2008 NFL Mock Draft, v 2

Here’s another mock draft.  I won’t ruin the surprise, but I think the Redskins pick is going to surprise a few people.  But I like it, and I think you will if you think about it.  Comment away!

1.

Miami Dolphins – Glen Dorsey, DT, LSU. I know that most of the mock drafts have Matt Ryan going here, but I just don’t buy it.  With the Dolphins having spent a 2nd round draft pick on John Beck, it doesn’t look like a reasonable investment.  With Jason Taylor reportedly being released soon, a lineman, either Dorsey or Chris Long makes more sense.  Dorsey is my pick based on his great game changing potential, but Parcells would be the kind of guy to go with Howie’s boy.

2.

St. Louis Rams – Chris Long, DE, Virginia. I have to admit, I was going to have the Rams pick o-lineman Jake Long.  But Todd McShay makes a really great point in his latest ESPN mock.  He points out that the Rams will either have to move Jake to guard or RT while Orlando Pace finishes his career.  This is likely to mess with Jake’s development and cost a lot given his position will move to a less important position while his second pick overall money won’t change.  In the absence of a Jake, Chris Long is the best player available at a position the Rams could upgrade.

3. Atlanta Falcons* – Matt Ryan, QB, BC. I hate this pick.  I have a bad feeling about Ryan.  I don’t like his delivery (too long and slow) and I don’t like the system he played with in college.  He’ll have to be retaught how to read defenses.  At the same time, I hated Peyton Manning coming out of school, too (blame Heath Shuler), so what the heck do I know?  The truth is that this team is rebuilding and unless they know Mike Vick is getting out of jail sooner than we think, they need a new QB and Ryan is the best bet.

4. Oakland Raiders* – Jake Long, OT, Michigan. Can the Raiders resist Darren McFadden if he falls to number 4?  Probably not.  But they should.  They have Lamont Jordan, Dominic Rhodes, and Justin Fargas.  A good coach can get enough production out of that group if it had, say a great offensive line, that it would be no big deal.  Long is an investment in JaMarcus Russel’s future.  Protect your assets.  As the Giants, Packers, and a million other teams have shown, you can find an RB in the late rounds.

5

. Kansas City Chiefs* – Ryan Clady, OT, Boise St.  This is a bit of a reach.  In fact, I really don’t feel comfortable with this pick.  The Chiefs o-line is a mess though and a left tackle is a must.  But Clady isn’t really worth a top 5 pick.  But the other choices don’t make a lot of sense.  McFadden splitting time with Larry Johnson is a fun idea but impractical.  The d-line is set now that Jared Allen has been franchised. The Chiefs are probably hoping for the Raider’s to take McFadden.

6. New York Jets – Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas.  He can’t fall any further even though I don’t think he’s going to be as good as Adrian Peterson.  Jet’s fans will love this pick, and Radio City would be burned to the ground if the Jets passed.  This makes a lot of sense, too. Thomas Jones is a great 3rd down back and pass blocker that will allow McFadden to come along slowly on that front.

7

.

New England Patriots (From 49ers) – Vernon Gholston, DE/LB, Ohio St. This is the perfect pick for the Pats and it is disgusting that they get to make it.  Either way, Gholston is ideal for the Pats.  He can play linebacker or DE in a 3-4 defense and the biggest knock on him is that he doesn’t play consistently and he disappears for chunks of games.  You can bet that the Pats coaching staff won’t let that happen.  He’ll be a super star.

8. Baltimore Ravens – Leodis McKelvin, CB, Troy. Brian Brohm is sinking on draft boards faster than the Titanic after Leo and Kate say their last goodbyes.  At this time, it looks like the Ravens will rely on a combo of Steve McNair, duct tape, and prayer while they hope Troy Smith can come along. Mckelvin is a good need pick but has value, too.

9.

Cincinnati Bengals – Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC.  A value pick for a defense that has more holes than Roger Clemens’ steroids alibi.  Ellis is a top 5 talent and could really help the Bengals.

10.

New Orleans Saints – Keith Rivers, OLB, USC.  Having addressed their problem at MLB with the Vilma trade, the Saints have the luxury of taking the best available player at a need position.  They could go with Rivers or CB Mike Jenkins.  I’m going with Rivers only because the CB depth is better and the Saints may be able to answer both problems.

11. Buffalo Bills – Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas.  Most mock drafts have the Bills bringing in a new target for their two young QB’s.  I just don’t see it.  Lee Evans and Josh Reed are good enough.  Talib would fill the giant, gaping hole left by Nate Clements.

12. Denver Broncos – Chris Williams, OT, Vanderbilt.  Denver’s biggest needs are WR (assuming they trade Javon Walker as reported), and the middle of their defense (DT, MLB, S).  But at this stage in the draft there really aren’t good value picks there.  William’s mobility fits right in with the Bronco’s zone rushing attack.  I think they’d love to trade down, but there really isn’t any reason for someone to trade up here.

13. Carolina Panthers – Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois.  Truthfully, I doubt they’ll make this pick.  The Panthers are banking on DeAngelo Williams being able to carry the load. He’s 5′ 9″ and 217 lbs.  I don’t know if a study has ever been done showing whether height has anything to do with durability, but it just seems like he’ll have difficulty to me.  I’d add Mendenhall as an insurance policy. But they will probably take DE Derrick Harvey if he is available.

14.

Chicago Bears – Malcolm Kelly, WR, Oklahoma. Here’s an idea, Chicago.  Maybe the reason you haven’t had a good QB in my lifetime is because you also haven’t really had a dangerous receiver since Willie Gault and he was a sprinter more than a true receiver.  Maybe Grossman or Orton could throw if they had a target.  Maybe not.  But since Brian Brohm is your only other choice, this seems like as good a try as any.

