The 2013 NFL Draft was a dumpster fire when it came down to high-end talent. The top overall pick, Eric Fisher, was a very inconsistent pass-blocker for the Kansas City Chiefs. You would have to go to Sheldon Richardson at 13 to find the first player who was a consistent performer for his team in 2013.
No one would say that we didn’t see it coming. I barely wrote a mock draft last year. I provided a list that was highly inaccurate with absolutely no analysis. One of the things that makes amateur drafts so interesting is known commodities. Last year’s first round had really none of that. Only 4 offensive skill position players were drafted. The first seven overall picks were offensive or defensive linemen. The Offensive Rookie of the Year was Eddie Lacy, who was picked at the end of the second round (I will say, to toot my own horn, I called him winning ROY).
The 2014 Draft is different in the way that Alabama-style BBQ is different from compressed sawdust. The 2014 Draft is full of questions, intrigue, and stars. It’s likely that at least 4 quarterbacks will be taken in the first round, not to mention at least 5 wide receivers. Oh, and potentially the best pass-rushing prospect in decades. And that doesn’t include a handful of players who I think have potential to become stars at other positions.
You would have been either foolish or a future-predicting gypsy if you had predicted the Houston Texans would have the first pick in this draft. But 2013 was a special kind of disaster in Houston. Injuries, terrible quarterback play, and their head coach suffering a cardiac event during halftime of a game all combined to lead a lock playoff team to the ignominy of having the worst record in the NFL.
But with great ignominy comes great fortune. The 2012 Kansas City Chiefs were terrible and their prize was a right tackle getting burned by speedy D-linemen. The 2013 Houston Texans were terrible and their prize could be a 10-15 year franchise quarterback or a future Hall of Fame pass rusher. Or a sneakily dynamic wide receiver, who just happens to have been college teammates with the Texans first round pick in 2013. Whatever way Houston goes, they really can’t fail, on paper.
As for this mock draft, I always wrestle with the structure. On one hand, I like pretending to be the GM of each team. On the other hand, I’m a competitive contrarian, a dangerous mixture when you’re trying to be right.
This go-round, I’ll try to predict what each team will actually do. There’s going to be some contrarian in there (see: Teddy Bridgewater) based on my strong opinions about how good a player is. As always, I don’t predict trades in the mock, but I will talk a little bit where trades make sense.
1. Houston Texans select Blake Bortles (QB/Central Florida)
This is not the pick I would make. I would take Teddy Bridgewater. I think he’s the most complete of the quarterbacks in this draft and a guy who will be ready to start on Day 1. There are a lot of elements at play with Bridgewater’s fall in stock over the past few months, since his bowl game performance (35-45, 447 Yards, 3 TD against Miami (FL) in the Russell Athletic Bowl). He had a poor performance in his pro-day at Louisville, sure, but I think the bigger issue at play with Teddy Bridgewater is the continued typecasting of black quarterbacks. Bridgewater is 6’2”, so he’s not a “big quarterback.” So scouts can’t make Cam Newton comparisons. He’s also not terribly athletic. He’s a pocket passer with some mobility who, unlike his competitors in this draft, was given great responsibilities at the line of scrimmage to identify defenses and audible when necessary. He was a consistent three-year starter who made a good Louisville program great.
I really enjoy the comparison between Johnny Manziel and Bridgewater. If the dynamic, mobile, 5’11” quarterback was black and the smart (in a football-sense), polished 6’2” quarterback was white, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. There’s a long line of undersized, athletic black quarterbacks who never got a chance in the NFL. There are not a lot of polished 6’2” white quarterbacks who didn’t get their chance.
All of this leaves us with Blake Bortles. Bortles “looks the part” (scout speak for “Big white guy with strong arm”). In his two seasons as a starter at UCF, Bortles took a huge step forward. At the start of the 2013 season, you wouldn’t have found a mock draft with Bortles’ name on it. He was a good quarterback in 2012, but did nothing dynamic, accumulating zero 300-yard passing games. In 2013, he had 5, including 301 in his BCS bowl win over Baylor.
