I don’t have a ton of time, so I’m going to rush out a blog entry today. 2 quick NHL playoff thoughts:

1.) Dear God, I was wrong with yesterday’s picks. Yikes.

2.) I watched the Avalanche/Wild game last night and was taken aback by how terribly the Wild played. After going down 4-0, they become completely content with just fighting everyone and playing the dirtiest hockey I’ve seen, post-lockout (even dirtier than the Flyers “Hack-a-Huet” philosophy from last night’s Caps/Flyers game). I was neutral in this series before, now, I’m rooting against the Wild until the end.

On to Mock Draft V.2, picks 17-32 (excluding pick 31 for obvious reasons). Check out yesterday’s post for picks 1-16.

17. Minnesota Vikings
THE PICK: CB Mike Jenkins (South Florida)
Their defensive secondary is still terrible, just like it was when I did Mock Draft V.1 However, here, McKelvin is off the board. So they go with the comparable Jenkins.

18. Houston Texans
THE PICK: Rashard Mendenhall (RB Illinois)
A steal at this pick. Especially for a team that needs to bolster their running game.

19. Philadelphia Eagles
THE PICK: Devin Thomas (WR Michigan State)
As usual, their receiving corp is subpar. They draft Thomas to try to fix that.

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
THE PICK: Phillip Merling (DE Clemson)
In V.1 they took Harvey, but he’s gone now. They still need to get younger on defense. And with all but Aqib Talib gone from the sure-fire first round CB’s in this draft, I look for the Bucs to go to the D-Line.

21. Washington Redskins
THE PICK: Limas Sweed (WR Texas)
He gives the ‘Skins the size they need at wideout to complement Santana Moss’s speed. All this without James Hardy’s baggage. Something this team does not need any of right now.

22. Dallas Cowboys
THE PICK: Felix Jones (RB Arkansas)
Jonathan Stewart is rated higher than Jones by everyone. However, Stewart did not go to the University of Arkansas, like Jones and Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones (no relation) did. And therefore, he stays on the board. The Cowboys need a corner and Aqib Talib is on the board, but they choose to cross their fingers that he’s still there in a few picks.

23. Pittsburgh Steelers
THE PICK: Brandon Flowers (CB Virginia Tech)
Talib is the better corner, but remember, Talib smoked marijuana in college, so ignore the fact that he was one of the 3 best cornerbacks in the country. The Steelers go to the next best thing, which is Flowers. One of the teams below them rejoice.

24. Tennessee Titans
THE PICK: De’Sean Jackson (WR California)
Jackson is a real burner and gives Vince Young his first downfield receiving threat since he played with Limas Sweed…in college. Wide receiver is such a no-brainer here.

25. Seattle Seahawks
THE PICK: Fred Davis (TE Southern California)
Tight end isn’t exactly a deep position in this draft. They could steal Jonathan Stewart here, but they already signed 23 running backs in the offseason and still have Shaun Alexander on their roster. So they stay at tight end with Davis, as they did in V.1.

26. Jacksonville Jaguars
THE PICK: Kentwan Balmer (DT North Carolina)
Like the Campbell pick in V.1, this pick will be executed to do nothing more than bolster a solid defense. They could go receiver here, but with so many mediocre first round picks at WR on this roster, perhaps they should wait until later and hope that someone falls.

27. San Diego Chargers
THE PICK: Malcolm Kelly (WR Oklahoma)
As mentioned yesterday, Kelly’s pro day workout was, by all accounts including his own, abysmal. So he falls and the Chargers get a huge steal. I also wouldn’t be surprised if they went to Jonathan Stewart as a power/speed duo with LT, much like Michael “The Burner” Turner was.

28. Dallas Cowboys
THE PICK: Aqib Talib (CB Kansas)
This is the team that risked waiting and the risk paid off. Truth is, I could see all of the above teams taking Talib without the pot smoking issue. However, if one team is going to risk it on a guy with a ton of talent and “character problems,” it would be the ‘Boys.

29. San Francisco 49ers
THE PICK: James Hardy (WR Indiana)
They’d love to have Talib fall to them. Or Kentwan Balmer. Or Phillip Merling. However, none of those guys are around here. So it comes down to quarterback or trying to improve a very mediocre receiving group with a talented headcase. They go with that.

30. Green Bay Packers
THE PICK: Dustin Keller (TE Purdue)
Donald Lee is their only other tight end with any experience. So they hope that Fred Davis is available and if he’s not, they take Keller. While I had them going Quarterback in V.1, they don’t do that here, because they already have Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre, who will be back by the middle of August.

31. New England Patriots

32. New York Giants
THE PICK: Gosdar Cherilus (OT Boston College)
The Giants have to be smart enough to know that their O-line got lucky last season and is not as good as they played. So they help that out by drafting Cherilus to replace the void Luke Petigout left before last season. And they pray that Eli Manning thinks every game is the Super Bowl.

Game O’ The Day: New Jersey Devils @ New York Rangers. This is a crucial game, with the Rangers up 2-1. I’m not making a pick.

Okay…I’ll take the Rangers to win and go up 3-1.