Al Davis Giftwrapped Michael Crabtree to the 49ers

I was intrigued watching the 2009 NFL draft on Saturday. I was really only interested in seeing where Michael Crabtree landed because he seems like the best player in the entire draft.

I thought for sure Al Davis and the Raiders would select the Texas Tech wideout. Teaming Crabtree up with JaMarcus Russell and Darren McFadden just seemed like a natural fit.

It even reminded me of the Dallas Cowboys and their Hall of Fame trio of Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, and Michael Irvin.

Crabtree was clearly the best receiver in the draft and best athlete coming out of the college ranks.

I turned out to be wrong, but so were a lot of people.

There was a lot of speculation leading up to the draft that Oakland would go another route. Draft experts said that the Raiders collect "track stars" and Darrius Heyward-Bay's name started to come up alongside the Raiders in mock drafts. Other people had Oakland selecting Jeremy Maclin from Missouri.

I thought Maclin was the wrong choice because he came from a "pass-happy" offense in college so his numbers had to be inflated (some people say Crabtree's numbers are inflated too, but Texas Tech was more solid than Mizzou was last year). Heyward-Bay could not even make Second-Team All-ACC and the ACC is a weak college football conference.

Crabtree just seemed like the logical choice. In two years, Crabtree accounted for over 40 touchdowns, over 200 receptions, and was a two-time All-American selection. He was clearly a cut above the rest of the receivers in college football. Crabtree even won the Biletnikoff Award twice, which is given to the best wide receiver in college (yes, this award is named after the legendary Oakland Raider Fred Biletnikoff, who Al Davis knows and loves).

The only "bad" thing about Crabtree was that he had a foot injury and could not run a 40-yard dash. Anyone who watches tape on the guy will realize that he can run a sub-4.4-second 40-yard dash.

The foot injury is not that big of a deal because even seasoned coaches and scouts know that it is something players can easily bounce back from. Eric Mangini called Crabtree a diva but that's interesting coming from a guy who did a cameo for the Sopranos and could not handle the job in New York.

Also, Crabtree's accomplishments came while playing at Texas Tech. Granted, Texas Tech is a Big 12 school, but the Red Raiders were definitely in the shadow of bigger schools like the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns.

However, Crabtree carried his team. The biggest positive about Crabtree probably comes from his performance during the upset of then-No. 1 Texas. In that game, Crabtree sealed Texas Tech's victory on a touchdown reception with less than eight seconds to go.

After watching that game, many people realized that Crabtree was a game-breaker and a special talent. In fact, I remember the post-game interview with Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell who said, "They tried to man up Crab and there's nobody in the country that can man up Crab!"

There it is, an elite player that demands double coverage. A player that thrives under pressure, has great hands, runs smooth routes, and can make plays. What more can you want, Mr. Davis?

Then Roger Goodell came up to the podium to announce the Raiders' pick, "With the seventh pick in the 2009 NFL draft, the Oakland Raiders select Darrius Heyward-Bay."

Really, Al Davis? Really? That deserves a Saturday Night Live Weekend Update. "Really?!?!" sketch. It would go something like Seth Meyers saying, "Really Al Davis? Really, with the seventh pick of the draft you selected Darrius Heyward-Bay? Were you really in a rush to get James Jett version 2.0? Really?!"

Heyward-Bay was the fastest wide receiver at the NFL combine. He was projected as a late first-round or early second-round prospect.

The knock on this guy is that he's not consistent in catching the ball or running routes. Now, I know Al Davis likes the phrase "VERTICAL GAME," but what's the point of having a guy like Heyward-Bay if he can't catch the ball? Plus, Heyward-Bay only had 13 career touchdowns in college, which seems dwarf-like compared to Crabtree's numbers.

Watching Crabtree's reaction was really funny, though. If you watch his face, he goes from shock to happiness in about five seconds. Shocked because he is surprised any other wide receiver got drafted before him. The camera even caught a shot of him laughing as someone sitting at his table obviously made a joke about Oakland.

Even more stunning than that pick was the fact that the Jaguars and Packers passed on Crabtree too. Green Bay already has Greg Jennings, who is an elite receiver in his own right. Jacksonville recently signed Tory Holt, who they believe still has one or two good seasons left in him and have a group of young receivers.

That allowed Crabtree to fall and land right across the bay from Oakland and into Mike Singletary's lap. This was a no-brainer for San Francisco and they knew it. The wide receiver position for the 49ers has been non-existent since Terrell Owens left a few years back. It was part of the team's old identity that thrived on great wide receiver play from players like Dwight Clark, Owens, Jerry Rice, and John Taylor.

The boy-king, Jed York, and Mike Singletary could not pass this opportunity up. Not only were they able to snag the best offensive player in the draft, but now the 49ers are going to be able to sign Crabtree for less money. San Francisco will not pay the rookie more than what Al Davis will be paying his rookie wide receiver.

This isn't to say that the 49ers had more pressing needs for the team (like quarterback and offensive tackle), but wide receiver was definitely a need that the organization had to address. Even if Crabtree produces half of what he did in college, it will be an upgrade at the wide receiver position.

This sets up great excitement for Bay area football too, as ESPN and Fox Sports will be covering how Heyward-Bay and Crabtree develop. The scenarios are that both become stud receivers, or only one of them does while the other busts, or that they both become busts.

Let's hope the latter doesn't happen. Imagine how Al Davis would feel if Crabtree lives up to the hype, knowing he passed on taking the kid into the Raider organization. The Yorks proved that they are not as bad as Mr. Davis.

In my opinion, the 49ers did two things right on Saturday. Drafting Crabtree and bringing back the Championship Red (Cardinals fans don't be foolish in thinking that it's a ripoff of your jersey...actually, go ahead, it just makes it funnier).