The latest Mock Draft (1/29)-fixed

[Icness]

Fixed the Kelly issue and did some juggling afterwards.

1. Miami Dolphins--Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College. This pick is for sale to the highest (if any) bidders, as Bill Parcells knows the Dolphins have numerous chasms to fill. Ryan has a lot of Tom Brady in him, but just enough Kyle Boller to keep him from being a lock. The Tuna knows he needs someone better than John Beck to resuscitate this team, and the OL has enough good pieces to not get Ryan killed. Signability will be more of a factor than usual in the #1 overall pick.

2. St. Louis Rams--Jake Long, T, Michigan. Their OL is a mess, and Orlando Pace can no longer be counted on. Long is capable of playing either LT or RT and is the best run blocking T to enter the draft in a long time. His height gives him issues with smaller, quicker DEs, but Long is no slouch in pass protection either. Trading down for an extra pick or two is a distinct possibility. Floating my own shameless rumor: Rams trade this slot to the Jets for the #6 pick and Laveraneus Coles, and the Jets take Chris Long here, with the Rams still able to get Jake Long at #6.

3. *Atlanta Falcons--Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas. With all the negativity surrounding this team the past year, the Falcons desperately need a new face of the franchise. McFadden is a popular southerner with humility and class, and that might matter as much to Arthur Blank as how freaking awesome he is with the football in his hands. With Warrick Dunn done and Jerrious Norwood not built for fulltime duty, a potential gamebreaking RB like McFadden is more of a need than most people realize. He

[ReasonablySober]

Nice work.

[The_Child_Prodigy]

I guess Conner is the BPA in the second.....

If Chris Long is there the rams will pick him? Are the rams really that high on Jake and low on Chris?

Good work on the draft btw.

[ReasonablySober]

I guess Conner is the BPA in the second.....

If Chris Long is there the rams will pick him? Are the rams really that high on Jake and low on Chris?

Good work on the draft btw.

I think need is going to take over, at least somewhat, when the Rams go on the clock. That offensive line was one of the worst I'd seen and Long would go a long way towards rebuilding it. I think Chris Long is a better player and would represent just as big an upgrade on the other side of the line, but Jackson running behind big Jake Long will probably be too good to pass up.

[lpsevier]

You have Kelly selected twice.

[Jose7]

Kenny Phillips drops that low?

Dont reallylike the Jets draft. Dorsey is not a 2 gap stuffer, we need a true NT, we already have Dwyane Robertson, who's useless at the NT. Based on players available in your mock, I would take Sedrick Ellis #6 and Gosder Cherilus or Kenny Phillips #38.

[lpsevier]

Carlson the 3rd TE off the board?

[NH_soxfan14]

I would love love love love the Pats to get Gholston. Everytime i watch him i see Adalius Thomas.

[randomhero423]

great job as usual. why did kenny phillips drop so low? why wouldn't nyg get him?

[NoSkyy]

Oh sweet, Kenny Philips in the second round? Sign me up please!

[Icness]

I'm just speculating with Phillips. It was more of a case of that I didn't have anywhere higher than that where he would represent the BPA (or next-best BPA) for any team matching their top 3 preceived needs. There is a glut of young, semi-talented safeties all over the league, even in the horrid secondaries like Detroit, Miami, and New Orleans. I'm not sold that he's a big upgrade over guys like the Bullocks brothers or Roman Harper or Marvin White or Anthony Smith, and from what I've gathered not a lot of other folks are either. He could very well go to Dallas with either of their picks or perhaps as high as Carolina if he really stands out, but I'm betting he swings the other way.

[Manhattan Project]

If the Jets ended up with Dorsey and Phillips with their first two picks I would be ecstatic. I do like Caldwell very much, I think he would be an amazing slot receiver for us but not with Phillips on the board.

[studcrackers]

icness you still havent corrected giving the cowboys malcolm kelly w/our 2nd 1st rounder, who do see us taking?

[Icness]

The problem with the Jets taking Phillips is that the best player on the defense (Kerry Rhodes) plays the same position. They're going to lose Coles, so they really need a legit downfield threat.

