I LOVE the NFL Draft. The beginning of so many possibilities for each team. Everyone believes they are going to draft the guys who are going to get them to the next level. Bad teams draft the future, Playoff teams draft the missing link to their pursuit of the ultimate prize. I LOVE THE DRAFT!!! With that being said, I believe this may have been the most exciting draft I have ever seen. There were trades, surprise picks, and guys falling from expectations in ways that I do not remember. So allow me to give you some of my memories from the draft that I will take away and remember...
1. The uneventful eventful beginning...The top 4 went as expected. Bradford, Suh, McCoy, and Williams were projected to go 1st by many. What I will remember most about the early part of the draft was the reaction of Gerald McCoy, the young man who was drafted 3rd overall by the Tampa Bay Bucaneers. What a great scene as he is on the phone with tears rolling down his face. That is what makes the NFL Draft so great. With all of the overpaid athletes who have a sense of entitlement and remind us about how this is "just a business" it is so good to see the joy of a young man who is in the process of fulfilling a lifelong dream. This is a kid whose mother passed away his senior year in high school. She never got a chance to see him become a star at the University of Oklahoma. She was not there with him, like so many other mothers, on one of the biggest days of his life. The tears of joy the child like smile, the playful hug with "Mr. Business" Roger Goodell himself. Gerald McCoy had dedicated this moment to his mom and I can't help but think that she would have been proud of her son.
2. The What are they thinking moments...Jacksonville Jaguars WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? Tyson Alualu --- ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I get it, you wanted CJ Spiller. Great kid and would have been a great pick for you (Buffalo blew this one, but that's for a later posting). However, how can you be guaranteed to pick one of the 10 best players and then reach for a guy who should not have been drafted in the 1st round, much less in the top 10. How do you not have a back up plan just in case your guy gets picked before you get him? I do not know what the fan base in Jacksonville is thinking today, but I have to think they would not be disappointed if the entire front office is looking for a new job on Monday morning.
3. Trades, Trades, & More Trades...I expected there to be movement in this draft. But I do not think anyone could have predicted this much movement. I am just focusing on what happened in the 1st half of the draft for now, but beginning at pick number 11 we saw a flurry of trades and you have to like what the teams were able to do moving back. When you look at how the Denver Broncos were able to move around the 1st round while adding picks was brilliant, I will question what they did with the picks a little later, but they did a great job moving around the draft board. As brilliant as the Broncos were, the Chargers were equally bad. They moved up way to far, for a player they could have gotten much lower in the draft. This is another case of a team panicking. You needed a running back, but there were other options besides Ryan Matthews, including Jahvid Best, who in my opinion will be a better player.
4. Free Falling...Jimmy Clausen was to believed to be the best quarterback in this draft by many, including draft expert Mel Kiper. During the weeks leading up to the draft, it became clear that Sam Bradford would be the 1st player taken in the draft. Jimmy Clausen will go to the Raiders, Bills, or Jaguars. He will not fall outside of the top 10. We are really looking at a Brady Quinn/ Aaron Rodgers type fall now. Then it is announced that the Denver Broncos & quarterback guru Jash McDaniels are trading up to the 25th pick in the draft. They are going to get the next great quarterback. They are surely looking for Jimmy Clausen. Here comes the commish to the podium. With the 25th pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Denver Borncos select...Tim Tebow quarterback from the University of Florida. WHAT??? HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE??? How does Tim Tebeow go before Jimmy Clausen? Clausen landed in a good spot in Carlina and will probably be the starter in week 1 for the Panthers, but his slide was a major shocker during this draft. However, the slide was just beginning in Austin. Everything seemed to be going exactly as the Cleveland Browns had hoped. Get an impact defender in round 1 and then draft the perfect quarterback to run their system in Cleveland. Then Mike Holmgren decides it is time to wait, and wait, and wait, and wait on the player they HAD TO HAVE. As scared as the Jaguars and the Chargers both seemed to be, Mike Holmgren seemed to have that same amount of who cares look about him as he gambled with the fact that nobody was going to take "HIS" quarterback during the draft. This almost had the feel of a high school bully not asking the girl to the dance but threatening anyone who wanted to ask her. The Browns had to have McCoy, what were they thinking? Finally with the 87th the Browns got their man. I believe when we look back at this draft, that will be one of the steals of the draft. The Browns got their guy & McCoy has landed with a chance to turn a franchise around.
I will be posting draft grades for every team over the next few days. Please check back to see how your team did.
Until Next Time...
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