MHS831

I do not think I said there would be 8 OTs taken--but there will be 11 teams picking in the first round that have OT as a prioritized need. I think there are 3 OTs with solid first round grades and maybe 4 are taken. My point was supply and demand, in relation to your point that you need a reason to move up in the draft. There will not be many if any starting-caliber OTs in free agency, and if there is one, he will be $25m or more. Some of these teams that need an OT have no cap room; they HAVE to find an OT to protect their QB and maximize his efficiency. Daniels, Mahommes, Jackson all need OTs. My point was--if they want a T, and free agency is not an option due to cap restrictions, they HAVE to find a starting T in the draft. If the Jets take one at #7, the have to know teams will start calling. The Bears, for example, at #10 need an OT badly for their QB. But if I implied that 8 OTs would be taken, it is not what I meant. 8 teams will be pushing to move up, however.

My bad. I have been using NFL Draft Buzz to mock and they do not show us with a second rounder.

I bet he goes to Dallas.

I think, at 8, there will be a player someone covets. These top teams have few needs, so they might package a first and second and maybe a future pick to move up to take a player they covet. Gonna think out loud here for a second-- Offensive tackle--I went to a site (randomly) that lists team needs in prioritized order. ELEVEN teams list OT as a priority. (Ravens, Browns, Bears, Jets, Niners, Seahawks, Bucs, Chiefs, Packers, Commanders, Patriots, Rams). IMO there are 2 elite OT prospects and probably 4 to 5 with first round grades. I see Sanders and Ward (QB), Hunter (CB), Carter (Edge) and Johnson (CB) going in the top 7--Graham or TMac are probably likely to go next. The Jets pick 7 and will not be picking a QB. They will probably take OT Will Campbell. At that time, there is one elite OT left and ELEVEN teams that need an OT. Granted, some will address this need in free agency, but how many starting OTs are available? Now, consider you are the Chiefs, Seahawks, Packers, Bucs, or Ravens. They have little to no cap space, so grabbing a stud OT in free agency is unlikely and there are not any. You also realize that 10 or so picking before you need an OT. Once the Jets take an OT---the Panther phones will be ringing--teams will target Kelvin Banks, OT Texas. If they wait, they could hope that Josh Simmons (Ohio State) falls to them, but they are unlikely to wait for the unlikely. So the Panthers will have to ask themselves, "Would I take the Commanders' first and second and the 2026 second rounder for our first rounder?" We do not have a second rounder in 2026. We'd pick 29th and 61st in 2025. That would give the Panthers 3 picks in the first 61 picks. So who might be there? Let's say that Graham (DE Michigan) is available at #8. Most say "No brainer." But the Phone rings offering you two second rounders to move back 21 spots in round 1. You have a lot of needs. What could you get? Estimates, based on Player Rankings: 27. Derrick Harmon, DT, Oregon 57. (from Rams--not part of trade) Donovan Ezeiruaku, Edge, Boston College 61. Maxwell Hairston, CB Kentucky (assuming Mike Jackson leaves--Hairston has been eye opening at the SR Bowl practices) So basically, to give up on Graham, you get a good CB and a good DT and a future second rounder in a draft in which you had no second round.

Yeah, they seemed to quit up front--going through the motions. I think A. Robinson could have been impacted by poor Tuttle/Ray play as well--they def. need to go. But saving 5.5m and losing a DE with his experience and ability is a bit stupid. We are likely to draft a NT/DT and a DE, so rookies will need help. I also think A Rob will be better with Brown in the rotation.

The more I mock, the more I can confirm your sentiment here. Of course, we have free agency in about 6 weeks, but until we know what we have, drafting TMac early causes us to bypass the talent we need at edge and DL, especially if you are hoping to grab a starter. I think Morgan has a list of about 2-3 players he would take at 8, but if they are not there, he will trade back--he has to fee as if he needs numbers. Again, that could and will change to some degree. Carter Graham (maybe) Johnson CB (maybe) Mykel Williams (long shot maybe)

I too, am a dawg.

Yeah, and I will tell you something that bothers me a bit about this move--First, any real football guru understands that the OTs do film study on their edge opponent all week, so they know their moves. Green is a finesse player who has some sneaky power; but coming from a small school, I imagine the OT knew nothing about him. I do not think he was expecting a bull rush, and he got caught on one foot--he was not anchored at all. while it looked impressive, I was like "Meh." It says more about the OT than Green, imo. Green celebrated and it was an eye opener, but I would caution the buyer to beware. Don't get me wrong; I like Green a lot, but that is not really his game. I think they feel that they got the results they were looking for (a highlight moment that caught everyone's attention) and they wanted that to be the last taste of Green in scouts' mouths. Smart, actually, but if the OT watched film and knew who he was up against, I am not sure that Green would have surprised the OT like that. I think Green is a late first rounder/early second.

