NFL Draft 2011 and the Top 25 Moments of the Offseason
For the non-playoff teams in the NFL, the offseason began in earnest in January. For the teams lucky enough to survive in the second season until the bitter end, their offseason began in February.
But for those of us that have been preparing for the 2011 NFL draft, this has been a four-month roller coaster of various activities that kept us at times amused, puzzled, angry, focused, occupied, fascinated and dismayed. I think that touches of some of the emotions that I experienced.
From the East-West Shrine Bowl and Senior Bowl games in January, to the NFL scouting combine in February to March, the college pro days in March and April and then the NFL draft at the end of April, there has been plenty of coverage to digest and ammunition available for cranking out your best-guess mock drafts.
In reflection, these are my top 25 moments of the 2011 NFL offseason, starting with the All-Star games and leading up to the judge's decision due out this week on the NFL lockout.
25) NFL Fans Staying Positive and Optimistic for a 2011 Season
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Our country is still going through a difficult economic time period. Unemployment, health care, fighting wars on other continents—these are some very hard times indeed.
The game of football is woven into our very fabric, at least it has always felt that way for me. With so many people struggling to keep a roof over their head—and the recent storms in Alabama help to drive that point home—how can so many people be that passionate about a game that billionaires are running?
The players are asking for millions in salary and the fans are still loyally scrimping and saving to buy tickets and jerseys.
A sport that generates as much passion and emotion as football does should not keep going through all of these legal issues. You would like to think that both sides would be happy to share such a generous kitty with each other, but as long as man has the ability to exhibit greed, this concept is probably above their heads.
So, hats off to every NFL fan that still anxiously awaits news that the 2011 season is on and that free agency, OTAs, summer camp and preseason games are right around the corner.
24) Seeing the Armed Forces on Draft Stage and News of Bin Laden
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Seeing the various representatives of the Armed Forces on the stage at Radio City Music Hall during each day of the NFL draft, it always gives me reason to pause and well up with pride.
My only son just graduated from West Point Academy roughly one year ago and has since graduated from Rangers School in Ft. Benning, Georgia. The Rangers put on a wonderful display at the graduation ceremonies, including the use of Black Hawk helicopters simulating a rescue mission.
Mere days after the NFL draft concluded, news came out regarding the death of Osama bin Laden. There were reports of the helicopters that executed the mission and the understanding that one of them crashed. Those are the kind of memories that stay with you.
23) Mock Draft Mania and the $10 Million Challenge
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I never heard the results of the Bud Light $10,000,000 mock draft challenge, where you had to correctly identify every draft pick in the first round to win the grand prize. I wonder if Bud Light paid Pete Carroll and the Seahawks to draft James Carpenter to make sure that nobody won?
But as crazy as the first round turned out to be, I would be amazed if anyone won, much less got close by only missing one or two picks.
Mock-draft mania runs amok from January right up to the last remaining days prior to the draft. It is the subject of much debate and something people look forward to doing—you know, being a general manager for an hour. Some take it more seriously than others.
If you are curious to know who is the best mock-drafter among the so-called NFL experts, this year it was Rick Gosselin, the senior writer for the Dallas Morning News. It was the third time he has been named the winner, and if you want to read more details about Rick and the mock draft expert standings, you can refer to this article I wrote yesterday.
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22) The Announcement of the 2011 NFL Schedule
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There was much anticipation for the release of the 2011 NFL schedule. It seems so special to have the first week of the season opening up on September 11, and now with the news of Osama bin Laden's demise, that only makes the games even more memorable.
The game pitting the New York Giants at the Washington Redskins on 9/11 is purely a great marketing touch and as patriotic as it gets. The second noteworthy game was the New York Jets hosting the Dallas Cowboys.
Personally, I would have preferred to see the Jets hosting the New England Patriots. That would have been a bigger game and, of course, more patriotic. I don't know if the NFL really believes that the Dallas Cowboys deserve to be referred to as America's team, but based on their terrible playoff record in the past decade, they have stopped resembling America's team for some time now.
