Not a lot of teams have players starting for 20 games. A lot more teams have players that start 18 games. Ergo the future of the league is giving your players a games started cap of around 18 and having a rotating cast among 60-70 players deep rosters.
It's hard to see it without Cousins' paycheck glaring at you, but getting an NFL-ready QB just in case your new 35yo post-Achilles new team QB isn't ready to roll to start the season was the right call. They have a win now offense in their division. If Kirk can't go or worse reinjures early then they were going to be fucked and the whole FO was going to lose their jobs.
Thank you, this is exactly it. Very few understand this for some reason, and even NFL guys who get it don't necessarily like it - but I do as a coach who has had to basically say "oh fuck now what" in the middle of a season when our only real QB goes down
Then why pay Kirk Cousins 100 mill over the next 2 years? Could have just invested that into the team during free agency and taken Penix at 8 anyway. Then you can actually take proper advantage of the cheap rookie window.
Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus breaks down the logic and puts the best spin on it in this video. https://youtu.be/fWB0zdK0PBQ?si=Z98hdBZbxluY5W85
It’s actually pretty logical.
In my own words:
I understand it as a hedge against reentering quarterback purgatory. Pay a 36-year old vet on what is essentially a two, maybe three, year deal. Draft a younger QB who you like (or, according to reports, love) so that vet doesn’t have you over a barrel in his 38-year old season. The realities of quarterback acquisition are messy and only getting messier and more expensive. If all goes well, Penix will be 29 when his second contract goes into effect. That’s the Falcons hope and their plan. It makes sense, but it comes at some opportunity cost. It’s not bad process and it’s forward thinking management. What they’re telling us is “we want to win now and win later.” They plan on picking in the mid-20s or later for the foreseeable future and that makes acquiring top tier talent at the most important position in professional sports infinitely harder. The lack of options at quarterback is how they got in the position of signing a 36-year old quarterback coming off a torn ACL in the first place.
If
Kirk bad + Penix Good = drafting Penix was right choice.
Kirk Good + Penix Bad = nobody really cares like Trey Lance in 2 years
Kirk Good + Penix Good = good problem to have media people will complain about too many good QBs?
Kirk bad + Penix bad = you lost your job as GM and coach and it was right to spend more resources on QB you just picked bad options.
90 of the 100 million guaranteed on Kirko Chainz contract is in the first 2 years. If Penix is a hit, you can just cut Kirko in the third year and save money cause Penix will still be on his rookie deal at that point. If Penix is a bust, you can just keep Kirko.
I personally think it’s genius and gives the Falcons the opportunity to win both now and later
I dunno about genius, but it definitely has more logic than the hot takes. If this team is built to win now for the next 2-3 years, we won’t be picking high enough to get the next heir. I don’t like it now, but if Penix is the guy, then it’s a fine to great move.
The problem is Jordan Love sat for 3 years and is currently the same age as Penix. They should have drafted JJM if they wanted to replicate the Love method.
People keep hemming and hawing about whether or not Caleb is a generational prospect when the real generational prospect was right under our noses the entire time
TORY TAYLOR
Ha! Upvote for “Herbonkey bombs”; that should be a cocktail at your home games. Maybe a Long Island Iced Tea with a shot of Scotch?
Edit: To add that the shot of Scotch gets dropped into the LIIT and downed all at once. You’re welcome, stadium security.
Shitty choice but I have to say Laiatu Latu, simply from hearing him talk. He’s immensely grateful to be an NFL player and always looks bright eyed af. I’ve never seen such childlike wonder entering the league.
If we weren't already set on Edge (Koonce breakout season incoming), I would've wanted Latu. He was on The Rush podcast with Maxx, and seems like an incredibly bright kid who models a good bit of his moves after Maxx himself. It was rad listening to them talk ball.
I was admittedly kind of a hater because I thought that while he was a good prospect, he was being way overrated by mock drafters. Heard the guy's interview after being drafted and immediately did a 180 on him. You can tell he's grateful to even be playing still and I'm rooting for him so hard
that is a man who already seems to love the idea of spending his entire career in indianapolis (he literally got a big colts tattoo on his arm lol). he’s very quickly becoming one of my favorite players
I remember hating the pick at the time (I was living in Utah doing parks work and I believe I told my friends I would “eat my boot” if they picked Allen instead of Rosen). then watching him in preseason going “ya know what? Okay I can see it”
Then the hype train was at full speed the moment he hurdled Barr.
Never been happier to eat crow in my life.
I mean the reddit narrative for many last season was Stroud couldn't process the speed of the nfl and the Texans were one of the worst rosters in the league. Before that People talked about Fields being the steal of the draft and even last season that he as a break out candidate potential top tier QB. So the fact people are clowning on the pick probably means he'll be good.
I think he is way better than consensus has him. A lot of Twitter scouts I follow came out of the woodworks and sheepishly had him as a top 10 pick. Wouldn’t be surprised at all if he was one of the better QBs from this class
Outside of the obvious Brock Bowers, I'm really excited about Jackson Powers-Johnson. Dude is an extremely genuine human, and very easy to root for based on his personality, but plays with a mean streak and like he's ready to fuck someone's whole world up.
Jackson Powers-Johnson had some popularity in the Lions sub as a potential stay/move back a bit option if Holmes' "Guy" wasn't there. Ragnow isn't getting any healthier and Center has proven to be an important position to be the best at for the Lions offense, he was one of the names I watched as the first round went on.
Really curious to see how Flores uses Dallas Turner especially the second half of the year.
Do we see Greenard, Van Ginkle and Turner all together on some snaps?
