With Ted Thompson's third selection, he selects Alex Green, a running back from Hawaii. At first reaction I did not like this pick, but after doing a little research and watching some highlights from him, this kid looks like he is the big sleeper in this running back class. Only last week did I put Green on my running back board and put him as my 21st ranked running back and a 6th round projection. I had never heard of him, but saw many draft sites were putting him higher in their rankings so I felt I should put him in my rankings. Green looks to be a player as reports are that he can catch and is very solid with his 225 pound frame in pass protection. This almost certainly means the end of Brandon Jackson in Green Bay, as it looks like Green can do just about everything Jackson can. Also, don't forget the last time the Packers aquired a running back with the last name of Green. Just saying. Anyway, solid pick for the Pack, but not one that is going to wow me with players like Quan Sturdivant and Christian Ballard on the board. Hopefully tomorrow the Packers address the defensive side of the ball, as there are still many solid prospects available here for the later rounds. To finish up the Panthers selected defensive tackle Sinoa Fua from Stanford who was ranked my 98th prospect and was selected 97th overall. Looks like I hit on that one. I will try and post some comments from time to time tomorrow regarding the Packers and other draft picks that stick out to me, but do not expect pick by pick analysis. I will have full team draft grades sometime around next week Sunday or the next Monday. Thanks for following on an day 2 with many surprises.
The Jets select Kendrick Ellis, a huge defensive tackle from Hampton. He is actually light on his feet and is actually really similar to Phil Taylor in my opinion. This is a good pick for the Jets who add him and Wilkerson to add some huge beef up front. A pick I really like this late here on day 2. The Steelers select the 2nd best available corner on my board in Curtis Brown. Packers on the clock.
Offensive tackle Joseph Barksdale from LSU is headed to the Raiders, which will help bolster the Raiders offensive line with Wisniewski. It looks like Robert Gallery will be leaving in free agency, and the Raiders offensive line was still average at best last season. However, I am not a big fan of Barksdale, and feel he is slow on his feet. He was a projected first round pick entering the season, but his stock really dropped this season with a subpar year. With the 93rd pick, the Bears select Chris Conte from Cal, the 6th best strong safety on my board. I don't know a lot about Conte and I had all five strong safeties ahead of him still available.
The Eagles continue the run on corners and select Curtis Marsh, a corner from Utah State. I also had Marsh ranked as a 4th rounder, and I felt there were some better corner backs available here for the Eagles like Brandon Burton (the top player on my board), Jalil Brown and Curtis Brown. The Falcons select Akeem Dent, an inside linebacker from Georgia. The Falcons are finally able to address a need on defense after giving up their 2nd round pick as part of the Julio Jones deal. Dent was the 80th ranked player on my board so this is a good value pick for them.
I have never been a fan of Allen Bailey, but I still had him graded as a late 2nd rounder, so this is good value for Kansas City with their 3-4 defense. I was hoping the Packers would take a shot on him if he was available, but solid pickup for the Chiefs. Nevis was another LSU Tiger that I was impressed with when I watched the Cotton Bowl, and now he is headed to the Colts and should definitely help the defensive front led by Daniel Muir, a former Packer practice squad player. And the Saints add to their great draft by adding one of my favorite players in this draft, Johnny Patrick, a corner from louisville. And the Chargers also go corner by taking Shareece Wright, who I had ranked as a 4th round grade, but still he was one of the top corners left. The Chargers obviously wanted to adress their pass defense in the later rounds by adding to their secondary and have looked to have done it by adding Gilchrist and Wright.
Vincent Brown to the Chargers is a great pick. Vincent Jackson is good, but Malcolm Floyd isn't special and Craig Davis is a bust. Brown blew up at the Senior Bowl, raising his stock from the 6th round to the 3rd round. Jernigan, another player I like is heading to the Big Apple to play for the Giants. Jernigan is another short a quick wide receiver that may step in as the return man in front of Will Blackmon. Mason Foster, who blew up in the Holiday Bowl against Nebraska is a great pick for the Bucs this last, as I had him as one of my best players available. The Ravens select Jah Reid who is very raw, but he is mammoth size and can learn from Michael Oher.
