Now that the NFL Draft is done, there’s a hole in my life. No longer can I constantly tinker with mock drafts, or debate the merits of the Lions picking an offensive tackle over a cornerback. I’ll no longer dream about Mel Kiper’s opinions, nor his hair. No more laughing at the complete stupidity of some “expert insider” mocks, or watching endless hours of pre-draft coverage that never really changed from day to day. Like it or not, this baby is born.
I’m too sullen to go through and grade every team, or break down each pick. Compounding the depression is my purchase of the new Tool CD, which brings the clouds on the sunniest of days, but in a cathartic way. So while I stuff my body with comfort food, here’s some of my thoughts on the past weekend’s festivities…
Best decision, top 10 picks:
The Jets resisting temptation and picking D’Brickashaw Ferguson. With an adjustment year and proper technique coaching, the Brick will be a badly needed line anchor for years.
Worst decision, top 10 picks:
The safe pick here is Buffalo’s baffling choice of Donte Whitner, but I see it differently. It’s the Texans taking Mario Williams #1 overall. Not that I thought Reggie Bush was a great fit for them, but for a guy as physically freakish as Williams, I’d expect far more numbers out of him at the college level. 11 sacks in 20 games, coupled with having 2 linemates drafted in the 1st round? That doesn’t exactly project NFL greatness. Teams would have traded up for Bush, but Charley Casserly overplayed his hand.
Best decision, picks 11-20:
The Ravens trading up a spot to draft Haloti Ngata. Ray Lewis made no secret his desire for a Siragusa-type up front, and the Browns almost certainly would have taken the big man from Oregon. A happy and inspired Ray Lewis gives the Ravens hope, and Ngata should make Ray a happy linebacker.
Worst decision, picks 11-20:
The Broncos trading up to get Jay Cutler at #11. There was a chance they could have had him at #15. I’ve never been a huge Cutler guy, either. Of course every time I question what the Broncos are thinking, they advance an extra round in the playoffs.
Best decision, rest of 1st round:
The Steelers trading up to get Santonio Holmes. Holmes adds speed, blocking, and big-play potential in the slot and eventually outside.
Worst decision, rest of 1st round:
Here’s the proper spot for the Bills. John McCargo was a draft board riser, but most mocks had him no higher than late 2nd round. By trading up to get a guy coming off what could be a chronic injury, the Bills passed over several better prospects and cost themselves a needed later pick.
Best 2nd round pick:
Seattle taking Darryl Tapp at #63. I humbly predict Tapp records more sacks over the next 3 years than Mario Williams. Lots of teams did well for themselves in this round, but a legit contender adding such a potential impact player so late really impresses me.
Worst 2nd round pick:
The Bears taking Devin Hester. He wasn’t good enough to play CB at Miami, or WR for that matter. The Bears blew a valuable pick on a return specialist, and one who fumbles at an alarming rate. With such glaring holes at TE, WR, and OL depth, this pick simply makes no sense.
Best 3rd round pick:
The Texans finding redemption by adding two likely starters to their OL in Charles Spencer and Eric Winston with the first two picks. I’m a big Spencer fan, and Winston offers lots of athletic upside to a line in desperate need of both.
Worst 3rd round pick:
Anthony Schlegel to the Jets. It’s tough for this lifelong Buckeye fan to criticize one of my own, but Schlegel lacks the speed and coverage skills needed to merit this high a selection. He could wind up being a decent contributor, but they took him at least 2 rounds too early.
Best 2nd day picks:
S Darnell Bing to the Raiders in the 4th, though the Silver and Black have an alarming abundance of young DBs that haven’t panned out.
OT Jonathan Scott to the Lions in the 5th round. He should win the starting RT job, and was a 2nd-3rd round projection by just about everyone.
DT Babatunde Oshinowo to the Browns in the 5th. He’s got the requisite size and pedigree to fit nicely in their 3-4. Plus I just really like saying his name.
C Greg Eslinger to Denver in the 6th. A zone blocking specialist with experience and brains, and he gets a year or two to learn from one of the best in Tom Nalen. He was a pre-season 1st round prospect and played well.
LB Terna Nande to the Titans in the 4th round. If his lacerated liver stays healed, he can become a great NFL LB. Had he played for Miami FL and not Miami OH, he’d have gone in the top 40.
Best undrafted player signings so far:
Ohio U. CB Dion Byrum to the Bears. They spent 2nd rounders on projects Hester and Manning, but Byrum will be a better cover man than either guy if he can adjust to NFL speed.
The Panthers signing G Adam Stenavich. He should become something every good team has: a capable 6th lineman.