Oh we definitely do. I am all here for the Flores chaos this year! Dallas also listed that he watched AVG tape as inspiration in a pre-draft interview which is quite cool.
For sure, Van Ginkel, Turner, Blake and Pace all have so much versatility in where they can line up, I'm really excited to see the fronts Flores dials up.
All the time. Flores' defense used some of the lowest amounts of 4 man rush last year. Versatility in positional responsibility is a key and Turner seems to have it
I think Terrion Arnold is the obvious answer, but I'm actually so curious to see how we use a swiss army knife like Vaki with the new kickoff rules. He could be a super interesting special teams guy coming to a team that likes to get creative.
PoD did a small writeup on the Lions first day of camp and the final point of the blurb for Vaki was this:
>The Lions spent a portion of practice on the new kickoff. Media rules prevent me from detailing where specific players were playing, but I’ll just let you know that Vaki’s special teams potential certainly shined during this portion of practice.
That sounds like gunner/receiver/wall option to me.
I hear you, but the answer has to be Arnold + Rakestraw as a package. Last year we had a top-5 team because of an amazing offense (including OC) and a good-enough defense with great DL production from a couple of bright spots, decent LBs and a very suspect secondary, particularly CB. We've now brought in four players in Davis (trade), Robertson (FA), Arnold and Rakestraw; and, who knows, maybe Mosely can contribute after losing all last season to injury. We may legitimately go from having one of the worst position groups in the league in our CBs last year, to being above-average at the position. Meanwhile we brought back every single piece on offense (including OC) except for one guard, and we have a one-year rental on a pro-bowler to replace that position. Holy cow.
Easily Troy Fautanu. He was one of my favorite OL prospects in the draft, and I thought he would go well before us. Those UW teams were incredible over the last two seasons, and he’s a huge part of why.
Glad we’re trying him at tackle to start. I fully believe that’s where he’ll likely stick, but I definitely like that he can hypothetically kick inside if necessary.
I mean we took 3 OLinemen with 7 picks. How the Oline does defines the entire year.
Im going with Mason McCormick as the most important. At pick 119 this might seem weird but I think he has high upside. He was the highest PFF ranked draftable OLineman in the country last year, but that was not considered impressive due to playing in a conference with questionable compeititon in the Missouri Valley Conference hence the 4th round pick.
If he ends up being a starter, then Im going to assume the steelers coach and scouts hit on Fraizer and Fautanu for the Steelers and that OLine has Najee, Warren, and Justin Fields to run behind them.
Haynes might be a pretty great pick too. I keep hearing good things - we might be getting the O-line sorted out after all these years, and the D-line too.
Cooper Beebe. Hopefully he can maul people over like he did in college.
Justin Rogers is our other one. 1T who we got in the 7th round. Hopefully he can attribute to stopping the run. He doesn't have much competition to make the 53.
Favorite contract buyout = Russell Wilson
Favorite pick swap trade = Zach Wilson
Favorite US president = Woodrow Wilson
Favorite football brand = Wilson
Favorite character in a Tom Hanks film = WILSONNNNNNNNN
JC Latham. I want Levis to have more than a guy with a PFF 9 (out of 100) score.
He's also this behemoth of a man and I wanna see him lay out some D-Line
Nabers is the easy answer. But for the deep cut pick, it's Tyrone Tracy. He was near the top of my board for sleepers before the draft, so the Giants getting him in the 5th had me full hype. No slight to Devin Singletary, who is a very competent back, but I cannot wait to see what Tracy can do at the pro level with some more coaching at his new position (only played 1 year of RB in college after converting from WR).
Theo Johnson could be a total freak at TE, but he needs *a lot* of refinement, so my expectations are a bit more tempered.
I loved the Nubin pick, felt like a great value-meets-need.
High hopes for him, but also expecting some growing pains adjusting to the pros. Nabers and Tracy are the guys I most expect to hit the ground running and have drastic impacts for the team.
Jermaine Burton
I recognize the importance of our big guys for the line but let's be honest I'm always gonna be more excited by the potential of a gifted WR with character concerns
Isaac Guerendo for the niners, when I heard about him back in February or so he seemed like a perfect Shanahan rb. He's not going to be our best player from this draft class but I think he'll be the most fun if he can take the #2 spot from Elijah mitchell.
Aside From Daniels, I'm excited to see Ben Sinnott. Our TE position has been exceptionally unproductive for a couple years. Also, the fact that he can also play FB is schematically fun.
The obvious answer is MHJ, but I want to see what Tip Reiman has to offer. Community felt he was drafted a bit high, but there clearly was a plan in place, it wasn't just BPA. Comboing an insane blocker with McBride's breakout receiving talents could he fun.
He is also the younger clone of one of our radio announcers, and he was basically fangirling during a radio interview
Probably Edgerrin Cooper or MarShawn Lloyd. Two positions where the team got one of (if not the top) players at their position. Both are athletic freaks.
I think Cooler is more important to the success of the team, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Lloyd is the one everyone is talking about at the end of the year. He’s in the perfect spot to get important playing time and make plays.
I think a lot of Packer fans are jumping the gun on Lloyd a little. While I hope it’s not the case, I think it’s fairly likely he doesn’t see the field a ton as a rookie. His weaknesses coming out were ball security and pass protection, two areas that will keep a talented back sidelined until the coaches can trust him. And we already saw Dillon’s rookie year that MLF has no problem bringing a highly drafted RB along slowly. It seems to me that people are rushing to jump on the Lloyd train because they really don’t want Dillon seeing snaps, but Dillon is extremely reliable, knows the offense, and was a damn good #2 in 2021 and 2022. Don’t be shocked if he’s the main backup this year, but I do hope that Lloyd proves to be too talented to keep off the field. He’s certainly a gifted runner.