Jurrell Casey, who I had projected as a 2nd-3rd rounder is a good value pick here for the Titans, who were considering Fairley at defensive tackle in the 1st round. Austin Pettis, the 2nd Boise State wide receiver selected is headed to the Rams to help out Sam Bradford. The Rams had Julio Jones on their radar in the first round, but they figured there was no chance that would happen. They instead take a solid receiver in Pettis, who I had graded as a third rounder. Leonard Hankerson is headed to the Nations Capital, and will be a great option for whoever is behind center in Washington. Santana Moss is getting old, and Armstrong is nothing special and they were the only two receivers who caught touchdowns for the Skins last season. I beleive Hankerson instantly becomes the number one option in Washington. The only question is who the quarterback will be. Chris Culliver is headed to the 49ers with the 80th pick in the draft. Culliver is the first prospect that I did not have ranked, so the 49ers definitely must have seen something in him. Another reach at corner comes directly after, where DeMarcus Van Dyke who I had as a fifth round grade is taken by Al Davis. Van Dyke has a lot of physical talent, but he lacks coverage skills. Sounds like an Al Davis pick to me. Chargers up next.
The Seahawks select another Badger, John Moffit who was the best guard available. Moffit was an All-American and makes that the 4th Badger in 75 picks. This upgrades the Seattle offensive line, regardless of what Todd McShay thinks. Will Rackley is the next selection, who after the Moffit selection, was the best guard available. Rackley was a player I felt the Packers may select late in the third round. The Jaguars were also another team in need of a guard, so this will also upgrade their line.
DeMarco Murray goes with the 81st pick, which is a good pick for the Cowboys. Murray was the top running back left on my board. Now, the question is what will they do with their other running backs. It looks like Marion Barber or Tashard Choice will be gone. Martez Wilson is a great pick for the Saints, who was the top player ranked on my board at 43. The Saints continue to improve on an impressive draft with Jordan and Ingram. And the New England Patriots select Stevan Ridley, who proved a lot to me after having a great Cotton Bowl against Von Miller and Texas A&M. That game put his stock up and a great combine moved his stock up here to the 3rd round. The Patriots have the second straight pick and select a shocker, Ryan Mallett. Wow is all I can say. Where does Mallett fit into the Patriots long term plans with Brady still having at least 3 or 4 years left in New England.
Terrell McClain goes to the Panthers with the first pick of the third round. A strong defensive tackle gives the Panthers that defensive tackle that many were prjecting them to take at this position. Dontay Moch, one of my favorite players in thie draft is selected by the Bengals. Moch, who is raw, is the fastest linebacker in this draft and will be a great edge rusher if he can develop. The Broncos have a major need at defensive line and instead select Nate Irving a middle linebacker, with the selection, which is a bit surprising to me. Kevlin Shepard, who I have as my second ranked linebacker behind Martez Wilson goes early in the third round, which is excactly where I had him projected. The Cardinals take a tight end, but reach for Robert Housler with tight ends like Virgil Green, Jordan Cameron, D.J. Williams, and Luke Stocker still on the board. And finally, Justin Houston, the 33rd ranked player on my big board goes with the 70th overall pick. Great pick for the Chiefs.
And the Packers are on the clock. I am hoping for Randall Cobb or Justin Houston. And the Packers indeed take Randall Cobb! What a great pick for the Packers. As I said on my Packers preview for today on a post earlier, Cobb fits the mold of Dexter McCluster in that he is a dynamic player that can finally be the kick returner that the Packers have been looking for. Cobb will probably begin the season as the 4th receiver if Jones is not brought back and the Packers can do a lot of new things on offense, such as reverses or having option passes to Cobb. The Packers finally have that dynamic player that they have not had in recent memory. Great Pick that gets an A from me. In Ted we trust.
