Before we all go crazy and talk about how dumb the Cowboys are for trading a fourth round pick for Adam Jones, bear in mind that if the PacMan isn’t reinstated, the Cowboys get the pick back next year from the Titans. So really, everybody wins. Including us, because now we get to enjoy the sights and sounds of PacMan in a new city.

Last night I attended my first game at Nationals Park. In case Jon Miller hadn’t come to your home to tell you already, the Washington Nationals have a new Ballpark, which they’re touting as “The House That Zim Built,” in honor of third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, who is hitting .215, .240, .333 2 HR, 9 RBI, 8R this year. In case you’re not a baseball fan, Ryan Zimmerman’s numbers are terrible whether you prefer so-called “Small Ball” (like me) or prefer a Sabermetric approach to the game (like long-time reader and God-Lord Matthew). This is due in large part to the fact that he is, what baseball experts call, “not good.” Regardless, the Ballpark is aesthetically pleasing inside, like a larger Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia Phillies). When you’re inside of CBP, you can feel the tightness of the park. The power alleys are not terribly deep, there’s not a ton of room in foul play, etc. Nationals Park has much deeper power alleys (about 380 to left and right) and more foul room on the field. The hot dogs, while not the best I’ve had (that nod goes to Oakland’s Whatever They’re Calling It This Season Colosseum) were quite good and cooked in front of your face. My main gripe with the park, besides the less than charming aesthetics of Southeast D.C. outside of the park, was and is the pricing. The Park was publicly financed and caused a lot of controversy because, frankly, there are more important economic issues in this city than giving a baseball team some new digs. The city’s public school system ranks as one of the lowest achieving in the country due in the most part to not being as publicly supported as they should be. So when a $611 million park opens up and is primarily financed by the tax payers of the District, the least the new ownership can do is make the tickets cheap enough so that the people who will soon lose their home to gentrification in and around the ball yard, will actually get to see why they’re soon to be homeless. However, despite the fact that the Nationals are putrid on the field, with little hope of being good any time soon, you pay prices at the gate similar to those at Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium to see a 6-16 team. Maybe this is why the Nationals set a modern baseball record for the smallest crowd to attend the second game of a new Ballpark.

I’d like to welcome aboard James, a recent discoverer of Mid-Atlantic Bias and also send a Kudos to Sylwia for sticking with “The Bias” despite her obvious despondency over the elimination of her beloved NJ Devils from the Stanley Cup Playoffs, at the hands of the hated Midtown Manhattan Rangers, no less.

No hockey games to talk about today, however, my Second Round predictions just came out of the oven and are fresh for consumption:

Eastern Conference:
Philadelphia over Montreal in 6 games
Pittsburgh over Midtown Manhattan in 6 games

Western Conference:
Detroit over Colorado in 7 games
Dallas over San Jose in 6 games

In case you missed yesterday’s post (and care to know who the Lions are going to take with the 46th pick in Saturday’s NFL Draft (and Sunday too)), you should go to yesterday’s post and find out (it’s USC Tackle Sam Baker). For those of you who already know, proceed below for the finale of my Round 2 Mock Draft.

49. Atlanta Falcons
THE PICK:Roy Schuening (OG Oregon State)
This is one of those “As Sexy as Rhea Perlman” picks, but Schuening is the best guard available and for a team with a below average O-Line (and everything else) this isn’t such a bad pick.

50. Philadelphia Eagles
THE PICK: Curtis Lofton (OLB Oklahoma)
The Eagles’ linebacker corp is not as deep as Jim Johnson, their defensive coordinator would like it to be. Lofton only had one year of solid time at Oklahoma, but he was also coached by Bob Stoops, who is no slouch. It may take him a year or so, but he has potential to be a starter at OLB.

51. Arizona Cardinals
THE PICK: Mike McGlynn (OG Pittsburgh)
The primary issue with this team has been their porous OL. They would love, if they had a brain, for Schuening to fall to them at this pick. McGlynn is a notoriously hard worker with a mind for the game and a passion. The Cardinals don’t have a lot of those guys.

