The Vikings are certainly a big part of the Flea Flicker, but all things football live here too. Other teams drafted this weekend. Here is how I feel about some of those teams.
Atlanta's jump from pick 27 to 6 to draft Alabama receiver Julio Jones was a bold move. I really like Jones. I think that he will be a dynamite pro football player. The Packers really exposed the Falcons defense in the playoffs. Atlanta gave up crucial draft picks that could have been used to patch those holes. The Falcons do have some good young defensive players, so the improvement could from within.
Tampa Bay may have had my favorite draft. They gambled and lucked into two players with health issues. DEs Adrian Clayborn and Da'Quan Bowers should be dominant if their health allows. Adding LB Mason Foster and S Ahmad Black to those DEs will significantly boost the Bucs defense. TE Luke Stocker will bring a huge smile to emerging QB Josh Freeman. Tampa Bay is improving fast. The NFC South will be tough with Atlanta, New Orleans and now Tampa Bay.
The Colts have had offensive line issues since Tarik Glenn retired. I think that they have changed that with this draft. Anthony Costanzo and Benjamin Ijalana are fantastic picks. It is difficult to defend Peyton Manning in any situation. He opens receivers with his throws. He takes pressure off his line with his quick release and decision making. He opens up the run game with his passing. He can do all this behind a poor line. It is scary to imagine him behind a strong line. This draft may have provided him with one.
Watching the Patriots draft is dizzying. Sometimes it seems that they make no picks because they trade so many of them. When the dust cleared this year, I found a nice draft. Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon could soon be strong contributors on the line. Corner Ras-I Dowling will pair nicely with last years solid rookie Devin McCourty. I enjoyed watching RB Shane Vereen for three years at Cal. He's a solid back. Ryan Mallett stopped his startling freefall in New England. He could be a great trading chip in a few years or the eventual replacement for Tom Brady. For a team that always has so many draft picks it was easy to take a chance on Mallett.
I really like what the Saints did in the first round in adding Cal DE Cameron Jordan and Heisman winning RB Mark Ingram. A strong team got better on both sides of the ball. They could have stopped there and been happy. They didn't and got happier. LB Martez Wilson improved the defense even more.
The Giants got lucky when corner Prince Amukamara dropped to them. His drop to 19 in the first was more surprising to me than Mallett's drop to the third. They found more luck in the second with DT Marvin Austin. Those are two players with top-10 talent. They added more quality with Troy WR Jerrell Jernigan. The Giants are quietly putting together a solid group of receivers. Hakeem Nicks, Steve Smith, Mario Manningham and now Jernigan stack up well with any four in the league. I like the selection of LB Greg Jones in the 6th. That is quite a drop for one of the best college linebackers over the past 3 seasons. I have no idea what caused the drop. The Giants found luck at the top of the draft and a bit more at the bottom. They got better this weekend.
Yeah... Thanks to the Pats for picking up Vereen and clarifying their RB position... Oh, wait, it didn't. Once again, Pats are a "steer clear" team for Fantasy Buffs, Corey Dillon on first down, Kevin Faulk on second. Wait, this IS dizzying. What year is this??
ReplyDeleteKev, talk about the 49ers dra... On second thought, never mind. Gook luck to the Regal Purple People Eaters
I really like the 49ers choice of Aldon Smith. Like some Vikings fans with the Ponder selection, I've heard some 49ers fans complaining about #7 being too early for Smith. I'm not so sure that it is always so easy to trade down. The Patriots sure make it look easy, but they also may not have a particular player in mind when they trade. I doubt that Aldon Smith would have been on the board much longer. If there is a player you really like, I don't think that you should mess around too much. I think that Smith will be a very good pass rusher for the 49ers. I particularly like the choice of Kaepernick. I'll be watching him as he is from my hometown of Turlock. I've been curious if Harbaugh sees similarities between Kaepernick and Tampa Bay backup Josh Johnson. Johnson had a fantastic college career at San Diego while Harbaugh was the coach there. Kaepernick played in that funky pistol offense at Nevada so he has some adjustments, but he has some fine passing skills. Interesting throwing motion, but I don't know if you mess with something that works. Philip Rivers isn't pretty to watch throw. Kendall Hunter had a great college career. He could provide some meaningful playing time. I don't know too much about Chris Culliver except that the Vikings brought him just before the draft. I heard some draft people, including Mike Mayock, say that he was a 6th round player. The timing of the Vikings visit seems to indicate a player that really interested them. I don't really know anything about the rest of their draft, except the USC receiver. He has a ton of talent like most USC players do, but I don't think that he performed to that level in college. Maybe he will for the 49ers.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate your interest in the Flea Flicker. I'm having a blast doing it.
Four years after that draft, I think that Von Miller, Pat Pete, Julio Jones, and J.J. Watt are the closest you can get to sure-fire HOF players in that first round. Robert Quinn, Marcell Dareus, and A.J. Green may not be too far off, either.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest busts, though, were those three QB's (Locker, Gabbert, and Ponder) that had no business anywhere near the first round. This draft turned out to be deficient with the signal callers outside of Cam Newton, and I don't think that he will make the HOF.