It would be such a shame if the 9/11 games are postponed due to the legal problems with the NFL and the players union. I certainly hope that they can reach an accord soon enough to allow the season to start then.
The other game I am looking forward to is the Thanksgiving game between the brothers Harbaugh. That should be a fun game, surrounded with your family, while two brothers square off to try to beat each other.
21) Mike Mayock, Live Practice Coverage and NFL Network
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If you were like me, you found yourself in front of the TV set, watching every East vs. West Shrine Bowl practice, every Senior Bowl practice, every day of the NFL scouting combine, and every college pro day workout that was covered by the NFL Network.
With pad of paper and pen in hand, I would take down notes on what each player was doing to uncover some insight and clues as to which players would be moving up or moving down draft charts. I hate to even guess at how many hours I devoted to NFL draft-related coverage, but as part of the NFL draft team at Bleacher Report, I took my responsibilities seriously.
It was a good learning experience, but thankfully, I recorded every session in advance. There were more than a few occasions that put me to sleep, because after the first dozen evaluations of Cam Newton, I started to catch on to what he was all about.
20) Did Andre Reed Cost the Buffalo Bills Christian Ponder?
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Prior to the NFL draft, the Bills informed Andre Reed that he would be making the formal announcement at Radio City Music Hall of who the Bills were selecting with the 34th pick in the draft.
For some unknown reason, Reed took it upon himself to reach out to Christian Ponder, who he knew the Bills were high on, and tweeted him with the wish that he would be announcing his name in the second round.
It is not known if Reed's Freudian slip was sufficient to scare Minnesota into drafting Ponder with the 12th pick of the draft, but it did confirm that Buffalo had a genuine interest in Ponder. We also know from subsequent reports that the Bills were prepared to trade back up into the latter stages of the first round if Ponder had slipped down in to the 20s.
I am a fan of Andre Reed and always will be. He should be in the Hall of Fame. But, this will remain a rather dubious memory for some time that he will have to live down.
19) New Drafting Strategy of the Washington Redskins
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Daniel Snyder throws draft picks around like they are party favors.
All of that stopped when the Washington Redskins began doing their best impersonation of Bill Belichick and conducted one draft-day trade after another, scooping up as many draft picks as humanly possible.
The word is that the Redskins wanted to jump up to the Buffalo Bills pick at No. 3, but Buddy Nix is not very comfortable with moving up or down. He likes to stay exactly where he is.
So Mike Shanahan and general manager Bruce Allen executed the trade down to perfection. For an interesting read on the results, you can read more here.
18) Ryan Mallett's Interviewing Skills at NFL Scouting Combine
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When the quarterbacks finally had their turn to be poked and prodded at the NFL scouting combine, part of that first day was devoted to conducting interview sessions with the media in attendance.
You may recall Mallett storming off the podium when he felt he was being asked too many repeated questions about his alleged drug usage history.
Now that he is a New England Patriots player, he can learn from Tom Brady how to conduct press conferences, and maybe attend a Toastmasters group or two in Boston.
17) Charley Casserly Becoming Charnac the Magnificient
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As we have previously stated, there were many, many hours of watching NFL Network programming leading up to the draft. For some much-needed comic relief, Charley Casserly—NFL Network analyst and former NFL general manager of the Washington Redskins and Houston Texans—decided to do a skit ala Johnny Carson.
Casserly was called Charnac the Magnificent, and he proceeded to predict various things about the NFL and the draft. You can see a video of it here.
Very funny stuff indeed.
16) Stephen Paea Scouting Combine's Bench-Press Champ
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The impromptu excitement level of the defensive linemen that were witnesses in the weight room for the bench-press record set by Oregon State defensive tackle Stephen Paea. Paea benched 225 49 times, breaking the old mark of 45. It is also noteworthy that he did that many reps in under 52 seconds.