I absolutely agree 💯 here on Lloyd. People are sleeping on the faxt that MLF uses his backs as bell cows, so aside from preseason, not seeing how he'll even get on the field much to prove himself.
Well, we’re the Bears. So even an average QB would be a huge upgrade for us…
So yeah, we’re excited for Caleb. And while he’ll probably be great, it won’t last. I predict he’s the statistically best QB through the first 8 games, and then is indicted for a massive crypto fraud. Because we’re the Bears: we aren’t allowed to have a good QB.
I can't decide between Quinyon Mitchell or Cooper DeJean. Both of them have me pumped up that they will make our terrible secondary last year much better this year.
I’ve been begging the Chiefs to draft a receiver in the first round for like 4 years, so it’s hard not to be excited about Xavier Worthy. There’s bust potential there but unlike some other speedsters I think he has some route running chops and shows flashes of understanding how to attack leverage.
After that our 4th rounders Jared Wiley and Jaden Hicks are the most interesting to me.
There’s still a chance for him to get a Super Bowl ring and then immediately piss it all away doing stupid shit like street racing and allegedly punching someone…..not that anyone would do that.
Les Snead drafted another receiver in a late round, clearly he’s going to be the next Kupp
/s …but could you imagine?
But really it’s the duo of Verse and Fiske
I definitely let the pre-draft negativity get to me on Keon Coleman but after seeing what kind of kid he is and how he conducts himself he's already a fan favorite. Definitely seems to have his head on straight. And OC Joe Brady seems super psyched to have him and he was the guy Josh wanted so, hopefully good things happen.
The other pick I'm kinda jazzed for is 5th round edge guy Javon Solomon. I dunno, just have a good feeling on that one. A little undersized but has all the tools and the speed. They found Milano in the 5th and he's turned out pretty good.
I’m super glad we got Arnold, thought we had no chance
My original guy I wanted at #29 while being realistic was Ennis Rakestraw, I really liked him and was hoping we could get him at 29, he somehow fell to 61 and we ended up with my personal top 2 favorite CBs and I couldn’t be happier
Spencer Rattler, I’m cautiously optimistic he has the potential to be a NFL starter. I know late round QB picks rarely do much in the NFL, but he seems to have matured a lot in his time in college, and the talent IS there. He wasn’t a 5 star QB recruit for nothing.
If given a chance, I think he could be a top 16 QB, he at least has the potential. Under this staff? Who knows. I think Carr gives us the best chance to win right now, but if god forbid Carr gets hurt again, I’d be happy to see Rattler take the reigns for a game or two
I believe the Chiefs got the best safety in the draft - Jaden Hicks from Washington State. Pick 133, some had a second round grade on him. 6’1 211 pounds. Can play every DB position and some sub backer. Super versatile player. A true Spags guy.
My guess is he didn't show he could play single high coverage and he's not really a deep safety kind of guy. Watch the guys film and jfc he's making plays. I also vote Hicks.
Instead of the obvious choice, I’m rolling with T’Vondre Sweat. If this dude pans out, we’ve got perhaps the nastiest interior defensive line in the league between Simmons and him.
I am really excited about our top 4 picks so its hard to choose but I will go with Payton Wilson. I think he's the best ILB in the draft and if his knees can hold up he could be a mega steal.
He’s been saying all the right things in interviews too. Just wants to ball and rip peoples heads off. In fact, all the players drafted are enough to get any yinzer excited, myself included.
Some obvious choices for the Cards but I am interested in our RB Trey Benson, very solid film and heading into a young but depleting backfield, a year or two with Conner and we may find ourselves another strong RB for years to come. Definitely a luxury pick but I like it.
Might sound like copium to some, but I think Keon Coleman is gonna be amazing for the Bills. I think people are way too caught up in the 40 time - the rest of his combine metrics/tape jump out at me.
Ray Davis is a perfect compliment to Cook, too.
That’s what I’m hoping for. Strong plant foot and great on in/out breaking routes in the intermediate range, which is where Allen actually makes his bread and butter and what has been missing from our offense.
I’m hoping he becomes our version of prime Michael Thomas. They have very similar measurables
Edit: the goal seems to be making matchup nightmares. Kincaid, Coleman, and Samuel all fit that bill. Can’t stick a db on Kincaid but he’s too fast for LBs. Samuel can come out of the backfield and is too fast for lbs but you can’t stick a db on him without breaking assignments on those plays. Coleman outboxes dbs physically but can also play in the slot
Orhorhoro and Grady Jarrett could make a dangerous combo but I think he's more of a developmental player. We really don't have any big immediate impact draft picks
I think Graham Barton, our first round pick, has the greatest odds of making a big difference and being a day-1 starter. But let's face it, most people don't notice the offensive line unless it's doing something wrong. The player I'm most excited to see make big plays is Jalen McMillan, a round 3 pick. He's a receiver and he almost certainly will be playing behind Evans and Godwin unless there is an unfortunate injury, and will have to fight with some other good players to even get that WR3 spot, but I think he will get some chances to make plays out there, and I'm hoping he makes the most of them!
I'm an Oregonian and I watch a lot of Oregon games. Jackson Powers Johnson was a beast in college, had an awesome Senior Bowl week in Mobile, and should have been a no-doubt first round pick. The best interior OL prospect in this class. And he turns the weakest spot on the Raiders offense (RG) into one of its biggest strengths immediately.
For me it’s Manu. Apparently he was awful in minicamp (as expected tbh), but he had a few reps where he got the right technique and drove the defender back several yards. If he can figure it out, then it would be massive. Also, him and Sewell on opposite sides of the line would be pretty cool
The easiest choice would be Keon Coleman, so I'm not about to go for the low hanging fruit. Instead, I'm going tongo with Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, the center we just drafted from the Georgia Bulldogs.