WR Martin Nance to the Bills. Big guy with sure hands could become an excellent possession WR on a team that sorely needs one.
raidersoaklandr
Oakland Raiders 2006 NFL Draft Review
1 - Michael Huff, S, Texas (6-0, 204); 2 - Thomas Howard, OLB, UTEP (6-3, 239); 3 - Paul McQuistan, OL, Weber State (6-6, 312); 4 - Darnell Bing, SS, USC (6-2, 227); 6 - Kevin Boothe, OL, Cornell (6-5, 316); 7 - Chris Morris, C, Michigan State (6-3, 299); 7 - Kevin McMahan, WR, Maine (6-2, 196)
Analysis: Kudos to Al Davis for forgetting about making a big draft-day splash and drafting players that can actually improve his team. Huff fills the void left by Charles Woodson in the secondary, and is likely to be a better pro than Woodson. Howard is the pure outside linebacker that the Silver and Black have lacked, and Bing was a productive college player that was among the steals of the second day. McQuistan is something of an unknown, but Boothe was rated by some as possessing first-day talent. Some will question the Raiders' decision to pass up a quarterback in the draft, but with the experienced Aaron Brooks in the fold and the promising Andrew Walter still something of an unknown commodity, that was the prudent approach.
Bottom Line: Looks like the Raiders have re-committed themselves to defense, and their draft day strategy immediately makes them a team on the rise.
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Oakland Raiders Run
Caught In a Draft
The Raiders will pick seventh in the 2006 NFL Draft after losing a coin flip with the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 24 in Indianapolis. The Bay Area franchises were among five teams that went 4-12 in 2005, tying for the third worst record. A coin toss was required because Oakland and San Francisco also tied on strength of schedule tiebreaker.
The top seven picks for the 2006 NFL Draft: 1. Houston (2-14), 2. New Orleans (3-13), 3. Tennessee (4-12), 4. New York Jets, 5. (4-12), Green Bay (4-12), 6. San Francisco (4-12), 7. Oakland (4-12).
The 2006 NFL Draft will be held in New York on April 29-30.
2006 Opponents
A rare home game against the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers is among the highlights of the Raiders' 2006 schedule. The Steelers last played the Raiders in Oakland in 1995.
According to the NFL, the Raiders will play the following teams in the 2006 season:
Home: Denver, Kansas City, San Diego, Arizona, Cleveland, Houston, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. Road: Denver, Kansas City, San Diego, Baltimore, Cincinnati, New York Jets, San Francisco and Seattle.
Oakland's 2006 schedule includes games against four 2005 playoffs teams — Cincinnati, Denver, Pittsburgh and Seattle. The combined 2005 record of Oakland's 2006 opponents is 132-124. For the 2005 season, the combined 2004 record of Oakland opponents was 135-121.
The Raiders play four teams each from the AFC North and NFC West as part of the league's eight-year schedule formula, which began in 2002. Oakland's games against Houston and the New York Jets were determined because the Raiders finished last in the AFC West and drew the last-place finisher in the AFC South and AFC East.
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Oakland Raiders Run
The Raiders will open their 2006 regular season at home against the San Diego Chargers on Monday, Sept. 11, at 7:15 p.m. The prime-time matchup between the AFC West rivals was one of eight games the NFL announced March 28.
The rest of the NFL’s 2006 regular-season schedule is expected to be released in early April.
The Raiders-Chargers game marks the return of Art Shell as Raiders coach. Shell, who replaced the fired Norv Turner on Feb. 11, had a 56-41 record in five plus seasons (1984-94) in his first head-coaching stint with the team.
Exhibition Schedule
The Raiders will play the Philadelphia Eagles in the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio on Sunday, Aug. 6. The Sunday prime-time game will be televised by NBC at 5 p.m. (Pacific).
The Raiders will also play at the Minnesota Vikings on Monday, Aug. 14. The game will be televised by ESPN at 5 p.m.
Oakland will host the 49ers the following weekend and the Detroit Lions the weekend of Aug. 24-28. The Raiders play at Seattle the following weekend in their exhibition finale.
The NFL released its 2006 exhibition schedule on March 29 but didn’t specify dates and times for all games. Those are expected to be announced in April.
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Oakland Raiders Run
Having signed Aaron Brooks, are the Raiders still in the market for a quarterback?
That possibility was raised when the Detroit Lions said the Raiders were one of several teams that had requested permission to speak with Joey Harrington regarding a trade.
Harrington, the Lions starter since his rookie year, remains on the Lions roster, and Detroit is expected to explore a trade after adding Jon Kitna and Josh McCown in recent weeks. Failing to trade Harrington, it is believed the Lions will give him his release on June1.
The Raiders had no comment on the Harrington report.
The Raiders acquired Brooks earlier this month as a free agent who was formerly the starter in New Orleans. He joins holdover quarterbacks Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo on the Raiders roster.
Coach Art Shell, speaking with reporters at the owners meetings in Orlando, Fla., said nothing was concrete in terms of which of the current three quarterbacks would be designated the starter.
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