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Lou Pickney's 2024 NFL Mock Draft


National Football League
Draft King Mailbag

March 14, 2006
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com

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


From: Kelvin Allen
Sent: Tuesday, March 7, 2006 11:24 AM
To: LouPickney@hotmail.com
Subject: wrong information 3/7/07

Just want you to know Jason Allen 40 time was a 4.39 and once he do his Db drills next week he will be in the 1st round.

Lou: A few things with this. First, if you're going to write, please send it to my GMail account. I don't check my Hotmail all that often, so e-mails (like this one) can fall through the cracks.

As for Jason Allen, as a University of Tennessee fan I'm pulling for him to perform well in his Pro Day in Knoxville. And as for the 40 time, I looked up more information on it... and according to the Decatur Daily, Allen actually ran a 4.38. He's fast, any way you slice it. But there are still some questions about the strength in his left leg because of the hip injury that ended his 2005 season -- and ultimately his college career. But I'll be pulling for him, for sure.


From: Mark Kruise
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Mar 10, 2006 3:44 PM
Subject: (None)

been checking out your mock's for the past 2 years, and i must commend you on the thoroughness and thought you put into them. with that said, as you've stated many times before, you sometimes lack some of the more personalized knowledge an ardent fan may possess about his/her respective team. case in point, you have the steelers picking DeMeco Ryans with their pick at 32. I'm not saying they won't draft him, he's an outstanding LB, but there are a trio of guys from ohio state that i think would more likely be drafted here(and no, i'm no OSU fan incase the thought entered your mind, but being a PSU fan i have watched more than a few of their games). In no particular order, bobby carpenter, donte witner and nick mangold could all, theoretically, be picked here. carpenter, in my opinion, deserves a first round grade. He is a monster that could fill in inside or outside and give the steelers some different options in the coming years(farrior isn't getting any younger and porter's contract isn't getting smaller). donte witner is a guy the steelers are rumored to like, and is graded as a beginning to middle second round pick. it isn't inconceivable that the steelers might jump on him with their first pick(although a trade down would most likely be a better choice if they want him). mangold is the wild card. i've seen him graded as a first, 2nd and even as low as 3rd. centers don't normally go in the first, but depending on what happens with the steelers 2 centers currently under contract, i could see them picking him(again, a trade down might be in order). that's my two cents, for what it's worth. thanks for your time, mark kruise

Lou: I see Carpenter as being a possible first rounder, and when I redo my mock here in a little while to reflect the first wave of free agency moves, it's quite possible that he'll be in there. With Pittsburgh already having Troy Palomalu as an All Pro at one of the two safety positions, I'd doubt that the Steelers would go with Donte Witner in round one. Your point is taken about perhaps Ryans not being the person for the Steelers, but I'd think a linebacker would be a good move for Pittsburgh, be it Ryans or Carpenter or whomever.


From: James C. McKenzie
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Mar 14, 2006 8:07 PM
Subject: My NFL Draft Blog

These are the thoughts in my head right now concerning the NFL Draft. Things could change dramatically between now and then. I'm a Browns fan so I hope they can either move up/down or are lucky enough for someone to drop to them.

If Matt Leinart goes to Houston @ #3, the Jets should pass on Vince Young and draft their quarterback of the future in the 2nd round. That person might actually be Jay Cutler since there aren't very many teams looking to draft their franchise quarterback this year.

Where will Vince Young end up? If he gets past Oakland, I could see him landing in Baltimore @ #13. The next quarterback taken would be Jay Cutler in the second round @ #35 to the Jets. Where else could he go... Kansas City?

I highly doubt the Browns will try to trade up. However, San Francisco would be the perfect partner because they need a wide reciever and are too high in the draft to go for Santonio Holmes. However, I don't expect the 49ers to trade down because they could snag an elite prospect @ #6.

Most likely, every "elite" defensive prospect (and offensive lineman) in this draft will be taken within the first 11 picks. Cleveland is right outside of that zone and will have to settle for someone else.

Elite Prospects on Defense / O-Line:

A.J. Hawk (OLB, OSU)
Mario Williams (DE, NC State)
Michael Huff (S, Texas)
Haloti Ngata (DT, Oregon)
D'Brickashaw Ferguson (OT, Virginia)
Winston Justice (OT, USC)

Cleveland Might Have to Settle For:

Chad Greenway (OLB, Iowa)
Brodrick Bunkley (DT, Florida State)
Tamba Hali (DE, Penn State)
Mathias Kiwanuka (DE, Boston College)

And one more thing.....

If Phil Savage really does believe in taking the best player available, he should draft Lendale White before taking any of the four players I just mentioned. He would be the BPA even though they already have Reuben Droughns. I almost hate the thought of taking a second-rate player like Chad Greenway in the first round when you have gems on the team like Andra Davis that were taken in the 5th round.
Thanks for reading. I enjoy viewing your website and I would like to what you think about the things I have mentioned.

Lou: You've clearly given this a great deal of thought, which is a good thing. What can be frustrating as a fan is when you give you team's lineup that level of depth in analysis... only to see your team go in an illogical direction come draft day. The Detroit Lion fans in the audience know what I mean. Though the Lions have had their share of good picks (i.e. Boss Bailey), and if they had taken CB DeAngelo Hall at #7 in 2004 instead of WR Mike Williams, I think Matt Millen wouldn't have been nearly as criticized as he has been (for picking WRs in three straight years.) But I digress.

If I became the new GM for the Browns today, I would want to come out of the first round with a player to fill my defensive front seven. Trent Dilfer/Charlie Frye covers the present/future at QB, while Reuben Droughns averages four yards per carry and posted 1,200+ yards rushing in 2005. This is a weak year for WRs, and there's not one who is worthy of the #12 spot, in my opinion. As for offensive linemen, Virginia OT D'Brickashaw Ferguson would be a boon for the Browns, but he'll be gone in all likelihood by the time they draft. I disagree about the ranking of Winston Justice so high; a first round prospect, okay, but not a Top 12 spot. So if the Browns go offense, they'll need to trade up (bad idea because of the cost) or down. If the Browns are enamored with Justice, they should be able to slide down and still be able to obtain him.

I like Tambi Hali better than most (and I'm no Penn State homer by any means -- I just think Hali is a great talent at a major need position for many teams who will go higher than where some people presently project him to go.) So if it's Hali, I don't see that as settling. Bunkley is an interesting one, since his stock is on the rise and some see him potentially going high, particularly since he plays DT. But in a 3-4, Bunkley could be moved to DE.

Chad Greenway is anything but a second-rate prospect, in my estimation. He's well-rounded: an aggressive tackler who is also good in coverage and quick. Oh, and he's a great leader, too. Greenway suffered a knee injury in 2002, but he's had enough time to recover and show that he can perform without showing ill effects of that injury (both in his great 2004 season, and in 2005.) The knock on him is that he needs to hit the weights, but I'd take that over "undisciplined" or "unfocused" or something that is more difficult to correct.

As for LenDale White, he's a great prospect, but the Browns really need to address defense with that first pick. Ultimately, that's what it will take for Cleveland to turn things around.


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