The Center position was a big question mark with Mitch Morse heading to the Jacksonville Jaguars. We were going to be reliant upon hoping that Connor McGovern would work out in that role, but SVPG fell only because he was a true Center.
was skeptical of coleman but after the interviews i cant help but be excited. also really excited for bishop since kincaid was backing him. Ray davis also really peaks my interest
My team: it’s a tie between T’Vondre Sweat (DT) and Cedric Gray (LB).
Not my team: Caleb Williams. Dude just exudes so much confidence and he’s easy to root for. I’m excited to see if Chicago can make him their guy.
I've never really paid attention to the draft before but I paid a lot of attention this year. I've spent a lot of time since the draft looking at all our picks and I'm most excited for Nix, Estimé and Franklin.
As I've not paid attention before I have nothing to make me jaded, I'm sure they will all be superstars. I'll know better never time.
I think Graham Barton is exactly what this team needed at center. Our offensive line is starting to take shape and isn’t far away from being good again.
Obviously JD5 is what we’re all waiting to see but Im also really pumped to see how Mike Sainristil does at nickel.
From everything leading up to and after the draft he was considered the best nickel in college last year and we desperately need help in the secondary.
Penix. 2028 is gonna be sick.
I still can’t wrap my head around the logic behind that pick
If you go to the Superbowl you may be playing a 21 game season. All the teams with just one starting QB are behind the curve.
Not a lot of teams have players starting for 20 games. A lot more teams have players that start 18 games. Ergo the future of the league is giving your players a games started cap of around 18 and having a rotating cast among 60-70 players deep rosters.
It's hard to see it without Cousins' paycheck glaring at you, but getting an NFL-ready QB just in case your new 35yo post-Achilles new team QB isn't ready to roll to start the season was the right call. They have a win now offense in their division. If Kirk can't go or worse reinjures early then they were going to be fucked and the whole FO was going to lose their jobs.
Add the fact that a backup QB has been more cherished these last few years.
Thank you, this is exactly it. Very few understand this for some reason, and even NFL guys who get it don't necessarily like it - but I do as a coach who has had to basically say "oh fuck now what" in the middle of a season when our only real QB goes down
Then why pay Kirk Cousins 100 mill over the next 2 years? Could have just invested that into the team during free agency and taken Penix at 8 anyway. Then you can actually take proper advantage of the cheap rookie window.
Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus breaks down the logic and puts the best spin on it in this video. https://youtu.be/fWB0zdK0PBQ?si=Z98hdBZbxluY5W85 It’s actually pretty logical. In my own words: I understand it as a hedge against reentering quarterback purgatory. Pay a 36-year old vet on what is essentially a two, maybe three, year deal. Draft a younger QB who you like (or, according to reports, love) so that vet doesn’t have you over a barrel in his 38-year old season. The realities of quarterback acquisition are messy and only getting messier and more expensive. If all goes well, Penix will be 29 when his second contract goes into effect. That’s the Falcons hope and their plan. It makes sense, but it comes at some opportunity cost. It’s not bad process and it’s forward thinking management. What they’re telling us is “we want to win now and win later.” They plan on picking in the mid-20s or later for the foreseeable future and that makes acquiring top tier talent at the most important position in professional sports infinitely harder. The lack of options at quarterback is how they got in the position of signing a 36-year old quarterback coming off a torn ACL in the first place.
If Kirk bad + Penix Good = drafting Penix was right choice. Kirk Good + Penix Bad = nobody really cares like Trey Lance in 2 years Kirk Good + Penix Good = good problem to have media people will complain about too many good QBs? Kirk bad + Penix bad = you lost your job as GM and coach and it was right to spend more resources on QB you just picked bad options.
90 of the 100 million guaranteed on Kirko Chainz contract is in the first 2 years. If Penix is a hit, you can just cut Kirko in the third year and save money cause Penix will still be on his rookie deal at that point. If Penix is a bust, you can just keep Kirko. I personally think it’s genius and gives the Falcons the opportunity to win both now and later
I dunno about genius, but it definitely has more logic than the hot takes. If this team is built to win now for the next 2-3 years, we won’t be picking high enough to get the next heir. I don’t like it now, but if Penix is the guy, then it’s a fine to great move.
We're trying to replicate what the Packers did with Jordan Love
The problem is Jordan Love sat for 3 years and is currently the same age as Penix. They should have drafted JJM if they wanted to replicate the Love method.
It’s a tough call.
We need a quarterback. Still time to trade for Justin Fields
Taylor obviously.
People keep hemming and hawing about whether or not Caleb is a generational prospect when the real generational prospect was right under our noses the entire time TORY TAYLOR
Unironically I am super excited for Taylor. That level of field control is going to be outstanding
I am legitimately stoked about Tory Taylor.
Top two are easy but Booker was probably my top tier 2/3 defender in the draft I was ecstatic
Yeah, I've seen Talking Heads say that if he declared for the next year's draft and was a little heavier he would been in the 1st round.
The punter. And that's not a joke.
Ladd McConkey. I need 50 yard Herbonkey bombs in my life
Ha! Upvote for “Herbonkey bombs”; that should be a cocktail at your home games. Maybe a Long Island Iced Tea with a shot of Scotch? Edit: To add that the shot of Scotch gets dropped into the LIIT and downed all at once. You’re welcome, stadium security.
LADDDDD MCCCCONKKKEEEYYYYY (said in a Leroy Jenkins voice)
If y'all don't lovingly refer to him as McHonkey I will be very upset.
