1st round / Courtney Upshaw / 3-4 OLB / Alabama / 6-2 260 IMO, absolutely no way we can pass on this guy if he’s available. Incredible athleticism. Very light & quick on his feet for someone who weighs 260. Really uses his hands well when rushing right at the OT. Aggressive and chases the play, but also knows how to stay back & cover his 3-4 responsibilities. Put on a show vs Florida. Sorry to all the draftniks on this site, but when I look at Brandon Lindsey, I see Jeremy Beal. Bruce Irvin looks to me to be just too 1 dimensional (pass rush only). Just don’t have a good feeling about B. Jenkins (FSU). Thought about Andre Branch (Clemson) in the 2nd round, but I just couldn’t get myself to pass on Upshaw. 2nd round / Dwight Jones / WR / North Carolina / 6-4 220 You’ve got to think Mason & Burress are gone after this season. How many more mid-30yr old FAs can we chase down? I think Jones is the top guy of the Tier 2 WR class of this draft. He won’t burn the field, but knows to compensate with good route running and has solid hands. With Santonio locked up long term & Kerley being groomed for the slot position, I want to try & get Sanchez a big tall target to go up & haul down the catch. 3rd round / Delano Howell / SS / Stanford / 5-11 198 Cannot ignore our current safety situation. Put up 70+ tackles in 2009 & 2010. Smart player with good instincts. The leader of their secondary. A sure tackler who is rarely out of position with a great nose for the ball. Sprinter on the Stanford Track team as well. 4th round / Bradley Sowell / OT / Ole Miss / 6-7 320 I know – “we need an OT much earlier!!!!” I know --- he currently plays left tackle!!! But can make the move over to right tackle. 3 year starter – excellent pass protector. Capable run blocker. It appear that everyone (myself included) wanted to pull the Wayne Hunter chain very early. Every team will have problems w/the Oakland Raiders & Baltimore Ravens D-lines. Plus having Nick Mangold out put the O-line in a frenzy. Maybe a little early to push the panic button by running out & drafting OT in the 1st round. Getting Sowell here won’t hurt though. And I agree with something said on this site --- “if you can play left tackle at a high level, right tackle should be cake.”……Mr. E. 5th round / Winston Guy Jr., / SS / Kentucky / 6-1 215 Another safety?? ---- yeah, this is how bad things are. Great size and sufficient speed. 3yr starter in the SEC. He is going this low because he is currently playing a hybrid S/LB role in Kentucky’s D, but his natural position is safety. In addition, safeties usually fall the furthest in the NFL draft. Lots of play up at the LOS as well as blitzing the QB. I like that he makes plays all over the field. 6th round / Antoine McClain / G / Clemson / 6-5 335 Road-grader alert! Solid mauling run blocker. 3 year starter. Knockdowns & pancakes left & right. Maybe 1 of the reasons why Clemson is doing well this year. Need some beef on the O-line. No idea what will happen to Ducasse and Rob Turner after this season. Brendan Moore will be FA in 2013. 6th round / D.J. Holt / ILB / California / 6-1 250 (Dwight Lowery pick) Depth. Bart Scott is showing some signs of slowing down. This kid is a thumper. The Cal Bears play the 3-4. 3yr starter.
Dwight Jones is really flying under the rader. He'll end up being a steal. Lindsay's nothing like Beal. I'm interested to hear why you feel that way.
When I saw Beal play, I saw of lot of hesitancy. You could almost see the questions going through his head during the game,....."Where should I be? Can I chase the play to the other side? Shouldnt I keep watch on my 3-4 OLB responsibilities?" "Is it OK to rush the passer now?" My bottomline -- I didnt see great instincts. I didnt see quick reaction/reads/action. And I said those things well before the Senior Bowl and before the combine when Beal's stock dropped like a stone in water. That's what I see when I watch Lindsey. If I make 1 tackle for loss in each game I play, I will probably end up with a stat that says 11 tackles for loss on the season & everyone will think WOW. But if I make all of the rest of my tackles 2+ yrds off the LOS, -- am I doing my job effectively? Am I 1st round material? Thats what I think.
Unlike Jeremy Beal, Lindsey's played linebacker before - he has tons of experience standing up. I thought Beal would benefit greatly from the versatile role, but that experience really didn't do much for him. Beal was lost a lot of the time standing up, but he still looked decent. His atrocious combine really hurt his stock. I think he ran in the 4.7s or even 4.8s, he may have been drafted in at least the fourth. ...instead he ran slower than some OLs.
This kid Howell sounds like exactly what we need in a safety. Next stanford game I will definitely take a look at him
Upshaw would be an excellent choice. Upshaw is always around the ball and makes plays. Rex would really like his size. It's way early, but I would say the way things look now, OLB is the likely Rd 1 pick. I wish I could convince you that Jenkins is a special player. Upshaw is great because his defense helps him make plays, Jenkins doesn't have that luxury. Jones is a great player, and should contribute. I agree with Mr E, I'd like to get 2 WRs in the draft..some possibilties...Juron Criner is a stud and under the radar a little, from his appendectomy. Nick Toon, BJ Cunningham, Damario Belcher (great Red zone target), Jermaine Kearse & Rishard Matthews are all possibilities. Howell is a little overrated and IMO, a slight reach in Rd 3. I'm not sure about spending 2 picks on the safety position. I really like Guy, his upside is higher than Howell's. I'm a Sean Baker fan out of Ball State. I'd like to get a O-lineman higher maybe in Rd 2. Matt Reynolds may fall to us in Mid Rd 2 and would be our RT for the next ten years and could back-up D-Brick in case of injury. The Jets have no one on the Roster that would be make me confident to back-up Brick. DJ Holt is a great run stopper, but a liability in the passing game. Our depth at ILB is better this year, so I'd rather go in a different direction. DJ Holt will never be a starter in the NFL. We might have to address ILB with a high pick in 2013. WWS...overall great job.
