04/25/24
April 28, 2011
Cam Newton First Pick in NFL Draft: In an NFL Draft that began with league Commissioner Roger Goodell receiving a hearty chorus of boos, the Carolina Panthers chose QB Cam Newton with the first pick Thursday night. Four quarterbacks were selected in the first 12 picks: Newton, Jake Locker (Titans), Blaine Gabbert (Jaguars) and Christian Ponder (Vikings).
Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh on the same line? And that's the Lions d-line? And Ashton Kutcher's not going to pop out from behind a tree?
posted by MeatSaber at 11:31 PM on April 28, 2011
Not sure I agree with the Steelers' pick, as I would have preferred a CB, but I won't question them as they are right more often than not. Didn't realise that their pick Cameron Heyward is the son of (late) Craig "Ironhead" Heyward though, and that he was born in Pittsburgh ... I assume while his father was at Pitt.
posted by scully at 08:03 AM on April 29, 2011
Not sure I agree with the Steelers' pick, as I would have preferred a CB, but I won't question them as they are right more often than not.
my thoughts exactly. If the Ravens wouldn't have taken Smith they would have been all over him I'm sure. But as you said, better to trust them as they seldom get it wrong. I'm sure they'll go corner in one of the next 2 pics.
My favorite part of the draft was the constant boos that Goodell received. I hate that SOB.
posted by bdaddy at 11:32 AM on April 29, 2011
Atlanta gives up two first rounders and three other picks for Julio Jones? I like the guy, and think he'll be good, but after giving up that much for a wide receiver, the Falcons better hope he's freakin' spectacular!
posted by dyams at 11:45 AM on April 29, 2011
Well with Roddy White on your opposite and Gonzalez in the middle, he'll have plenty of opportunities against single coverage.
posted by bdaddy at 11:48 AM on April 29, 2011
Five of the first six were from the SEC, that's really something!
posted by billsaysthis at 12:18 PM on April 29, 2011
Didn't realise that their pick Cameron Heyward is the son of (late) Craig "Ironhead" Heyward though, and that he was born in Pittsburgh ... I assume while his father was at Pitt.
Cameron was born after Ironhead's first year with the Saints; perhaps Craig's offseason home was in Pittsburgh.
posted by holden at 12:22 PM on April 29, 2011
Congrats to Cam Newton on becoming the #1 pick for the Panthers. I just hope that he can live up to the hype.
I also hope that he stops referring to himself in the third person.
posted by BornIcon at 02:01 PM on April 29, 2011
Atlanta gives up two first rounders and three other picks for Julio Jones?
Teams seem to give up a lot more to move up in a draft than they would give up for an established player. I have no idea why that is. Is there a simple reason that I'm just not thinking of?
posted by tron7 at 02:20 PM on April 29, 2011
Not sure I agree with the Steelers' pick
Listening to an interview with Kevin Colbert last week, he seemed to make it sound like they would take the best available player rather then a an area with more need(O-line, CB)
Thay rarely go wrong,
posted by Debo270 at 02:29 PM on April 29, 2011
Teams seem to give up a lot more to move up in a draft than they would give up for an established player.
I think some teams are more inclined to do this than others. In Atlanta's case, I guess figuring they can slot him in right away in Gonzalez' last year (or next to last year) and get over the hump in the playoffs with a better skill corps.
It helps that they're all set with the QB position.
It's probably also due to draft day being such a fluid situation from one pick to the next, teams being on a ten minute clock, decisions having to be made quickly. There may not be much time to decide if you're overpaying.
It tends to knot my stomach to see teams make moves like Atlanta's. I'm more attuned to Belichick's "let's focus on the latter rounds of the draft and figure out a way to win with Troy Brown" approach.
Or, in his more recent horsetrading incarnation, the "let's steal Randy Moss and then overcharge for him on the way out the door" approach.
posted by beaverboard at 03:25 PM on April 29, 2011
The Patriots' picks this year kinda confused me a little; Solder as an OT and Dowling will help their secondary immensely, but two RBs and a maligned QB with their later mid-round picks? It's like they're willfully ignoring their defensive line issues and assuming that better cover corners will solve everything.
I love me some Bellichek and they had a gangbusters last draft (and are already set for next year; two firsts, two seconds) but it puts a lot of pressure on your young secondary when Mike Wright's 5.5 sacks are the best you can pressure a QB with.
posted by dfleming at 09:25 AM on April 30, 2011
The Patriots' picks this year kinda confused me a little
Just a little? I spent the weekend huddled in the corner chanting, "In Bill we trust". If Dowling stays healthy and Cannon recovers from cancer and can play guard and if the rumors around Mallet are hot air and if they can develop Mallet or trade him, then it's a good draft.
But I would have felt a lot better if he'd used the first three picks on two OLBs and an OL.
posted by yerfatma at 10:06 AM on May 02, 2011
The Patriots' picks this year kinda confused me a little
Revisit them in about 2 years. Either Belichick will be called a genius or an idiot. There's some thought that they took Mallet in order to keep him away from Miami. The story is that they made known their probable pick of Mallet well in advance, hoping to have a few teams outbidding each other for a possible trade. When it didn't happen, they took the pick. To me it sounds like Mallet is one of those people to whom maturity comes later than usual. He has the physical tools to play well as a pocket QB, and accuracy problems can be cured with coaching and repetitions. Accuracy is nothing more than consistent mechanics in your throwing motion. As far as seeing the field, understanding defenses, going through the progression of receivers, and so forth, this too takes coaching and practice. If Mallet is as coachable as he is reputed to be, and if he has a decent brain, all will come together in time. Not likely he will be Brady's replacement in 3 years, but if he develops well, he could be worth a high draft pick in a trade, a la Matt Cassel. As for the rest, they took value at positions for which they had a need, although not necessarily an immediate need. In addition to the perceived value, there was some risk, but such risk as there is was evidently not considered excessive.
posted by Howard_T at 03:25 PM on May 02, 2011
Christian Ponder was drafted? In the first round? Have they ever seen him play?