And the Dolphins instead choose a running back, Daniel Thomas from Kansas State. I was a huge fan of Thomas following his Bowl Game, as he has great size which allows him to break tackles. His only concern is his speed, so the Dolphins may look for a speed back later. The Steelers have selected Marcus Gilbert, the top tackle remaining on my board. After the Super Bowl, it was evident that the Steelers needed another tackle, so this is great value for the Steelers.
The Chargers have drafted Jonas Mouton, who I had graded as a 6th rounder is selected by the Chargers with the 61st pick in the draft. It looks like the Chargers will move Mouton to the the inside, which doesn't make much sense to me. They have an underperforming Larry English, and need to upgrade the 3-4 pass rush at outside linebacker. Justin Houston is sitting on the board right there and would be a great fit in San Diego. Miami has just traded up for the Skins pick, who have traded down for the 4th time. Is this Ryan Mallett territory?
And the Texans make another great move. They trade up with New England and select the best player left on my board, Brandon Harris. I said earlier that the Texans needed to look for a corner after drafting Brooks Reed. The pass rush was significantly upgraded and now the pass defense as a whole has really been improved. In my opinion, Houston has the top draft thus far with Watt, Reed, and Harris, who are 10, 35, and 26 respectively on my big board. the top ranked player on my board is now Justin Houston at 33.
Torrey Smith, who is my 3rd ranked receiver and 31st overall player. What a great player this late for a definite need for the Ravens. Smith was one of my favorite prospects in this draft becaue of his athletic ability. He has blazing speed for a guy his size and also has kick return ability, which is why I am shocked he fell so far. the Ravens definitely get another steal and have one of the best drafts thus far with both Smiths. With Stallworth and Mason as free agents, a receiver was a must. The second straight receiver is selected,this time Greg Little by the Cleveland Browns. Little has major character concerns as was suspended for all of last year. Phyiscially, I would grade him as a second round pick, but the character issues bring him down to a 4th round grade.
The Lions take Mikel Leshoure with the 57th pick as we wind up this 2nd round. Leshoure is a power back and should be a good complement to Jhavid Best if he is able to stay healthy. Kevin Smith is always hurt and Maurice Morris is not an NFL back anymore, even if he had a good Thanksgiving Game against New England last year.
The Eagles take Jaiqwan Jarrett, a safety from Temple with the 54th selection. Jarrett could easily step in and start at strong safety, as it looks like the Eagles will not be bringing Quinton Mikell back. This gives the Eagles two very young safeties, both selected in the 2nd round, Nate Allen and Jarrett. The Chiefs select a guard/center Rodney Hudson with the next pick. Hudson is "undersized" at 6'2 300 pounds, but is still one of the top lineman in this class. The Patriots select Shane Vereen a running back, the fourth ranked running back on my rankings and pass up on Mikel Leshoure, the running back from Illinois. With Fred Taylor and Kevin Faulk getting old, the Patriots needed a complement to BenJarvus Green Ellis. The Lions have traded up and the pick is in.
The Bears select Stephen Paea with the 53rd pick. The Bears must be happy because Kevin Seifert from ESPN just reported that the Bears would have taken Paea with their first round pick had Carimi not been there. Paea set a combine record with 49 bench reps, obviously making him one of the strongest players in this draft. The Bears let go of Tommie Harris, so this selection definitely makes sense. Angelo must have gotten antsy after seeing Austin go right before at 52 prompting a trade up.
