday. Never hurts to have his replacement ready, and good teams always draft for needs a couple years down the line.

145th overall: Jason Shirley, DT, Fresno State.

As someone whose college team plays Fresno State regularly, you always hate to play Fresno State. That team has a straight attitude, and Pat Hill is a true commander in chief out there. His quarterbacks haven't seemed to develop that attitude, but his players do for the most part.

That said, this looks like a waste of a pick and it looks even worse when you consider that Ahtyba Rubin went a round later. Shirley was kicked off of Fresno State following a DUI arrest, his third such traffic related incident. The scouting reports highlight his physical tools, but he looks unproductive for the most part (although he did have 1.5 sacks in three games before getting kicked off the team senior year) and if Marvin Lewis can't get his head on straight (his track record betrays him), then he's almost a lost cause right off the bat.

I love the direction and the logic behind the pick; why did it have to be a screw-up of a player?

#177 overall: Corey Lynch, S, Appalachian State.

Even if Corey Lynch doesn't do a thing in the NFL, he holds his claim to football immortality as the kid who blocked Jason Gingell's field goal in the last second of the Appalachian State/Michigan game to stun the home team...and he tried to take it to the house. By God, he almost succeeded, were it not for a furious Gingell finally tackling him around the 10. When I saw this pick, I most definitely cracked a smile.

BUT CAN HE PLAY? YES. Oh God, yes. In 56 collegiate games he had 24 interceptions and 358 tackles, and scouting reports rave about his instincts, not to mention his 4.6 40 speed, which isn't necessarily great in the speed-addicted NFL but solid if you have the football knowledge to help cover it. Dare I say it, this kid will be a standout special-teamer at worst and a starting safety in the NFL at best. I love this pick. Marvin White and Chinedum Ndukwe had better watch their asses.

#207 overall (Compensatory): Matt Sherry, TE, Villanova.

Perhaps the front office, so distraught from losing Haruki Nakamura to hated rival Baltimore, took a bunch of shots in between the picks and drew a name out of a hat to present to the commissioner. Right? That had to be it, because, for God's sake, Matt Sherry isn't even in NFLDraftCountdown's database...

Here are the basics, per ESPN: 6-3, 245, 4.7 40, averaged 12.5 yards a catch his senior year, pure receiving TE who needs a lot of work to be an effective blocker in the NFL. So either the Bengals just drafted their third WR of the draft, or they screwed this pick up pretty badly, or they see something we would never have known otherwise. I'll take the middle option given who's left on the board.

#244 overall (Compensatory): Angelo Craig, OLB, Cincinnati.

Erin Henderson, the OLB from Maryland who was considered a physical freak and a second-rounder, did not even get drafted this year. That means the front office thought so highly of Craig that they wouldn't take Erin Henderson over him. Chew on that before you continue.

Craig is not unlike current Bengals LB Eric Henderson in that he needs to learn the position, but he's 6-4, 250 and is considered a very agile player. Not to mention he's a Cincinnati guy and the Bengals' FO gets a kick (understandably) when drafting the local college stars. For now, this guy will absolutely wreak havoc on special teams given his physical tools.

#246 overall (Compensatory): Mario Urrutia, WR, Louisville.

Wow.

Let's flash back to the beginning of the college football season, when Urrutia was in the discussion (with Mario Manningham and a couple others) as the best WR in college football. That 6-5 frame, the jump-ball ability...scouts everywhere were just GUSHING over the kid and ready to take him in the first 15 selections.

Now, he comes to define the word "flyer", as Urrutia has all the talent in the world without the head to make it stick. He went from the top of the world to damaged goods in an unbelievable season and has seen his fellow WR, QB, TE and OT all go before him, when he should be passing everybody. The bottom line is, expect nothing and take anything you get as a very pleasant surprise. He'll likely be practice squad fodder until the coaching staff has enough of him.

Day 2 Grade: C

This day produced the following for the Bengals: a starting-caliber DT, a No. 4 WR, an OT of the future, a total unknown, two special-teams standouts and two utter headcases. Given the number of holes that were actually filled (maybe two, possibly three if Craig can stick around), other teams were able to do more with less.

OVERALL DRAFT GRADE: C+

The final count comes to 3 WRs, 2 OLBs, 2 DTs, an OT, a TE and a S. Definitely not bad but this team could have done quite a bit more, especially with the way the Bengals set themselves up after Day 1. Of the talent they got, at least five players will immediately contribute (Rivers, Simpson, Sims, Lynch and one of Collins or Caldwell) and two others (Sherry and Craig) are long-term projects in the making. If the team psychologist can fit another 20 hours into his work week, this draft could be something special, as a lot of depth and needs were addressed, but not everything was filled to standards. Considering the talent available after some selections and the fact that Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Baltimore all got markedly better in this draft, Cincinnati has to come from behind and may have, should all players perform to potential, hit a triple off the wall.

Cohiba13 · Post #5 » by **El Turco** » Tue May 6, 2008 8:30 pm

Some notes from SI.com:

Tim Lehrbach wrote:I will break the Rose Garden.