15. Detroit Lions

– Mike Jenkins, CB, S. Florida. They need o-line help, too.  But Jenkins is the best value here, and the Lions need to help their defense, particularly after trading Rogers earlier this week.  I just don’t get the Lions, because they seem to keep trading their defenisive pieces away just as they are starting to realize some offensive gains.

16. Arizona Cardinals – Limas Sweed, WR, Texas.  A WR?  What the #%!? This is just a hunch, but there were rumors this week that the Cardinals were talking about trading Larry Fitzgerald because his cap number was huge and prevented them from improving their o-line.  With Randy Moss going back to the Pats, I think the Eagles are hungry.  I think we’re going to see this happen and the Cards will use this pick to replace Fitzgerald.

17. Minnesota Vikings – Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida.  This is a great bonus if Harvey really falls to the Vikes.  They’ve drafted enough defensive ends to rush three QB’s, but sadly all three QB’s would get away.  Harvey is the stud rusher they desperately need.

18. Houston Texans – Jonathan Stewart, RB, Oregon.  If the Texans can build a running game to go with their passing attack, they can take a lot of pressure off of Matt Schaub.  They could also grab help on defense, but the Texans need the most help at DB, and there really isn’t a good value pick there right now.

19. Philadelphia Eagles – Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson.  When Jevon Kearse was healthy (did that ever happen in Philly?) he was still a liability during the running game.  Merling is not a major pass rushing threat, but anchors the running game very well.  I suspect that Eagles fans will enjoy the change.

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – DeSean Jackson, WR, Cal.  It appeared a couple of years ago that the Bucs had found their compliment to Joey Galloway in the form of Michael Clayton.  But somehow, after a promising rookie year, he’s totally disappeared.  Jackson can help take the heat from Galloway and maybe he’ll light a fire under Clayton, too.

21. Washington Redskins – Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tennessee St. I know, I know.  If you are reading this you are more than likely a Redskins fan and you will be sad to see this name here.  But it really makes sense.  We will lose out on the two big target receivers in the draft (Kelly and Sweed) and the only sure thing DE (Harvey).  With Rogers hurt and Shawn Springs getting older, this pick solves both problems.  Rodgers-Cromartie helps Smoot replace Rogers this year and then he can step into the hole Springs leaves when he either switches to safety or becomes a free agent.  Rodgers-Cromartie should remind some people of another young, blazing, small school CB named Darrell Green.

22.

Dallas Cowboys (From Browns

) – Mario Manningham, WR, Michigan. This is assuming the Cowboys don’t either trade up for McFadden or for Javon Walker as been reported.  Manningham makes an excellent long term replacement for Terrell Owens (who isn’t young) and Terry Glenn (who is even less young).

23.

Pittsburgh Steelers

– Jeff Otah, OT, Pittsburgh. Local guy and the Steelers are losing some of their o-line to free agency.  This is a perfect pick for them if Otah lasts.  If Otah goes, they may be in trouble because their needs don’t match the deep places in the draft.

24.

Tennessee Titans

– Calais Campbell, DE, Miami. Campbell is not supposed to be here at this point, and the Titans will be happy if they get this lucky.  Conventional wisdom has Campbell going to the Skins. In general, there’s a lot of d-line help here (Quentin Groves, Kentwan Balmer) but not any of the WR help they could really use.

25.

Seattle Seahawks

– Kentwan Balmer, DT, North Carolina. Mel Kiper is high on this guy, but most of the rest of the world seems to not care.  I wouldn’t be shocked if Balmer doesn’t go here and actually falls to the 2nd round.  The ‘Hawks need a running back but can’t really reach for Felix Jones here because Jones is too small to take the whole load.

26.

Jacksonville Jaguars

– Quentin Groves, DE, Auburn.  Jacksonville’s line has been the strength of the defense for years but is aging all at once.  A little youth injection would be a good thing for a team that is pretty close to being a championship team.

27.

San Diego Chargers

– Felix Jones, RB, Arkansas.  Boy, Jerry Jones will be unhappy if the Cowboys don’t get either Arkansas RB.  But the Chargers need to replace Michael Turner to protect Ladanian Tomlinson and their other needs (RT, DT, CB) aren’t really available here.  The other option might be Brandon Flowers who I love, but most people have as a second round choice.

28.

Dallas Cowboys

–

Kenny Phillips, S, Miami.  People are down on Phillips who was described as better than Ed Reed and Sean Taylor.  Now, a lot of people are talking about him dropping to the second round.  This is a bit of a reach, but again Flowers and Phillips fit the needs of the Cowboys.  If they went with the best available player it would be LB Dan Connor, but obviously their pretty set at LB.

29.

San Francisco 49ers (From Colts)

– Dan Connor, LB, Penn St. They need a WR, but they can get one at the top of the second round much cheaper and Connor has fallen more than he should because of position needs.  Connor should match with Patrick Willis to make a great young LB corps.

30.

Green Bay Packers – Brian Brohm, QB, Lousiville.  What the heck, right?  Favre just retired.  You don’t know if Aaron Rodgers can handle the load.  Why not?  And if not Brohm now, you have to cover your bases in the 2nd or 3rd round so why not give it a shot?

31.

New York Giants

– James Hardy, WR, Indiana.  The Giants could go a lot of different ways really.  But Hardy can help with the inevitable Toomer retirement.  They could also go with RT Gosder Cherilus. Or they could reach for a 2nd round player that could play LB or S.

FORFEITED

-DW