Draft Spin

I have always been amused by the glowing speeches coaches and GMs make about their draft picks, first round picks in particular. "They were at the top of our draft board." "We couldn't believe he was still there." They could very well be telling the truth. I'm sure that some of them are. I'm also sure that some of them are seething about the player taken one spot before them.

Since I follow much of the flood of draft information from January to April, I often have a decent idea who the Vikings may target. I certainly find some favorites of my own. I have often been fairly accurate. If not the very same player, I have at least picked the position. I often wonder if the Vikings actually select  the player they most want of the players that they realistically expect to be available. In 2001, Vikings RB Robert Smith shocked the team and fans when he retired. The team went into the draft that year needing a new running back. Mississippi's Deuce McCalister and Wisconsin's Michael Bennett were the top backs expected to be available when the Vikings picked. McCalister, my favorite, was drafted by the Saints. The Vikings selected Bennett with the very next pick. Bennett's unreal speed made him a fine replacement for the nearly as fast Smith. I have always wondered if the Vikings would have still selected Bennett if both backs were available. The same thing happened with DEs in the 2004 draft. Ohio St's Will Smith and USC's Kenechi Udeze were the players. The Saints were once again the team. The Saints selected Smith one spot ahead of the Vikings. In both cases, the Vikings stated that they got the players they wanted. Stated that they were ecstatic both players were still available. Why would they say anything different. Sometimes I wonder too much.

Jump to this year and the Vikings new franchise QB, Christian Ponder. I liked Jake Locker from the beginning of the draft process. All along I felt that the Vikings did too. Locker just seemed like a player's QB. One that the entire team will follow. Head coach Leslie Frazier was a teammate of Jim McMahon with the Chicago Bears. He couldn't miss seeing a similar toughness in Locker. I had heard rumors that Locker and Ponder were choices 1 and 1a. They liked both with little separating them. Locker went to the Titans with the 8th pick, but Blaine Gabbert was still on the board at 10. I heard rumors that they looked into trading up from 12 to select Gabbert. They supposedly liked Ponder more than the price to trade up. Fair enough, but if their top choices were Locker and Ponder why would they trade up for Gabbert if Ponder was still available. I actually think that they were looking at trading up for Ponder. I probably shouldn't, but I can't help wondering who the Vikings would pick if Locker, Ponder and even Gabbert were all available to them. Of course, I hope that Ponder would be the choice because that's who they got.