My 1st 2008 Mock Draft

Got bored so here we go. No trades or anything like that. I'm also not sure what draft picks we have so I'm just going to assume the standard 7 rounds.

1.) Darren McFadden, RB Arkansas: The reasons have been stated a million times on this site of why or why we shouldn't draft him. I say draft him, so don't disregard the rest of my draft for this pick alone if you don't like it.

2.) Jeff Otah, OT Pittsburgh: He's been shooting up boards but he's the big body we need on the right side. (No, there's on way in hell we would ever move Ferguson to the right side and bring in another LT to replace him.)

3.) J Leman, ILB Illinois: Not the most gifted athlete, but a hell of a motor and plays instinctively. Get him and Harris on the same page, and we then have a good solid replacement for Vilma, whether he's traded or moved to another position. (For the record, I think Vilma is definitely capable of making the switch to S, and that's honestly where I think he may play in our defense next year.)

4.) Dre Moore, DT Maryland: A little inconsistent at times, but he can be a disruptive force. Not the ideal size for a NT, and people are going to complain that he's not a huge body in the middle. He's big enough to at least be a rotation guy at NT though and can easily slide over to DE if need be.

5.) Jerome Simpson, WR Coastal Carolina: This kid is the big target, touchdown threat we need. Our team isn't very good in the red zone and he could provide an instant upgrade at least in red zone situations.

6.) Kendall Langford, DE Hampton: A good fit for us at DE. A disruptive player that can hold his ground and rush the passer. I have him here in the 6th round, but I could easily see him going earlier (maybe even the 3rd).

7.) Andrew Bain, G Miami: There's no question. We have an undersized line. Bain adds some good bulk to the line.

 

Moore's a DT though, so I can't see him being that good of a 3-4 end prospect. I mean he could be developed into that kind of player, but his best bet is as a 4-3 DT, not a 3-4 DE in my opinion. While clearly that doesn't fit our needs, I do think he's big enough to play a solid 3-4 DT. He could definitely go earlier, but I don't think the 4th is out of the question.

If we're talking about getting that disruptive DE for our 3-4 D, look no further than Trevor Laws. As an ND fan, I may be a bit of a homer, but the kid's got tons of talent. With the new 3-4 D for the Irish, he's been the only great player on that D and he's only getting better. He could be had in the 4th too I bet and I wouldn't mind that pick either if we're keeping Robertson at NT.

We could definitely use a pass rusher...I agree. But with the McFadden pick, we lose out on the top prospects, and if we don't grab one of the top guys, I don't see many worth picking up honestly. I don't get the Crable obsession. If we're talking inconsistency, his name's tops on the list. I hate drafting inconsistent guys because more often than not, they have no discipline and not many coaches can change that kind of attitude.

 

Yeah, I realized when I made the draft that a lot of these guys could definitely go higher than where I have them slated. Keep in mind with the offense and defense issues that I do expect a significant addition in the offseason on the defensive side of the ball. That played a big part in my draft thoughts. And if there's anything that I've been learning from this season is that offenses are dictating games now (not to say it wouldn't be nice to have a great defense, but stricter rules on defenses are really starting to limit their capabilities anyway, so might as well build a stellar offense to take control of a game).

I do agree about Moore, but I've been watching a lot of Maryland football over the past few years, and while he's still been inconsistent, to me he hasn't shown any signs of quitting. I addressed my problem with inconsistent players in my previous post, but I don't see it as a discipline problem with him. To me, it seems as though he's extremely raw. He has the talent to be a good player but doesn't seem to have much in the way of technique, and I attribute that to poor coaching really. I see him as a player that can be coached into a starting caliber player.

I thought about TE and CB as well. Honestly, I would like to get a S in there too (if there's no move of Vilma to S...which by the way, am I crazy for thinking that's going to happen?) With TE, I don't know who we could go after. I love John Carlson (nicest guy you'll ever meet too), but there's no way we use a pick on him b/c I think he'll be a 1st rounder. Martin Rucker could be a good pick, but he'll probably go high too. If we could get a solid blocking TE late in the draft, I'd love it. And finally, as for CB, I think we're okay. Revis is a stud. I think Miller's going to be a solid starter for us. Dyson, Barrett, Poteat...whoever's still around can serve as solid backups and nickelbacks. I like the way our secondary is shaping up already. I was one that was really down on Justin Miller before that one draft (but was thrilled we got him as late as we did), but he looks like he could be a legit CB for us I think.

 

I wasn't arguing that he wasn't big enough to be a 3-4 DE (obviously b/c I think he could be a NT). I was arguing that it's tough to peg him as a top prospect at a position that he hasn't played. He probably could be a very good 3-4 DE, but if I'm looking at prospects to be a 3-4 DE in the NFL, I don't think I would use a first round pick on a guy that's never played the position in college even if he has the right size for it at the next level.

I don't know about Moore being that much better than Laws. Laws has been an undeniable force this year with not very much around him. I think he could be a solid NFL player and wouldn't mind grabbing him at all.

You've got a good point with Crable. I never bothered to look at the stats and only went by what I've seen on the field. I could very well be mistaken about him, and if that's the case, sure, why not a 2nd rounder on him? haha