[deeney0]

Does Calais Campbell have enough up side that the Vikings would take the 5th DE off the board when they can have their choice of WR?

[Manhattan Project]

The problem with the Jets taking Phillips is that the best player on the defense (Kerry Rhodes) plays the same position. They're going to lose Coles, so they really need a legit downfield threat.

Correct me if im wrong, but Phillips can play both safety positions no? I feel that Jerricho Cotchery can become the down field threat that the Jets need for now and the future. Though do you know something about Coles that I dont?

Plus I feel that Smith was really coming a long at the end of the season, but is no means a legit 1 or 2 receiver. Though this draft is deep at WR so that we can pick one in the later rounds, though we must address the O-Line situation as well.

[A.J.]

i dont see us taking campbell at 17.....id much rather take a receiver such as desean jackson, or malcolm kelly...what do you think iceness

[PhilipNelsonFan]

A few questions/notes...

1. Is it just me, or could we see a LOT of trading down in this draft? There are a lot of quality players who are going to be pushed backward in the draft just because they aren't positions of dire need. Take my boy Jonathan Stewart, who's projected here at 18 but is a top-10 prospect in this draft. (And this isn't just my own opinion.) If some team really wanted him as a RB but didn't want to draft him in the top-10, they have a great shot at trading with a team who has different needs for extra picks/players.

2. Seriously, is Ellis to Cincinnati a lock? Have you heard anything from their scouts? (Does Cincinnati actually employ scouts??)

3. C'mon, Jeff, be original and drop DeSean Jackson from your draft board. Come on. We know you want to. We want you to.

4. A TE for the Titans? You'd think Porter or Mike Jenkins would be a more appropriate pick, and it's still good value.

5. Is it possible that Martellus Bennett winds up in the first round when all is said and done? I find it hard to believe he won't have an excellent combine given that he was an elite basketball prospect in addition to being a large, athletic meast.

6. Ali Highsmith in the second round for the Bengals is sufficient. He fills a gaping need and he has a lot of experience. Good ish. I like Cherilus there, but I think it'd be best for the Bengals to trade down, acquire some mid-round picks, and keep building.

7. What's Carl Nicks' draft ceiling? Reading Senior Bowl reports it seemed like he was one of the more impressive prospects there. Is it possible he too rises to the top of the second round?

8. Same with Chris Johnson; what's his draft ceiling and how will the Combine help/hurt him?

9. What are your thoughts on Bruce Davis and his ability to play LB in the NFL? What's the biggest hurdle in making the transition? Davis was a beast at UCLA and I have no reason to believe he can't do similar things in the NFL.

10. How would the Patriots incorporate Matt Forte into their offense?

[Icness]

A few questions/notes...

1. Is it just me, or could we see a LOT of trading down in this draft? There are a lot of quality players who are going to be pushed backward in the draft just because they aren't positions of dire need. Take my boy Jonathan Stewart, who's projected here at 18 but is a top-10 prospect in this draft. (And this isn't just my own opinion.) If some team really wanted him as a RB but didn't want to draft him in the top-10, they have a great shot at trading with a team who has different needs for extra picks/players.

2. Seriously, is Ellis to Cincinnati a lock? Have you heard anything from their scouts? (Does Cincinnati actually employ scouts??)

3. C'mon, Jeff, be original and drop DeSean Jackson from your draft board. Come on. We know you want to. We want you to.

4. A TE for the Titans? You'd think Porter or Mike Jenkins would be a more appropriate pick, and it's still good value.

5. Is it possible that Martellus Bennett winds up in the first round when all is said and done? I find it hard to believe he won't have an excellent combine given that he was an elite basketball prospect in addition to being a large, athletic meast.

6. Ali Highsmith in the second round for the Bengals is sufficient. He fills a gaping need and he has a lot of experience. Good ish. I like Cherilus there, but I think it'd be best for the Bengals to trade down, acquire some mid-round picks, and keep building.

7. What's Carl Nicks' draft ceiling? Reading Senior Bowl reports it seemed like he was one of the more impressive prospects there. Is it possible he too rises to the top of the second round?