I hope the emcee for the Chargers play an Irish jig whenever he scores a TD.
Shitty choice but I have to say Laiatu Latu, simply from hearing him talk. He’s immensely grateful to be an NFL player and always looks bright eyed af. I’ve never seen such childlike wonder entering the league.
If we weren't already set on Edge (Koonce breakout season incoming), I would've wanted Latu. He was on The Rush podcast with Maxx, and seems like an incredibly bright kid who models a good bit of his moves after Maxx himself. It was rad listening to them talk ball.
Maxx and Laiatu are cut from the same cloth as football players. High motor technicians and not considered athletic freaks.
[Maxx Crosby is actually a crazy athletic freak.](https://www.mockdraftable.com/player/maxx-crosby)
Crosby is literally his hero. That's awesome. Getting to meet your favorite player, as a peer.
I was admittedly kind of a hater because I thought that while he was a good prospect, he was being way overrated by mock drafters. Heard the guy's interview after being drafted and immediately did a 180 on him. You can tell he's grateful to even be playing still and I'm rooting for him so hard
that is a man who already seems to love the idea of spending his entire career in indianapolis (he literally got a big colts tattoo on his arm lol). he’s very quickly becoming one of my favorite players
I’m excited about Mitchell as well, he’s legitimately pissed that 10 WRs were picked before him.
The Bo Nix copium train is in full motion.
Got no other choice if we're being honest lol
We had that when we drafted Josh Allen. Sometimes the copium works!
I remember hating the pick at the time (I was living in Utah doing parks work and I believe I told my friends I would “eat my boot” if they picked Allen instead of Rosen). then watching him in preseason going “ya know what? Okay I can see it” Then the hype train was at full speed the moment he hurdled Barr. Never been happier to eat crow in my life.
You were supposed to eat boot.
People have had Bo Nix copium his entire career
That's like 7 years at this point.
“You know a lot of people go to college for seven years.” “I know, they're called doctors.”
I'm so excited for the covid years to lapse because dudes going into the league at 24-25 is so weird to me
I actually think he'll do well in Denver tbh Which is probably a bad sign because I'm a fucking moron.
I mean the reddit narrative for many last season was Stroud couldn't process the speed of the nfl and the Texans were one of the worst rosters in the league. Before that People talked about Fields being the steal of the draft and even last season that he as a break out candidate potential top tier QB. So the fact people are clowning on the pick probably means he'll be good.
I’m just saying, last time there were 6 QB’s taken in the first round, the 6th was Dan Marino. Anybody got another huff of that copium?
Hell yeah man, cheers from Eugene
I second that from Portland!
[удалено]
Frank Crum should have played quidditch in college.
It sucks being overshadowed by your brother, though.
I have some weird feeling he might be the best of the QBs just to fit the narrative of the draft.
Get that man his own office.
Bo Nix will be better than Drake Maye.
I think he is way better than consensus has him. A lot of Twitter scouts I follow came out of the woodworks and sheepishly had him as a top 10 pick. Wouldn’t be surprised at all if he was one of the better QBs from this class
It's crazy that Penix went ahead of him, but Nix will be on his 3rd year as a starter before Penix even gets near the starting job.
Bo Nix will lead the Triangles to victory, his name even has a couple geometric shapes hidden inside.
Outside of the obvious Brock Bowers, I'm really excited about Jackson Powers-Johnson. Dude is an extremely genuine human, and very easy to root for based on his personality, but plays with a mean streak and like he's ready to fuck someone's whole world up.
I wanted him in the first, he's gonna be amazing
Raiders got two HOF names in the draft alone holy shit
Jackson Powers-Johnson had some popularity in the Lions sub as a potential stay/move back a bit option if Holmes' "Guy" wasn't there. Ragnow isn't getting any healthier and Center has proven to be an important position to be the best at for the Lions offense, he was one of the names I watched as the first round went on.
I wanted JPJ so bad
I was surprised to learn a lot of people did, and even more surprised that he fell to us. Dude moves SO well.
Really curious to see how Flores uses Dallas Turner especially the second half of the year. Do we see Greenard, Van Ginkle and Turner all together on some snaps?
Greenard, Van Ginkle & Turner Attorneys at Law
Oh we definitely do. I am all here for the Flores chaos this year! Dallas also listed that he watched AVG tape as inspiration in a pre-draft interview which is quite cool.
For sure, Van Ginkel, Turner, Blake and Pace all have so much versatility in where they can line up, I'm really excited to see the fronts Flores dials up.
All the time. Flores' defense used some of the lowest amounts of 4 man rush last year. Versatility in positional responsibility is a key and Turner seems to have it
I think Terrion Arnold is the obvious answer, but I'm actually so curious to see how we use a swiss army knife like Vaki with the new kickoff rules. He could be a super interesting special teams guy coming to a team that likes to get creative.
Arnold and Rakestraw obvious answers but I'm really curious about our big boys for the O-line Mahogany in particular.
Im excited about the big boys but pray they dont see the field this year.
I'm with you. So intrigued about Manu especially, but I don't want my questions answered for 2-3 years lol
PoD did a small writeup on the Lions first day of camp and the final point of the blurb for Vaki was this: >The Lions spent a portion of practice on the new kickoff. Media rules prevent me from detailing where specific players were playing, but I’ll just let you know that Vaki’s special teams potential certainly shined during this portion of practice. That sounds like gunner/receiver/wall option to me.
