Jerry Lai – USA TODAY Sports
The 2013 first round wasn’t as action packed as I expected. I figured a record number of trades and insanity would ensue but it was pretty mild. Here’s our recap with pick by pick analysis.
Check out the 2013 NFL Draft recap after the break: Read the rest of this entry » «2013 NFL Draft Recap: Round One with pick by pick analysis»
Scott Olmos-US PRESSWIRE
Not a soul in the world should be shocked by the fact that the Dolphins moved up the draft and it was with the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders have heavily shopped the No. 3 pick in the draft all week.
The shock comes as everyone assumes the Dolphins are going to take Lane Johnson, the athletic Oklahoma tackle, with the pick. Jeff Ireland threw a curveball by selecting Oregon edge rusher Dion Jordan.
Compensation for the trade was Oakland receiving the 12th and 42nd pick for No. 3.
USA TODAY Sports
The Draft is here and it’s time to put all the speculation to rest. Stay tuned into NFL’s Future for all the latest news, rumors, and goings-on in the draft. Leave comments, thoughts, frustrations in the comment section and we can bounce around some thoughts on the craziness that will be the 2013 NFL Draft. Read the rest of this entry » «2013 NFL Draft Live Blog»
Scott Olmos-US PRESSWIRE
Our annual draft day exercise is the culmination of over a year’s worth of tape evaluation that leads to the development of ‘man crushes’ on a select few draft prospects.
The 2013 NFL Draft is considered ‘weak’ as it’s lacks the top shelf talent of many of the previous drafts. Since December I’ve been singing the praises of the 2nd and 3rd round depth of the draft. I always seem to know who I’ve been crushing on because they are the names outside the Ohio State players that my wife knows the name of.
Our infatuation usually involves a quarterback or two but this year will be the exception. While I’m high on Geno Smith and higher on Zac Dysert than many, they didn’t make the cut for this illustrious list. Without further ado, here’s our official 2013 NFL Draft crush list.
This list starts and could end with Oregon State wide receiver Markus Wheaton. I first put eyes on Wheaton in 2011 against Wisconsin. It was a blowout loss for Oregon State but Wheaton was the guy that I left feeling was the best pro prospect not named Russell Wilson (my top 2012 draft crush). The list of players that were outdueled by Wheaton that day included Kevin Zeitler, Peter Konz, and Montee Ball. Read the rest of this entry » «2013 NFL Draft Crushes»
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Albert Breer of the NFL Network reports “rumors” of the Cleveland Browns interest of moving into the top three to take a pass rusher. Much of the speculation is centered around Oakland’s No. 3 pick that they are said to be shopping heavily to the highest bidder.
We reported on Tuesday that the Raiders may have a deal in place to move down a few spots. The Tony Pauline report was said to be if Luke Joeckel or Eric Fisher were on the board but neither of those two would wet the whistle of Mike Lombardi and the Browns.
It’s becoming clear the Browns have their eye on a pass rusher in round one. Many have speculated and reported of the Browns interest in LSU OLB Barkevious Mingo but we have heard throughout the process that those inside Berea have an eye for Oregon OLB Dion Jordan. Assuming the Browns are attempting to get in front of Philadelphia and Detroit, you could throw any one of three names in the hat if the Browns move up: Mingo, Jordan, and Ezekiel Ansah.
The only known at this point in the draft is that the top is all about guys who can protect and get after the quarterback.
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
Four days until the draft kicks off we continue our spotlight series that will take an in-depth look at some of the top prospects and where they could fit in team’s draft plans.
Ryan Nassib has been a major source of contention in my evaluation process. I have been on record as rating him as a 3rd-4th round prospect. While many, including Jon Gruden, rate him as the top quarterback in this draft class. Far be it from me to challenge the eye of Gruden and many others who see a special skill set in the Syracuse signal caller but I struggle to find a lot to love with the kid.
Nassib hails from West Chester, Pennsylvania and attended Malvern Prep. He was rated as the 34th rated prospect in the state of Pennsylvania and chose Syracuse after drawing little interest from other major schools.
Athletics was in Nassib’s blood. His father played at Deleware and his mother was a volleyball player at Villanova. His cousin, Joe, is a current Syracuse corner and brother, Carl, is a defensive end for Penn State.
Nassib is a standout in the classroom, earning his bachelor’s during the 2011 season and is currently working on his master’s in accounting.
On the field, Nassib redshirted in 2008 but beat out incumbent starter Cameron Dantley in 2009. Nassib would be jumped by Duke transfer Greg Paulus after a week of fall practice but saw action in 10 games, throwing for 422 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Nassib would take over as a full-time starter in 2010 and finish out as a three-year starter for Doug Marrone’s squad. Nassib proved to be a capable sophomore as a redshirt sophomore as he led the Orange to a 7-5 record and a win in the Pinstripe Bowl.
The 2011 season was a relative disappointment as the Orange finished with a 5-7 record and failed to make a bowl appearance. That said, Nassib took clear steps forward as a quarterback as a junior. He improved on his completion percentage and appeared to be a much more accurate passer capable of making plays with his arm.