It is thought that Bortles has the greatest set of tools now and the most room to develop and I think Houston will go in that direction, rather than taking what I think is the safe bet with Bridgewater or the big risk/big reward with John Football.
Nearly every mock draft you’ll see will have Jadeveon Clowney here. I don’t think that makes a lot of sense. I’ll get to that in a moment.
2. St. Louis Rams select Greg Robinson (OT/Auburn)
In a perfect world for the St. Louis Rams, they trade down towards the bottom of the Top 10 to select the big, physical wide receiver they so desperately need. When I see them connected to Clemson wideout Sammy Watkins, I don’t necessarily see the point. Watkins is a top-level talent and someone worthy of the top pick in this star-studded draft. But the Rams drafted a speedy receiver last year in Tavon Austin. Watkins is bigger than Austin, but isn’t the sort of presence that Texas A&M’s Mike Evans is. Evans would be a great addition to this offense.
In the world of this mock draft where I don’t predict trades, the Rams end up with Greg Robinson to try, once again, to strengthen their offensive line. It feels like the Rams are always drafting offensive tackles. Baylor’s Jason Smith was the Rams’ first round pick in 2009 (with the second pick, no less). Smith was never able to hold down either end of the line and is now a bit of a journeyman. Recent second round pick Rodger Saffold has done a good job playing the left tackle position for the Rams.
Robinson would give St. Louis the ability to slide Saffold over to the right side of the line. His performance at the NFL Combine garnered rave reviews as did his redshirt sophomore season with the Tigers, where he earned All-SEC honors, despite being on no one’s radar at the start of the year, much like Bortles. He’s a big, 330 pound tackle with unrivaled quickness for his size. That’s the perfect prescription for a team that has had a very difficult time keeping their franchise quarterback upright during his young career.
The Rams have an additional pick in the first round (their own) as this pick is the final piece of compensation from the Washington Football Team, who traded away their future for a quarterback with some minor knee issues.
For what it’s worth, if Washington was picking here and Clowney was available, he’d be their pick. If he was gone, Khalil Mack would be a nice fall-back option for Washington. Alas, RG3.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars select Teddy Bridgewater (QB/Louisville)
This is a pick that really has to come down to the best available quarterback on the Jaguars board between Bortles, Bridgewater, and John Football.
Popular belief is that the Jaguars need to do something flashy and exciting to put people in the seats at Whatever It’s Called Today Stadium. But flashy has really never been the Jaguars modus operandi.
Offensive tackle is another area of weakness for the Jaguars, but they used their second overall pick last year on Luke Joeckel. I cannot see a circumstance where they would draft another offensive tackle from Texas A&M with a top 3 pick the following year.
Jacksonville is a team with a crushing list of needs. Manziel might bring extra attention to the Jaguars’ offseason workouts, but Bridgewater will provide the steady leadership they’ve lacked since David Garrard’s health declined. Plus, Bridgewater would be playing in a warm weather city, in his home state.
Look, I recognize based on all of the prospect lists and rankings and mocks that Bridgewater’s stock has plummeted. I can’t say just how stupid this is, because I can’t say enough good things about Bridgewater. I watched him a lot in college. If he’s not a top level QB in the NFL in 3 years, I’ll stop writing my silly little blog.
4. Cleveland Browns select Johnny Manziel (QB/Texas A&M)
The list of quarterbacks currently on the Browns roster: Brian Hoyer (recovering from a torn ACL), Alex Tanney (2012 undrafted free agent out of Monmouth College of Illinois). If the Browns don’t draft one of the three top QBs with this pick, assume that Kevin Costner is at the helm on draft day and he’s busy yelling at Jennifer Garner. MOVIES! (NOTE: The Browns have since signed Vince Young and Tyler Thigpen, which should change this pick roughly 0%)
Manziel was an electric college football quarterback. I’m far from convinced that he’s going to be a star in any system in the NFL. In the right system, with the right coach (San Francisco, Seattle…you know, teams that don’t need QBs) his game will translate well, because good coaches adapt.