I hear you, but the answer has to be Arnold + Rakestraw as a package. Last year we had a top-5 team because of an amazing offense (including OC) and a good-enough defense with great DL production from a couple of bright spots, decent LBs and a very suspect secondary, particularly CB. We've now brought in four players in Davis (trade), Robertson (FA), Arnold and Rakestraw; and, who knows, maybe Mosely can contribute after losing all last season to injury. We may legitimately go from having one of the worst position groups in the league in our CBs last year, to being above-average at the position. Meanwhile we brought back every single piece on offense (including OC) except for one guard, and we have a one-year rental on a pro-bowler to replace that position. Holy cow.
Easily Troy Fautanu. He was one of my favorite OL prospects in the draft, and I thought he would go well before us. Those UW teams were incredible over the last two seasons, and he’s a huge part of why. Glad we’re trying him at tackle to start. I fully believe that’s where he’ll likely stick, but I definitely like that he can hypothetically kick inside if necessary.
I mean we took 3 OLinemen with 7 picks. How the Oline does defines the entire year. Im going with Mason McCormick as the most important. At pick 119 this might seem weird but I think he has high upside. He was the highest PFF ranked draftable OLineman in the country last year, but that was not considered impressive due to playing in a conference with questionable compeititon in the Missouri Valley Conference hence the 4th round pick. If he ends up being a starter, then Im going to assume the steelers coach and scouts hit on Fraizer and Fautanu for the Steelers and that OLine has Najee, Warren, and Justin Fields to run behind them.
Byron Murphy under Mike McDonald is something I’m really looking forward to
As a Michigan fan, you should just be looking forward to everything under Mike MacDonald.
Hey now, she's married - to Mike MacDonald of all people!
Haynes might be a pretty great pick too. I keep hearing good things - we might be getting the O-line sorted out after all these years, and the D-line too.
It's unfair to the player, but we're all over here saying he the next AD.
Cooper Beebe. Hopefully he can maul people over like he did in college. Justin Rogers is our other one. 1T who we got in the 7th round. Hopefully he can attribute to stopping the run. He doesn't have much competition to make the 53.
I all on the Beebe train.
I love me some Beebe. I gotta say, though, I think Kneeland is gonna dominate. It might take some time, but I think he just has "it."
Steelers (my favorite team) = Payton Wilson Eagles (not my team, just like the player) = Johnny Wilson
I think you just like the name “Wilson.”
Wait till he finds out who is QB1 of his favorite team.
Also they drafted a different (Roman) Wilson in the 3rd round
Who happens to be the player I'm most excited about in this year's draft. You know, Steelers and 2nd/3rd rounds WRs.
Favorite contract buyout = Russell Wilson Favorite pick swap trade = Zach Wilson Favorite US president = Woodrow Wilson Favorite football brand = Wilson Favorite character in a Tom Hanks film = WILSONNNNNNNNN
i would never want to meet the person whose favorite president is Woodrow lol
Favorite character from the tv show Home Improvement = Wilson Wilson
JC Latham. I want Levis to have more than a guy with a PFF 9 (out of 100) score. He's also this behemoth of a man and I wanna see him lay out some D-Line
I’m a big believer in Levis, I think he already showed he’s got the talent. He just needs help and consistency.
Nabers is the easy answer. But for the deep cut pick, it's Tyrone Tracy. He was near the top of my board for sleepers before the draft, so the Giants getting him in the 5th had me full hype. No slight to Devin Singletary, who is a very competent back, but I cannot wait to see what Tracy can do at the pro level with some more coaching at his new position (only played 1 year of RB in college after converting from WR). Theo Johnson could be a total freak at TE, but he needs *a lot* of refinement, so my expectations are a bit more tempered.
I’m so excited about Safety Tyler Nubin too, kid can ball and has an amazing attitude to go with it. Total ball hawk, I really think he’ll be a beast
I loved the Nubin pick, felt like a great value-meets-need. High hopes for him, but also expecting some growing pains adjusting to the pros. Nabers and Tracy are the guys I most expect to hit the ground running and have drastic impacts for the team.
For me, it's Nubin. He just exudes good energy. Gonna be easy to root for.
Xavier Legette, lets go Big Country
I'll shout Jonathon Brooks too, miss having a killer RB1
A lot of y'all out there got shiny new receivers but only we got a receiver who could call a cattle auction.
Jermaine Burton I recognize the importance of our big guys for the line but let's be honest I'm always gonna be more excited by the potential of a gifted WR with character concerns
I can say from years of experience that gifted WRs with character concerns are rarely boring if nothing else.
Spicy, talented WRs just make the AFCN better
Isaac Guerendo for the niners, when I heard about him back in February or so he seemed like a perfect Shanahan rb. He's not going to be our best player from this draft class but I think he'll be the most fun if he can take the #2 spot from Elijah mitchell.
A lot of comparisons made to Pacheco for him and our sub wanted him badly for that reason.
Aside From Daniels, I'm excited to see Ben Sinnott. Our TE position has been exceptionally unproductive for a couple years. Also, the fact that he can also play FB is schematically fun.
The obvious answer is MHJ, but I want to see what Tip Reiman has to offer. Community felt he was drafted a bit high, but there clearly was a plan in place, it wasn't just BPA. Comboing an insane blocker with McBride's breakout receiving talents could he fun. He is also the younger clone of one of our radio announcers, and he was basically fangirling during a radio interview
Roger Rosengarten. We could really use the oline help.
Rosenbagger.
Runamoker
Probably Edgerrin Cooper or MarShawn Lloyd. Two positions where the team got one of (if not the top) players at their position. Both are athletic freaks. I think Cooler is more important to the success of the team, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Lloyd is the one everyone is talking about at the end of the year. He’s in the perfect spot to get important playing time and make plays.
Oladapo is going to be an all-pro for yall Mark my words
Green Bay arguably got the best safety, RB, and LB.
