Draft King NFL Mock Draft exclusive insight decades of experience insider pro football college prospects

Lou Pickney's 2024 NFL Mock Draft


National Football League
Draft King Mailbag

November 16, 2006
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com

Reader feedback is always welcomed here at DraftKing.com. Send your thoughts to me at LouPickney@gmail.com.


From: Cedric Jones
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Nov 15, 2006 12:27 PM
Subject: Atlanta's pick in your latest draft

I don't see any way Atlanta passes on Alan Branch in the first, plus we never have (and probably never will) draft an O-lineman in the first round of the draft under this coaching staff.

Lou: The Falcons could use a strong DT, and you may be right about Atlanta going with a player like Alan Branch there. Alex Gibbs' offensive line scheme is predicated on working as a system, not on having elite talent, and I've read that he specifically does NOT like to have high draft picks in there because he prefers to develop his linemen. But with the Falcons' problems at OG this season, coupled with the fact that Justin Blalock would be learning a new position moving from OT (where he plays at the University of Texas), he might be the exception to the rule with Gibbs.


From: Ryan Martinat
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Nov 15, 2006 9:03 AM
Subject: Raiders draft

Am I missing something? The Raiders have a better record than the Cardinals. I can see that you might need to project teams to finish in certain spots, but I haven't seen anything from the Cardinals that would indicate they are going to finish better than the Raiders. Even if the Raiders end up with the top pick in the draft, I don't think they will take a QB. Al Davis just simply does not take QB's in the first round. I would look for Al to do one of three things. One option would be for him to take an o lineman like Joe Thomas. The second option would have him taking Gaines Adams and making this a purely defense team. The third is to wheel and deal. What do you think?

Lou: Projecting the finish of the teams in the NFL can be a difficult thing, but I suspect that Arizona will scrape together a few wins down the stretch, particularly as Matt Leinart becomes accustomed to life as an NFL QB. As for the Raiders... the outlook is glum. While the Raiders beat the Cardinals earlier this year, that won't impact any tie-breaker for draft pick position, as that is determined strictly by strength of schedule and, if that's a tie, a coin flip.

But let's say Arizona goes #1 and Oakland #2. It's not as if Brady Quinn will be taken by the Cardinals after they broke the bank to get Matt Leinart. The main issue here is: will Oakland end the Curse of Todd Marinovich and take another first round QB? The Raiders have been arguably struck with bad luck since then (i.e. Bo Jackson diagnosed with avascular necrosis, team failing to build a new stadium in Los Angeles, team started 8-2 but missed the playoffs in 1995, the "Tuck Rule" game in January 2002, losing the Super Bowl to their former coach the next year, etc.)

Would Brady Quinn be a good addition to the team? You'd better believe it. But with eccentric owner Al Davis running the show there, it's entirely possibly that the team will continue to go primarily for free agent QBs, in the mold of Rich Gannon, Kerry Collins, and Aaron Brooks. My friend Scott Massey (of 2004 Draft Day running diary fame) once compared Al Davis' odd glasses with those of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il. Who is going to tell either one how ridiculous they look?

So, who do the Raiders take if they *don't* go QB in round one? They spent some cash to get LaMont Jordan, and it's highly unlikely that they would go offensive line. They used last year's #1 on Michael Huff, and two years ago the first two picks were CBs, so I'd suspect that they wouldn't go secondary. Linebacker seems unlikely as well, based on the success of Derrick Burgess and Kirk Morrison and the fact that the team landed OLB Thomas Howard in the second round of the 2006 Draft. My take: defensive line might be the answer.

Trading down makes sense, but it is very difficult to trade out of the Top 5. But if it's not Quinn, the best bet might be trading down and going D-Line. Warren Sapp is wildly overpaid and aging, and while at the time sleeper DT Anttaj Hawthorne looked like a potential huge bargain, he hasn't contributed a great deal thus far. And if there's a first round QB motororium, consider that the last time the Raiders used a first round pick on a DE was 1990.

By the way, in looking up the link on the 2004 Draft Diary, I realized again that the Raiders passed on Phil Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger for Robert Gallery. Screw it, I'm going to put a morotorium on projecting QBs to Oakland until the Al Davis regime ends. Though with Davis having Fidel Castro-like longevity, that might be awhile.


Draft King NFL Mock Draft

NFL Draft Prospect Profiles

Draft King is owned and operated by Lou Pickney. © 2003-2024, all rights reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, the views expressed here are those of Lou Pickney alone and do not necessarily reflect those of any media company.