The one real advantage for the Browns in drafting Manziel is that it will get Browns fans excited about football for the first time in the history of man and could create a really fascinating QB/WR combo with Josh Gordon. Manziel will probably need to be ready to start on Game 1. He surely won’t be lacking in confidence. We’ll see what happens from there.
5. Oakland Raiders select Sammy Watkins (WR/Clemson)
Much like with the New York Yankees, there’s this weird thing that the Raiders front office does where every move seems calculated to keep happy the ghost of their deceased owner.
Well, Al Davis would love Sammy Watkins, assuming that he had his glasses on. Watkins is a burner, with some size. The Raiders drafted Darrius Heyward-Bey with a top-10 pick to fill the role that Watkins was born to do. Heyward-Bey didn’t work out because he wasn’t a precise route runner or catcher of the football. Watkins has great hands and at this point in his career is a much more polished route runner than Heyward-Bey is right now.
But let’s be real, with Sammy Watkins, it’s about the speed. He will give the Raiders the downfield threat they’ve coveted for over a decade. Now we just have to see if Matt Schaub can get the ball to him.
6. Atlanta Falcons select Jadeveon Clowney (DE/South Carolina)
This seems rather unrealistic, that Clowney, the consensus top player in this draft would fall out of the Top 5, but tell me what team in the top 5 really needs a pass rusher above their projected pick. There’s plenty of talk about the Tom Savages, Derek Carrs, and Jimmy Garoppolos of the world, yes. And any of the above quarterback hungry teams could wait. But why would they wait? Cleveland and Jacksonville have been looking for a franchise quarterback for a long time and Houston is not that many pieces away from being competitive again. Why draft a project? Why draft a guy like Savage who played at three different colleges? Why draft a guy who played at Eastern Illinois? Why draft David Carr’s brother?
To reiterate on who is going to take Clowney: Is it Houston with Case Keenum, having already gone the route of drafting a pass rusher with the top overall pick in a star-heavy draft (Mario Williams)? St. Louis with one of the best pass rushing tandems in the NFL in Robert Quinn and Chris Long? Jacksonville with Chad Henne as their starting quarterback? Cleveland with one of the league’s best defenses and ½ a quarterback on their roster (with the additions of Young and Thigpen, 1 ½ and I’m talking about Tyler Thigpen) and an agitated fan base? Oakland with zero weapons at the receiver position?
Atlanta makes the most sense as Clowney’s landing spot. Offensive tackle might be a bigger need right now, but Atlanta can afford to not address that need with this pick in a way that the teams above them cannot. Atlanta has had a problem getting to the opposing quarterback for quite some time. Clowney should come in motivated, essentially playing in his own backyard (about 230 miles from his hometown of Rock Hill, SC). And if he needs more motivation, Drew Brees and Cam Newton will be waiting for him.
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Jake Matthews (OT/Texas A&M)
Tampa is the wildest of cards so far, even wilder than Jacksonville. I would have thought that Tampa was happy with Mike Glennon, their third round pick last year, who performed fairly well in his time as the Bucs starting quarterback. Then Tampa brought in free agent veteran Josh McCown, who is expected to compete for the starting job. But Tampa is still interviewing quarterbacks. Maybe they’re just doing their due diligence (even New England brought in John Football). But it all seems a little weird.
Before Tampa tries to plug in a 36 year old quarterback to lead them to the promised land, they need someone to protect his blind-side. Matthews is that guy to me. He’s 1A to Greg Robinson’s 1 at the tackle position and would be the smart, if also unsexy pick, for the very confusing Buccaneers.
8. Minnesota Vikings select Khalil Mack (OLB/Buffalo)
Outside linebacker is far from a need for the Vikings, but their biggest needs (quarterback and interior offensive linemen) can’t really be satisfied here (I am not this high on Fresno State QB Derek Carr, who you’ll see slotted to Minnesota in many mock drafts).
Mack is a huge value at 8. The experts have him slotted in as a Top 5 player in this draft.
Let’s be real here, I’ve never seen him play because he went to the University of Buffalo. You’ve probably never seen him play either. But his size and combine numbers look really impressive. So I’ll just assume that he won’t be Aaron Curry Version 2.0.