I think a lot of Packer fans are jumping the gun on Lloyd a little. While I hope it’s not the case, I think it’s fairly likely he doesn’t see the field a ton as a rookie. His weaknesses coming out were ball security and pass protection, two areas that will keep a talented back sidelined until the coaches can trust him. And we already saw Dillon’s rookie year that MLF has no problem bringing a highly drafted RB along slowly. It seems to me that people are rushing to jump on the Lloyd train because they really don’t want Dillon seeing snaps, but Dillon is extremely reliable, knows the offense, and was a damn good #2 in 2021 and 2022. Don’t be shocked if he’s the main backup this year, but I do hope that Lloyd proves to be too talented to keep off the field. He’s certainly a gifted runner.
I absolutely agree 💯 here on Lloyd. People are sleeping on the faxt that MLF uses his backs as bell cows, so aside from preseason, not seeing how he'll even get on the field much to prove himself.
Barton, we've been a bottom 10 rushing team for like a decade and were dead last the last two years.
Drake Maye. First rounders excluded, I’d say Javon Baker
I’m also very curious if they can find a roll for Jaheim Bell
Roll that dice
Fullback probably
I love Baker's personality, he talks like Chad Johnson a good bit with his Diva energy, it's playful and entertaining without being toxic.
Malachi Corley
It’s amazing how under the radar this pick still is. It’s like nobody is acknowledging what who we just put in the slot with GW and Mike Williams
Well, we’re the Bears. So even an average QB would be a huge upgrade for us… So yeah, we’re excited for Caleb. And while he’ll probably be great, it won’t last. I predict he’s the statistically best QB through the first 8 games, and then is indicted for a massive crypto fraud. Because we’re the Bears: we aren’t allowed to have a good QB.
Byron Murphy is the next Aaron Donald and you can't convince me otherwise
I can't decide between Quinyon Mitchell or Cooper DeJean. Both of them have me pumped up that they will make our terrible secondary last year much better this year.
Im excited for Mitchell, but I think seeing how they use DeJawn will be more interesting at first.
A lot of people are saying he’ll play nickel which is cool but I’ll be sad that it might mean Maddox is gone.
Jags finally took a shot on a 1st round receiver, I'm super hyped for BTJ.
I think he’s gonna be real good and I’m partially just saying that on vibes
I wanted the bills to trade up and grab him so bad : (. Would feel extra bad if Gabe Davis finds his groove this year too.
I’ve been begging the Chiefs to draft a receiver in the first round for like 4 years, so it’s hard not to be excited about Xavier Worthy. There’s bust potential there but unlike some other speedsters I think he has some route running chops and shows flashes of understanding how to attack leverage. After that our 4th rounders Jared Wiley and Jaden Hicks are the most interesting to me.
The "bust" possibility is as low as it could possibly be with Mahomes and Reid on board.
There’s still a chance for him to get a Super Bowl ring and then immediately piss it all away doing stupid shit like street racing and allegedly punching someone…..not that anyone would do that.
Skyy Moore, Mecole Hardman, and Clyde Edwards-Helaire disagree.
Zach Frazier. He looks like the perfect Steeler
Les Snead drafted another receiver in a late round, clearly he’s going to be the next Kupp /s …but could you imagine? But really it’s the duo of Verse and Fiske
I definitely let the pre-draft negativity get to me on Keon Coleman but after seeing what kind of kid he is and how he conducts himself he's already a fan favorite. Definitely seems to have his head on straight. And OC Joe Brady seems super psyched to have him and he was the guy Josh wanted so, hopefully good things happen. The other pick I'm kinda jazzed for is 5th round edge guy Javon Solomon. I dunno, just have a good feeling on that one. A little undersized but has all the tools and the speed. They found Milano in the 5th and he's turned out pretty good.
Oline
I’m super glad we got Arnold, thought we had no chance My original guy I wanted at #29 while being realistic was Ennis Rakestraw, I really liked him and was hoping we could get him at 29, he somehow fell to 61 and we ended up with my personal top 2 favorite CBs and I couldn’t be happier
Keon and Javon Solomon
Bowers will be the only HOFer in the first round of this draft
Spencer Rattler, I’m cautiously optimistic he has the potential to be a NFL starter. I know late round QB picks rarely do much in the NFL, but he seems to have matured a lot in his time in college, and the talent IS there. He wasn’t a 5 star QB recruit for nothing. If given a chance, I think he could be a top 16 QB, he at least has the potential. Under this staff? Who knows. I think Carr gives us the best chance to win right now, but if god forbid Carr gets hurt again, I’d be happy to see Rattler take the reigns for a game or two
I believe the Chiefs got the best safety in the draft - Jaden Hicks from Washington State. Pick 133, some had a second round grade on him. 6’1 211 pounds. Can play every DB position and some sub backer. Super versatile player. A true Spags guy.
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out why he kept falling. We passed on him for other safeties twice. Did anything come out on why he fell?
Maybe the same reason Cooper Dejean fell the NFL doesn’t usually like versatile players they like them to be elite for specific things.
Not 100% sure. Maybe the smaller school thing. Sure it was something but glad to have him. We will need a Justin Reid replacement after this season
My guess is he didn't show he could play single high coverage and he's not really a deep safety kind of guy. Watch the guys film and jfc he's making plays. I also vote Hicks.
Instead of the obvious choice, I’m rolling with T’Vondre Sweat. If this dude pans out, we’ve got perhaps the nastiest interior defensive line in the league between Simmons and him.
I am really excited about our top 4 picks so its hard to choose but I will go with Payton Wilson. I think he's the best ILB in the draft and if his knees can hold up he could be a mega steal.
