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| 2008 NFL Mock Draft First Round | |||||
| Pick | Team | Team Needs | Selection | Position | College |
| 1 | Miami Dolphins | DT, LB, WR | Jake Long | Offensive Tackle | Michigan |
| In our initial write-up for Miami after Parcells got his new job we said that, as a top-notch talent evaluator, it would be interesting to see who he thought was the #1 prospect in the draft. As of about noon on Tuesday we got our answer. Jake Long agrees to a five year deal worth more than $57 million with $30 million guaranteed. We had Chris Long here since day one and we still believe he is the # 1 prospect this year. If we had one question about Chris Long it was concerning his effectiveness in Parcells' 3-4 scheme. It's very likely that The Tuna felt as we do and that is that Chris Long's natural position in the NFL is as a defensive end in a 4-3. | |||||
| 2 | St. Louis Rams | OT, DE, S | Chris Long | Defensive End | Virginia |
| All of the hype surrounding the Rams and Glenn Dorsey has to be a smoke-screen to enable them to get anything they can for the privelege of drafting the stud defensive tackle out of LSU. St. Louis would be wise to broker a deal with Atlanta getting an additional pick or two, and they still get the guy they want at pick three as well as saving a couple of bucks in the process. Dorsey's history of injury makes him suspect to us, and St. Louis drafted defensive tackle Adam Carriker in the first round last year - a pick that has already produced results. Some like the idea of moving Carriker to end to make room for Dorsey, but that would be counter to Carriker's strength as a run stopper as he would be better suited as an end in a 3-4 defense. The combination of Long and Carriker should provide Sportscenter highlights for years to come and we can't imagine it any other way. | |||||
| 3 | Atlanta Falcons | QB, DT, LB | Glenn Dorsey | Defensive Tackle | LSU |
| It's no secret that Atlanta covets Dorsey and for good reason as he is the kind of player that you can build a championship defense around. New head coach Mike Smith knows the importance of having a beast in the interior as he had Stroud and Henderson in Jacksonville. Matt Ryan would be a smart pick here but, with all the picks they've stockpiled in the 2nd and 3rd rounds, there will be plenty of dance partners to trade with to get back into the 1st round (Kevin Colbert of the Pittsburgh Steelers - #23 - has let it be known that they would not be opposed to a trade down). They'll look for their QB of the future from the talented 2nd tier of signal callers. | |||||
| 4 | Oakland Raiders | OL, DL, WR | Darren McFadden | Running Back | Arkansas |
| As tempting as the big-2 defensive tackles will be, there is no way Darren McFadden gets past Al Davis and the # 4 pick. The departure of Warren Sapp had us believing that Dorsey would be the pick here but apparently Davis is still in charge and giving no-name defensive tackles $50 million contracts. The Raiders pass on the better prospects (again), and that is why they have become the laughing stock of the NFL. | |||||
| 5 | Kansas City Chiefs | OT, WR, CB, DT | Branden Albert | Guard | Virginia |
| Word out of Kansas City is that they will correct their offensive line issues with this draft. Taking their cue from last year's Arizona team, they draft for a position of dire need. His limited experience at tackle aside, he has seemingly solidified his status as second best offensive lineman in this draft. If Albert doesn't work out at tackle, he'll still land a starting job at guard. | |||||
| 6 | New York Jets | DE, OG, LB | Sedrick Ellis | Defensive Tackle | USC |
| Sedrick Ellis represents a missing piece in the Mangini defense. The Jets will be getting great value in this draft pick while bolstering a run defense weak at the point of attack. | |||||
| 7 | New England Patriots (via SF) | CB, LB, WR | Keith Rivers | Outside Linebacker | USC |
| The Patriots linebacking corps could use a shot of youth, and although Bill Belichick is not known for drafting first round linebackers, Rivers is a "Belichick" kind of guy. That said, we do not expect New England to actually use the # 7 selection for anything other than trade-bait. Spygate is not over yet and it's looking like there could be more penalties to come. Belichick will look to stockpile future picks as those selections cannot be taken away should the league decide to punish the Patriots again. | |||||
| 8 | Baltimore Ravens | QB, CB, OT | Matt Ryan | Quarterback | Boston College |
| Baltimore will begin rebuilding their beleaguered offense by drafting the best quarterback available. While there are teams ahead of them that could use a franchise quarterback, the Ravens will recognize this and will move up if necessary to get Ryan. If they do manage to get him at pick number eight then they've gotten great value. Ravens fans can soon consider Kyle Boller a bad memory. | |||||