9. Buffalo Bills select Taylor Lewan (OT/Michigan)
Buffalo is a team that would really love to have a player like Mack fall to them, but it’s highly unlikely that happens (what’s most likely is someone trades up from the teens to select Mack if he falls past Cleveland).
Much like with Minnesota and Derek Carr, Buffalo consistently gets slotted with Mike Evans, Texas A&M’s big, physical, one-year wonder wide receiver. This is another example of a really good prospect coming in to a situation where he can’t be of maximum assistance. Oakland has a mostly proven quarterback in Matt Schaub and a real need for a down-field playmaker. St. Louis is probably one offensive tackle and a quality receiver away from serious playoff contention.
Mike Evans would not make Buffalo a playoff team, especially with Robert Woods and Steve Johnson already at the receiver position. If you look at the NFL as a pyramid of building blocks, tackles are the base of that pyramid with quarterbacks. Wideouts are somewhere in the middle.
Lewan is a very big, very physical tackle. His arrival would mean that Cordy Glenn would likely need to move over to right tackle full-time. The combination of Lewan and Glenn would give Buffalo a St. Louis-like situation where their offensive line would finally be sured up, giving last year’s first round pick EJ Manuel every chance he needs to succeed, which if you read last year’s mock draft, you know I don’t think he will.
10. Detroit Lions select Darqueze Dennard (CB/Michigan State)
Detroit is in a great position to get a real player of need. For as long as I can remember, Detroit has struggled to stop other teams’ passing offenses. This is an unfortunate circumstance because they play the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears twice a year and, outside of that, play in a league that is fixated on passing attacks. The Lions have essentially been a farmer with no scarecrow (agriculture references in mock drafts are the new black).
This pick should come down to whether they like Dennard or Oklahoma State’s Justin Gilbert more. Gilbert is a good corner, but Dennard is the clear best corner, to me. His size and style remind me of Darrelle Revis. He’s a true man-corner (that is, he’s the kind of corner who can line up in single coverage against someone’s best receiver and keep him in check). I was very impressed with Dennard each time I watched Michigan State this season because I rarely heard his name spoken. Those are the best cornerbacks. If you’re not getting beat and they’re not throwing it in your direction, you’re doing your job well. Dennard does his very well.
11. Tennessee Titans select Justin Gilbert (CB/Oklahoma State)
Tennessee lost Alterraun Verner in the offseason. You’ve probably never heard of Alterraun Verner, but that’s because he’s a good cornerback.
Tennessee is a team that has a lot of needs and would be very wise to try and shop this pick to a team with multiple picks in the first and second round.
Tossing that idea aside though, Gilbert fills an immediate need for the Titans. Gilbert is not small at 6’0” but possesses very top-end speed and could also return kicks for the Titans.
12. New York Giants select CJ Mosley (ILB/Alabama)
The Giants are in a similar position to the Titans. Lots of little cracks that need to be filled with limited caulk.
2013 was a mess for the Giants, who could not protect Eli Manning, who himself could not stop throwing interceptions. They lost Hakeem Nicks, so Mike Evans could be of great interest here, but this is a team that won Super Bowls because of defense and I think they go that route here.
Mosley fills one of the needs for the Giants, that of a true ILB, tackling machine. This is and has been a position of need for the Giants for a long time.
13. St. Louis Rams select Mike Evans (WR/Texas A&M)
Remember back at the second pick when I said, “Evans would be a great addition to this offense?”
Look, I didn’t have it work out this way on purpose (because really, why would I have any interest in the Rams’ success other than picking them to go to the Super Bowl next season?). But if the real life chips fall this way for the Rams, they’ll be the clear winners on Day 1. Getting a potential franchise left tackle in Robinson and the type of big, strong, physical receiver that Evans is would be a huge boon to an offense that is a step and a half behind its defense. Pairing Evans with Kenny Britt and putting Tavon Austin in the slot will give Sam Bradford the weapons he hasn’t had since his days at Oklahoma and could vault the Rams past San Francisco in the NFC West race.
