Originally posted by RollinWith21n52:
Originally posted by MadDog49er:
The tailspin of the Niners the past three weeks has put the team in a terrible and yet wonderful position, with two picks in the top thirteen overall. I do see that changing soon, with the Niners eventually playing better and dropping down in the first round.
Courtesy of the Great Blue North Draft, who gave the draft order, the Niners are currently on the clock for the 10th and 13th overall picks. The good news is that the Panthers are in a murderers row of games, which should push their selection back up the board. The bad news is that the worst six teams are so bad that they may never drift further up the board than number 7. We will see.
Here is the projection I see for the draft at this point.
1. Rams- Jimmy Clausen, QB- The Rams desperately need a new start, and a guy who can step in quickly to play. Clausen may be the most NFL-ready of the big guns.
2. Chiefs- Eric Berry, S- This pick could go a million directions. I'll go with the biggest impact defender in the draft. The Chiefs back end stinks.
3. Browns- Jake Locker, QB- The speculation here in Ohio is that both Quinn and Anderson will be gone at the end of the season. Why not take the player with the biggest arm and physical talent?
4. Detroit- Russell Okung, OT- The Lions need an anchor left tackle to protect Stafford (by the way, what the bleep were the Lions thinking on draft day when they selected Brandon Pettigrew over Michael Oher...just dumb), and Okung is probably the best guy on the board to fill this need.
5. Bucs- Ndamukong Suh, DT- Someone needs to shut down the opposition in TB, and Suh has been the most dominant defender in the NCAA this year.
6. Washington- Anthony Davis, OT- The Redskins need to find the replacement for Chris Samuels, who is pretty much done. Davis has looked strong the past month, and could leapfrog some of the bigger named guys above him.
7. Raiders- Taylor Mays, S- As long as Al Davis runs the Raiders' draft, they will continue to draft athletes over football players. Mays runs like the wind and hits like a truck. However, those instincts are questionable.
8. Titans- Gerald McCoy, DT- McCoy is a flat-out stud. You can line him up all over the DL, but he'd be best suited to be a disruptive undertackle. Very good player.
9. Seahawks- Bryan Bulaga, OT- Just like the Skins', the Hawks' need a future franchise LT, and Bulaga is a favorite for many around the country. He's a technically sound player, who has superb feet.
10. Niners- Trent Williams, OT- The need is RT, and there is no better big RT in this draft than Williams. Just a big, big man, who can run block better than anyone else. Not as versatile as the higher graded lineman who get draft first, but should be able to be a stud RT for a long time.
11. Bills- Dez Bryant, WR- To me, the Niners will make a tactical error in drafting a RT before the top WR in this draft, but the Bills won't. Bryant easily replaces the loss of T.O., and the games will begin.
12. Dolphins- Greg Hardy, OLB- Hardy is certainly not my favorite guy in the draft, but there is no denying the skill level. Bill and Co. have shown a willingness to pick players who are a bit rough around the edges, and while the Dolphins have two great OLB's currently on the roster, the days of Porter and Taylor on the same team are probably in the final eight weeks.
13. Niners- Derrick Morgan- OLB- The Niners address their greatest weakness with their first overall pick, then head to the second. The Haralson/Lawson combo simply does not put pressure on the QB, and we are beginning to see the secondary falter the past few weeks. Morgan is a big guy, at 6'4", 265 pounds, but the guy can seriously rush the passer.
Cheers to all.
5.
MD or OTC or someone else who follows the draft closely and actually evaluates the prospects, can you break down Morgan? He's the player most of us have been trying to eye ever since his great start to the season, but still hear very little about him. He's the only one that I believe can be a Merriman type pass rusher at the next level. Will a guy like Grahm ever be a dominant pass rusher who can beat OTs one on one without a threat on the other side? or is he more of the #2 who will compliment a guy like Jared Allen and only put up 10+ sacks opposite of him? Morgan on the other hand, given his size and production this year might be the #1 guy in my mind, based on my limited knowledge. But is he just a 1 year wonder like Jamal Anderson?
Graham is a beast. He's difficult to contain even with a double team, so he absolutely can be a guy that dominates OT's one on one. Think about him lining up at WILL next to Justin Smith. That's an awesome thought to me. Unlike Haralson, Graham won't miss tackles, he won't jump offsides, he's bigger, he's stronger, and he's faster. Graham would help in both run and pass defense.
As for Morgan, he flashes the makings of a fantastic pass-rusher, but there are some things I notice that he needs coaching on. He'll sometimes play too high, allowing tackles to get into his pads and keep him at bay. That's how Miami shut him down. If he checks in at 6-4 275, he's going to need to make sure he shows that great athleticism at the combine. Ideally, you'd want him at 265-270 max to be playing WILL. I have yet to really see Morgan in coverage, and if he were to enter the draft, those agility drills would be key. Morgan has never played linebacker in his life, so there'll be a learning curve.