top dawg

We had an excellent draft, so I really don't know why you'd be mad, much less "even more mad." It seems kinda silly because they can't draft everyone. But, to each his own. ¯\_༼ •́ ͜ʖ •̀ ༽_/¯

Good lord, man, this is my first time seeing this. I watched it several times.

I remember this story. His uncle was a high character guy as well. He couldn't swim but that didn't stop him from trying.

Add Shi Smith because he is too talented to let go. Add David Moore because he has NFL experience. Add Omar Bayless because he flashed last camp, and is likely better and is younger than Zylstra.

Noooooooo! Don't Tell me that! That's another reason I stay away from the Tinderbox, so I can exist in the main forum in bliss about certain posters. I mean, I can harbor certain suspicions without permanently feeling some type of way.

Agree with everything, except that I'd grade Shi Smith as an A. This kid can ball. He's a smaller guy, but he's not that small. He's got good size for his height, and will likely get a little bigger and stronger in the pros. He plays big, and will outplay his draft position. Mark it down!

I agree. I certainly don't think they're just making moves all willy-nilly or out of some sense of panic or desperation as some have seemed to suggest here. The only place that narrative is even put forth and entertained is on the Huddle. And Darnold is the perfect example of that. Some here have exclaimed desperation, while many pros have repeatedly proclaimed it a shrewd move and expect good dividends at the very least.

I think we're on the same page somewhat. What I'm getting at is that they obviously valued several of this players in the third round as effective second rounders not only in this year's draft class, but next year's as well. I don't believe that they're thinking that the present draft class is always the most important from a personnel or a draft capital perspective. Some FOs may view things from such a simplistic perspective, but Rhule and--now--Fitterer seem to be very much forward thinkers in terms of the bigger picture.

All draft pools are not equal. You may not want to acknowledge this fact, but you know that it's absolutely true on an intellectual level. These scouting departments scout players from highschool (sometimes earlier) through college.

Just the fact that I found myself saying "that was a damned good pick" from rounds 2-6, this draft was excellent. Just for the ability to trade back--kind of fly by the seat of their pants--and still get such great value, this draft gets somewhere between a B+ and A-. Our draft room kind of made it look easy. And, believe me, I wouldn't say it if I didn't have much faith in this draft. Call it jumping the gun if you like, but this was a great draft that will reap clear and obvious benefits.

There was markedly more OT talent than DB talent, and the dropoff in day-one starter's level DB talent was was pretty stark from what I've heard. As for Fields, he was obviously not as valued as highly by a significant number if NFL scouts as many NFL fans thought. And though perhaps unpopular with some Huddlers, some notable analysts always said that Darnold would be at worst the second QB taken in this year's draft if he had been in this class. The Slater and Horn thing is perhaps a matter of philosophy in regards to team building, or maybe just as simple as believing that Horn was a better player--a better fit--for our situation. We'll have to wait for the results, but it's not a stretch in the slightest to say that Horn may turn out to be a better CB than Slater will be an OT. In general, I think there's a lesson to be learned. Pre-draft hype is good for message boards and football talking heads, but professional NFL evaluators aren't moved by it, at all.

Fitterer and Rhule obviously believe in value. Last year's draft gave us some good value, but they upped the game this draft. Perhaps that jump was a direct result of our new GM, but Rhule and Fitterer seem to have an amazing working relationship. We've heard Rhule preach about every part of the organization being on one accord in reference to the overarching vision, and Fitterer and even Tepper seems to have bought in 100 percent.

Another solid signing!

Honestly, our offense and defense have the possibility of being just as scary.

Damned good value!

Other than maybe LT, CB seems to be the hardest damned position to successfully address, at least for us. Jaycee needs to be better than every one of the CBs we've drafted since Gamble. That's the only way I'll be happy with the pick.

Sam Darnold is the luckiest QB in the league. The kid got a mulligan! For all practical purposes, this is his essentially his rookie year all over again. Sure, it will be a shorter window to succeed, and it probably should be because he does have some pro experience, but he'll get two years to turn his fortunes around as opposed to one that I've seen suggested here. It just makes sense. Short of Deshaun Watson, Sammy's going to get a legit shot. Mark my words!

BPA! BPA! BPA! Honestly, I'm beginning to think that they're comfortable with who we got at safety and OL...at least in terms of not willing to draft for need provided that some of these guys with 2nd and 3rd round grades are still there (and I suspect that there may be an OL or Safety and--my fave--WR among them).

We did take trade offers, but none of them were sufficient to kiss Horn goodbye.

I will say that one of the best two CBs was there. Surtain may or may not turn out to be the best in this class.

I've also seen some less encouraging articles. Horn is an aggressive press corner that is being minimized in today's NFL. He's the type of corner that will fit certain schemes, but not others. I'm going to keep an open mind, & trust that Fitt & Rhule know what they're doing, even if this pick seems a little underwhelming.

We didn't overdraft last year or this year.

Nah! Pittsburgh is gonna draft Najee Harris. Loomis ain't gonna reach.