Well folks, here are the big winners in the NFL Draft, held Saturday and Sunday in New York City.
Starting with our Dallas Cowboys, the organization is making strides to becoming the Doomsday D of the ’70’s. They made a good first round selection, but not great, in selecting Purdue University’s Anthony Spencer at the defensive end position. Spencer is very quick and closes well once he turns the corner, so he should make an immediate impact rushing the passer. He’s big and tough enough to develop into an effective run stopper.
However, he may not be athletic enough to develop into an every-down outside linebacker. Wade Phillips, the Cowboys new coach should help Spencer develop into a very good defensive end such as he did for Shawne Merriman in San Diego. Defense, after all is Phillip’s specialty. That’s why Jerry Jones, the Cowboys owner, wanted Phillips to be the new head coach. Other notable picks were offensive linemen Doug Free and James Marten, two picks that could be the start of a solid line for years to come. Not to mention they picked up Cleveland’s first round pick next year.
The rest of the teams in the NFC East made the Cowboys look like geniuses with their lackluster picks.
Washington, known for building a team with free agency, took another step down by taking a non-necessity LaRon Landry of LSU. He’s good but will not fit into the scheme of the Redskins defenses, with the same kind of player in Sean Taylor.
New York was the best of the division, taking Aaron Ross, the dynamic cornerback from Texas. Also, in the mix were WR Steve Smith and TE Kevin Boss as solid second round picks.
Philadelphia was below average, taking Houston quarterback Kevin Kolb as insurance for Donovan McNabb and essentially giving Dallas the 26th overall pick. Notre Dame end Victor Abiamiri was a gamble and may prove to be a bust, based on his combine workouts.
Oakland’s Raiders would appear to be a big winner in taking LSU quarterback JeMarcus Russell. Russell can throw a football 80 yards on the fly and his speed will give opposing defenses fits. Just like Vince Young of Tennessee does.
Minnesota’s Vikings appeared to score a big win in getting Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson. But this was a big risk, because Peterson has been prone to injuries during his college career at Oklahoma.
If Peterson can stay healthy, than the Vikings will have their running back situation set for the next ten years. If not, than Minnesota’s owner will certainly be second-guessed.
Atlanta’s Falcons and Miami’s Dolphins appeared to better their teams with the selections of Jamaal Anderson, defensive end from Arkansas, and Ted Ginn Jr., wide receiver from Ohio State, respectively. Atlanta, in selecting Anderson, gets a relentless pass-rusher who has good closing speed and can deliver the big hits to the opposing team’s quarterback.
Miami, in getting Ted Ginn Jr. from Ohio State, gets a playmaker with blazing speed in the wide receiver position. He can go the distance every time he touches the ball whether it’s on kick returns or catching the ball on offense. However Ginn Jr. will need to work on his pass routes because he ran just three routes at Ohio State. For that reason there are no guarantees that he will develop into a quality No.2 receiver. Miami, of course, thinks he will. But some of the Dolphin fans were hoping the Dolphins would draft Brady Quinn, Notre Dame quarterback, instead of Ginn Jr.
Speaking of Brady Quinn, the Cleveland Browns selected Quinn as their quarterback of the future, with the Number 22 selection in Saturday’s first round of the NFL draft. The Browns also selected Joe Thomas offensive tackle from Wisconsin with the Number 3 selection in the first round of the draft. Cleveland was definitely a big winner in the NFL draft. But it may not show for three or four years.
Now for the questionable calls of the NFL draft, the Houston Texans, at Number 10 selection, selected Louisville’s Amobi Okoye, a defensive tackle. With the Texans history of failed drafts in the past, one has to wonder if this pick will turn out to be anything major. I’m still trying to figure out why they picked Mario Williams last year instead of Reggie Bush or Vince Young.
The biggest questionable call is New England picking up wide receiver Randy Moss. Moss is 30 years old and still is capable of having spectacular games when sets his mind to it or comes to play. But just like Terrell Owens in Dallas, you never know when Moss is going to come to play football or just showoff. Moss could be just what the Patriots need to get back to the Super Bowl or he could just cause distractions for the Patriots. Things should be very interesting in New England this year.