NFL Draft Around the Corner

'06 Football Alums General NCS Football25

Draft day will be much less eventful for Wolfpack alums this year, but it’s still a wonderful, gluttonous weekend for the football junkie. I always get ready with my draft preview from The Sporting News, which is always the best issue of the year. Here’s what they say about the Pack’s likely draftees:

– Tank Tyler, DT, pick #35 (2nd round) to Tampa Bay. “Sheds blocks quickly…has burst off the snap…will need a season or two to adjust to the NFL but could excel in any scheme.” SFN Commentary: This would be somewhat of a disappointment for Tyler, as other projections have him going in the 1st round (and presumably to a much better team).

– Leroy Harris, C, pick #175 (6th round) to Oakland. “Smart, but undersized…projects as a backup.” SFN Commentary: Harris is definitely a “Day 2” guy, but does a high character guy like Leroy really need to land with a glorified prison-league franchise?

And that’s it. League-wide, Clemson DE Gaines Adams or Georgia Tech WR Calvin Johnson should be the first ACC player taken. It will shock nobody who has watched offensive play in the league the past 2 years that no ACC QBs project to be drafted, and every draftable RB is considered Day 2 material.

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'06 Football Alums General NCS Football

25 Responses to NFL Draft Around the Corner

  1. VaWolf82 04/21/2007 at 10:46 AM #

    What about Calvin Johnson from GT?

  2. gopack968 04/21/2007 at 12:07 PM #

    SFN you missed that one big time. Johnson could be first, though the Raiders need a quarterback… and a whole big bunch of other stuff.

  3. StateFans 04/21/2007 at 12:18 PM #

    ^ and ^^ Sorry, it’s updated. FWIW, TSN has Gaines Adams off the board at #2, ahead of Johnson. Detroit won’t take a WR.

  4. E-RO 04/21/2007 at 12:47 PM #

    Tank Tyler could go at the end of the first round to Indy. I saw him there in a few mock drafts.

  5. noah 04/21/2007 at 1:23 PM #

    The Lions ought to go with Joe Thomas. Of course, the Raiders are crazy for passing on C. Johnson. Trade Moss for Aaron Rodgers.

  6. BJD95 04/21/2007 at 2:01 PM #

    Heard Kiper on the radio today, he has Detroit swapping picks with the Bucs. Bucs then take Johnson #2 and Lions take Adams at #4. So, the consensus seems building that Detroit really wants Adams.

  7. BJD95 04/21/2007 at 2:03 PM #

    The only QB in this draft that I think can be had for good value is Houston’s Kolb. Just a thought for the Dolphins to consider.

  8. Dr. BadgerPack 04/21/2007 at 2:12 PM #

    “does a high character guy like Leroy really need to land with a glorified prison-league franchise”

    I guess it would depend upon which perspective you look at it from: with the new policies put into place by the NFL, this might be exactly what the Raiders are looking for now in terms of on and off the field conduct. That could be a boon to Harris in terms of garnering a bit of playing time he might not otherwise get (perhaps teams will reward “good behavior” in an attempt to curtail the bad).

    Of course, from Larry’s point of view I’m sure he’s thinking “anywhere but there, PLEASE!” Well, maybe he’d take them over the Bengals.

  9. kool k 04/21/2007 at 5:36 PM #

    NFL Draft or Pack/Heels @ Doak…that is the dilemna
    If the weather is like this weekend, I guess that will be a no brainer
    After all, it’s just the draft…it’s not…DIVISION 1 FOOTBALL!!!!
    I hope Leroy and Pat Lowery get a shot; and I would feel a lot better if both of them were coming back

  10. bTHEredterror 04/22/2007 at 12:40 AM #

    Pat Lowery will probably have to FA tryout, which would give him a better shot of making a team anyway.

    Leroy will get drafted, probably late fourth early fifth, because he is versatile and high character. My bet would be Redskins or Panthers.

    AJ has best chance to go on day one. High Character and good speed always gets a look.

    I think, because of character concerns and the recent Goddell rules, Tank will drop.

    The surprise might be Garland Heath. Because the draft seems to lack depth, more of the late round skill position picks will be wild guesses, and he was a productive multi year starter. He has adequate size and reads well.

    I can’t wait!! This draft is gonna be bananas. The 2nd pick is the one everybody’s talking about, but the Browns at number three are gonna set the thing off. I bet they pull a shocker and draft Joe Thomas. Everybody is banking on them piicking a QB/RB but they won’t pick a QB because they are on their last legs as a coaching staff, and they have a couple of capable backs. Thomas makes them better, right away.

  11. noah 04/22/2007 at 11:19 AM #

    Pat Lowery is not an NFL player, I’m sorry to say. Great college player, but he’s undersized and not athletic enough.

    Garland Heath is also not fast enough. He only ran a 4.8 at his pro day.

    I don’t get the Gaines Adams love-fest. I like the DE from Arkansas better and think Moss from Florida might be a better value later in the first round.

    But I do agree that Kollb is going to be a good value pick.

  12. Dr. BadgerPack 04/22/2007 at 12:00 PM #

    Noah-

    This is, of course, strictly opinion but it is possible the Gaines Adams love fest is a product of the Detroit draft nightmare. Calvin Johnson should be there to pick, but they really can’t draft another WR and some analysts don’t even think they should spend a pick on the offensive side of the ball in the first round or two. In an attempt to predict somebody in that slot, they go with Gaines Adams (the “too many people trying to guess smart” effect). Get projected high enough in enough drafts, your stock will artificially inflate.

    It is possible that there might be something scouts caught in the film of Arkansas/Wisconsin that had an effect as well. I don’t remember off the top of my head, and I don’t know who had all of the sacks in that game (but if Reynolds– I think that is the Ark. DE– had abused Joe Thomas for most of those sacks, he’d probably be top 3 on the boards).