52. Washington Redskins
THE PICK: Tom Zibikowski (S Notre Dame)
Unlike most teams who lose players to injury, the Redskins lost their top defensive player to gun shot wound last year. Zibikowski is by no means anywhere near Sean Taylor in skill, but what he is an upgrade over Reed Doughty (the Skins’ current FS) in skill, and a smart defensive player, with the hitting ability similar to Taylor. He’s a bit of a reach late in the 2nd round, but I like this pick for the Redskins.

53. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
THE PICK: Mario Manningham (WR Michigan)
Manningham has a reputation for being a bit of a jerk. Okay, a big jerk. However the Bucs don’t exactly jump out at you as having a real deep receiving corp, and there’s a big drop off after Manningham at this position. As long as he gets thrown to once in a while, he might make it through training camp.

54. Pittsburgh Steelers
THE PICK: DaJuan Morgan (S North Carolina State)
As we saw last year, the Steelers need help in the secondary for Troy Polamalu. In Round 1, they passed on the more talented Aqib Talib for Brandon Flowers. They’re not passing on the best available safety here to line up opposite Polamalu. Morgan’s flaws remind me a lot of a certain Steelers safety with a big mouth. However, there’s not much need anywhere else on this team.

55. Tennessee Titans
THE PICK: Tavares Gooden (OLB Miami (FL))
He’s a linebacker.

56. Seattle Seahawks
THE PICK: Trevor Laws (DT Notre Dame)
The Seahawks are set next year at nearly every starting position, so the draft becomes a tool for them to build depth at positions where they aren’t as strong. Laws projects as a 4-3 DT in the NFL with a lot of raw talent. This is a guy the Colts would love to draft.

57. Green Bay Packers
THE PICK: Chad Henne (QB Michigan)
Just in case Brett doesn’t come back.

58. Miami Dolphins
THE PICK: Mike Pollack (C Arizona State)
This is the most boring pick in the history of Mock Drafts. It’s a good thing the Dolphins didn’t wait to draft a QB when their pick rolled around at the start of this Round, because Henne is off the board (and I operate under the assumption that Flacco would have been as well). The Dolphins get the draft’s best Center, a positional need and have now begun to build their OL for the future with Jake Long and Pollack.

59. Jacksonville Jaguars
THE PICK: Anthony Collins (OT Kansas)
Just more depth for a team with plenty of it. The Jags would probably like to build up their linebacker corp, but the next best available player here is Cliff Avril of Purude, who projects in the late 3rd/early 4th.

60. Indianapolis Colts
THE PICK: Pat Sims (DT Auburn)
As mentioned above, they’d love to draft Trevor Laws with their first pick in the draft. With him unavailable, I feel they need to go to the next best D-Tackle, which is Pat Sims.

61. Green Bay Packers
THE PICK: Reggie Smith (CB/S Oklahoma)
Most teams project Smith as a safety at the next level and the Packers are thin beyond Atari Bigby at that position. So they draft Smith and turn him into a conversion project.

62. Dallas Cowboys
THE PICK: Kendall Langford (DE Hampton)
Langford may be the one player who I’ve read a lot about that I think could be a great pickup by someone who is already solid on defense and can develop him. He dominated at Hampton in FCS and may also dominate down the line in the NFL, especially working with Wade Phillips and operating on the same rush edge as DeMarcus Ware.

63. New England Patriots
THE PICK: Cliff Avril (LB Purdue)
I would love for the Patriots to take East Carolina’s Chris Johnson here, as he would be a great addition to an already dynamic offense. Imagine Reggie Bush playing on this team, with great receivers. Despite that, the Patriots are more likely to reach for a 3-4 linebacker (if they pass on Keith Rivers in Round 1) here. Avril fits that bill.

64. New York Giants
THE PICK: Justin King (CB Penn State)
King has coachability issues and perhaps came out of school too soon. Tom Coughlin will attempt to make him more coachable. He has skill, though there’s a significant drop off from Brandon Flowers, I feel. The Giants have enough talent right now at corner that King doesn’t have to be anything more than a nickelback.

Game O’ The Day: Game 1, Western Conference Semi-Finals. A late 1990’s rivalry gets renewed. The series doesn’t have the luster it would have had in 1999, but it should be a great matchup. Detroit jumps out to a 1-0 lead in the series tonight with a 3-1 victory in Hockeytown. In the other NHL game tonight, the Canadiens beat the Flyers 4-3.