14. Chicago Bears select Calvin Pryor (S/Louisville)
It’s a guarantee that at least one Louisville Cardinal will be drafted in the first round, and I’m willing to be that there will actually be two.
In a division built on passing the football, Chicago desperately needs an intimidator in the secondary and that is Calvin Pryor, who is riding a solid performance at the Combine in Indianapolis up draft boards.
Unlike Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix, Pryor doesn’t really have the ability to cover receivers. But unlike Clinton-Dix, Pryor does have the ability and the want-to to break receivers in pieces. There’s a young Ed Reed quality to Pryor that should be too much for the Bears to pass up on.
15. Pittsburgh Steelers select Kyle Fuller (CB/Virginia Tech)
This is the first pick in the draft where I’ve had a great deal of trouble deciding which way I think a team will go.
If Darqueze Dennard is available, he’s the smart pick. If Mike Evans falls here, he’s probably the second smartest pick. But with neither available and all of the elite OTs gone, Pittsburgh is left floating in the ether that is the middle of this draft.
Wide Receiver makes sense, but unless they reached for Kelvin Benjamin, Pittsburgh would be drafting a guy similar in size and style to Antonio Brown (Odell Beckham Jr, Brandin Cooks, Marqise Lee). And I don’t think that makes Pittsburgh better.
Fuller fills a need for them. I think he’s a slight reach here, but not as much as Benjamin would be (though I like Benjamin as a pro prospect). Fuller is a physical corner, more in the style of Dennard than Gilbert.
16. Dallas Cowboys select Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (S/Alabama)
Clinton-Dix would be a dream for the Cowboys, as they’ve lacked the kind of presence that Clinton-Dix will bring to the safety position for some time now.
Dallas is a team with a number of problems on the defensive side of the ball, and if Clinton-Dix is gone, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them take DT Aaron Donald if he’s still on the board in real life.
17. Baltimore Ravens select Zack Martin (OT/Notre Dame)
We are firmly in the boring territory of this mock draft, though I think there could be some real excitement on draft night in this section of the draft, as QB hungry teams look to move up for Derek Carr, Tom Savage, Zach Mettenberger, Jimmy Garoppolo, etc. Or Bridgewater/Manziel if they’re still around. And don’t forget that Eric Ebron is still out there at tight end and could be a huge difference maker in a team’s offense.
Martin, as a potential RT, is the logical pick for Baltimore, as they have many questions on the offensive line, outside of Eugene Monroe at LT.
18. New York Jets select Eric Ebron (TE/North Carolina)
The Jets need playmakers. The list of available WRs (see Pittsburgh) are all potential playmakers. But Ebron is a difference-making playmaker.
Ebron is not being drafted here because of his ability to block. He’s not that TE. He’s in the Jimmy Graham/Rob Gronkowski mold. He’s big. He’s fast. He’s got great hands. Given the choice between the 5’9”-6’0” WRs and a Jimmy Graham-type TE, well, why would the Jets pass here?
19. Miami Dolphins select Morgan Moses (OT/Virginia)
The Dolphins need a RT and Moses is one of those. Of the available OTs, Moses makes the most sense because of his ability to play on the right side. I’m sorry that I’m boring you right now with my horrible, redundant analysis. .
20. Arizona Cardinals select Derek Carr (QB/Fresno State)
I’m not terribly thrilled about this selection, but this is another team with needs similar to all of the teams above them (secondary help/OGs,). Arizona also has a glaring need at QB, as Carson Palmer is 34 and not getting younger.
Carr is not my favorite QB in this draft. He’s far from it. I find him to be robotic in the pocket. I also have to think that in a league prone to groupthink, maybe teams won’t be so excited to draft David Carr’s brother. But I’ve seen him go in some mock drafts before Manziel, Bortles, and Bridgewater. So what do I know? Nothing.
21. Green Bay Packers select Aaron Donald (DT/Pittsburgh)
Contrary to what you’d think, the Packers are full of holes (there’s a really great cheese metaphor in there).
