With our 4th round pick

Thank you to the last 3 posters for proving my point that way to many people on these boards think this way.
Defensive Line was without a doubt our strongest position last year, and low and behold we draft Richardson and the board implodes because we do not need a DL, but he was the BPA and that should always be the deciding factor. If you are not happy with what is available, then you try and move down.

Free Agency is for finding players to fill holes, the draft is for stocking your team with the best talent you can get.

 

I'd be all for a mid round QB.

 

If BPA does not fit a need you move up or down until it does.

 

Here is how I see it. I think the first order selection is clearly BPA with strong focus on area of need. Where you have multiple needs as in the Jets the selection process is fairly straight forward.

Say for the Jets the priority order board wise is WR, TE, S, OLB, OL, DB, ILB. If the BPA fits any of those needs you pull the trigger, unless the BPA ranking is so close you go to the next one because of your higher priority. From my viewpoint if the BPA in round one or two is an OL or ILB and he is lights out better than the next BPA then you pull the trigger and get the Top BPA. If it's fairly close then you go with your primary need. If the BPA say is an ILB but a close second is a safety, or TE then of course you go with priority need.

If it doesn't match your needs at all you first try to trade down, say the guy is a RB or DE, and if that fails then the decision becomes tougher. Again if the BPA is lights out better than your next choice, you might pick up a stud DE or RB and consider trading the one you already have.

Of course the GM might choose to trade in the open market and alter the board and the priority list based on availability.

As an extreme case, say for example, the BPA is a QB, and either GB, or the Pats, or even Indy were up, if they could not trade they would most definitely pick the BPA with no hesitation, be it for depth, strength and or trading potential.

 

All you need to do is pick up the phone.

There are 31 other teams that will want your pick.

All you have to do is get one of them to agree to a fair price for it.

 

I agree with those posters that suggest that Mettenberger from LSU should be the pick if he is available.

 

First we have to see what the GM does in the FA, Then all what is being said above in
this thread will be mute. Lets let the New NFL Year begin and see what falls are way.
I think with all the coaches getting fired ( 7 ) I believe there will be lots of players moving.

 

If Clowney falls to the 18, you would pass him up because we have a good DL?

He won't be there but you get my point. You always take BPA, that's how the good teams remain good. Bottom line.

 

I get your point but as you said yourself: he won't be there. There's a reason you picked Clowney and not Nix or someone. Can you honestly say that even if by all measurements possible Nix was clearly the best player available at our spot that you would be perfectly fine with us picking Nix and then teams behind us picking up potential impact players at our major areas of need?

I wouldn't be, I'd be flipping out trying to figure how many snaps Nix is going to get or take away from another first round pick while we have another season of Kellen Winslow Jr instead of Ebron/Amaro or Stephen Hill instead of Marquise Lee or Ed Reed (who I love but he's old and busted and we need a long term solution) instead of HaHa Clinton-Dix.

The point is you don't take a definite hard line stance one way or the other (i.e. BPA regardless of all other circumstances or picking for need exclusively regardless of who is available at an area that has less need), it's purely circumstantial and depends on so many factors which obviously includes who is available at your pick but also your needs. The key thing is getting value for your pick as far as what impact that player is going to have. If you have the best WR core in the country I don't see the point in drafting the best WR in the draft if he's going to spend the entire season on special teams. If you have the best WR core in the game but are weak at TE and there is a TE who maybe should be picked two spots lower than your current spot then I say take the TE: he'll make more of an impact with your team so it's better value at that spot. If he shouldn't be picked for another 20 spots you don't pick him just solely to pick for need but you have to factor need in.

And your last point is true: Good teams remain good by drafting by BPA. The problem is we are NOT a good team. In order to become a good team we have to address our major areas of need. Once we've address our major areas of need and have set ourselves up for future success then we can draft according to BPA to maintain that high level.

 

As a general rule of thumb, I would never pick a QB after the 3rd round -- unless of course someone I had rated as a 2nd rounder fell. I actually wouldn't be looking outside the first or top of the second round for my quarterback.

Take a look at the starting QBs in the NFL. Only 2 out of 32 were chosen after the third round (Brady and Romo -- who technically wasn't chosen).

Furthermore, only 7 were chosen outside the top 40 picks of their respective drafts.

For me, it seems like a long shot to develop a QB once you get past the early stages of the second round. Sometimes guys slip to the third for various reason, but it's still very risky.

I would much rather look at any other position besides QB after the 3rd round.