8. Same with Chris Johnson; what's his draft ceiling and how will the Combine help/hurt him?

9. What are your thoughts on Bruce Davis and his ability to play LB in the NFL? What's the biggest hurdle in making the transition? Davis was a beast at UCLA and I have no reason to believe he can't do similar things in the NFL.

10. How would the Patriots incorporate Matt Forte into their offense?

I love you, man :
1. It's real hard to predict trade activity this far out. The trade talks really get fired up in Indy. I don't see any moves in the top 8, unless the Jets and Rams work something out. I do think you're going to see last year's trend of trading misfit/disgruntled players for picks, and I think a lot of that will come in the 25-50 range. Just a guess though.

2. Yes, Cincy does in fact employ scouts. Just a lot less of them. And they do indeed love Ellis, but so do a lot of other teams. He's really closed the gap with Dorsey, but Dorsey is still higher.

3. I sooo want to, but I'm trying to be as realistic as possible. In the "What I would do" mock, he won't be in the first two rounds. He is my #2 pick for bust of this draft.

4. I think the Titans are relatively happy with the Harper/Finnegan/Griffin combo at CB. A mobile, inaccurate QBs best friend is a TE with great hands.

5. Bennett could very well wind up being the #1 TE off the board. I personally rate him ahead of Davis but behind Carlson. Before everyone gets too excited though, I'm researching an article now about basketballers turned TEs and the success rate. Thus far it's not pretty; remember Rickey Dudley?

6. I'm not a Highsmith fan at all, but he does kind of fit with what Marvin Lewis is apparently trying to do with his defense. If he's actually trying to do anything with his defense. They are real high on Carl Nicks, so he might wind up going there, and IMO that would be a great pick.

Tangent: Highsmith is one of those measuring sticks by which the scouting profession evaluates an eye for talent. The casual fan, or those attracted to bright shiny objects, sees Highsmith run real fast into a ballcarrier a couple times a game and adores him. The scouting world sees a guy with zero concept of gap responsibility, poor tackling technique (he's a hitter, not a tackler), and sloppy feet. He does indeed have some impressive upside (Ernie Sims?) if he takes to coaching and gets over himself, but I'm betting we never see it.

7. Nicks probably passed Cherilus on some draft boards. I was more taken with Chris Williams and I know others were as well. I'd be very surprised if Nicks doesn't go in the top 60 and he could crack the top 40 with a good combine. Cherilus has been pegged as a "RT only" and that limits his draft potential, even though I think he'll be a pretty good one. God knows my Lions sure need one

8. Chris Johnson's stock is hard to read. He should be the fastest RB in Indy and he's a great receiver--and that's about all most people know about him. They moved him around so much and kept changing his role, so it's hard to project how well he will do as a straight RB. IMO he could be the next Brian Westbrook and has a similar game, but he also reminds me a great deal of Mewelde Moore when he came out. I didn't get to see much ECU football this year and probably won't, so I'm not the best mind to pick about him.

9. I think Bruce Davis made a great decision to switch to OLB. He's got exceptional footwork and is a natural athlete, so he won't struggle in coverage or in space the way a lot of guys who make that switch do.

10. I know the Pats have legit questions about Maroney's durability. Forte is a between-the-tackles back with enough giddyup to fill in as a short-yardage guy and also to save Maroney some when they're in clock-eating mode (which they almost never do, but Belichick likes to add new things all the time). He's also a heck of a blocker and has decent hands. I know one director of scouting who told me if Forte played at LSU instead of Tulane he would have won the Heisman and would be a surefire top 15 pick. I don't share that glowing buzz but I do think if he played in a BCS conference he'd be rated at least as high as Felix Jones.

[Jose7]

The problem with the Jets taking Phillips is that the best player on the defense (Kerry Rhodes) plays the same position. They're going to lose Coles, so they really need a legit downfield threat.

Na, I think Coles will extended. Cotchery is defintely legit, he's one of the best possession recievers in the NFL. I know Coles is injury prone right now but he's still explosive.

Also, what's the big difference between Free Safety and Strong Safety?