  13. bTHEredterror 04/22/2007 at 1:14 PM #

    Arkansas DE is Jamal Anderson, and while Arkansas had a host of sacks (6 with Anderson registering 3) in the Capitol One bowl, Thomas wasn’t charged with giving any of them up. In his last two season he gave up 3 sacks in 24 games, 1 every 8 games is pretty damn good. He’s not a dominant run blocker, but he is a superior athlete with room to grow.

    Anderson is a high character guy, but a bit raw, and he plays high. He is likely to get drafted in the top half of the first round due to measurables, but may need a year to acclimate to the League. Whoever gets him will have a team first guy, and as a pure strong side pass rusher he will be productive. NFL network had a good interview with him, his father was deaf and he and Coach Nutt would communicate in sign, and he made a point of sticking up for his coach.

  14. Dr. BadgerPack 04/22/2007 at 3:08 PM #

    ^Anderson… yeah, now I remember. Thomas is just an insane athlete for a guy as big as he is. He lined up on defense against Auburn in a bowl game a couple of years ago.

  15. noah 04/22/2007 at 6:56 PM #

    ” but they really can’t draft another WR”

    Sure the can. CHarles Rogers isn’t there anymore and Mike Williams probably won’t be there a year from now.

    Drafting David Klingler didn’t prevent the Bengals from drafting Akili Smith…and ultimately Carson Palmer. The Lions have problems all over the place.

  16. Dr. BadgerPack 04/22/2007 at 8:12 PM #

    ^ If I was Lions management, I’d probably draft Johnson. The “they can’t really draft another WR” is more or less analyst logic. You see it spewed on these shows all of the time, except from a couple of the ex-GMs out there who preach best player. I think the analysts who say they can’t take another receiver have put Gaines Adams in that slot and it’s stuck.

    With the Bengals example, at least those QBs were spread out a bit (what was it, 91, 99, 03 or something like that). But you are one hundred percent correct that drafting crappy QBs wasn’t a later deterrent.

    Ideally, every draft should be independant of all previous ones. It should be conducted based on holes in the current team, and putting the best team together (whether that be today or for the future) accordingly.

    More or less my biggest annoyance with the draft is that Johnson will probably end up in Tampa, and I don’t particularly want to watch him kill the Panthers twice a year.

  17. noah 04/22/2007 at 10:23 PM #

    I agree with that!

    And the fact that Williams and Rogers didn’t work out shows the importance of getting a receiver who will.

  18. bTHEredterror 04/22/2007 at 11:14 PM #

    ^If I were the Lions’ I’d consider drafting Johnson, because there’s a pretty good chance Stanton may be there at the top of the second round (I see he and Quinn as pretty much the same guy), and you get a good weapon for Kitna to use while Stanton figures things out. Especially considering their D has SOOO many holes to fill and they have to play the Bears defense twice,
    I’d be surprised if the Lions’ do this because the GM is on the line with this draft, and will likely take a sub-par trade to get extra third and fourth rounders in the hopes of addressing multiple needs.

  19. Dr. BadgerPack 04/23/2007 at 7:43 AM #

    Detroit would be very well served to get on the phone with New England and see if they can make something happen there. They should at least see if they are interested (and I suppose it would be Fowler-esque if they haven’t done so already).

  20. noah 04/23/2007 at 8:06 AM #

    If New England called me about a trade, I’d turn them down. I don’t care what they offer. Using history as a guide…you’re going to get screwed. THey’re going to get nine players that all make the pro bowl and you’re going to be remembered as the guy who got robbed.

  21. BJD95 04/23/2007 at 8:36 AM #

    The thinking may also be that high 1st round DEs have a lower “failure rate” than WRs. There is a train of thought that you don’t take a WR early in the 1st.

    Personally, I’d make an exception for Johnson. He’s outstanding. But gaines Adams is, by all accounts, the best defensive player in the draft, at a critical position.

  22. Dr. BadgerPack 04/23/2007 at 10:17 AM #

    Noah- Yeah, there is that whole New England Midas touch thing. I swear New England could draft me and I’d make the pro bowl.

    Of course, if you’re Detroit and you’ve already screwed up eveything else not named Roy Williams, why not try for 2 first round picks.

  23. bTHEredterror 04/23/2007 at 7:31 PM #

    Based on this draft value chart from ESPN:

    http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft07/news/story?id=2843046

    The Pats would have to give up both #1’s from ’07, and likely three other 1st day picks from this year and next to get equal value. I don’t think even Johnson could warrant that type of sacrifice from a team who is on the Super Bowl doorstep anyway. They believe in their system over raw talent, and I bet they would prefer both of their picks over any one guy.

    A possible scenario might be the Pats moving both of their #1’s to Atlanta, who with a new coach might want more picks and would bale out of #8 to get #24 and #28.

    I’d try to sucker some team behind my second #1 to trade up and maybe get a likely top ten pick for next year. This would be where Detroit might be involved in a trade with the Pats.

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. StateFans Nation » Blog Archive » - 04/24/2007

    […] The NFL Draft is this weekend and NC State looks to put at least two more Wolfpackers – Tank Tyler and Leroy Harris – in the league. There is a good chance that the NFL season will start next year with at least twenty-five former Wolfpackers on league rosters. Wow! […]
  2. StateFans Nation » Blog Archive » NFL Draft Coming Saturday - 04/24/2007

    […] The NFL Draft is this weekend and NC State looks to put at least two more Wolfpackers – Tank Tyler and Leroy Harris – in the league. There is a good chance that the NFL season will start next year with at least twenty-five former Wolfpackers on league rosters. Wow! […]

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