| 9 | Cincinatti Bengels | LB, DT, S | Vernon Gholston | DE/OLB | Ohio State |
| If the Bengals are going to have any chance of getting to the top of the AFC North, they have to address their shabby run defense. If Rivers or Ellis were to drop, Cincinatti would not hesitate to add either one of them to thier roster. After loosing thier best defensive end, they draft a solid pass-rusher in Gholston. | |||||
| 10 | New Orleans Saints | CB, LB, TE | Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie | Cornerback | Tennessee State |
| Here is another team that will not let Keith Rivers past them, and although they acquired Randall Gay this off-season, Rodgers-Cromartie will get an opportunity to display his athletic skills on the fast track in New Orleans. | |||||
| 11 | Buffalo Bills | WR, CB, LB | Leodis McKelvin | Cornerback | Troy State |
| The additions of Marcus Stroud and Kawika Mitchell have gone a long way towards solidifying the Bills' defense. Unfortunately for Buffalo, they must contend with the Patriots ridiculous passing attack twice a year, and they've yet to adequately replace Nate Clements. McKelvin has the size and skill set to make an immediate impact in the AFC East. | |||||
| 12 | Denver Broncos | OT, DT, MLB | Ryan Clady | Offensive Tackle | Boise State |
| The retirement of Matt Lepsis combined with a bit of good fortune lands Clady in Denver. This team has many needs, but with Clady on-board, left tackle is no longer one of them. | |||||
| 13 | Carolina Panthers | TE, CB, DT | Derrick Harvey | Defensive End | Florida |
| The Panthers could go in a number of different directions in the round one and are the most difficult team to read of the first fifteen. Harvey is the best remaining pass rusher available and with this team "secretly" shopping Julius Peppers, it would seem like the time to find his replacement. | |||||
| 14 | Chicago Bears | QB, OT, WR | Jeff Otah | Offensive Tackle | Pittsburgh |
| Age caught up to Chicago's offensive line this past year, and as a result both Fred Miller and Ruben Brown were released. John Tait remains but will need some help, and how. Otah comes off the board about where he should, but he has to feel like a steal to the Bears who are thrilled to acquire his services at # 14. | |||||
| 15 | Detroit Lions | DE, CB, OG | Rashard Mendenhall | Running Back | Illinois |
| With several off-season losses at running back, this pick makes a lot of sense. Mendenhall has pro-style traits similar to Thomas Jones with more explosion. Matt Millen gets value and addresses a need. Imagine that. | |||||
| 16 | Arizona Cardinals | OG, CB, DL | Aqib Talib | Cornerback | Kansas |
| Antrel Rolle looks like he is on his way to becoming a safety and Rod Hood is not scaring and wide-outs. This team needs a cornerback like Nicole Richie needs two pounds. Talib is one of the most polarizing players of the first round, scouts either love him or hate him. Talib's tackling deficiencies might scare some teams, but he is good in coverage and Arizona is desperate for someone who can do that very thing. | |||||
| 17 | Kansas City Chiefs (via Minnesota) | OT, WR, CB, DT | Phillip Merling | Defensive End | Clemson |
| Kansas City trades Jared Allen to Minnesota for the seventeenth pick in the draft. This is a good move for Minnesota who could not be certain to get a playmaker at defensive end with this pick. That being said, the Chiefs' now have a pressing need at end, and although they give up a veteran leader, they had evidently had enough of his off-the-field issues. Having already addressed their offensive line, they'll use this pick to draft Allen's replacement. | |||||
| 18 | Houston Texans | OT, RB, S | Chris Williams | Offensive Tackle | Vanderbilt |
| Each year we watch as the Texans miss another opportunity to select a top-rated offensive lineman in the first round. It's almost unbearable to see this team bring in a guy like Ahmad Green and then wonder why it just isn't working out. We think that this is finally the year that Kubiak gets his wish and is given a foundation to build upon. William's skill set should allow him to fit nicely in Houston's zone-blocking scheme. | |||||
| 19 | Philadelphia Eagles | WR, OL, DE | Devin Thomas | Wide Receiver | Michigan State |
| In position to draft the best receiver available, the Eagles take Devin Thomas who has impressed many scouts this offseason. Although he has only had one good season, he has managed to rise to the top of a not-so-impressive wide receiver class. | |||||
| 20 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | WR, DE, QB | DeSean Jackson | Wide Receiver | Cal |
| Jackson should be the eventual replacement for Joey Galloway and will give the special teams a boost with his 4.3 speed. Tipping the scales at less than 170lbs will scare some teams given the track record of speed receivers in the NFL, but measurables have never scared Jon Gruden. | |||||
| 21 | Washington Redskins | DE, OG, WR | Malcolm Kelly | Wide Receiver | Oklahoma |