The Colts continue to shore up their line this draft by taking another tackle, Ben Ijalana fron Vanderbilt. That gives the Colts 2 of the top 6 tackles on my player rankings. Polian knows that the Colts first interest in protecting Peyton Manning, so I like this pick. The Chargers improved their secondary by selecting Marcus Gilchrist. Quentin Jammer has been injury-prone lately and is also aging while Antione Cason is solid but not spectacular. The free fall for Bowers ends here as the Tampa Bay Bucs, who were probably considering him at 20, were ecstatic to find him here at 51. Just like the Texans, the Bucs have signigicantly improved their pass rush this draft with Bowers and Clayborn. Marvin Austin is great value at 52 for the Giants, as many people felt he was going in the late first round. The Bears have just traded up for the 53rd pick and are now on the clock.
After going to eat dinner, I have to get caught back up so some quick thoughts. Bruce Carter is headed to Dallas. Carter was injured with a torn ACL for some of this season, but he was a consensus first round pick had it not been for the injury. Jarvis Jenkins, a powerful defensive tackle from Clemson is headed to Washington to help out with a 3-4 defense in the middle. The Texans continue to upgrade their pass rush and select Brooks Reed from Arizona. The Texans will pair him with Watt in this draft class to go along with Mario Williams. Now I expect them to add some corners in the later rounds. The Vikings make another shocking decision by selecting tight end Kyle Rudolph from Notre Dame. Rudolph is the top tight end in this draft, and Jim Kleinsasser is getting old, but I felt the Vikings had more pressing needs especiallly with Visanthe Shianoce still playing at a high level. Titus Young, who has been compared to a poor man's DeSean Jackson is headed to the Lions and will most likely play in the slot while giving Stafford another weapon. Very good draft so far for the Lions. The Broncos use back to back picks on Rahim Moore and Orlando Franklin. Denver had a pressing need at tackle, and will also get the second best safety in this draft class. Lance Kendrick, the thid Wisconsin player in the first 47 picks, is selected by the St. Louis Rams. It has been a while since the Rams have had a very good tight end so I am actually a pretty big fan of this pick especially knowing just how good Kendricks is after watching him for four years. The Raiders do indeed go with Stefen Wisniewski who I had them taking a full round later. Well, I am finally caught up and here is the Colts selection after trading up.
No, the Cardinals do not select Mallett and in my opinion that is a smart decision. the Cardinals will most likely pursue a veteran quarterback such as Kevin Kolb, Marc Bulger, or Carson Palmer. The Cardinals select a bit of a shocker with Ryan Williams, which means the future of Tim Hightower looks to not be in Arizona. Beanie Wells has also struggled with injuries, so I can see why Arizona went with Williams here, who is the 3rd rated running back on my board. The Titans have now selected another edge rusher not named Da'Quan Bowers and that is Akeem Ayers. Ayers is the 24th prospect on my board so to get him at 40 is great value for the Titans.
And Jim Harbaugh makes a trade and selects Colin Kaepernick for the 49ers. It was rumored that Harbaugh fell in love with Kaepernick at the Senior Bowl. If anyone can groom a quarterback it will be Harbaugh, and he will have a challenge. Kaepernick is definitely a project, and I really am not a fan of his mechanics. He is really gifted athletically and will make some plays with this his feet, but he still has a long way to go throwing the football before he can become effective in this leauge. The free fall for Bowers continues as the Browns as another defensive end not named Bowers is selected, Jabaal Sheard from Pittsburgh. His name has got to be coming up soon. Will the Cardinals now take Mallett?
The first three pick of Day 2 have been made. The Patriots choose to add depth to their defensive backfield by selecting a physical corner in Ras-I Dowling. The Bills, who I expected to go with a quarterback, instead pass on Kaepernick and Dalton to select Aaron Williams, a safety from Texas. Williams is not as good of a safety prospect as former teammate Earl Thomas was last year, but he is physical on coming up. The Bengals go as expected and take Andy Dalton from TCU, who I really like. Dalton has phenomenal accuracy and really torched the Badgers in the Rose Bowl with the timing of his throws.
Welcome to Day 2! My second and third round mock drafts are predicted below. However, at this point it is almost a crapshoot as I expect multiple trades to be made tonight. The Patriots are now on the clock.
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