OFFICIAL 2015 NFL DRAFT THREAD

[smuggler]

Round 2 Pick 5 (NYJ): Eric Kendricks, ILB/OLB, UCLA (B+)
Round 2 Pick 13 (MINN): Eddie Goldman, DT, Florida State (A)
Round 4 Pick 10 (T.B.): Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, CB, Oregon (B+)
Round 4 Pick 13 (SEA): Cedric Ogbuehi, OT, Texas A&M (A+)
Round 4 Pick 30: Ben Koyack, TE, Notre Dame (A+)
Round 5 Pick 17 (S.D.): Chris Conley, WR, Georgia (A+)
Round 5 Pick 30: Cameron Artis-Payne, RB, Auburn (A+)
Round 6 Pick 30: Tyler Varga, FB, Yale (B+)
Round 6 Pick 34 (COMP): Xzavier Dickson, OLB, Alabama (A+)
Round 6 Pick 37 (COMP): Josh Harper, WR, Fresno State (A+)
Round 7 Pick 30: Damian Swann, CB, Georgia (A-)

Went through the draft with First-Pick.com, narrowly missed out on Byron Jones and Stephone Anthony in the 3rd and 2nd rounds respectively. Traded two two picks to Minny to trade up for Goldman, after a more Pack-friendly offer was turned down by the two teams in front of them.

Otherwise, the draft seemed kind of realistic.

[vince]

dp

[vince]

Some CB scuttlebutt from Tony Pauline

Quite possibly no defensive back is moving up draft boards faster than Eric Rowe of Utah. As first reported two weeks ago, there’s a feeling Rowe will end up in the second half of round one and won’t get past the 40th pick. The teams I’m hearing highest on Rowe in round one include the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles.
...
Byron Jones, who was in Arizona visiting with the Cardinals today, is another zipping up draft boards. Jones is the bigger corner teams want and offers versatility as a number of coaches feel he could slide inside to safety. To date he has seven official visits on his calendar.
...
Getting back to the Green Bay Packers, immediately after the the combine I was told by several sources cornerback Kevin Johnson of Wake Forest is a player that have been targeting in round one.
...
Looking for a late round sleeper?? Turn towards Texas Southern cornerback Tray Walker, a player that was not on scouting sheets entering the season.
...
How busy is Walker? His visits list includes the Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks and the Atlanta Falcons, who’ll also be working him out.

FWIW (not much), I like all those guys. That Walker cat from Texas Southern looks good on youtube.

[Freak Out]

Is there a CB worth taking in the 1st round?

[pbmax]

I love this stuff, but if you are the reporter and you have reported a team's interest in 3 prospects at one position in the first round, have you really uncovered anything other than what the team might think its needs are?

[vince]

I love this stuff, but if you are the reporter and you have reported a team's interest in 3 prospects at one position in the first round, have you really uncovered anything other than what the team might think its needs are?

Plus it's sometimes hard to decipher real interest from smoke screens at this time of the year. I like reading about interest in these specific guys over some of the guys I have concerns about (Collins from LSU, the Florida State guys and some of the smurfs). I just hope its real and not some of the worthless drivel the local beat guys spew from agents. Pauline has a lot more credibility in my eyes than the local puppets.

[vince]

Trae Waynes for sure. I've obviously not been in any interviews with Peters but from what I've seen I wouldn't touch him because of character but he's a first round talent... I like Rowe and Jones but they both have one whole year of corner under their belts. I think Johnson has mad skills but needs to fill out more yet. He'll do that but not sure if he's ready to step in immediately and take on some of the monster receivers in the league...

They'd all look a ton better in the 2nd or 3rd that's for sure.

[smuggler]

Peters would be worth taking if his character concerns were checked out. He was kicked off his college program, but he's arguably the best combination of size/athleticism/ball-skills/school/performance at the position in the draft

[pbmax]

This is the video that caused me to follow Hunt. It illustrates the problem I have with the draft. I watch this video and see a corner take so many shortcuts he would get roasted in the NFL. So how can you possibly project what he will do in the NFL when he has to change his game?

Someone was recommending this prospect as a Packer pick at CB and provided Hunt's video as evidence.

[vince]

This is the video that caused me to follow Hunt. It illustrates the problem I have with the draft. I watch this video and see a corner take so many shortcuts he would get roasted in the NFL. So how can you possibly project what he will do in the NFL when he has to change his game?

Someone was recommending this prospect as a Packer pick at CB and provided Hunt's video as evidence.

The guy does have some agility and foot quickness but "compares favorably to Richard Sherman"?

He's raw as raw can be. Like you said PB, he takes shortcuts, cheats, however you want to say it. He's like a receiver who doesn't know how to run routes yet. That guy on tape would be toast in the NFL. He'd compare favorably to Ahmad Carroll maybe. Carroll was a first rounder so he's got that going for him I guess.

Maybe he can develop in time but that guy's a practice squad candidate at best. First round prospect. Better than Richard Sherman. The self-proclaimed "Czar" must refer to him being czar of Fields' hometown posse.

