Things are cruising along at an impressive pace -- 10 picks made in the first 76 minutes.
Some quick takes on what has transpired so far.
* Atlanta made the right move drafting Boston College QB Matt Ryan with the third pick. The Falcons need a franchise face and need to tell their fans once and for all that the Michael Vick Error is over. Franchise-type quarterbacks don't come along that often so the Falcons had to seize the chance.
* Darren McFadden's numbers are eye-popping and he'll likely be a productive player for Oakland. But I cringed when ESPN's Keyshawn Johnson compared McFadden to Reggie Bush. In two seasons, Bush can be classified as a disappointment and it's likely he won't ever be an effective inside runner.
* Count on the Ravens to take Joe Flacco by the end of the night.
* Jacksonville traded two third-rounders and a fourth rounder to swap first-round spots with Baltimore. And for a player -- Florida DE Derrick Harvey -- that could have been had in the 12-18 range. It was a great move by the Ravens to move down and stockpile picks.
* Seven of the first 10 picks were defensive players.
* From the local/regional angle, Virginia's Chris Long went second to St. Louis and New England took LB Jerod Mayo (native of Hampton, Va.) with the 10th pick.
Comments (1)
Have to disagree about Atlanta. They should have taken Dorsey, who is far more of a sure thing that Ryan and would have been easier to sign. They could easily have addressed QB later, by trading up and getting Flacco or maybe even Ryan. Instead, they gave up a lot of value to get the 21 and then reached for an OT who might well have been available to them in the second round. If Ryan turns into Peyton Manning, they're geniuses, but a crap team like the Falcons needed to get starters with those 2nd round picks.
Posted by AAA | April 26, 2008 6:33 PM