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Draft King Analysis
February 18, 2010
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com
Reader feedback is always welcomed here. Send your thoughts to Draft King at LouPickney@gmail.com.
Big thanks to my friend Lance Wilkerson, who had me on his podcast this past Tuesday night. Lance and I go way back, to May 1997 when I landed a job at WEHT News 25 following my sophomore year at the University of Evansville. Lance, along with Mark Asciolla, gave me my first real chance to do television producing that fall with their great Home Team Friday high school football show, something that I'll always appreciate.
As mentioned in the podcast, Lance and I (along with two other people from News 25) went to the 1998 Orange Bowl where Nebraska crushed Tennessee 42-17 in Peyton Manning's last game with the Vols. That was the year that Nebraska and Michigan were both undefeated, but they each played one-loss teams in their respective bowl games, leaving us with a split national championship. As much as I dislike the BCS, it's better than the old system that college football had.
The podcast spawned a few questions, which I will address here.
From: Blaine F.
Great interview with Lance. I have a couple of questions. I am a huge Tennessee Titans fan. Last two years, they have made two great first round draft picks with Johnson and Britt. Do they stay the course again in the first round this year or will they go with someone for defense? The other question is do you see a team with a high 1st round draft pick trading out of that position to pick up additional picks? I wonder with the financial situation upcoming for the NFL if some of the teams will try to save money on rookie contracts by trading down?
Lou: What the Titans do with OLB Keith Bullock and DE Kyle Vanden Bosch will likely have a major impact on their draft decisions. Both are potential free agents, and at this point the Titans could possibly lose one or both of them. There are some great defensive ends who will be in the draft, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see the Titans address that position, with or without Vanden Bosch.
From: Chris T.
Where do you have Colt McCoy and what do you think of his NFL future?
Lou: McCoy is a talented quarterback, a skilled passer who had a tremendous career at Texas. At 6'2" 215, he could use a bit more muscle to be able to sustain the hits that NFL quarterbacks sustain on a constant basis. The injury to his right shoulder in the BCS Title game is a concern, though McCoy appears to be on track to be ready to throw at the NFL combine in Indianapolis.
McCoy is most likely going to go in round two, though there is an outside chance he will end up being selected toward the end of round one. McCoy has the potential to be a good NFL quarterback, and if he was 6'4" 235 he might be a lock as a top 15 selection. He could end up being a great value pick, and if he passes through round one there could be plenty of jockeying by teams looking to take him in round two. Additionally, the Rams could select McCoy at #33 overall, giving them a proven winner at QB to go with a defensive standout.
From: Chris H.
Interesting listen. I really hope two DT's dont go 1 and 2 because Tampa really needs one of the two. As much as I love what Eric Berry can do, especially after playing under Kiffin at Tennessee, we need a DT.
Lou: I'm sure that the Buccaneers would love to end up with either Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy, but that might not end up being an option. The days of Warren Sapp and Anthony McFarland lined up at defensive tackle are becoming more and more distant memories for Buccaneers fans, and an elite DT would be a great addition to the team.
It's possible that Detroit might opt to go with Berry at #2 overall, though at this point I think the most likely scenario is for Suh to go first and G. McCoy to go second. Tampa Bay might be tempted to trade up to land one of those players, but if that's not a viable option then adding a player like Berry might end up being the best option available for the team at #3.
