Morning Update (A New Dawn Edition)
by Chris Thorman on Apr 28, 2008 7:46 AM CDT
in 2008 Draft
28 comments
I'm putting the finishing touches on a comprehensive draft post right now, which I'll post in a bit. I know we talked so much over the weekend - over 1000 comments on Saturday alone - but I think we need some sort of wrap up post just to have things organized. Thanks again to everyone who was here over the weekend. It was a hell of a time. For those of you that need to get caught up quickly, here is a complete listing of the Chiefs' draft picks. Also, WPI has all of their draft coverage organized quite nicely.
- Tons of great draft stuff as usual from Arrowhead Addict. I'm sure you've already been over there a few times this weekend but if you haven't, definitely make time for it.
- KC Chiefs Fanatic gives us a few thoughts on Glenn Dorsey. The verdict? The guy is good. Really good.
- Gonner's View weighs in on the draft and like every sane Chiefs fan, says we did a hell of a job.
- The Chiefs were the only team to get an A draft grade from Mel Kiper, Jr. -- "The rebuilding process is on. The Chiefs started the draft with 13 picks, and they made them count."
- Wow. A actual newspaper writer who said that the Chiefs' could have traded Larry Johnson. Where's the accountability?
- Here is the post-draft press conference transcript from Carl Peterson and Herm Edwards. Could this line get any more "Herm" -- "We stuck mainly to our board and have players who can compete at a lot of different positions." I love it Herm. Keep it coming.
- Oh man this is too sweet. Peter King, who normally thinks about the Chiefs about twice a year, doesn't even include the Chiefs in his top five ranking of the best drafts. Why? Because the Chiefs did so well that it would be unfair to include them.
- You know all of those mock drafts you read before this past weekend? The Huddle Report grades them for accuracy.
- Fox Sports -- "The Chiefs identified the sleeper of the draft in the fifth round, a player I mentioned in my All-Sleeper Defensive Team, Grand Valley State CB Brandon Carr. Carr is a tremendous athlete with great size, and he really impressed scouts during his Pro Day. He ran a 4.43 in the 40, had a 35-inch vertical and 10'4" broad jump and timed well in shuttle drills. Those attributes and his playmaking ability make him a steal for K.C."
- And this is why I dislike Jason Whitlock writing about the Chiefs. I really enjoy his 10 Truths column on Fox Sports and his other writings. I just can't stand his doom and gloom with the Chiefs.
- AFC West draft picks -- Denver, Oakland and San Diego.
- Nice work by a couple of you calling Barry Richardson to the Chiefs last week.
The Monday Morning QB is coming out in me and I'm still extremely happy with the Chiefs draft.
The undrafted free agent signing are already starting to come through. Scroll down for a few of those.
Stick around for my draft review coming out in a bit.
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I'm Going To Confess...
...and admit that I’m a little less glowing on the Chiefs’ draft than many of the pundits (mainly because of the second day). I think we did very well with Flowers, Albert and Dorsey (although, if reports of the Saints offering 2 1st rounders and this year’s 2nd for him are accurate, I think Carl Peterson was foolish to pass that up…particularly if Dorsey’s leg injuries do turn out to be a problem down the road). So I think the Chiefs should get an “A” for the first day of drafting. On the 2nd day, Jamaal Charles was an absolute steal and I liked the selections of Richardson and Johnston. Beyond that, I hated every other draft pick we made. We got a backup safety (Morgan) with a slow 40 time that we’re apparently going to try to convert to cornerback. We got an injury-prone TE (Cottam) who doesn’t block real well. We got a WR who has injury issues and isn’t a good route runner (Franklin) while there were several offensive linemen who could have started for us (and been very good in a couple of years) available. We got a Division II cornerback who doesn’t have blazing speed. And we got a blocking tight end (while some linemen were still available) who can’t run and who was so unregarded that ESPN apparently didn’t know anything about him. And we let every undrafted offensive line prospect sign with someone else (most of them went to Minnesota).
