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Year after year, the same teams/GM’s seem to hit it big on draft day.  Some have made it an art form that others attempt to emulate.  Guys like Ted Thompson, Ozzie Newsome, and Jerry Reese have turned their art form into a science of building consistent teams.  Most teams tend to stick with similar draft strategies year in and year out.  This predictability allows draftniks a better chance to predict a team’s selection.  For our purposes we will define the draft strategies as:  Best Player Available, Filling Needs, Quality over Quantity and Quantity over Quality. Each of these draft techniques are used with varying degrees of success but we will try to give some insight into which is the most effective based on results of the teams.

Best Player Available

This draft technique is used by teams who believe that the NFL Draft is where you acquire talent.  These teams tend to draft the top player on the board (within reason) that can help their team win.  For the most part, these teams will approach free agency as a means of filling needs.  I tend to think this is the most effective technique since over time you will build a very strong team and not risk diluting talent by reaching for positions.  Due to the fact that these teams will draft based on their board it is very hard to predict their selections.  Teams that utilize this technique the most are:  Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, and Detroit Lions.

The Indianapolis Colts have stuck to selecting the best player on their board during the Bill Polian tenure and some might say Bill Polian is a “founding father” of drafting the best player available.  With a new General Manager it will be interesting to see if the Colts stick to their old methods or adopt the Eagles methods of trading down to acquire additional picks.

Jacksonville Jaguars General Manager Gene Smith religiously sticks to his board and does not wane based popular opinion:  Gene Smith has shown no reservation on selecting small school prospects and other players who are on the top of his draft board such as: Tyson Alualu, Derek Cox, Terrance Knighton, Cecil Shorts, and Will Rackley to name a few.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens are constantly drafting the Best Player Available and have spent a decade getting steals at the bottom of each Round.  It is no wonder certain teams can maintain success while drafting in the mid to late 20’s year in and year out. Read the rest of this entry » «The Science of Drafting 101»

We will be updating our results for each position group as the Combine progresses on.  Keep checking back for results as they come in.  They will be kept in a new NFL Scouting Combine category for ease of use.

Andre Branch

Clemson

Ht. 6-5 Wt. 260

Pass Rush:  Andre Branch is a long-limbed, linear athlete.  He can eat up space quickly and uses his length to fend off tackles and bring down the QB.  If he gets a step on the blocker, it’s pretty much over.  He a straight line guy that runs well.  Very good with his hands and excels turning outside speed into inside power.  He plays a little high, although he worked on this from 2010 to 2011.  He can get upright through contact and lose power and balance.  He’s not overly powerful and could stand to add at least 10 more pounds to his frame.

Against the run:  Branch anchors surprisingly well for a taller athlete.  Branch plays the run as he’s surging up field to the quarterback.  He’s got excellent eyes and good instincts.  He uses his arm length and active hands to stack and shed.  He has violent hands and uses his long frame to control blocks through contact.  High football IQ as he rarely is caught giving outside contain.  He will need to work on not popping upright on the snap.  Branch, as a run defender, may be able to set himself apart from other DE’s in this draft.  I was more impressed than I thought I would be. Read the rest of this entry » «Andre Branch Scouting Report»

With today’s coin flips, the order for the 2012 NFL Draft becomes official.

The Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs were today’s big winners.  The Dolphins secured the 8th pick with their win of the coin over the Carolina Panthers, who will be selecting 9th.

The Chiefs have secured the 11th pick, giving the Seahawks the 12th pick in April’s draft.  Here’s a look at the draft order for all seven rounds:

Round 1

1. Indianapolis Colts
2. St. Louis Rams
3. Minnesota Vikings
4. Cleveland Browns
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
6. Washington Redskins
7. Jacksonville Jaguars
8. Miami Dolphins
9. Carolina Panthers
10. Buffalo Bills
11. Kansas City Chiefs
12. Seattle Seahawks
13. Arizona Cardinals
14. Dallas Cowboys
15. Philadelphia Eagles
16. New York Jets
17. Cincinnati Bengals – from Oakland
18. San Diego Chargers
19. Chicago Bears
20. Tennessee Titans
21. Cincinnati Bengals
22. Cleveland Browns – from Atlanta
23. Detroit Lions
24. Pittsburgh Steelers
25. Denver Broncos
26. Houston Texans
27. New England Patriots – from New Orleans
28. Green Bay Packers
29. Baltimore Ravens
30. San Francisco 49ers
31. New England Patriots
32. New York Giants

Atlanta -> Cleveland: Julio Jones

New Orleans -> New England: Mark Ingram

Oakland -> Cincinnati: Carson Palmer  Read the rest of this entry » «The 2012 NFL Draft Order is (Finally) Official»

Morris Claiborne

LSU

Ht. 6-0 Wt. 188

Man Coverage:  Morris Claiborne is widely considered the top cover corner in this draft.  He is fluid in his backpedal and opens his hips and runs better than anyone in this draft.  He has few peers in terms of receiver awareness.  Claiborne’s ability to wall off the receiver using the sideline is unparalled.  He’s as good as anyone with his back to the ball and snaps his head around to find the ball quickly avoiding pass interference.  He possesses long arms which makes it tough for receivers to separate off the line of scrimmage.  Equally adept in press man versus off man.  He will need to learn to keep his hands off receivers after five yards in the NFL.  He loves to remain physical down the field which will be penalized in the NFL.  Elite man coverage skills.

Zone Coverage:  LSU played primarily man coverage with Claiborne and Mathieu manning the CB positions.  His natural instincts would lend themselves to be an efficient zone corner.  In rare instances, Claiborne was disciplined in zone.  He has to be considered elite from a route recognition standpoint.  I could see Claiborne excelling in a zone heavy pass defense in the NFL. Read the rest of this entry » «Morris Claiborne Scouting Report»

Not if but who?

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that “multiple teams” have discussed trading up to No. 2 overall with the St. Louis Rams.

The Rams appear to be in the catbirds seat for holding a bidding war for the rights to Robert Griffin III.  The teams likely to be in the running are Cleveland, Washington, Miami, and Seattle.  With the free agent market possibly yielding Peyton Manning and Matt Flynn, it’s probable that two of those teams will be out of the race before the draft.

St. Louis will be looking for a king’s ransom for what ultimately will be the rights to the dynamic Baylor quarterback.  Cleveland has the most ammunition but it’s unclear if they would spend what it takes to get to No. 2 with a fair amount of needs.

If St. Louis doesn’t like the deals on the table, Minnesota GM Rick Spielman has made it known that he’s willing to deal the third pick.

A lot of interesting dynamics in this scenario and we will continue to monitor closely through free agency to the 2012 NFL Draft.