For a video replay of that record, you can find that here.
15) Media-Only Private Workout of Cam Newton
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On February 10th, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton held a private workout for the media only. No NFL teams were allowed to have representatives present. Newton demonstrated for every camera in attendance what he had been working on and how great his footwork and throwing motion were becoming since he left Auburn to prepare for the NFL.
Newton hit a reasonably high number of passes because it was a controlled setting and there was no defense anywhere to be found. To the extent that this publicity stunt helped or hurt his stock is still not known, but at the time, it sure seemed like much ado about nothing.
14) Von Miller Joins NFL Players in Lawsuit Against NFL Owners
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I found it very interesting that on the eve of the NFL draft, when he would be hoping for some team to draft him early and pay him millions of dollars, the Texas A&M rookie linebacker would agree to join the NFL players lawsuit against the NFL owners.
Undoubtedly, Newton's agent and lawyers sought counsel to determine how risky his involvement would be and if it was not in his best interests to commit to this endeavor.
But at the end of the day, he managed to come out of the draft smiling, as the No. 2 overall pick and had already established himself as someone that took a stand, which will score points with NFL veteran players.
Somehow, I think it will not excuse him from carrying the shoulder pads of Broncos players at summer camp, or prevent him from singing the A&M fight song.
13) Marcell Dareus' Bear Hug and Massive Strength
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When Marcell Dareus was selected by the Buffalo Bills with the third overall draft pick, he picked up somebody that was standing adjacent to his family in the NFL draft green room and gave him a huge bear hug that lifted the man three or four feet off of the ground.
I knew he was strong, but there is apparently no end to the strength that Dareus possesses. If you have not seen it yet, there was a lab test that Dareus participated in for ESPN, and the results are quite impressive. You can check that out here. You NFL teams in the AFC East: The Buffalo Bills are no longer a team you can push around.
In case you didn't hear about him, the Bills' final draft pick with the 245th overall pick was Michael Jasper. Jasper is already getting a lot of buzz around town due to his sheer size and physical prowess. You can read more about him here, but if he hits the field with Dareus and Kyle Williams, the Bills will have a very strong defensive line to match with anybody in the league.
12) Seattle Seahawks Reach for James Carpenter
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When the Seattle Seahawks were on the clock with the 25th overall pick at the 2011 NFL draft, the last name that anybody at Radio City Music Hall was expecting to see announced was the name of Alabama tackle James Carpenter.
The various network cameras that were walking around the green room happened to swing past Alabama head coach Nick Saban, and the look on his face said it all. "They drafted him then?" Priceless.
For some reason, Pete Carroll and company decided that Carpenter needed to come off the draft board right then and there, similar to what happened with Christian Ponder and the Minnesota Vikings. But, as soon as everyone acknowledged what had just happened, the draft card grades for Seattle were starting to be filled out to include D's and F's across the board.
11) Minnesota Vikings Draft Christian Ponder
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The Minnesota Vikings used the 12th overall pick in the NFL draft to select Florida State QB Christian Ponder.
Personally, what is there not to like about Ponder? He has already finished two college degrees. He is working towards his MBA and will also be competing for the starting QB job with the Vikings.
As we highlighted in an earlier slide, Andre Reed tipped off the Buffalo Bills' interest, and the Vikings decided they were not going to play it safe; they took the plunge at 12, and got their man.
That one move sealed the fate of first-round QB trading, as everyone else went back into hiding to await the outcome of what the early results would hold in store for day two of the draft.
With so much speculation at how valuable the picks would be at 33 and 34 overall, neither the New England Patriots or Buffalo Bills wound up trading either pick, as both teams felt it was in their best interests to draft a player instead.
10) Watching the Green-Room Reaction of Top Picks Getting Their Phone Call
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It always amazes me to see these huge college players that are so capable of violent collisions start to shake and cry when they receive their phone call in the green room that they have just been drafted and are going to be joining the NFL.