And the Czar's draft would blow big chunks IMO. His 2nd round selection is ranked 639 (there are 256 picks in the draft) on CBSSports.com. His 4th round pick QB Rakeem Cato is ranked 530. Etc., etc. His future star Ron Fields doesn't make the list of 1000 prospects.

I'm all for out-of-the-box thinking but the Czar's so far out he doesn't even know where the box is.

[mraynrand]

The guy does have some agility and foot quickness but "compares favorably to Richard Sherman"?

He's raw as raw can be. Like you said PB, he takes shortcuts, cheats, however you want to say it. He's like a receiver who doesn't know how to run routes yet. That guy on tape would be toast in the NFL. He'd compare favorably to Ahmad Carroll maybe. Carroll was a first rounder so he's got that going for him I guess.

Maybe he can develop in time but that guy's a practice squad candidate at best. First round prospect. Better than Richard Sherman. The self-proclaimed "Czar" must refer to him being czar of Fields' hometown posse.

And the Czar's draft would blow big chunks IMO. His 2nd round selection is ranked 639 (there are 256 picks in the draft) on CBSSports.com. His 4th round pick QB Rakeem Cato is ranked 530. Etc., etc. His future star Ron Fields doesn't make the list of 1000 prospects.

I'm all for out-of-the-box thinking but the Czar's so far out he doesn't even know where the box is.

I just glanced at this, so maybe I totally misunderstood the guy, but I thought these were all dark horse picks...

[Maxie the Taxi]

I just glanced at this, so maybe I totally misunderstood the guy, but I thought these were all dark horse picks...

The guy seems to specialize in small college, sleeper types from what I've seen on his website.

[pbmax]

Been following Emory Hunt for the draft for a week. Here is his Packers mock, I am seriously starting to have doubts as a couple of these picks violate known Ted/Ron draft rules. However, he does say this is what he would do, not what Ted would do. Curious what you guys think about his picks:

[smuggler]

I don't think so with Terry Williams, Rakeem Cato, or DJoun Smith. All too short for the Pack to draft so high. Not that Green Bay wouldn't draft them, but the lack of height will push them down the Packer big board. Maybe Smith at that spot anyway, since it's a 6th.

My first instinct is to DQ Matias because TT does not draft interior guys, but he did buck that trend with Linsley last year, ang GB does need depth at guard. Both Sitton and Lang spent a lot of time on the injured list last year, even though they toughed it out and played for the most part.

Devante Davis is a classic Packer pick though.

[pittstang5]

Anthony and Rowe are my targets for this draft. IMO, they are good fits for this defense. If we can get them in the first two rounds - that would be huge. If TT can move down from the 1st into the top 5 of the 2nd, grab Anthony and an extra pick or two, then use those picks or whatever and move up in the 2nd and grab Rowe - OH, Happy day!

Other ILBs & CBs I like in the mid rounds:

ILBs
Ben Heeney - Kansas
Ramik Wilson - Georgia - (Really like this guy 4th round, if he's there in the 5th STEAL!)
Bryce Hager - Baylor

CBs
Justin Cox - Mississippi State
Randall Evans - Kansas State

Other Players I'm liking in the mid rounds:
Henry Anderson - DE - Stanford (Perfect Size for a 3-4 DE, high motor, smart - Packer People)
Jeff Heuerman - TE - Ohio State
Jesse James - TE - Penn State
Cedric Ogbuehi - OT - Texas A&M
Corey Crawford - DE - Clemson

[smuggler]

Ogbuehi would be an awesome 4th-5th round pick. He'll redshirt 2015 with the ACL, but he was a top-50 player before the injury.

[pbmax]

Mariota might suffer a Rodgers according to Charles Robinson.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/smoke-s...005301737.html

[Pugger]

Mariota might suffer a Rodgers according to Charles Robinson.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/smoke-s...005301737.html

I wonder. In 2005 how many teams after SF were in dire need of a QB? It looks like besides Tampa Washington, Tennessee, Chicago and NYJ need a QB. I seriously doubt teams will pass him up because of what happened to ARod. Teams are not going to want to look back in a couple of years and kick themselves like several of them did after the 2005 draft.

[Joemailman]

I wonder. In 2005 how many teams after SF were in dire need of a QB? It looks like besides Tampa Washington, Tennessee, Chicago and NYJ need a QB. I seriously doubt teams will pass him up because of what happened to ARod. Teams are not going to want to look back in a couple of years and kick themselves like several of them did after the 2005 draft.

Washington still has RGIII and may not have given up on him. Everybody seems to think Tennessee is taking Leonard Williams. The Bears may be in a defensive mindset especially since they are switching to a 3-4. I never know what the Jets are thinking. I think he could slide down to Cleveland at #12. That would be interesting. If he slides past Cleveland the slide could be Big.

[gbgary]

Mariota might suffer a Rodgers according to Charles Robinson.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/smoke-s...005301737.html

kinda doubt it now that one of winston's handlers said he's not ready.