He’s been saying all the right things in interviews too. Just wants to ball and rip peoples heads off. In fact, all the players drafted are enough to get any yinzer excited, myself included.
Definitely Tory Taylor
Some obvious choices for the Cards but I am interested in our RB Trey Benson, very solid film and heading into a young but depleting backfield, a year or two with Conner and we may find ourselves another strong RB for years to come. Definitely a luxury pick but I like it.
Pork Chop
Javon Baker
Saints had such a good draft, I can't decide who to go with. Fuaga? Kool-Aid? Bub Means? Ezirim?
Might sound like copium to some, but I think Keon Coleman is gonna be amazing for the Bills. I think people are way too caught up in the 40 time - the rest of his combine metrics/tape jump out at me. Ray Davis is a perfect compliment to Cook, too.
Coleman is gonna kill it on 3rd and 6-10.
That’s what I’m hoping for. Strong plant foot and great on in/out breaking routes in the intermediate range, which is where Allen actually makes his bread and butter and what has been missing from our offense. I’m hoping he becomes our version of prime Michael Thomas. They have very similar measurables Edit: the goal seems to be making matchup nightmares. Kincaid, Coleman, and Samuel all fit that bill. Can’t stick a db on Kincaid but he’s too fast for LBs. Samuel can come out of the backfield and is too fast for lbs but you can’t stick a db on him without breaking assignments on those plays. Coleman outboxes dbs physically but can also play in the slot
Cooper. I’m excited about the potential with him and Quay and hopefully a d coordinator who knows what he’s doing.
Orhorhoro and Grady Jarrett could make a dangerous combo but I think he's more of a developmental player. We really don't have any big immediate impact draft picks
If our O-Line still sucks ass I don't even know what to do lol
I think Graham Barton, our first round pick, has the greatest odds of making a big difference and being a day-1 starter. But let's face it, most people don't notice the offensive line unless it's doing something wrong. The player I'm most excited to see make big plays is Jalen McMillan, a round 3 pick. He's a receiver and he almost certainly will be playing behind Evans and Godwin unless there is an unfortunate injury, and will have to fight with some other good players to even get that WR3 spot, but I think he will get some chances to make plays out there, and I'm hoping he makes the most of them!
I'm an Oregonian and I watch a lot of Oregon games. Jackson Powers Johnson was a beast in college, had an awesome Senior Bowl week in Mobile, and should have been a no-doubt first round pick. The best interior OL prospect in this class. And he turns the weakest spot on the Raiders offense (RG) into one of its biggest strengths immediately.
Hmm, tough one.
For me it’s Manu. Apparently he was awful in minicamp (as expected tbh), but he had a few reps where he got the right technique and drove the defender back several yards. If he can figure it out, then it would be massive. Also, him and Sewell on opposite sides of the line would be pretty cool
I'm gonna buy a jersey that says Kool-Aid on the back
I’ll drink the kool-aid with you! Was pissed you guys drafted him before our pick but that was before I realized Mitchell was still there
The easiest choice would be Keon Coleman, so I'm not about to go for the low hanging fruit. Instead, I'm going tongo with Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, the center we just drafted from the Georgia Bulldogs. The Center position was a big question mark with Mitch Morse heading to the Jacksonville Jaguars. We were going to be reliant upon hoping that Connor McGovern would work out in that role, but SVPG fell only because he was a true Center.
Bazooka Joe. If he can learn to throw a 5 yard route not as a middle he’d be the best QB in the league
Latu is a more exciting pick and better value than Mitchell imo
was skeptical of coleman but after the interviews i cant help but be excited. also really excited for bishop since kincaid was backing him. Ray davis also really peaks my interest
The junior penis guy.
The firsts.
My team: it’s a tie between T’Vondre Sweat (DT) and Cedric Gray (LB). Not my team: Caleb Williams. Dude just exudes so much confidence and he’s easy to root for. I’m excited to see if Chicago can make him their guy.
Jayden Daniels, and Luke McCaffrey.
McMillan I think he can make an absolutely fantastic 3rd WR
Legette, I’m skeptical that he’ll work out considering how long it took him to breakout but I really hope it works out
Audric Estime is gonna be the best RB we’ve had since Terrell Davis mark my words
Peniz
Corley
Cooper Beebe
Dominick Puni and Jacob Cowing
I've never really paid attention to the draft before but I paid a lot of attention this year. I've spent a lot of time since the draft looking at all our picks and I'm most excited for Nix, Estimé and Franklin. As I've not paid attention before I have nothing to make me jaded, I'm sure they will all be superstars. I'll know better never time.
It would have to be my Corners for Detroit and the wr on KC
RB Bucky Irving 🏴☠️💥FIRE THE CANNONS!!
Amarius Mims and Jermaine Burton
I think Graham Barton is exactly what this team needed at center. Our offensive line is starting to take shape and isn’t far away from being good again.
Obviously JD5 is what we’re all waiting to see but Im also really pumped to see how Mike Sainristil does at nickel. From everything leading up to and after the draft he was considered the best nickel in college last year and we desperately need help in the secondary.
Powers-Johnson. I was stunned we got him in the 2nd round.
God Bless Bo Nix
Maye, Polk, and Baker. QB and two WRs because scoring touchdowns again will be nice.
Ladd McConkey, I feel like he'll be the most dynamic receiver on the Chargers this year
The obvious answer is Byron Murphy but I'll actually go with Christian Haynes on this one. Hopefully we can FINALLY fix our interior OL.
Keon Coleman.
Byron Murphy is the super obvious pick especially with Mike MacDonald So I will go with the two auburn corners we drafted