All I’ve got to say is that Chan Gailey better be able to work miracles with the holdovers from last year and the roster castoffs Peterson assembled before the draft, because unless our problems last year were mainly about Mike Solari, it’s going to be a long season watching our offense flounder. I don’t see LJ running through a lot of holes this season and I think Brodie will be spending a lot more time on his back than the Chiefs would like.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:05 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
If you factor in
2008 as a year to basically see who works out and to develop guys instead of pursuing a championship, does that make you feel differently about the picks?
by Chris Thorman on Apr 28, 2008 10:11 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Not Really...
I didn’t anticipate on the 2nd day getting guys who are great starting out, regardless of who we draft. But the problem I have is that the offensive line basically went unaddressed until the 6th round and Peterson passed up several potential prospects in the 7th to take a guy would doesn’t appear to have potential at all.
The problem I have is that in football everything flows from the lines. If you build the lines and keep them in order, then your team will generally be successful over the long haul. Skill players, though, aren’t a great foundation to build on. Will Franklin may end up being a really good receiver. I’d love to see that happen. Or he may end up being nothing at the NFL level. Point is, it’s going to be tough to find out how good Franklin is as a deep threat if he’s got no time to run out his routes because Croyle is running for his life or getting plowed by a defensive lineman (which is what I think is going to happen this year). I’d rather we were taking that gamble on an offensive lineman because there were several available at that pick who have as good a chance at making it as Franklin does…then next year we can take a promising WR project with tools (because they pop up every year in the draft). This should have been a year that we were focusing on infrastructure because it was a lineman-heavy draft and instead we focused on skill players, who aren’t going to help us build lasting success.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:21 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
As far as Cottam
This is what I read this morning about Cottams blocking: “We liked this guy,” Chiefs coach Herm Edwards said. “He didn’t catch the ball a lot, but he has a lot of speed. He can run, he’s athletic, and he’s a tough guy who finishes blocks.”
Cottam has never minded sticking his helmet on someone. In fact, it’s a rarity for the Vols when they’ve thrown a lot to their tight ends, so a Tennessee tight end learns to love blocking if he wants to play.
“The passing game gets a little more of the glory than the blocking, but the reason I like football so much is the physical aspect of it,” Cottam said. “I take a huge amount of pride in it. I think I’m a good blocker now. It’s been the part of my game that I’ve had to work on the most, and I think it’s come a long way.”
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/apr/28/vols-cottam-likes-chiefs-tight-end-statistics/
Let’s see what happens in camp.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:14 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Problems With Cottam
Unproven at catching the ball (yes, that’s an issue with the system he played in, but you could have said the same about Rickey Dudley) and can’t stay healthy (speed and potential don’t matter if you’re not on the field).
Those should be huge strikes against any receiver…particularly as high as we drafted him.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:28 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
I didnt see Maock in the Draft accuracy chart
did I miss it? He was so spot on during the first round. That Gosselin from Dallas morning news seems to be very consistently accurate. Lets hire him for the Scout dept.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:08 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
I wasn't watching the NFLN
But I heard Mayock was scary accurate.
I’m not sure why he wasn’t included in that link.
by Chris Thorman on Apr 28, 2008 10:10 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Mayock
Hell, let’s hire him for GM. :)
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:10 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
He put Casserly and the other guys to shame
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:15 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yes He Did
He put the entire ESPN draft team to shame as well (including Kiper, I though). I flipped between channels a bit on the first day and watching Mayock’s analysis and comparing it to the analysis of ESPN’s staff was like comparing the writings of Shakespeare to a fourth-grader’s.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:24 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
4th Grader Being Whoever ESPN Put Out There
ESPN seems to be most fond of touting the “intangibles” of players these days, which is usually code for “I’m too important to do my own homework on this guy”. I can’t recall Mayock talking about intangibles at all…he discussed tools, he discussed technique, he discussed performance (both overall and in specific games). That’s a guy who obsessively studies this stuff.
