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Lou Pickney's 2024 NFL Mock Draft


National Football League
Draft King Analysis

October 24, 2007
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com

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


From: Douglas Hamm
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Oct 23, 2007 5:45 PM
Subject: 2008 Draft - Defensive Ends

If you had watched the Virginia/Maryland game on Saturday, you would not have Calais Campbell going ahead of Chris Long. Long was double teamed all day and was unblockable. He changed the game for UVa.

The other point I might make is Kellen Clemmons will have to prove himself a failure before the Jets use a first rounder on another QB. I just don't see that happening this year. I also don't see Kenny Phillips lasting until pick 16. I would also suggest the Packers address their ground game, either an OT or RB, but Green Bay is very hard to predict. I sure didn't see Justin Harrell coming last year.

Lou: I've seen Chris Long play in person, and he is amazing at being able to overcome whatever is thrown his way to get into the backfield. I think Campbell's size might make him slide in ahead of Long, but as the season unfolds my opinion might change. If it's the Rams who draft #2 and have to choose, they might go with the slightly faster Long rather than take another huge DE (like they did with Adam Carriker one year ago, albeit to use at DT.)

As for Kellen Clemens, we'll see soon enough how things work out with Chad Pennington where he might have a chance to prove himself down the stretch. The Jets used a second round pick on Clemens in 2006, and he will be given an opportunity to play.

Perhaps QB isn't the best play for the Jets at #3 overall, but Andre Woodson is a great prospect and could be a wonderful pickup from a developmental standpoint. But it's hardly a lock; the team has needs on defense, and additionally a young RB like Darren McFadden might be very tempting for the Jets, with Thomas Jones averaging just 3.7 yards per carry and turning 30 before the start of next season.

I concur that the Packers need to address their RB game, though as you mentioned, the Pack went against what was expected in the 2007 draft by going D-Line in round one. There is talent at both RB and CB that will likely be on the board late in round one, and the Pack should be in a good spot to land a player at either position.

Kenny Phillips is a talented player, but I'm not sure that he'll move into the top ten. Perhaps I'm wrong on this, as Phillips is a talented player, but I'm not sure that he'll be able to leapfrog some of the elite players at the top of the draft. But we'll see.


From: James Wilbur
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Oct 24, 2007 4:42 PM
Subject: NFL scouting

I just came across your website. I believe that I'm just like you: a football junkie. I want to start a career in NFL scouting. Do I need experience in football?
If you have any suggestions I'm willing to hear them.

Lou: Scouting is a vital part of modern day NFL business, and teams employ people who they believe will provide them with the best available analysis of the available talent out there -- both players who will be entering the draft and street free agents who might be a "diamond in the rough" find.

As with most things in life, who you know is often as important as what you know. You might try contacting individual teams, particularly if you have any connections with people with any of those teams, and make a case for why they should use you as a scout. The ability to effectively evaluate talent is a vital skill for anyone looking to move into that profesion, so keep that in mind as well.


From: Scott Anonymous
To: LouPickney@gmail.com
Date: Oct 24, 2007 8:28 PM
Subject: 22 Oct 07 mock

I know I've written you before, and that you're more or less describing the players' abilities and the teams' needs, and more or less matching them up in what would be a sensible draft for all parties involved, but I have another comment to add.

Your reasoning for Calais Campbell is valid through-and-through, and he shapes up to be a better DE prospect than Mario Williams, but your reasoning could just as easily apply to an elite OT.

The offensive line will be under immense criticism if the season continues to go this way for the Rams, and the only way you fine a franchise left tackle is through the draft, not free agency. The Rams got to the Super Bowl several times with Orlando Pace - not Leonard "Vehicular Manslaughter" Little - dominating his position year in and year out, and I doubt that's lost on many souls in St. Louis.

Lou: You raise a valid point about the need for the Rams to have some stability at offensive line. Injuries have nagged that team at OL, which in turn has lead to some problematic situations. The absence of Orlando Pace has had a major impact on the team; sure, Steven Jackson and Marc Bulger's injuries have played a role as well, but Pace was the rock that held the line together.

The Rams going with Jake Long is a possibility, though that may depend on how Pace recovers from his second triceps injury in as many years. At 32, Pace still may have a few strong seasons left, and clearly the team is not the same without him. In theory, Alex Barron (first round pick in 2005) should have been the heir apparent to Pace, but to this point it hasn't worked out that way.

How the team plays down the stretch will likely impact this, but the fact that the Rams are in 30th place for total yards per game (ahead of only Buffalo and San Francisco) gives credence to the notion that offensive line may be the way to go, particularly with such a strong prospect as Long potentially being available.


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