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National Football League
Draft King Mailbag
November 5, 2006
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com
Reader feedback is always welcomed here at DraftKing.com. Send your thoughts to me at LouPickney@gmail.com.
From: schoenbc@notes.udayton.edu
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Oct 31, 2006 11:49 PM
Subject: mailbag
Great Site. A few questions from someone who lives in the midwest.....
What about Troy Smith kept him out of your first round? He has really shown a great arm this year but everyone knows he can run. His team dominates and he is a winner. Where DO you see him getting drafted?
What about Drew Stanton gives him the higher slot, over Brian Brohm? If I get passed my Spartan fan bias, I think I would draft Brohm.
With Dre' Bly and Fernando Bryant on the team, why do you have them using their likely high draft pick on a CB? I personally think they should go DEF or QB, but not CB. I could see them going with Landry or one of the DEs to get a much needed play maker on that side of the ball. Do you think the Pats would have any interest in trading their 2 first rounders for the Lions pick to make a move for someone like Calvin Johnson?
Lou: Troy Smith is, in all likelihood, going to win the Heisman Trophy. But being an outstanding college QB and being a first round NFL prospect are not always the same thing.
Listed at 6'1" 215, Smith runs a 4.6 40, so while he has the speed to play on the next level, he may be perceived as being slightly shorter than needed, especially if the 6'1" turns out to be slightly inaccurate (there is the occasional listing of him at an even 6'0".) You'd think that a 6'1" athletic QB with great accuracy would be more attractive to a team than a slow 6'5" guy, but that's not always the case. Smith might have played his way into becoming a first round pick, a la Jason Campbell from Auburn did two years ago, but Campbell at 6'4" was a better fit into the NFL QB mold.
Why is height so important? Keep it in mind every time you see a defensive lineman jump up to bat down a pass.
Some will raise the "character" issue, as Smith was expelled from his first high school for punching someone and then suspended at Ohio State for taking cash from a booster. But that is unfair in my opinion, as Smith has shown no signs of being a so-called character problem in leading Ohio State this season.
Smith ranks in the top four QB prospects (with Brady Quinn, Brian Brohm and Drew Stanton) and likely will be a second round pick if he manages to slide through the first round.
As for Brohm/Stanton, both are excellent potential picks. Brohm's injury past had me ranking him lower than Stanton earlier, though it might be fair to say that it's a dead heat at best there now. Note that Brohm is 6'4" and that Stanton is 6'3" in comparing them with Troy Smith. Stanton has been burdened with being on an unimpressive Michigan State team, whereas Brohm is leading Louisville on a path to the national title game (or, at least, a BCS berth.) Stanton has a never give up attitude (look at MSU's incredible comeback with against Northwestern for evidence of that), and where the two players go relative to one another will likely have more to do with the judgments of the GMs in the top 10 of the 2007 Draft than anything.
Both Dre' Bly and Fernando Bryant turn 30 this off-season, and particularly with them not exactly being interception machines, it stands to reason that an injection of youth into the secondary would benefit Detroit. A defensive end would also be a nice fit there, much in the mold of how Jacksonville has built up a very strong defensive front four. With Shaun Cody and Shaun Rogers in the middle, a DE to compliment James Hall would be a nice move, I agree.
New England trading up with Detroit would be very much the opposite of what the franchise typically does. Remember that the Patriots just used a high pick to select Chad Jackson in the last draft, and while Calvin Johnson would obviously be a great addition to the WR corps, I don't see the Patriots giving up two picks to get him.
From: Josh obergfell
To: loupickney@gmail.com
Date: Nov 5, 2006 12:34 AM
Subject: Cowboys
Hey lou hows it going good here hey i was just wanted to put my two cents in about the cowboys i know you have them taking anouther olb but wouldn't it be better for the to get a first round quaterback. bledso is aging and can tony romo handle it. get some youth in there. jones is an excellent back. and you have t.o. glenn, and witten. you get a young talented qb in there and you have a force. or since they need a little help on the oline grab justin blalock. with that in mind could you match up the perfect qb for them and the chances of it happin.
great site lou
Lou: The idea that Bill Parcells will be done after this year is being accepted as fact in many media circles these days. If that holds true, it lends credence to the idea of Dallas using a first round pick on a QB. Jerry Jones likes to make a splash, and I could see the team drafting a guy like Brian Brohm... or even the aforementioned Troy Smith. Much of what Dallas will do hinges on who takes over when/if Parcells leaves.
