Philadelphia Eagles: OL, DE, LB, CB,QB
Philly just seems like the most interesting place to start because, well – in all honesty, they are a complete mess. They have holes all over the place and are shedding themselves of anything that reminds them of former head coach, Chip Kelly. They might have to go offensive line in the first round of the draft to at least show a dedication to reconstructing something in the positive direction. They signed former Houston Texans guard Brandon Brooks, to a five year deal which will pretty much wrap up the 26 year old guard in the prime of his career. In the first round Ohio State’s tackle Taylor Decker should be available for them at pick number fourteen. There are some pretty good prospects at guard that might’ve been available to them in the second round, but the Eagles’ next pick is in round three of the draft. Since this is the case, they may want to grab what they can at the corner position here. If they are lucky they’d be able to grab Miami’s Artie Burns – but Burns is an intriguing man with a strong story behind him and may go earlier than expected – but Minnesota’s Eric Murray might prove to be a strong pick in the third. A physical corner with a nice feel for zone coverage. With their second pick in the third round, they should look at in-state favorite Carl Nassib, defensive end out of Penn State – or they may want to go with the better athlete in the third round like Charles Tapper out of Oklahoma. Tapper forces turnovers and can get to the ball quickly – might be able to transition from defensive end to linebacker if need be . . . No matter the guaranteed money or what coaches say, Sam Bradford has had his time to do something in this league and it’s evident he is not the “future” for any team. Taking a quarterback late is never a promising look for a future “team leader,” but if the Eagles take a shot at Bowling Green’s Matt Johnson either late or as an undrafted free agent – it might turn out better than starting Bradford. He’s got some mobility and a strong arm. The Eagles really can go anywhere in the draft so it’s difficult to pin point exactly what they should do – best player available might be the way they go – this year and next year.
Washington Redskins: CB, RB, QB
Right off the bat, people will see “QB” in there and say “Why would they need a quarterback? Especially after retaining the services of Kirk Cousins?!” Well for starters, they franchised Cousins which means they are paying him a lot of money to see if he is worth the big time contract and secondly – before the season started, we were all questioning the abilities of Cousins. With that being said – Cousins could’ve just gotten “lucky” last year or maybe just “figured out how to play above average in this league.” Whichever it is, the Skins need some kind of insurance at that position next season. Colt McCoy is still there as a back up and that might be just as good as the names that are currently available like T.J. Yates and Tavaris Jackson. If they want to take a gamble in the third round, NC State’s Jacoby Brisset could be a nice look and if they wait later – maybe a wild card like Oregon’s small – yet strong armed and athletic quarterback – Vernon Adams Jr might deserve some consideration. The Skins have a quality corner in Brashard Breeland, but they need to give him help on the opposite side of the field. William Jackson, the corner back out of Houston ran a 4.37 at the combine, and even beforehand was considered to be a steal, even at the late first round spots. If Cousins plays as well as he did last year, the Redskins have more than enough talent to win the NFC East in back to back seasons. . .Do the Skins really have enough trust in running back Matt Jones to be “the guy” though? Much like Cousins at quarterback, it wouldn’t hurt the skins to get some kind of “insurance” at that position. There are always decent names in free agency at that position like Ronnie Hillman or Bobby Rainey. It would be interesting to see the price tag that comes with Arian Foster though. If healthy (that’s a big “IF”) he could be a huge impact on this roster as a whole and it might be worth it for the Skins to make that kind of play right now.
New York Giants:RB, DE, LB, CB, WR
The Giants are a team reeking of the word “desperate” right now. General manager Jerry Reese hasn’t been too impressive with his mid to late round draft picks and he’s spending money left and right trying to rectify those mistakes. The Giants have given a little over $100 million in guaranteed money to Olivier Vernon, Janoris Jenkins and Damon Harrison. All three got five year deals and all three have expectations to hit that they never had to measure up to previously. With that said, when a team breaks bank like that in free agency it almost always is a recipe for disaster. With the tenth pick overall the Giants may have a shot at the best running back in the draft in Ezekiel Elliot. Elliot would be the dynamo half back they’ve been looking for for nearly a decade. The combo backfield of Shane Vereen and Rashard Jennings was less-than-amusing to watch and Elliot would actually fit in perfectly with this offense. Afterwards, the Giants should be looking to stock up on defensive talent wherever they can get it. Yannick Ngakoue of Maryland is an outside linbacker/defensive end hybrid that is going mostly under the radar but he could be an instant starter and that kind of quality on a bad defense is worth the second round pick. He’s got length, speed and size – three things that most the Giants defensive players don’t have a combination of. . . Jaylon Smith of Notre Dame is scaring teams off because of his medical issues and slow recovery – but before this was being touted as a sure fire first-round pick. The Giants usually have luck with players of this talent falling to them and if he’s there in the third they will definitely not pass on him. The Giants’ secondary needs help in a big way. Landon Collins played well as the physical safety they needed him to be and them paying Janoris Jenkins the big bucks, proves that they need help in a big way. Maurice Canady out of Virginia is a pretty physical corner who might be a nice compliment on the outside – while a later round pick (fifth-round maybe) would be Florida’s Brian Poole, who might be able to rotate as a fill in spot-number-two corner while being a mainstay in the nickel spot. Victor Cruz came back at a discount to be the number two wide-out but the truth is, he’s garbage now and won’t go over the middle. A veteran free agent signing like Marques Colston might be a nice way to try to mentor the young hot head wide-out Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham seemingly answers to nobody and although his talents conceal his mental lapses – it’s becoming a tired act that should finally be controlled by this team.
Dallas Cowboys: LB, DE, QB, RB
The Cowboys have the fourth pick overall in this year’s draft. Not bad for a team many projected to be one of the NFL’s best in 2015 and failed miserably at achieving that. The Cowboys are in a tough spot though. When quarterback Tony Romo plays – he looks like an MVP candidate and everyone loves the Cowboys, BUT when Romo goes out with an injury, they play horribly and become the butt of everyone’s jokes. The Cowboys won’t be spending a first round pick on a quarterback but maybe the second round wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) be that far fetched. Ohio State’s Cardalle Jones might fit in well here. Behind a strong offensive line and a capable receiving group, the athletic Jones, won’t have to “do too much” but learn how to be coach-able through it all. Dak Prescott out of Mississippi State may be the more polished version of Cardalle Jones and in a time of “Greg Hardy and Dez Bryant” in the Cowboys’ locker room, a natural leader with a level head, might help out as a building block for Dallas’ future. Back to the fourth overall pick though. . . The Cowboys should have their choice between some great linebacker prospects: UCLA Myles Jack, Georgia’s Leonard Floyd and Alabama’s Reggie Ragland. Ragland might be a reach at number four as he is mainly projected to go in the “teens” of the first round and the choice of Floyd or Jack depends on how well Dallas can trust Jack coming off of a knee injury that ended his 2015 campaign. Floyd on the other hand is a 6’6″ 244 pound man-child who played extremely well this year and enters the draft as one who can start right away and impact the game right away. The Cowboys need an answer behind Romo so they can utilize their best strength which is running behind the offensive line. While folks were enamored with Alabama’s Derrick Henry running the ball, it may be Kenyan Drake who turns out to be a steal for any team in the third or fourth round. He has decent hands and is a strong runner who is more elusive than advertised. Drake would easily beat out the backfield on the Cowboys as is, and would be a rookie of the year candidate behind this offensive line.
G.W. Gras
Twitter @GeeSteelio
