NFL Draft 2011: Afterthoughts, Opinions, Winners, Losers and the Raiders

Along with the month of April, the NFL draft is officially over. 254 cards have been handed in, and every team has a new haul of talent to work with. The beauty of the NFL draft is that every team gets better—the bottom feeders of the league getting the first shot at the best prospects to create parity in the NFL (one of the NFL’s biggest draws).

So who were this drafts winners and losers? What surprises were there? Who got the most value? Who got the least value? The NFL Draft provides tons of questions, and we’ve got tons of answers. 


Best team draft: New Orleans Saints

The Saints were able to grab four of the top prospects at their respective positions in Cameron Jordan (DE), Mark Ingram (HB), Martez Wilson (LB) and Greg Romeus (DE). Cameron Jordan was projected as high as nine to the Dallas Cowboys, and occasionally six to the Browns. He is that kind of talent that just works. He has a nonstop motor, is a solid pass-rusher and great against the run.  

Mark Ingram was widely known and referred to as the No. 1 running back prospect, albeit a weak running back class, but the cream of the crop is really the best you can do. If you live in Uglyville, but you kiss the prettiest girl, you can’t do any better. So you just tell people you kissed the prettiest girl in town. That’s what the Saints did—they drafted the best available RB.

The linebacker from Illinois, Martez Wilson, is one of my favorite prospects to get drafted. He’s an athletic player who plays aggressively. He was pegged as a late first round pick, early second round pick. Great value for them.

And last, but not least, Greg Romeus. He was drafted with the 226th pick in the NFL draft. He’s a pass rushing 6’5, 270 lbs DE who has had his share of injury concerns. With the 226th pick in the draft, you can afford to take someone as immensely talented as him. He compares favorably to Jared Allen (in their play style, not their character). He was the cherry on top of a Saints draft that should have fans thinking Superbowl. When you retool an already talented team, well, that’s when success happens. 

Worst team draft: Seattle Seahawks

The player they took at 75 overall (John Moffitt), is probably better than, or at least equal to the guy they took at 25 overall (James Carpenter). Pete Carroll seems to do rather well during the draft: taking Earl Thomas instead of Taylor Mays, drafting Okung and passing on Spiller. His first year was a success, and it looked like one right off the bat. But this draft just confuses me.

In round three, they got the most value for their pick, but it wasn’t a position of need, taking KJ Wright (OLB). Linebacker is probably the only spot the Seahawks don’t need any type of help at. Lofa, Curry, Hawthorne and others make up the strongest point on their team. Then, at 107, (before the halfway point in the draft) they drafted a WR (position of need)—but they drafted a guy ESPN didn’t even have a photo for in Kris Durham (Georgia) at 6’5, 209 lbs. I feel like they thought they were actually drafting AJ Green. I hope these picks work out for Seattle. After the NBA stole the Supersonics, I always feel bad for Seattle sports fans. But as of right now, this draft looks like the worst one in the NFL. (Including the Raiders, who still count as an NFL team. Sort of.) 

Best single pick: Nick Fairley, Detroit Lions 

Well, the Lions found a way to put two of the most talented young DT’s on the same line. Suh and Fairley will be playing four feet away from each other, wreaking absolute hell in the NFC North for years to come. Many thought Fairley was the most talented player in the entire draft. To get him at 13 is a steal. He also lands on a roster that has the aforementioned Suh and Kyle Vanden Bosch, who will absolutely drill this "work ethic" concern out of him. Best possible scenario for both of them 

Worst single pick: Jake Locker, Tennessee Titans 

Let’s clear something up: I like Jake Locker. I think his ceiling is very high, and he could very well be a great player in the NFL. He has that "it" factor, the desire to win, and the want to be the best. The problem is his football IQ for a QB is rather low, and his mechanics aren’t great either. He can run with the football, and is athletic. Which should help him, because he’s going to be thrust under center in his rookie year.

This is my worst pick because I honestly believe there is a 50 percent chance his NFL career is absolutely ruined after this year. If he goes there, throws a lot of INT’s, takes a lot of sacks and starts throwing scared. Well, you just don’t end up succeeding in the NFL. While I think Tennessee is plenty talented, I don’t know if they are talented enough to keep him confident going forward. 

Secretly good draft: Minnesota Vikings 

So, they reached for a QB (Ponder) a bit. That’s okay. That’s the position you reach for if you have the tools to succeed. They still have the No. 1 TE prospect (Kyle Rudolph) for him to throw to. They got a whole round value better out of their pick at 106 by picking Ballard—who dropped because he got caught smoking marijuana. But hey, the Vikings are okay with relaxing. 

Brandon Burton at 139 is another full round value, and Demarcus Love at 168 is a great value. He was once a second round prospect. (Or a first round prospect, if you’re Seattle.) Overall, I believe the Vikings walked away with such talent and value, that if Ponder pans out, they could make another serious run at the Super Bowl. 

