Second Day Round Up

Analysis of some of the second and third round picks.

• Speaking of reaches, who’s Tavon Wilson? I’ve been reading up on the draft for two months and I haven’t seen his name once. Mike Mayock graded him a 48.2, but this is the Patriots, so he’s probably going to be a super star.
• The lowest grade Mike Mayock had for anyone in the second round was Derek Wolfe, who went to the Broncos with the fourth pick. He was given a 47.5
• Departing from the intense idiocy of their first round, the Seahawks actually made a pretty nice selection in the second, drafting Bobby Wagner from Utah State. As Calvin Watkins wrote, the Cowboys had their eyes on him too, and would have drafted him in the second round.
• That same fact doesn’t sound like a vote of confidence in Bruce Carter. Yes, the Cowboys like competition, but after signing an Inside Linebacker this offseason (Dan Connor) and saying they were going to draft another one, Bruce Carter has to be a little worried.
• Also departing from recent history, the Jaguar’s board matched the consensus when they drafted Andre Branch.
• The Eagles drafted combine superstar Mychal Kendricks, which as a PR move is a pretty risky bet, especially in Philly where fans  remember everything. Really, I fell sorry for him. If he succeeds, he’s hated, and if he fails, the Eagles obviously haven’t learned from Mike Mamula.
• However, it seems like the league has overall has learned to have certain suspicion towards workout warriors, as Zach Brown was drafted mid-late second round (52 overall, 20th in the round.)
• The Eagles overall though have actually had a pretty nice draft, and drafting Lavontae David was a steal at 59.
• The Rams going after Janoris Jenkins is pretty risky, but if he succeeds he’s a homerun, and Jeff Fisher is confident in his ability to “fix” Jenkins. I’m sure he also said that about Pacman Jones.
• The Giants, on the other hand, have not, with a reach in David Wilson and Rueben Randle, who was manhandled by Dre Kirkpatrick.
• For the Cowboys though, that’s a great pick. Morris Claiborne is a better player than Kirkpatrick, and knows more about Randle and how to defend him and his tendencies. If he plays the slot, Mike Jenkins is a more fragile, smaller, equally talented version of Dre Kirkpatrick so there’s no issue.
• Trumaine Johnson is also pretty risky for the Rams, but they need help all over their secondary, and his size should allow him to play safety, and in a pinch cornerback.
• Day two is usually where things get a little weird and where teams start departing from the consensus, but I can’t remember a punter going on day two. Alex Henry went in the third round last year but a punter doesn’t score any points. Maybe if he’s a phenom like Brad Wing, but not Angerer. If this is the fourth round, than that’s OK, but unless Angerer shows he can punt and kick, this was a reach.
• Also showing the growing wisdom of NFL draft rooms, Josh Robinson, who ran the fastest forty yard dash time at the combine, was drafted in the third, about his original draft range.
• That doesn’t mean teams are perfect-Dontari Poe was still drafted 11 overall.
• The Broncos’ draft board is growing seemingly farther and farther from the consensus everyday, drafting Ronnie Hillman with their first third round pick. I actually think this is a great pick, and from what I have seen, he actually seems like he could be something in this league.
• Luckily for the Cowboys, the Redskins drafting is much less impressive than the Eagles’. I have never heard, not once, of Josh LeRibeus, and Mike Mayock only gives him a 64.7.
• The Chargers grabbed the only safety left that could reasonably be selected by the Cowboys in the thid round, Brandon Taylor, in what has been a great draft for San Diego. Brandon Taylor isn’t anything amazing, but it was a good job by them to get the last decent player at a highly coveted position.
• Continuing in a string of questionable moves, the bears selected Brandon Hardin, who was given a 62 by Mike Mayock. It reeks of panic, but maybe they just have a weird board.
• The Cowboys drafted Tyrone Crawford with their third round pick, and the pick seems decent. It was the 11th best pick overall, based on Mike Mayock’s grades, and three of the ten in front were defensive backs, and two were offensive lineman. Tyrone Crawford was the second best rated defensive end, and the third best defensive lineman, behind Vernon Oliver, and Brandon Thompson and Vernon Oliver, respectively.
• Overall, the 77.5 is above average, as there were numerous picks below 70.
• That pick also means that either Kenyon Coleman or Marcus Spears is on their way out. Most likely that’s Coleman, but Spears is payed more and could be cut if the Cowboys are thinking more long-term. Either way, this will maintain the five man rotation (Spears/Coleman, Ratliff, Hatcher, Lissemore as a “fourth man” and Crawford.) Expect Josh Brent to give Ratliff a break, though I doubt his time will be anything nearing Lissemore’s or Crawford’s, whose time should be about equal. If Lissemore/Crawford would see about 1/4 of the snaps each, Brent might see an eighth, or about 10 snaps.
• Two of the top five overall players were taken with two of the last three picks, with Brandon Thompson going to the Bengals and Jayron Hosley going to the Giants.
• The only new, notable trend of this draft (the trend of more trading was seen last year, and doesn’t count for this analysis) has been teams reluctance to draft workout warriors, with only one really seeing his stock shoot up vastly beyond his current capabilities-Dontari Poe.