Von Miller's leg seemed to be shaking uncontrollably. Marcell Dareus buried his face and head when he got the call. Other players put their head down and emerged with tears streaming down their face. It is something that never gets old, no matter how many drafts you see.
9) The Fans' Greeting for Roger Goodell
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When Roger Goodell came out to start the 2011 NFL draft, he was met with a loud chorus of boos. Every time he attempted to talk, the boos and various chants got louder and he would stop and wait for the noise to die down. His feeble attempts to quiet the crowd with comments like, "We want to start playing football too," and "I hear you loud and clear" only jacked up the crowd to boo longer and harder.
Eventually, the program got underway and things returned to normal until the commissioner walked to the podium to announce the next selection, and then the booing would start back up all over again.
As for the fans' feelings being known, that much is a given. As for their ability to change the legal posturing and speed up the lockout, that remains to be seen. We can only hope that cooler heads will prevail.
8) Suzy Kolber Sharing Message to Mark Ingram at Draft
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Mark Ingram had just been drafted by the New Orleans Saints in a rather surprise move because the Saints traded back up in the first round for the ability to draft the former Heisman Trophy winner.
As Ingram is coming away from his photo-shoot opportunity with Commissioner Goodell, ESPN reporter Suzy Kolber greets him and then shares a message that she took from Ingram's father, Mark Ingram Sr., who is serving jail time for money laundering and fraud. Upon hearing the message, Ingram began sobbing and due to that, he could not continue with the interview.
If Kolber was looking for a reaction, she got one. There was some heat attached to her antics, but that goes with the territory I suppose. Is there any greater live drama or reality TV than the NFL draft?
7) Some NFL Teams Succeed in Getting Playbooks to 1st-Round Picks
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When the NFL draft started Thursday night, there were questions regarding the NFL lockout and the stay order as to when players could have access to team headquarters, speak to coaches and work out in the weight room. It was then determined on Friday that players could be allowed to interface with coaches.
That decision turned out to be very short lived however, as by Saturday, the lockout was back in full force. So, for any draft pick that was able to make it to their new employer headquarters on Friday, they were able to get a copy of their new playbook to take home and study.
For those that were not able to get a flight in time or were drafted on day two, they did not have any time to take advantage of the one-day window. They are now patiently waiting for the chance to meet with coaches and get their own copy of the plays.
This is just one of the silly byproducts of what the legal ramifications are doing to disrupt teams from starting up their plans for the 2011 season.
6) NFL Players Working Out Together Across the Country
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Even though the NFL players are locked out of their own team headquarters, it does not prevent them from getting together on their own and start some form of united team workouts.
The New York Jets are already working out together, albeit at Mark Sanchez's high school stadium in Southern California. For players that are expected to be part of the Jets in 2011, they are expected to attend these workouts.
Other teams will no doubt begin gathering in earnest as well. But, with a major court decision coming down on Thursday, these workouts will either be repeated for every team in the country or the lockout will be over and free agency will kick in.
What a strange and crazy offseason this has been.
5) The Decertification of the NFLPA
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When the federal mediation process was winding down, the NFLPA was faced with a decision. They felt they were backed into a corner, and the players overwhelmingly decided to decertify their union. The move was something the union felt it had to do in order to keep their options open and force the legal proceedings to be more favorable for the players' well-being.
Since then, we have heard of a splinter group of NFL players that wanted to break off from the union, but that did not seem to gather much momentum and went away. We still don't know what the final outcome between the players and the NFL owners will be, but all of the legal maneuvering has been difficult for fans to understand and follow.
Time is running out with regard to the number of weeks remaining before summer camps are due to open, and nobody has even been allowed to conduct their Organized Team Activities yet.
The amount of legal posturing, stalling and down time remains a very frustrating point of contention for NFL fans and every business owner that relies on the NFL for a portion of their income.
