Draft Recap
May 3, 2015 - We entered the draft needing a big RB, TE help, a pass rush, DL, LB CB and OL depth. And maybe a QBOF.
We ended up mostly with relatively unknown but high-upside individuals who represent a roll of the dice short-term but possibly big pay-offs a couple of years down the road. We drafted a thumper at RB in Round 3. We got a solid if not spectacular DE/LB and a possible pass rush specialist in Rounds 2 and 5...We traded up to get a 300+ DT long on character and potential but short in playing experience in Round 4. We landed a midget who ran a 4.28 with our second Round 5 pick. And our final (Mr. Irrelevent) pick was for a well-regarded TE who appears to have a shot at replacing Housler. And oh yeah, our first pick was for a young, raw offensive lineman. with physical attributes you rarely see (but love to have) in a future starting LT.
All in all, it was a high-risk/huge reward Cardinal draft from top to (almost) bottom and makes me wonder out loud whether Coach Arians and Steve Keim felt that, going into the draft, they already had on their roster the ingredients that should get us back to the playoffs. If their high roll strategy pays off for any of their 7draft picks, it's all icing on the cake...and an investment in the future overall health of the franchise.
Did I like our draft? With so few picks hovering above our radar range, it was kind of meh. But - given the future potential benefits of our picks, I think we'll have to wait a couple of years - to see what impact good coaching can do to mak each prospect's upside pay off - before we can evaluate this year's draft. Onward!
Day 3: "More of the Same"
May 2, 2015 - We entered Day 3 of the draft with visions of Michael Bennett, Zach Hodges and Jay Ajayi dancing in our heads; but like Day 2 (where we added a little knwon DE/OLB and RB not high on our radar screen), the Cards (with a little draft position juggling by Monsier Keim) picked up an unknown DT from tiny Delaware State, a potentially explosive OLB from WVU and a 156 pound wideout from UAB who ran a 4.28.
Reading between the lines of previous Arians and Keim statements, I've got to conclude that (a) they're pretty satisfied with the guys they've already got on their roster - at least enough that they can afford to roll the dice on a bunch of lesser-known prospects with very high upsides. (i.e. if we hit, we hit. If we don't, we like our roster anyway as it is right now). Final pick coming up is #265 (Mr. Irrelevent). Then it's the sprint to the phones to lock up a bunch of UDFA's before the other guys do. Stay tuned.
Day 2: "Un-Sexy"
May 2, 2015 - Despite having shots at such high-profile guys still on our board at #55 and #86 (most notably DT Michael Bennett, OLB Zach Hodges, RB Jay Ajayo and CB Quentin Rollins) the Cards opted instead to select a lunch-pail short-armed OLB with playmaking skills and a 225 lb running back who can pound it inside and catch the rock. Since my "research" doesn't go much past draft guides and a few draft websites while Steve Keims takes him thru tape-review, personal interviews, calls to guys who knew the young man "when" - it would be wise on my part to defer to Mr, Keim. Still, I must admit to not doing much of a dance after each of our first three picks.
Today (Sat.) the Cards start off with 6 draft picks (having picked up an extra fifth round pick from the Ravens)> We now draft at #123, #158, #159, #197, #241 and #256. Guys still out there who intrigue me: First and foremost, Michael Bennett (who appears to have the same playing style as Darnell Dockett). Then Harvard's own Zach Hodges, TCU OLB Paul Dawson, Penn St. S Adrian Amos, Chattanooga DT Derrick Lott, Northwestern St. corner Imoan Claiborne and Norfolk St. OLB Lynden Trail.
Enjoy the day!
Leading Up to Day 2 of the Draft...
May 1, 2015 - At the top of our #33 - #55 (2nd round) draft board are: Goldman, Bennett, Green-Beckham, McKinney, Kendricks, Orchard and Hodges (Although Gregory and La'el Collins are among the top prospect on this list. Other intriguing lesser-known prospects to keep an eye on : Lott the DT from Chattanooga, Amos the safety from Penn State, Marpet the guard from Hobart and Tevon Coleman the Indiana RB (who reportedly received a lot of extra attention from Cardinal coaches). That's it till tonight.
Start Your Engines...
May 1, 2015 - A few rumors came rumbling across our TV screens just prior to the Draft kickoff - Cards were said to draft Kendricks...Philly and Chicago were making a final run at the Mariota pot of gold...Humphries and Agholor were considered "late risers." Keim was reported to feel there were 21 players "worthy of first round consideration." After playing "guess who the 21 dudes are, I projected which of those players might be available when we picked at #24: Erving, Collins (the safety), Dupree, Goldman, Peters and K Johnson. (The assumption being that if none of the 21 were left on Keim's board, he'd try to trade down).
The draft started off consistent with the conventional wisdom that TB would grab Winston and #2 (whomever that would be) would draft Mariota. As it turned out, there were no trades at the top of the draft. LIke everyone else, I nailed the Fowler pick, but had Oakland taking White and not Cooper. First surprisw was Washington drafting Scherff at #5, so that L Williams fell all the way down to #6 (Jets). Chicago then took White (effectively swapping WR projections with Oakland). I thought Atlanta would grab a RB but rumors that they'd grab Beasely turned out to be true.