From: JeRhonda Bernard
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Nov 5, 2006 3:56 PM
Subject: (no subject)
Do you think that Reggie Nelson will enter this years draft, and if so do u think he would be a good pick for Jacksonville? I think he would clearly be an upgrade over Deon Grant.
Lou: Reggie Nelson is moving up many draft boards (that began when he made two picks vs. Tennessee), as he has the flexibility to play either corner or safety at the next level. Nelson was a junior college transfer, and he has two years of eligibility remaining, though the talk on him is that he is expected to enter the 2007 Draft. At 6'1" 190 he has the height to play either spot, and with a 4.37 40 speed (when he was coming *into* UF) he should be a day one pick whenever he decides to come out. Academics have been tough for Nelson in the past, and while major schools find ways to keep their players eligible, I do wonder how long Nelson will want to deal with school when the big money of the NFL is available.
Nelson is credited with helping to keep Florida's secondary strong (where it's otherwise a weak spot for the team), he has several INTs, and he is a lightning fast "ball hawk" who can fill whatever needs a team has at DB. Oh, and he still has "tremendous upside" according to many observers. What's not to like about all of that?
From: Brian DAmato
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Nov 5, 2006 9:03 PM
Subject: Picking apart your latest mock draft...................
Mr. Pickney,
Gary Kubiak has proven with his history in Denver that he can make a serviceable tailback out of anyong willing to run the ball for him. That system used many late round draft picks and made them stars. Taking Adrian Peterson wouldnt make too much sense in my mind. How about a franchise left tackle?
When you are like the 49ers and your defense ranks near the bottom of the league, getting any help is a positive thing. That being said, wouldnt a defensive back make more sense for them, someone like Laron Landry from LSU?
I have a feeling that Brian Brohm is going to comeback to Louisville for his senior year. Why do I say this? Well he'd probably be a Top 10 pick in 2008 and plus he is coming off an injury this season and that may cause him to fall.
The Cowboys cant even find a spot for Bobby Carpenter to play, except for special teams. What sense is their in taking Buster Davis, another LB? Arent OT & DT more pressing needs at the moment?
Lou: To be sure, the Texans could use a high-end offensive tackle. Perhaps it's the curse of Tony Boscelli, but the team has largely ignored that spot since the franchise's inception... much to its peril.
To make the counter-argument on Kubiak, he is someone I think of more with the QB game than the RB attack, as was evidenced by David Carr being so accurate with his passing until he fell off the map against the Titans two weeks ago (I was there in person to see it happen.) What can't be ignored with this franchise is that there is some deep-seeded angst about the decision to pass on Reggie Bush for Mario Williams. Right or wrong, the perception is there in the mind of many fans that this was a blunder of the highest degree, and by drafting Adrian Peterson the team could go a long way in repairing that unhappiness. As my friend Oliver Copp once wrote, "Please the fans or they won't come back."
The 49ers could use help at many different spots. LaRon Landry would be a nice pickup for the team, though I like the idea of them taking a DE/OLB type of guy (i.e. Quentin Moses) to help bring the heat. Bryant Young has played well at DE so far this year, but he will turns 35 this upcoming January, and clearly it's a need spot for San Francisco. I don't deny that Landry would be a great addition to the club, but there are many ways the team could go.
I'd be shocked if Brian Brohm decided to return to Louisville for another year. How do you top what he has accomplished this year? Forget 2008 -- Brohm might be a Top 10 overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. The fact that he came back from his injury so quick shows his toughness, an important quality for any NFL QB.
See my comments above about what the Cowboys might do, though I see the point from all the various e-mails questioning Dallas taking an ILB. Incidentally, not one person has thought it strange that the Redskins might take Ted Ginn, Jr. in the first round. It warrants noting.
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