Smashmouth Football League Articles

Top 10 Mock
By Tom Collins
Special to sfl-football.com

1.01 WR Jonathan Baldwin

Analysis: Breck has made it pretty obvious that he's taking Baldwin at 1.01. He can't contain himself with pairing him with former 1.05 Brandon LaFell and recently acquired Randy Moss. They were only missing a QB and traded 1.32 to Carolina for David Carr. This Colts team could go from worst to first.

1.02 HB Daniel Thomas

Analysis: The 49ers made HB Brandon Jackson match eligible this year and he garnered a lot of attention. He was signed to a contract equal to 2nd round compensation and GM Peter Fenger took the pick. On the hot seat again after being saved by the "GM Save", Peter knows he needs a balanced offense to win and Daniel Thomas is the top dog at HB.

1.03 CB Cortez Allen

Analysis: Do you remember when GM Rock Hewko spent 1.09 on WR Emmanuel Sanders? Everybody loves height, but Rock prioritizes speed and athleticism above AWR and size. After trading CB Drayton Florence to Dallas for a 2nd round pick and not bringing in ANY free agents whatsoever, it's pretty safe to say that CB is the biggest need here for the Seahawks. Cortez Allen is the most athletic CB in the draft, and it helps that he also happens to be 6'1".

1.04 RT Tyron Smith

Analysis: It seems like a rebuild in Carolina. They just traded David Carr to Indianapolis for 1.32 and it looks like they're moving forward with Drew Stanton. With a young QB, you absolutely have to have a good OL. The veteran QBs can get rid of the ball as they're about to take a sack, but the young QBs aren't able to do that consistently. Taking sacks is the sure fire way to tank a drive, and playing behind the sticks is not going to lead to success. It's tempting to grab a WR or CB here, but I think OL is the priority here.

1.05 CB Ras-I Dowling

Analysis: With WR Calvin Johnson and James Hardy, it would be a waste for the Dolphins to invest a top 5 pick on another WR. I would imagine GM Daren Roberts would be very happy with adding another talented CB to combine with Akasi Owusu-Ansah. Whether it's Richard Sherman or Ras-I Dowling will come down to the private workout. Pre-workout, I think it's Ras-I Dowling with the 97 SPD, +16 STR and +9 CTH.

1.06 CB Richard Sherman

Analysis: I could see GM Olivier Ratajczak going WR or CB here. WR Dez Bryant is age 23 and someone the Jaguars can lean on for a long time. The top CB for Jacksonville is CB Antrel Rolle at age 29 and on the verge of regression beginning next off-season. I think the greater need is CB here so they can start developing a CB now to take over for Rolle.

1.07 MLB Chris White

Analysis: New Cardinals GM Gary Cohen traded WR Demaryius Thomas but brought in Roy Williams. They retooled their OL and have a lot of talent at CB. I think TE is a real consideration here but Gary hopes that TE Jordan Cameron or Larry Donnell fall to 1.13. A.J. Green is not needed and and pushing him, Brandon Marshall or Robert Meachem to #3 would be a waste. Terry Pierce can start this year, but at age 31 the regression is going to kick in even more next year. I could see them going in a variety of different directions, but I know Gary loves MLBs from his Tennessee days!

1.08 WR WR A.J. Green

Analysis: This actually falls perfectly for Washington GM Bill Ryan. They've got Musa Smith and Carson Palmer, but no true threat at WR. The team was built to be run first, and with Musa beginning regression next year, it's time to start preparing for life after Musa. I think A.J. Green falling this far is likely to lead to another team trying to trade up to snag him. If not, I believe Bill will happily take him.

1.09 DT Kendrick Ellis

Analysis: Easy pick here. Ellis is a beast of a defensive end and that DT position shouldn't fool anyone with his 75 STR. A 6'5", 340lbs, 80 SPD, 75 STR, 87 ACC, he's got the athleticism of a true DE with the size of a NT. He reminds me of Jay Moore, although there are obviously many glaring differences between the two.

1.10 WR TE Jordan Cameron

Analysis: The Broncos miss not having Rob Gronkowski, drafted last year in Cleveland. Cameron is not as gifted, but having 2 RBs, WRs Jason Hill and Jacoby Jones, the only thing missing in the passing game is an athletic TE. An 88 SPD, 6'5" TE is going to be a threat in the pass game for any team he ends up on.
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