4) Julio Jones: The NFL Scouting Combine's Workout Wonder
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Julio Jones, the wide receiver from Alabama, put on a memorable show at the NFL scouting combine.
With the best broad jump at the combine at 11'3" and an astounding time of 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash, Jones had the entire facility in Indianapolis buzzing with excitement.
When word finally started to circulate that Jones was able to accomplish everything with a broken bone in his foot that would require surgery, the excitement stopped and turned into awe and amazement.
Jones was able to keep the interest level high in his workouts after the surgery, and it finally paid off with the Falcons taking drastic steps to acquire his services.
3) The Quarterback Frenzy in Round 1
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You can attribute it to the lack of any free-agency period yet in 2011. You can attribute it to the NFL acceptance that this is now a QB-driven league and teams are becoming more and more pass-happy.
If you do not have a franchise quarterback, your organization will be left in the dust.
Then you add in a little thing we refer to as "supply and demand," along with some questionable talent in the ranks of the college quarterbacks that made up the 2011 NFL draft class, and you had many NFL teams not sure of how to best proceed.
The anxious decisions of drafting a quarterback or going after a different position were hard calls to make for Carolina, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Arizona, San Francisco, Tennessee, Washington and Minnesota right off the bat.
Because so many teams needed a quarterback that could potentially be the franchise answer, you found some teams doing wild reaches. Other teams tried their best to trade up and were rebuffed. Other teams wanted to trade down and hope to use their new-found ammunition to trade back up into the first round later on, or maybe get lucky in the second round.
Due to the unique scenario that came together in Round 1, we may never see another draft quite like this one for some time to come. Well, at least until 2012 rolls around.
2) Cam Newton and Carolina Panthers: Decisions, Decisions
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Will Cam Newton turn out to be one of the greatest NFL quarterbacks that have ever played the game? Or will he turn out to be a bust like Ryan Leaf and JaMarcus Russell? Has their ever been a more polarizing figure in recent memory than Cam Newton?
You either buy into his persona or you decide not to buy in at all. He is either a marketing department's greatest wish come true, or an entertainer and icon figure that is only interested in his own needs and will reveal his true colors when he has started cashing in the big paychecks
The Carolina Panthers couldn't sign Newton to a contract before the draft even if they were prepared to begin the negotiations, which you just know are going to prove to be rather difficult. They couldn't do a deal because of the CBA problems. That is a bridge that they still will have to cost at some point.
With his new title as first overall draft choice and numerous endorsement deals either completed or awaiting him shortly down the road, Cam Newton will be a wealthy individual. He should be able to take care of his family and live a comfortable life.
For the sake of Carolina and their fans, I hope that there is not any lengthy holdout period and that when negotiations are allowed to start, that Newton will sign and go to work.
That would be a refreshing way to put this whole soap opera to bed once and for all.
1) Atlanta's Round-1 Trade for Julio Jones
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The top moment for me in the 2011 offseason has to be the trade the Atlanta Falcons made for the ability to move up in the first round and draft Julio Jones with the No. 6 overall draft pick.
The move immediately reminded me of several trades in the past. It was not as huge as Mike Ditka trading his entire 1999 draft class to Washington plus the first-round pick in 2000 for Ricky Williams. It was probably closer to the trade that occurred when Minnesota Vikings traded away a ton to Dallas Cowboys for Hershel Walker.
The deal cost the Falcons their first-round pick this year and next year. It also cost them their second-round and fourth-round pick in 2011 and their fourth-round pick in 2012. That is a very steep price to pay.
If the Atlanta Falcons hear the message that was delivered by Falcons management, the table is now set for them to win now. If the Falcons falter and wind up failing to make the playoffs, they will be regretting the decision to have parted with their first-round draft pick, knowing that their defense needed some help.
For the sheer courage and bravado required to make this move, it will be my top moment of the offseason.
Thanks for reading this all the way through, and I hope you enjoyed the presentation.
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