As a senior, Nassib would carve his name into the Syracuse record books as he became the school’s all-time leader in passing yards (9,060), pass completions (780), and passing yards per game (201.3). More importantly, Nassib would lead his team to another win in the Pinstripe Bowl, this time outdueling West Virginia’s Geno Smith. Read the rest of this entry » «Draft Spotlight: Ryan Nassib»
Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
It’s a bittersweet moment as the words “FINAL” don the title our 2013 NFL Mock Draft. We are less than 24 hours away from the kickoff to the 2013 NFL Draft and this serves as our official wrap on the 2013 draft season. With over fifty mock drafts gracing the pages of NFL’s Future they boil down to this final edition that will be our submission to the vaunted Huddle Report competition. Keep in mind there’s some strategy involved in this mock draft as you earn three points for right pick to right team and one point for player taken in round one.
After the break check out our final mock draft and pray we don’t go 0-32 on our picks. Read the rest of this entry » «FINAL 2013 NFL Mock Draft»
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One of the most talent rich positions, if not THE most talent rich position in football is the pass rusher. Rather it be an outside linebacker in a 3-4 alignment, a defensive end in a 4-3 or a defensive tackle in any scheme, we have some of the best young talent in the history of football playing right now. I will break down the the guys who I feel will be at the top of the game five years from now. I call it, the “Sack 7″….
#4: Von Miller
Throughout the 90′s – a linebacker out of Alabama wreaked havoc on NFL QB’s. Totaling 126 sacks in 10 seasons, (An NFL record 7 sacks in one game) this player cemented himself as not only possibly the most explosive pass rusher in his time period, but possibly ever. Standing at 6’3, and an undersized 250 lbs – wearing #58 for the Kansas City Chiefs, Derrick Thomas was ahead of his time. Playing as a stand up rush linebacker, Thomas used lightning quick speed to easily blow by offensive linemen. He used a low center of gravity to gain a leverage advantage that converted into power in a nanosecond. He id it all with a certain swagger and poise that the youth of tomorrow could look up to.
Today, a 6’3 – 237 lb outside linebacker – wearing #58 for the Denver Broncos, is racking up sacks at a record pace. Totaling 30 in his his first 2 seasons.
Von Miller, the outside linebacker for the Denver Broncos is eerily picking up where Derrick Thomas left off. It’s almost hard to find a pair of players who look and play so similar. Fans of the late, enigmatic, Thomas should definitely have an appreciation for what Von Miller is accomplishing these days. Read the rest of this entry » «The Sack 7: Coming for your QB…Von Miller»
Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports
The NFL Draft is a perfect example of just how powerful the media is. The current modus operandi for NFL Draft media happens to be Twitter. With seemingly every draft fan linked up on the Twitter platform is easy to get a whole lot of consensus built up quickly on a player that may or may not be worthy.
The power of a Mel Kiper/Todd McShay/insert any major media member tweet about a prospect can send a player into a stratosphere that may not be indicative of his on-field play. I’m not suggesting agents or teams use their leverage to snowball draft fans…or maybe I am.
Either way, the fact remains that the media hype of players has been a historical issue, glorified by social media.
Today we take on the All-Overvalued and All-Undervalued Teams. We break down each position to give fans an idea of who we believe are being over-and-undervalued in the draft coverage.
Overvalued – Margus Hunt, DE, SMU
Margus Hunt is a flat out freak. Size, speed, and strength in spades. They don’t get much more impressive on the eye test than Hunt.
I have no doubts that Hunt could be a special teams force and subpackage rusher early but those characteristics don’t scream first or second round for me. Hunt is being talked up as a possible first rounder and this floor appears to be in the early stages of round two.
Hunt carries a fourth-fifth round grade for us. He was a splash player that didn’t affect the game consistently in any one game that we watched. He was great in spurts but often times didn’t play up to his physical talent. Read the rest of this entry » «Position by position overvalued/undervalued 2013 NFL Draft prospects: The Defense»
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
It’s long been (or at least since Deadspin released a taped phone conversation involving Buddy Nix) the thought the Buffalo Bills were eyeing a trade down scenario to acquire picks. It’s also becoming common belief that they covet Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio revealed on SportsCenter this morning that the Jets offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg is “very high” on the Syracuse signal caller. The Jets interest would throw a monkey wrench in the Bills wishes to move down the draft board and still obtain Nassib.
The Jets hold the keys to the draft with the 9th and 13th picks, following the Darrelle Revis trade. The Jets interest in Nassib appears to be real as they have spent significant time evaluating the QB, including a long dinner with prominent members of the coaching staff and organization.
The Bills haven’t hidden their interest in Nassib, which is a fairly historical trait of GM Buddy Nix. Doug Marrone’s former Syracuse pupil appears to be his first crown jewel in his Bills tenure.
“I know one thing for sure in talking to people around the league,” Paolantonio said, via Rotoworld. “The Buffalo Bills want Ryan Nassib. But they’re very concerned the Jets will take him later in the first round. So the Bills may be forced to take him at No. 8.”
Whether you’re a fan of Nassib’s or not (I would fall into the latter category), you can’t blame the Bills for aggressively identifying their guy at the most important position in football and getting him despite it being considered a ‘reach’. When it comes to quarterbacks, it’s tough to say anyone is a ‘reach’ because you can’t win without a good one, which requires taking a chance at some point.
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