Secretly bad draft: New England Patriots 

I have never in the past 10 years walked away thinking the Patriots were making bad decisions. Belichick is a genius—the driving force behind the team. But they left me thinking with a couple picks. They drafted only one, arguably two, players that were a need, or provided value. Seventeenth overall pick Nate Solder wasn’t a bad pick, but they could’ve traded back for him, or at the least waited until their next pick at 28 to take him. He was a slight reach. He has high upside though, so we’ll consider this an average, above average pick.

Okay, the next four just baffle me.

Ras I Dowling is my favorite player in the entire draft for reasons unknown. But the Patriots don’t need a CB, or a safety. And they do need a pass rusher, and there were three very viable players available for them in Bowers, Ayers and Brooks Reed. Are they really happy with Tully Banta-Cain? Then they took two running backs in Shane Vareen (who really, really wasn’t needed, didn’t provide much value and will be buried on a depth chart of RB’s), and Stevan Ridley, a RB from LSU who many teams didn’t have in their top 150 or 200 for that matter. I have no idea if he knew something we didn’t, but he drafted them.

What are his plans for Woodhead and Law Firm? At 74th overall, they drafted a backup QB, Ryan Mallett. Mallett is talented—very talented—but he is going to be a backup QB for the New England Patriots. Brady has come out and said he will play for ten more years if possible, so it’s not like he’d be retiring anytime soon. But in four years, his contract is up, and Mallett will have had four years to learn the system. The only way this pick makes sense is if the Patriots don’t intend on resigning the 37 year old Brady at that time, and instead having Mallett take over. Mallett is an off the field concern, with immense upside. Hopefully learning under one of the most dedicated QB’s of all time will shape him up.

Luckiest draft pick: Daquan Bowers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

There is no way this was in their round two draft plans. Bowers had injury concerns, but nobody was concerned about his talent. He’s Julius Peppers 2.0. Not a bad draft pick at all, his ceiling is incredibly high. I would mention the first round DE draft pick as evidence they didn’t think they were getting their guy later, but they drafted two DT’s last year. They now have two first round picks, and two second round picks on their defensive line in Brian Price, Adrian Clayborne, Gerald McCoy and Daquan Bowers. They had to be jumping for joy when he was on the board. I am willing to bet he was their number two or three player overall.

Unluckiest draft pick: Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

Something tells me this isn’t their dream draft pick. They just can’t sell the franchise on Clausen. They had to make this pick, even if they didn’t really want to. Newton isn’t a bad player at all, but this is a pick they had to make, irregardless of on field wants.

What?: Michael Jasper, Buffalo Bills 

The only man to make Terrence Cody look like an Olsen twin. He has recently weighed in at 430 lbs, making him the heaviest player to ever play in the NFL—if he makes a roster that is. Honestly, the Bills could use him in the rotation on defense. They lack some strength there, and this man has to have it. If he comes in for three plays a game, on 3rd-and-short, it’s worth his seventh round contract.

Goodbye pick: Blaine Gabbert, Jacksonville Jaguars

I wanted to make this pick Reggie Bush, but he isn’t even a running back anyway. He just lines up like one, and gets paid like one. He plays like a kick returner who stands behind a QB. But this pick clearly paves the way for Garrard’s exist in Jacksonville. He has been an inconsistent QB for years down there, and they just traded up to draft this guy. If he isn’t starting by later this year, or at the beginning of next year, I’ll be shocked.

Trade of the day: Atlanta Falcons - Cleveland Browns 

Wow this trade was worked on for months, and the Falcons didn’t figure out they were getting robbed? Sometimes I feel like everyone overvalues everything during the draft. Julio Jones will be a good receiver, yes, but will he ever be as good as say, Percy Harvin, Steve Johnson, Hakeem Nicks or any of the other above average WR’s in the NFL? Who knows. That’s a risk you take. I feel like if the Falcons called the Bills, offered them two first round picks for Steve Johnson, the Bills would have taken it. I suppose tons of things factor into this. I feel like this is too much to trade for something that isn’t your greatest need.

Future Draft: San Francisco 49ers 

The team got their QB of the future in Kaepernick, and a pass rushing force in Aldon Smith. While Smith is sure to see the field a lot during his rookie tenure, he is seen as a project. They are taking him and starting him so he can develop into the elite pass rushing force he can become. With Kaepernick, he won’t touch the field this year if they are smart. You just can’t throw him out there. I would give him first team reps over Alex Smith, at least split them. But do not throw him on the field unless Smith is atrocious (which is possible). I think three to four years from now, both these guys will still be young, hitting their stride and the 49ers will be in good shape.

Superbowl or bust: Atlanta Falcons 

The Falcons aren’t the youngest defensive team in the NFL, and they just traded the farm for a WR. They really need to load the gun and shoot it—now. Ryan is a young QB, Gonzalez is an old TE. I just feel like they made a really bad decision by trading up like this. It’s possible they could’ve gotten a Jonathan Baldwin at their original position, and kept a future first and a second round pick. 

That’s pretty much a summary of the NFL draft. The Raiders drafted track stars. The Patriots traded around. The cards were mostly in on time (I’m looking at you, Baltimore.), and all went on pretty normally, considering the very odd circumstances the NFL is in right now. Looking forward to seeing these players develop, win Super Bowls, make big plays, get arrested and do bad things at strip clubs. Welcome to the NFL.