If we do not draft TMac, I am not sure our draft capital is wisely spent on WR in the first round when we need starters on defense. I have stated that I like TCU's Bech, and he has looked very good at Senior Bowl practices. Another name? Kyle Williams from Washington State. Tez Johnson is 156 pounds, but can make plays. Miami's Xavier Restrepo is an intelligent, technical route runner who will be a great pro, a slot. In my view, they all will play on Sundays, but Williams could be the sleeper we are looking for. I have not watched them all, so please add any names on this thread--SR Bowl or not--but I think we are interested in a day 2-3 gem for the most part. In my view, there are only 1 or 2 WRs worthy of first round grades.

The names are obviously indicative that we are doing some bottom-feeding--looking for gems in the gravel pile--This indicates, to me, that they are doing some intense scouting. The DT and the QB are making me research those players. Probably practice squad players, but they all are until the roster is set.

Awesome list--I think Sawyer is a SLB who can hold the edge, but his stock soared in the playoffs and he is probably a late second, early third rounder imo. Instead of Sawyer, I might wait a round or two and take Arkansas Landon Jackson. He is a bit nasty, and Morgan is there watching him. I am increasing my opinion of Donovan Ezeiruaku from BC based on watching the drills at the SR Bowl. He has some moves that are nearly unblockable. I like Mike Green, but he spins a lot. However, he had a bull rush in a drill and pancaked some OT. Now, he is less likely to do that to an NFL OT, but he also had some rip/swims to the inside that were impressive. This first round is going to be DL and LB-- around 18-20 players I would wager.

He is tiny. I should say that there are some decent WRs later in the draft--it is simply not loaded with #1 WRs. I really like Bech from TCU, for example.

I am going to rock the boat because that is what boat rockers do, I think. Morgan will trade the #8 pick if he can if Carter is not on the board. TMac, Graham are possible too. In his recent comments (forget where I read them--probably here) he referred to the #1 pick in general, but added that a trade was possible. I think it depends on what we do in free agency, but we have about 8 starting positions to fill: (CB, S, S, LB, DT, DE, Edge, WR) So it makes sense, in a draft that seems deep in front 7 players, to trade back and try to grab 3 starters--NT, Edge, and S or WR. I think we can get a DE (3,5 tech) later who can rotate with Robinson and Brown.

That is the knock on him. We have topcats bigger than that--the females too.

I think this is possible. Except I would build the OL and WR room. I would play Rattler next season. I would have to offense ready to go for a rookie QB. Defensively, I would cut big contracts. If this is what I was planning to do, that is.

I agree -would not play him at NT---3 or 5 tech.

Gonna comment (above) on some mutual interests--most of these I have not researched--but I will use this to watch the game and take notes. TY

I miss it every year---thanks

After what you told us about that Eastern European Sumo wrestler--or whatever--mad respect.

Until free agency is over, we have no clue--we could spend the entire draft on the D. I think, in terms of starters (assuming we keep Clowney, Wonnum, Cade, but lose Jackson) we need a S, CB, ILB (Jewell and Wallace? Nope), NT/DT, 5t/DE, Edge, and WR. (7). We need 4 from free agency and 3 from the draft. And this is not dreaming--we have to do this.

I played in the Southern Conference and we had 1 guy drafted; three more made NFL teams as UDFAs following my last year. Now, these guys were head and shoulders better than most everyone else on our team, but we still thought, "Nobody from here is going to make a splash in the NFL. Sure, they are good against Furman and the Citadel..." Two of the undrafted free agents became pro bowlers and had 10+ year careers. You just never know, so when I hear, "level of competition" that means little to me. I mean, the level of your team makes it more difficult to shine, if you ask me. If your OL sucks and your QB sucks and your coach sucks--it is hard to look good.

I am a professor and we have a ton of committees. I was new at an area university and was nominated to be a member of the "committee on committees." It sounded easy and redundant--two things I look for in a committee (we have to serve on some as a condition of tenure). I asked, "What does that committee do?" Is it a committee that discusses why we have too many committees? The answer, in the event you are interested: A committee on committees in a college "matches the requests of faculty and staff members with available committee positions." I did absolutely nothing on that committee.

Maybe his weight is his problem--maybe they feel if they can get him down to 320 or so, he could be more effective.

KC Philly

You will see how good Brady is on this fourth down.