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2009 NFL Mock Draft, Version 7.0 (Mid March)
Authored by Jeff Risdon - 18th March, 2009 - 11:06 am
Between the Broncos, Vikings, Cedric Benson and Steve Smith, there have been many surprises, while Tony Romo and the Green Bay offensive line have been disappointments.
After more than a month of voting, the championship round is finally here. Who is the NFL's better cornerstone -- Adrian Peterson or Tom Brady?
RealGM Search
Updated: 03/17/09
No write-ups in this version, but I did extend it out to four full rounds. Several readers correctly pointed out I had some mistakes in the draft order. Thanks for catching my errors; this is the updated order, minus the yet-to-be-determined compensatory picks.
Some quick notes:
I do not buy the doom-and-gloom around Andre Smith. Bottom line: the guy is a special player, but not a great athlete or businessman. I'll be real surprised if he falls below #10 overall.
If you see a CB, WR, or RB a lot higher or lower than you expect, it's almost certainly because of speed, or lack thereof. The last two drafts have taught that raw speed overrides more polished talent in a slightly slower package at those spots, at least in terms of draft order. I do not expect that to change this year.
The two Eagles picks in the first round are huge variables to the entire 20-40 range. There are so many if/then scenarios that could play out. Most everyone I talk to believes they are taking a tackle with one of those picks, but which tackle and with which pick is anyone's guess.
I do not expect New England to keep more than two of their first four picks (all in the top 58). I slotted players with the draft position and not necessarily the Patriots to some extent with all three second rounders. I do strongly believe they will take at least one RB with those picks -- they have just one RB on the roster who figures in their plans beyond next season. And if the Patriots think that just the #34 pick will be enough to get Julius Peppers from Carolina, they are sorely mistaken.
I get a lot of comments about "Why would Team X take two players at the same position in these rounds?"
Some quick research turned up the following: In each of the last five drafts, at least 11 teams have used multiple picks on the same position in every single draft. Most common are CB, interior OL (the Colts took 3 G/C last year), and DL, though the Patriots have taken three safeties in one draft (none of which made the team -- be real wary of the proclamations of Scott Pioli's draft acumen, Chiefs fans!) It happens for a variety of reasons, none of which those of you who send the derogatory emails would probably comprehend.
Lions fans: I know the team has delved deep into Josh Freeman's background, and I know they rate him higher than Mark Sanchez. This is just a gut hunch, but I feel stronger by the day that they will take Freeman, either at #20 or spending the price to move up if they feel the 49ers, Bears or Jets are interested.
Three hardest players to slot: Mark Sanchez, Aaron Maybin, and D.J. Moore -- all of whom have realistic ranges of more than 15 slots. I can see Maybin going anywhere from #11 to #50.