With Scherff off the board, the Giants passed on Peat, Erving etc. to select physical lineman Erek Flowers. Everyone thought the Rams would draft either an OL or WR but they opted to juice up their running game by drafting RB Todd Gurley. Vikes stayed true to pundit prognostications and grabbed Waynes. At #14, I had Miami drafting the WR (Parker) which is what they did. While we were sweating out the top non-QB on our board (Armstead), the Niners traded their pick to SD who took Gordon off our board...Niners then took Armstead at #17. After Pittsburgh took another guy high on our board (Dupree) and Denver traded up to #23 to draft Ray (thereby removing any question as to whether the Cards should bend on the character issue to add a deluxe edge rusher), the Cards surprised me by choosing a young, raw, high-upside OT (DJ Humphries).
I applaud Steve Keim's decision to finally take the bull by the horns and continue to make the offensive line deeper and more talented, but concede that drafting for potential in the first round can be pretty risky and the lack of attention to the hear & now has cost coaches and GM's many a job. So thanks for the gutsy, long-range move.
I also must confess that "I blew it" - I didn't have Humphries anywhere close to my radar screen. I didn't have him listed on my Top 130; nor did I show him on my Position Rankings list of top offensive tackles. On hindsight, I can see why SK and BA made the move, but we'll just have to wait and see whether Humphries will eventually deliver on his huge upside.
Other than nailing the B Jones to Dallas pick at #27 (because every football writer in America seemed to be making that projection and sometimes these guys "know something") and missing out on my fearless forecast that NE would draft the heady QB (Grayson) at #32, the rest of the first round finished without incident. I wound up with 5 "direct hits" (i.e. player to team at drafting position - Fowler, Wayne, Shelton, Parker, B Jones) ) and 2 more (Armstead and Gordon) where I matched player-to-team but at different draft slots due to trades.
I love the draft.
3 Hours On the Clock...
Apr. 30, 2015 - The Obvious Lede: "Not much going on as the Draft draws near." Consider the following "space-filler" to reassure the reader that we've been on the job for the past 7-hours (there simply hasn't been much to report on, so why so why make things up. Nevertheless, here are some tidbits:
There apparently have been talks between Tennessee and a few teams seeking to move up into Mariota Country, but nothing substantive....Growing number of reports cementing the "TB Takes Winston at #1" buzz - i.e.. TB players said to be notified it will be Winston, Reports are so lopsided that it's Winston that the bet has been taken off the board at Sportsbook. Two days ago Charles Davis "advised...by trusted contacts" that it will be Winston"...Rams may seek to trade #1's with the Dolphs for an additional pick or two...While Randy Gregory hasn't helped his draft stock any, the word is that Shane Ray had come clean earlier about his off-the-field transgressions and his draft mojo should remain relatively undamaged....Atlanta said to look to move up to secure Vic Beasely...Several teams said to look to move down to add more picks (easier said than done)...Both NFLN and ESPN have been covering the draft all afternoon. There's a difference in each network's method of coverage. Because NFLN is "home" to nfl.com and the draft, they tend to spend more time hyping the Chicago event itself and their upcoming draft coverage, whereas ESPN has stayed closer to pure football talk. That's about it. See you during the draft.
10 Hours & Counting...
Apr. 30, 2015 - So here we are - not as buttoned up as I'd like to be (Further medical issues have pulled me away from my computer - I've spent so much time in the waiting romm at Riverview Hospital that they're rumored to be awarding me honorary citizenship).
But here we are - just past 10 am on Draft Day. The Missus is home (& so am I). There's nearly unanimous concensus in Punditville that the #1 pick will be Winston by Tampa Bay. The one stubborn holdout is...who else but yours truly: I had picked up an Internet rumor that the TB coaches had entered the discussion adding different input to what their scouts were saying. The coaches supposedly feel that Mariota is the better prospect. So I'm going with the rumor and making the Hawaiin kid the #1 pick.
One of the funnest things to do during Day One is to compare the last minute mock drafts by local beat writers (because the team in their area will often throw them a bone in the way of inside info as to who will be their top pick that will make the writer look like a genius.
In addition to the unanimous Winston-Mariota-Fowler-Williams Top 4 picks, other semi-agreed-on "Player to Team" projections by Gary Myers, the Star Ledger, USA Today, AZR and Mike Mayock include:
Beasely to the Skins at #5...Gurley to the Jets at #6...Cooper to the Bears at #7....Dupree to Atlanta at #8...Scherff to the Giants at #9...Waynes to Minnesota at #10...Shelton to Cleveland at #11 (unless it's Kevin White)...Armstead to the Niners at #15....B Perriman to Houston at #16...Gordon to SD at #17...L Collins (the tackle) to KC at #18...Dorsett to Philly at #20...M Brown to Cincy at #21...Peters to Pitt at #22...Gordon to the Cards at #24...Peters to Baltimore (unless the Steelers grab him) at #26...corner Byron Jones to Jerry Jones at #27...Erving to Denver at #28...Goldman or Kendricks to Green Bay at #20.
I'll keep scanning the Rumor grapevine throughout the day and issue updates right on up thru Draft Time. Bon Appetit!
|
