NFL Draft Round 1 Thoughts

Draft Thoughts…

Here are my thoughts on the first round.

Detroit burglarized the draft by nabbing Fairley at 13

Panthers- They had to pick Cam Newton. They have a new head coach and the franchise is in a overhaul process. Cam Newton will bring revive the fan base and there will be a tremendous spotlight on the Panthers once he starts playing. I am not sold on him being a great pro but the Panthers do have a decent line and run game so Cam has a chance to have some early success. This won’t be a Tim Couch or David Carr situation where Cam would be sacked every other play.

Broncos- Von Miller will be defensive rookie of the year and will be a regular at the Pro-Bowl in no time. No brainer.

Cardinals- They could not have been happier to get Patrick Peterson. He is arguably the most talented player in the draft and will be a shut down corner in the league. The Cardinals desperately needed to get a quarterback but my gut tells me that they will go after Kevin Kolb by any means necessary.

Browns/Falcons—This was a huge head scratcher. I understand that Julio Jones is a phenomenal talent but the Falcons gave up way too much for him. They are already a great team so he makes that instantly better on offense but this will end up working out much better for the Browns. They need a ton of players to rebuild the team and the Falcons put a ton of presents under their tree.  I like that the Browns got all those picks but I don’t think anyone liked their first pick of Phil Taylor. He is a 3-4 end and the Browns are switching to a 4-3. Could be a tough transition for him.

Titans- One of the big shockers of the first round was Tennessee’s pick of QB Jack Locker at # 8. I was surprised that he went ahead of Gabbert (and judging by Gabberts face, so was he) It may take some time before the verdict is in on Jake Locker but this pick seems so risky to me. His accuracy is highly questionable but I understand the mantra of trying to move past the Vince Young era and starting fresh at the most important position on the field.

Lions- The Lions got the steal of the draft. DT Nick Fairley was the most dominant defensive player in the best conference last year. There are questions about his work ethic and personality but he is joining Suh and Vanden Bosch in Detroit and they will make him work and he could not be in a better situation to succeed. Detroit’s opponents will only be able to double team one of those three so Farley has a great chance to get one-on-one matchups that he can dominate. Detroit might have the best front in the NFL.

Giants- Picking the Prince was a great choice for the Giants. He was the second best CB in the draft and the Giants need secondary help. Still, the Prince can go to hell because Dez Bryant is gonna bring it.

Saints- I really like this Ingram pick. We’ve all seen what he did in his brilliant career…Roll Tide. He is a true running back and will be an upgrade over anyone the Saints have. I know that Bush added a scary dimension to the Saints offense but at the end of the day Ingram will bring production, even if it’s not as glamorous. Bush looks like he’ll be hanging up the black and gold.

The Saints also picked up a stud DE, Cameron Jordan for a defense that desperately needs help pressuring the quarterback.