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Gil Brandt One of the most respected in the business breaks the Packers’ draft down.
With the National Football League’s draft rapidly approaching, it’s once again time to dive into draft speculation head first to try to figure out what the Green Bay Packers might do with the fifth overall. Who better to help sort out the mess than former Dallas Cowboys general manager Gil Brandt, who now is of the most respected draft gurus in the business. Brandt now covers the entire league on NFL.com. Recently, Brandt took some time to
analyze how Ted Thompson could go about his draft plan in Green Bay.
WSW: What are your thoughts on the way the Green Bay Packers have gone about its scouting process?
GB: (Ted Thompson) has been everywhere. I think he’s had himself three trips to Hawaii. He’s been at every pro day, every Senior Bowl and whatever seems to take place, he’s been there. Between (Thompson), John Dorsey and Mike McCarthy, I really think they have covered all the places where there are some good players and I think they’ll come up with very good players. They’ve covered players not only who will be drafted quickly, but the ones that will be first-day picks as well.
WSW: I know prognostication doesn’t always equal reality, but as you look into your crystal ball, what prospects do you feel could be available when Green Bay picks at No. 5?
GB: There are some good players in this draft. Quite honestly, I feel their
choice is either (A.J. Hawk or (Mario) Williams. One of those two should be
there at five. It’s a very interesting draft in the sense that nobody knows
where who could go where. Nobody’s even sure Reggie Bush is 100 percent going to Houston yet. Then you got the quarterbacks you have to mix in there and then you have D’Brickashaw Ferguson you have to mix in there, so it’s going to be very interesting a couple weeks from now.
WSW: Do you think the Packers would consider selecting a quarterback – say if Matt Leinart or Vince Young were available? The team drafted a quarterback last season.
GB: No, I don’t think they are. There are too many good players at other
positions to pass up.
WSW: How important is owning the fifth overall pick in this draft?
GB: Well again I think this is a very good draft. Let me put it this way, I
feel that if you’re drafting between 22 and 42 you’re going to have a good
player that will play for your team for a long time. If you’re picking before
22, you could be walking away with a player that could be the cornerstone
of your franchise. Usually the players near the top just perform better.
WSW: What are some of the deeper positions in the draft? What are the positions where if the Packers don’t go there the first time around,
they could revisit in a later round and still walk away with a quality
prospect?
GB: I think the two deepest areas in this draft are cornerback and linebacker. I think there will be good players available even in the middle
rounds at these positions. Teams will find as they draft later and later
that there will still be good players available.
WSW: The Packers have been very selective about how to go about free agency. Should draft preparation take precedence over pursuing athletes who already have some mileage on them? Or should there be a marriage between the two?
GB: Well, first of all, they are just over $19 million under the salary cap.
What’s taking place is too many people are way over-paying for free-agents.
Do you want to give $10 million in guaranteed money to player that may have already seen his best days? You can find good players that cost a little bit less money. Look at what the Patriots did a few years back. I think they signed like 19 lower-tier free agents going into the season they won the Super Bowl. It’s amazing how teams see things differently. There used to be teams and there still are teams that don’t believe being active in free agency. The Cowboys used to do it and so did the Redskins. But then there teams like Carolina that don’t mind paying huge signing bonuses. (Ted) is going to do well. He’s has a plan, he knows where he’s going and he knows how to get there. WSW
With the National Football League’s draft rapidly approaching, it’s once again time to dive into draft speculation head first to try to figure out what the Green Bay Packers might do with the fifth overall. Who better to help sort out the mess than former Dallas Cowboys general manager Gil Brandt, who now is of the most respected draft gurus in the business. Brandt now covers the entire league on NFL.com. Recently, Brandt took some time to
analyze how Ted Thompson could go about his draft plan in Green Bay.
WSW: What are your thoughts on the way the Green Bay Packers have gone about its scouting process?
GB: (Ted Thompson) has been everywhere. I think he’s had himself three trips to Hawaii. He’s been at every pro day, every Senior Bowl and whatever seems to take place, he’s been there. Between (Thompson), John Dorsey and Mike McCarthy, I really think they have covered all the places where there are some good players and I think they’ll come up with very good players. They’ve covered players not only who will be drafted quickly, but the ones that will be first-day picks as well.
WSW: I know prognostication doesn’t always equal reality, but as you look into your crystal ball, what prospects do you feel could be available when Green Bay picks at No. 5?
GB: There are some good players in this draft. Quite honestly, I feel their
choice is either (A.J. Hawk or (Mario) Williams. One of those two should be
there at five. It’s a very interesting draft in the sense that nobody knows
where who could go where. Nobody’s even sure Reggie Bush is 100 percent going to Houston yet. Then you got the quarterbacks you have to mix in there and then you have D’Brickashaw Ferguson you have to mix in there, so it’s going to be very interesting a couple weeks from now.
WSW: Do you think the Packers would consider selecting a quarterback – say if Matt Leinart or Vince Young were available? The team drafted a quarterback last season.
GB: No, I don’t think they are. There are too many good players at other
positions to pass up.
WSW: How important is owning the fifth overall pick in this draft?
GB: Well again I think this is a very good draft. Let me put it this way, I
feel that if you’re drafting between 22 and 42 you’re going to have a good
player that will play for your team for a long time. If you’re picking before
22, you could be walking away with a player that could be the cornerstone
of your franchise. Usually the players near the top just perform better.
WSW: What are some of the deeper positions in the draft? What are the positions where if the Packers don’t go there the first time around,
they could revisit in a later round and still walk away with a quality
prospect?
GB: I think the two deepest areas in this draft are cornerback and linebacker. I think there will be good players available even in the middle
rounds at these positions. Teams will find as they draft later and later
that there will still be good players available.
WSW: The Packers have been very selective about how to go about free agency. Should draft preparation take precedence over pursuing athletes who already have some mileage on them? Or should there be a marriage between the two?
GB: Well, first of all, they are just over $19 million under the salary cap.
What’s taking place is too many people are way over-paying for free-agents.
Do you want to give $10 million in guaranteed money to player that may have already seen his best days? You can find good players that cost a little bit less money. Look at what the Patriots did a few years back. I think they signed like 19 lower-tier free agents going into the season they won the Super Bowl. It’s amazing how teams see things differently. There used to be teams and there still are teams that don’t believe being active in free agency. The Cowboys used to do it and so did the Redskins. But then there teams like Carolina that don’t mind paying huge signing bonuses. (Ted) is going to do well. He’s has a plan, he knows where he’s going and he knows how to get there. WSW
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