Harry Sydney's opinions on GB's Round 1 pick
Date: Mar 31, 2006
Former Packers fullback and assistant coach Harry Sydney offers his thoughts on which players the Packers should consider selecting with the fifth overall pick of the upcoming NFL Draft. Sydney also details a scenario in which the Packers should trade down and obtain more selections to fulfill the team's many needs.
I thought I would remind everyone that the real future of the Green Bay Packers will be determined with their picks in this year’s NFL Draft. Everywhere we turn we all are being consumed with Brett Favre and all the issues that come with him. Guess what? The Green Bay Packers have no control over that, but they do have some control over who they will pick with their first pick in the 2006 NFL Draft!!!!
Just who will that be? I know they really don't know at this time, but I also know that Ted Thompson and the guys on the Packers brass have played every scenario in their head as well as on the big board in the draft room. On that board they have every player that will be in the draft, they believe, as well as every round they feel each player will be selected.
Everyone in the world knows what the Packers need and want and that's Mario Williams, the defensive end from North Carolina State. If they could get him at the fifth pick the draft would be a success, but I don't think that is going to happen so what do they do next? If Mario Williams isn't there the only other guy that would make me stay there would be Vince Young. I would take him in a second because he is a difference-maker, a game changer.
I know that this team took Aaron Rodgers last year, but they can't let that stop them from taking Vince. I don't care about some stupid Wonderlic test that really had nothing to do with football. I saw this guy dissect the USC Trojans on the biggest stage of college football - the Rose Bowl - and he made it look easy. Let's not forget that he faced Pete Carroll, a former head coach of the NFL that had over a month to design a defense to stop him, but still couldn't get it done. Remember, he's a defensive-minded coach. Think about how much pressure Michael Vick puts on defensive coordinators. Vince Young is a bigger, better version. Not only that does anyone remember when the Packers took Tony Mandarich over Barry Sanders? Talk about a MISTAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What do they do if one of these two guys aren't there? I've looked at many mock drafts and it scares me. Their is one guy that keeps showing up on 90% of them and that's A.J. Hawk, and I wonder what all the hype is all about. He's a good linebacker, but I don't' think he's worth being taken as the fifth pick. He's not a difference-maker. This team doesn't need another Nick Barnett, and that's who I think he is. Hawk is a good player, excellent running side to side, and plays aggressively downhill, but the problem is he is light in the butt. The NFL guards are more athletic and more physical than anything he would have ever faced in college. He's good, but not a fifth pick.
So, let's hope Vince Young is there, but if not let's just move out of that spot and entertain other offers because, unfortunately, there are enough holes to fill. Please understand that I have nothing against Aaron Rodgers. He didn't ask the Packers to take him with their first pick. He might be a great or good quarterback in the future no one knows what he can really do which, like I've said, isn't his fault. But then again to have two quarterbacks for the future of this organization really wouldn't be a bad idea anyway, especially when they don't really have any proven guards to protect either one of them as I see it.
So where do they go from here? Do they go for need or do they go for best available athlete? What about Vernon Davis from Maryland? How would he fit in a Packer uniform because even though they signed Bubba Franks for big money, their is a need for a tight end that can stretch the field and this guy can certainly do that. But then again is this the guy? What about a running back? How confident are the Packers in Ahman Green, Samkon Gado and Najeh Davenport with all of them coming back from season ending injuries. I'm a Lendale White fan myself. I can see this guy carrying the ball 25 times a game with no problem and getting better the more he carries. In my opinion he's the best back in the draft, even better than his teammate Reggie Bush.
If it wasn't for the Packers signing Ryan Pickett I would be even considering Haloti Ngata, a DT from Oregon.
As you can see this might be the most pivotal moment for the future of the Green Bay Packers and there are a lot of holes that need to be filled. Nobody is exactly sure what direction they’ll take. Should we as fans panic? Should we be concerned with the direction of this team? Even though I thought they would be more active in free agency, and they haven't, I can't let that influence my opinions on what they will do in the draft, can I?