The Packers could go WR or DL here, as both positions are not terribly deep. BJ Raji is already there at DT, but BJ Raji is also not an every-down DT. Donald is too valuable to pass up here, even if he’s not a schematically perfect fit for Green Bay. You find a way to make it work when you’re as desperate as they are for impact guys on the defensive line.
22. Philadelphia Eagles select Odell Beckham Jr. (WR/LSU)
I don’t want to call Beckham Jr. the poor man’s Desean Jackson, but if he was a tick faster, he’d be Desean Jackson. Beckham ran a 4.43 at the combine and returned kicks and punts at LSU. Paired with Jeremy Maclin and Riley Cooper, he gives Nick Foles and the Eagles a very desirable offense, even without the real Desean Jackson.
23. Kansas City Chiefs select Cody Latimer (WR/Indiana)
Much like Green Bay, this is a team with a good 2013 record who enters the draft process with a lot of holes. Kansas City’s biggest hole is probably their lack of a dynamism on offense. Latimer gives them a 6’2” receiver with speed to pair with Dwayne Bowe.
And, to boot, scouts think he’s a good fit for a West Coast system, which happens to be the exact thing that the Chiefs do on offense, when they’re actually doing something on offense, because the West Coast system is outdated and needs to be junked at this point.
24. Cincinnati Bengals select Bradley Roby (CB/Ohio State)
The run on WRs takes a brief hiatus because if there’s one thing Cincinnati doesn’t need, it’s wideouts.
Roby comes with some criminal baggage, but also comes with a lot of talent. Roby isn’t going to be the guy going man-to-man with AJ Green in practice, because that’s not who he is. He’s a solid complementary corner, better suited to covering faster, smaller receivers. In a division with Torrey Smith, Antonio Brown, and, well, let’s just pass on the Cleveland Browns for now because Josh Gordon is a terrible matchup for Roby, Roby is an asset. And with some aging depth already at the position, the Bengals can develop Roby in 2014.
25. San Diego Chargers select Marqise Lee (WR/USC)
Keenan Allen was a revelation for the Chargers last season, but he was also the only really productive receiver in their offense. Adding Lee gives the Chargers two guys who are matchup problems for most defenses with their ability to make plays after the catch.
San Diego is a team that would love to add a cornerback in this slot, but we’ve essentially run out of those with only Jason Verrett from TCU on the board worth a look in this round. Lee is a nice value pick at this slot, as would be Brandin Cooks from Oregon State.
26. Cleveland Browns select Brandin Cooks (WR/Oregon State)
Someone is going to need to help Josh Gordon at the wideout position and Cooks is a great compliment to Gordon’s size and strength, with his speed and hands. Cooks possesses world-class speed, running a 4.33 at the Combine and frequently turned routine passes from Sean Mannion into stat-building passes for Sean Mannion in college.
Paired with Josh Gordon and Johnny Manziel, the Browns would develop the kind of dynamic offense that, combined with their really good defense, could be a serious playoff contender sooner rather than later.
Or, you know, they could go and screw the whole thing up by drafting Sammy Watkins and hoping that one of this draft’s elite QBs falls to them, ultimately ending up with Tom Savage.
27. New Orleans Saints select Anthony Barr (OLB/UCLA)
There was a time, oh so many months ago, when Barr was considered a top-five pick in this draft, before anyone had ever heard of Khalil Mack.
Barr is a terrific blitzing linebacker with top-end speed for his position. His fall is more due to a lack of need above at the linebacker position than anything else. I think Barr is a top-ten talent guy and a huge steal for the Saints at 27.
28. Carolina Panthers select Cyrus Kouandjio (OT/Alabama)
The biggest question for Kouandjio is his durability right now. He’s big and, at times, very physical. There’s question as to whether he can stay at left tackle, but as a developmental project with huge upside, he’s a good value for Carolina.
Wide receiver is of course, another area of need for Carolina, but that position is fairly deep in this draft and I’d expect them to draft a Davante Adams or Jordan Matthews in the second round, possibly even moving up to do so.
