SycoSurfer

I have read over alot of the posts and not posted much on anything so far. However I am pretty happy with this draft.

I REALLY wanted DJ, but I can understand why we passed on him. A year ago I thought he could have come out and been a solid 1st round pick and going back would only improved his stock, but it didnt. There must be a reason that someone doesnt improve his stock after looking so promissing as a sophmore and a junior... He has won tons of awards and always seems to be around the ball. Yet, Sportline gives this fact... Johnson is a natural leader with exceptional quickness and is regarded as one of the finest pass defenders to ever play linebacker in the collegiate ranks. He has good size,

BUT needs to dedicate more hours to the weight room; he lacks strength on his lanky frame. This is Johnson's major weakness; he does not show enough power to shed blocks and gets washed out on plays when working in-line. He also needs to use his hands better; he leaves himself too exposed, resulting in the blockers getting into his chest to lock on and sustain. Johnson did add bulk before the 2004 season, but the added weight did not affect his exceptional quickness.

With our lack of a solid DL to keep blockers off of him I think drafting him would have been a disappointment for us.

Solidifying our OL does however make more sense. Last year when the offense finally started playing towards the end of the season the Defense sure looked a ton better. With the addition of McKenzie and Smith in the secondary and our LBs a year older and healthy... The posibility to STILL trade D. Howard for a LB or picks next year we came out OK with this pick of Jammal Brown who was the best OL in the draft.

We now have a SOLID starting line... some might even argue it is pretty damn good. Without seeing it working together yet I will not go that far. Bently, Holland, Brown seem to be a good building block with a solid runner like Deuce for years to come.

Most ppl did not understand the drafting of a Safety in round 2 and I can say I dont really understand it either, but it does give us a play maker which we dont really have. Along with Smith and McKenzie our Secondary looks a lot better than it did last year. CB was maybe more of a need, but Fakhir Brown is still young and not fully developed... Maybe he is having a better offseason than we know about and is ready to take over as a solid #2. Jason Craft is still a serviceable Nickle man and although over priced Fred Thomas is decent 4th CB.

Alfred Fincher seems like the good CHARACTER guy that could motivate a team. He seems to be very dedicated and hard working which is what this team needs. IF he can spark anything of a fire in the LBs we already have and they start playing up to their potential we will not be worried about DJ getting passed up in the 1st RD. Watson looked decent for a rookie LB last year. Hodge and Allen are still not as good as we were hoping them to be. Buckwoldt showed to be a spark last year and can only be getting better. Cie Grant back from injury... With the addition of LeVar Fischer from Arizona we have decent depth with potential all around... If only one or 2 of them could step up and develope like they were supposed to we could have a solid group... Mabe Fincher will push these under acheivers over the edge...

Chase Lyman was a surprise pick and I know not many liked a WR in the 4th round with NEEDS else where... His injury problems are definantly sumthing that draws major concern, but with the potential this kid has and our WRs not as deep as some ppl believe they are. This isnt a bad choice albeit a gamble... Pathon is gone. Horn is 33 and Lewis is 33. Henderson did what last year? Talman Gardner with his 1 catch for 23 yards has shown us enough to where we dont need a WR? I know we have WRs but bodies and results are different... A 2nd Round WR should have got on the field and did sumthing... ANYTHING!!! Even if he will be the #3 WR having a solid #4 who has shown great playmaking ability isnt that bad a choice in the 4th RD.

Now the pick I havent seen many people not like. A 20 yr old QB with speed, good ON THE FIELD decision making ability... He has a great arm, Good pocket presence Has been an arena league stand out as a rookie. Knows when to run. Has good instincts... Even if it takes him a year or 2 to fully develope... that gives us a 22-23 yr Old QB. When AB is 31 yrs old and looking for a new contract. I know he has had off the field problems... ok lets see when you are a struggling college student with no money you dont always make the best choices... Im not justifying him, but do you think once he is making a 6 figure salry he is going to be stealing checks and gambling to make money? Has he had any trouble since he went pro in the arena league? Has he looked a ton more mature in interviews and workouts? I think he is ready to put his troubled past behind him and move on and start a new perception of himself. This could be another pick that pushes the team. I dont see him coming into camp being lazy thinking I made it... I think he still feels he has something to prove. While his off the field character might not be 100% reliable I think he is well on his way to changing his image and trying to make a name for himself in other ways...

Jason Jefferson and Jimmy Verdon are both palyers who will be fighting for a spot on this team. We have DLmen piled up ontop of DL men all fighting for a spot on the team.

DE-Howard might not be back, but we still have Grant, Smith, Whitehead, and Bryant.

DT-Young, Green, Leslie and Sullivan. Young might be the only one who is solid and assured a job. Howard Green played decent last year... and we are all hoping that Sullivan can come around.

If not Jason Jefferson could be a decent situational guy(run stuffer) and Verdon can be a Willie Whitehead type who can play inside or outside and be a serviceable back up at either...

All in all not an outstanding draft, but with the offseason moves and the potential this team still has I am excited about this season. We always look like we can put it together... With a solid Offensive attack and a serviceable Defense we can scare alot of teams... especially if we make the playoffs and play like we are capable... just my opinion...

GumboBC

That was a good post. Very logical. Good Job!

Danno

Lets see, I only have Scouts.com rankings but here goes.

Heres\' what we drafted. Other sites will rank differently...

1st Round, #3 Ranked OL (3-way tie for 1st actually)
2nd Round, #2 Ranked Safety (3 way tie for 1st again)
3rd Round, #8 Ranked MLB
4th Round, #25 Ranked WR (WTF???)
5th Round, #4 Ranked QB (4 way tie for 3rd)
6th Round, #9 Ranked DT
7th Round, I didn\'t print DL\'s only DT\'s so I don\'t know, I suspect unranked.