I can’t imagine that Mayock’s got much of a life outside of the sport, but the quality of work he does is incredible.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:34 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Did anyone see the argument about Gholston
between Mayock and the black heavy guy on the panel after the draft was over? It became very intense and it had to do with Gholston not finishing plays off. From what I could catch, Gholston has a knack for not finishing the play when the ball is away from him. I think Mayock was pointing out that Gholston was trying to blame OSU coaches for that and not himself for a lack of effort. Apparently it became an issue in interviews with some coaching staffs.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:32 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
I Didn't See That
Must have been when I flipped over to ESPN. Guess we’ll see who was right after this season. Jamie Dukes did a decent job as well, I thought.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:36 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
That Was Him
He was the only heavy black guy I saw on NFLN. I thought he was just a shade behind Mayock in his asessments (although that may have had to do with Mayock’s really brash Philly personality overwhelming everyone else) but I thought Dukes came off as well-informed and argued his points well. Mayock was definitely the star, but Dukes held his own. I’d take him over anyone from ESPN as well.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:43 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Mayock
had Brandon Flowers rated as the best CB if I’m not mistaken.
by Chris Thorman on Apr 28, 2008 10:45 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
I am mistaken
Mayock had Flowers as the 5th best corner.
by Chris Thorman on Apr 28, 2008 10:46 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
I am working on my Draft assessment I'd like to share if that's ok
and it is based off of PFW’s Draft Value Chart printed the day before the Draft. But flowers was ranked 5th best.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:52 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Who Would Have Thought...
...that after putting Bryant Gumbel in the announcer’s chair for two years, the NFL Network would become the place to go for great analysis?
I get the idea that Roger Goodell had a lot to do with overhauling what they do…I think he’s going to be an absolutely great commissioner for the sport. Possibly better than Stern has been for the NBA.
P.S. I liked the Flowers pick a lot…very solid selection by KC.
Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.
by UCrawford on Apr 28, 2008 10:46 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
Without a doubt, everyone, even the interns at NFLN
did a better job than ESPN staff and announcers. I finally saw what we have been missing all these years.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 10:54 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
No doubt about it.
I have hated ESPN and their shoddy commentators for quite some time. When I got wind of the NFLN being streamed over at NFL.com, i plugged my laptop into the tv. ESPN is almost a joke anymore in terms of coverage of sports. They report rumors as stories before checking their facts, constantly are mispronouncing names, calling players in wrong positions, etc.
I can’t stand Bryant Gumble either, But I would take him over the PTI people anyday.
have you seen my baseball?
by IISaiNtII on Apr 28, 2008 1:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Another great thing about NFLN is
they understand the game or event is the show. ESPN has been taken over by superficial, hype machine producers who believe in spectacle over substance while acting almost angry about have to turn the cameras to the actual game/event.
by DThomasReigns on Apr 28, 2008 3:34 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Wish we could see the ratings for each on Darft day Saturday
Then I am reminded that not everyone can get NFLN yet…ESPN must have something to do wtih that.
by Lanier63 on Apr 28, 2008 4:50 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
NFLN >>> ESPN
Not. Even. Close.
The only guy that I can stand over on ESPN is Jaworski. He knows what he is talking about it, and I actually learn stuff when I listen to him. Steve Young, Tom Jackson, Keyshawn Johnson all dumb it down to talk about it to the average fan. ESPN, and this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, promotes almost exclusively to the casual, don’t really care about it fan. They are afraid to go over people’s heads and lose viewers, so they stick to the basic, cliche-type talk that everyone can understand.
NFLN, on the other hand, actually provides commentary and analysis, and I learned a helluva lot over the weekend about a bunch of players in this draft. Mayock is the man, and I like Jamie Dukes and Marshall Faulk as well. Charles Davis is OK, better than anyone this side of Jaws on ESPN, and Mooch isn’t too bad.
Plus, I really really like Eisen.
by rockchalk on Apr 29, 2008 12:41 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
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