29. New England Patriots select Ra’Shede Hageman (DT/Minnesota)
The word with Hageman that I’ve seen in every scouting report I’ve read about him is “raw.” The other words are “tremendous upside.” Hageman will not be a plug-and-play tackle on Day 1 of the season. He’s going to take some time, but could develop into the kind of disruptive force in both run and pass defense that you’d expect out of a top 5 pick. Or he could flame out and continue in a growing line of New England draft failures. It’s probably one or the other.
30. San Francisco 49ers select Stephon Tuitt (DE/Notre Dame)
Tuitt is the kind of versatile defensive lineman that a team with San Francisco’s depth could really use and given the questions about a certain edge rushing linebacker, could be the pass rushing addition that they need, albeit at a different position than Aldon Smith.
Tuitt is very big for his position but plays quick and physically. He’s considered more of a second round player, but he looks to be a great fit for the 49ers.
31. Denver Broncos select Ryan Shazier (OLB/Ohio State)
In case you had forgotten, Denver signed every free agent during this offseason, hoping to make up the point differential from February’s Super Bowl massacre. Shazier gives the Broncos their edge rushing linebacker of the future for when the newly signed DeMarcus Ware’s body gives in.
32. Seattle Seahawks select Kelvin Benjamin (WR/Florida State)
The Seahawks don’t really need a lot right now, but after losing Golden Tate in free agency and with questions about Percy Harvin’s durability, a receiver with Benjamin’s size and wingspan is a huge get here. Speed at the WR position is not necessarily a problem for the ‘Hawks, and that’s good because Benjamin doesn’t have any. What he does have is a 6’5” frame more similar to a TE, with the athleticism to go up and get whatever is thrown in his direction. And he showed growth each season at Florida State. Benjamin could develop into a top-end WR for the Seahawks with some development and patience.
Hey, it’s the end of the first round. If you just read all 5,000 of those words, thank you. If you didn’t, I don’t blame you in the least bit. One more feature that I always enjoy doing is my late round (4th round or later, generally) sleeper guys at positions of interest. So we’ll end with that. Enjoy the draft. If you have any comments or haterade to throw my way, find me on Twitter @darrenrovell.
QB: Aaron Murray (Georgia): Murray doesn’t possess ideal size and is coming off of a torn ACL, but he’s a four year starter with solid instincts and leadership ability. I don’t envision him being a star, certainly, but I do think he’d be an excellent backup for a long time, similar in role to someone like Matt Hasselbeck.
RB: Lache Seastrunk (Baylor): Speed, speed, speed, and more speed. A really interesting prospect and a great change of pace back for a team with a big physical primary back.
WR: Kevin Norwood (Alabama): Great work ethic and a solid possession receiver. He’s not going to break many tackles in the NFL, but he runs solid routes and catches the ball. There has to be room for guys like that in this league.
DE: Michael Sam (Missouri): I like productive defensive players, even if they’re undersized and/or gay. Neither of those things bother me in the least. Sam was as productive as it got in the SEC and has the motor to succeed. He reminds me a lot of Elvis Dumervil coming out of Louisville in 2006. Elvis was a very productive pass rusher in college, but was picked in the 4th round because of questions about his size and where he could fit in the NFL. Sam is the same weight and three inches taller than Elvis, who is a 3-time Pro Bowler and the NFL’s leader in sacks in 2009.
CB: Pierre Desir (Lindenwood University): Everyone’s pick at this position, Desir played at an MIAA school, currently transitioning to NCAA Division II. That said, he showed well during the draft process and possesses elite ball skills and size for the position. He might end up going much higher than the fourth round if just one team really did their homework and thinks his game can transition. Because the measurables aren’t the question. Just the talent level faced in college.
S: Jonathan Dowling (Western Kentucky): An absolutely head-case of a player, who was dismissed from Florida in 2010. As a safety, he can cover like a corner due to great ball skills. If I’m a team like New England or Seattle drafting in the seventh round, I happily take a flier on Dowling, who I expect no other team will even approach in this draft not because of his measurable talent on the field, but because he’s going to need a lot of babysitting.
Mid-Atlantic Bias 