| Reports have come out of Washington that Dan Snyder had Jason Campbell throwing passes to Malcolm Kelly in the past several days. The Redskins could certainly use a wide receiver and although they might do better with one of the other receivers still available, this information is enough for us to split the difference here. | |||||
| 22 | Dallas Cowboys (via Cleveland) | CB, NT, WR | Felix Jones | Running Back | Arkansas |
| Assuming that Jerry Jones has not moved up in an effort to acquire Darren McFadden, he uses this pick to grab the other Arkansas running back. A wide receiver will also be tempting for Dallas, but they need another running back and one as good as Jones won't be there the next time they pick. | |||||
| 23 | Pittsburgh Steelers | OL, CB, WR | Jonathan Stewart | Running Back | Oregon |
| With Brandon Albert long gone and no offensive tackle prospect worthy of the twenty-third pick, the Steelers grab a prospect some believe is the best running back in this year's draft. Pittsburgh's running attack benefits from Stewart's untimely surgery which drove his stock down this winter. | |||||
| 24 | Tennessee Titans | WR, DE, OG | Limus Sweed | Wide Receiver | Texas |
| Few things are less obvious than the Titan's need for a good receiver. And they get thier man; Limus Sweed will give their quarterback a fellow Longhorn to whom to throw. | |||||
| 25 | Seattle Seahawks | OL, WR, CB | Mike Jenkins | Cornerback | South Florida |
| It's at this point in the draft that teams become harder to project. The Seahawks, Jags, Chargers, Packers and Giants have very few needs and fewer options with which to satisfy them. We fully expect a trade to occur somewhere during the next four picks. Some team out there will be looking to get either Brian Brohm or Joe Flacco before their opponent does. Seattle, Jacksonville, San Diego and even Dallas have the depth to move back a little for the right price. It's a seller's market at this point and you'll know who the smartest G.M. of the four is when the smoke clears. Seattle will be making the last first round pick of the Mike Holmgren era so you have to wonder how much input Mora Jr. will have. For now, we think Seattle will pick a corner to one day take over as the starter. | |||||
| 26 | Jacksonville Jaguars | DE, LB, DT | Kentwan Balmer | Defensive Tackle/End | North Carolina |
| The loss of Marcus Stroud leaves a noticeable hole in Jacksonville's vaunted defense. Balmer, a bit of an enigma, appears to have excellent value at pick twenty-six. Balmer should fit Jacksonville's scheme, and surrounding him with successful veterans should give Balmer an opportunity to excel. | |||||
| 27 | San Diego Chargers | ILB, OL, NT, RB | Jerod Mayo | Linebacker | Tennessee |
| Need is a relative term this late in the first round, especially when it comes to a San Diego team that has very few holes, if any. Mayo is a late riser, and adding to their interior linebacking corps is the closest thing to a pressing need that the Chargers have. Gosder Cherilus has to be tempting as well and wouldn't be a bad pick at all. | |||||
| 28 | Dallas Cowboys | CB, NT, WR | Antoine Cason | Cornerback | Arizona |
| If the Cowboys are desperate enough to bring PacMan Jones to town, then they are definitely interested in the best corner available at this point in the draft. Wide receiver also seem to be possibilities here, but again, PacMan Jones??? | |||||
| 29 | San Francisco 49ers (via Indy) | DL, WR, OL | James Hardy | Wide Receiver | Indiana |
| The recent additions of Issac Bruce and Bryant Johnson do little to alleviate the concerns this teams has when looking at its receiving corps. Thomas is a one-year wonder but has wowed scouts over the past two months. His development will be worth watching because he (and Calais Campbell) look like the 'boom / bust' picks of the first round. | |||||
| 30 | Green Bay Packers | OL, S | Brandon Flowers | Cornerback | Virginia Tech |
| It is difficult to get a feel for where this team is looking to go in lieu of Favre's retirement. Clearly they are going to give Rodgers a two year window to show his worth, so QB is out. Other than a signal caller, and maybe a running back, this team could go in any direction in round one. Green Bay has two solid corners, but both are aging veterans. Flowers will not start in his first year, but will be a part of late down packages and will eventually become a starter. | |||||
| 31 | New England Patriots | ||||
| Forfeit - Perhaps more to come... | |||||
| 32 | New York Giants | LB, S, WR | Kenny Phillips | Free Safety | Miami |
| The Giants lost a few players in the offseason, but not enough to start a panic. This team is still solid as long as Strahan returns. The Giants will grab the best safety in the draft at pick # 32, which seems like a steal considering that when the season ended he was a top-15 pick in many mock drafts. | |||||
| Last Updated February 22, 2008 |