FanNation - The Republic of Sport

    Given JaMarcus Russell’s reported battle of the bulge was it wise to draft a running back that reminds him of the fast food empire every time he hands off?  Probably not.  Chances are Russell pulled a hamstring(whoops just got him hungry) jumping for joy when he mistakenly heard he was going to have McDonalds in his backfield.

    I hope the Steelers plan to actually develop Dennis Dixon as a quarterback and not as a Slash type player as they did with Kordell Stewart.

    Erik Ainge is the future of the Jets franchise, and Steve Slaton will be a 1,000 yard back for the Texans. 

    It appears the 49ers are going to stand pat with Alex Smith or Shaun Hill behind center for one more season.   

    DeSean Jackson was destined to become a Philadelphia Eagle.  He was projected to go to them with the 17^th pick, but somehow last 32 more picks until the 2^nd round. 

    Am I the only one anticipating the first time D.J. Shockley hands off to Thomas Brown?  The Falcons are quickly becoming the NFL version of the Charlotte Bobcats, whose franchise is stocked with Tar Heel connections(Larry Brown, Michael Jordan, Ray Felton, Sean May, Brandon Wright briefly.)

    Only time will tell whether Jerry Jones’ unbridled affinity for his alma mater clouded his judgment and prevented him from snagging Rashard Mendenhall who was perceived as the best running back on the board.  I’ve been high on Jones’ potential for while now.  Just like McFadden, Jones ran recklessly through and around SEC defenses and likely would have boasted numbers just as gaudy as Mendenhall if he hadn’t shared the workload with his Heisman caliber backfield mate.  But it’s not as if Mendenhall doesn’t come without questions of his own after producing only one noteworthy season in a somewhat gimmicky shotgun spread offense.

    It's interesting how the Cowboys philosophy has changed so drastically in their frantic search for a Super Bowl or at least a playoff victory since the uptight Bill Parcell’s walked away.   A decade ago when the Super Bowl drought was only at 2 years, they passed on the incomparable Randy Moss because of evident character concerns, but in the past 3 years have rolled the dice on Terrell Owens, Tank Johnson and Pac-Man Jones.  They even expressed serious interest in disgruntled and outspoken receiver Chad Johnson.

    Now undrafted rookie free agent Marcus Dixon is the latest addition to this new band of ‘Controversial Cowboys’ after signing a 3 year, 1.1 million dollar contract.  While Dixon doesn’t have so much in the way of character concerns, he does have an interesting past with the legal system dating back to his senior year in high school.  Dixon, was once a top defensive end in the Southeast carrying a 3.96 GPA when he became the subject of national controversy through the miscarriage of a child molestation, statutory rape law which garnered him a 15 year prison sentence after admitting to having consensual sex with a 16 year old white girl.  While his sentence was repealed a year later, his scholarship to Vanderbilt was retracted, and no one would take a chance on him until Hampton University lent out a hand.  Wins and losses aside though, I’ve gained a ton of respect for Jerry Jones for his willingness to dole out second chances in an unforgiving league.

    Colt Brennan as a Redskin is conflicting to me because while I don’t want to see Jason Campbell fail miserably as a starter I never saw the logic behind gambling on him in the 1^st round of a historically weak draft for quarterbacks and I really like Colts moxy(at least in college).Chris Mortensen made an interesting point when he mentioned a conversation with an anonymous GM, who said a West Coast offense similar to the one implemented in Seattle would be conducive to his talents and allow him to flourish.  1^st year Redskins head coach Jim Zorn was offensive coordinator for the Seahawks(who ironically eliminated the ‘Skins from the playoffs).  

    After waiting, waiting, napping and then waiting some more for Andre Woodson, who as late as November was considered the top senior quarterback by Mel Kiper Jr., to be drafted, he was eventually drafted into the worst possible scenario.

 I’ve never seen a players stock take such a radical dip south in such a short period.  It’s inexplicable how a 6’5, cannon armed pocket quarterback with a bevy of SEC and national records, respectable athleticism could plummet from the first round into 3^rd or 4^th round projections and eventually the 6^th round because of a hitch in his delivery and a marginal Wonderlic score. Inexplicably, after shattering the all-time record of 271 consecutive pass attempts without an interception, Woodson was branded a bad decision maker by scouts.  Matt Ryan who throws interceptions when he rolls out the bed in the morning is labeled a gunslinger hmmm.. 

With Eli Manning’s newfound cult hero status in the Big Apple, Woodson’s development won’t receive a lot of attention in the Giants offense and it’ll take a stroke of fate for Woodson to ever make a name for himself.  This now gives the Giants 3 Kentucky quarterbacks—Andre Woodson and both of Jared Lorenzen.  With any luck, Woodson draft at #198 can hopefully emulate the 199^th pick of the 2000 Draft, Tom Brady.

Bold Prediction:
        Years from now the moment the 160th pick of Josh Johnson was announced will be retroactively remembered as the pick that changed the course of Buccaneers history.  Pass first quarterbacks with above average mobility have bloomed under Jon Gruden and the pick isn’t surprising given the Bucs GM, Doug Williams was himself a former D1AA quarterback who won a Super Bowl at the helm for the Redskins.  To quote what Mel Kiper once said about USC receiver Mike Williams: “See you at his Hall Of Fame induction in Canton.” Lets just hope my prognostication works out a little better.

Doug Williams, D1AA roots were apparent in his first draft as he also drafted Appalachian State’s lightning quick receiver Dexter Jackson, who ironically shares a name with the former Bucs cornerback who was also named MVP of Super Bowl 32.)

• Most Baffling Moments-

1)     William Hays getting drafted in the 4^th round by the Titans when he was rated the last defensive end and was on no one’s draft board. 

2)     Titans made another boneheaded play in the off-season by ignoring theirglaring need for an impact wide out and pick another running back.  Unless the Titans plan on installing the triple option, they’ll regret the decision.  

3)     Bears passed on a slew of quarterbacks deciding to pin their declining Super Bowl odds, not to mention Lovie Smiths job on the shoulders.  They might as well trade for Michael Vick right now.

4)   With the 2^nd pick in the second round, and with every single receiver still on the board, the Rams selected Donnie Avery, who was previously graded as a 4^th round pick.

6)   Kevin O’Connell, a 6’5 signal caller who ran the second fastest quarterback 40 at the combine was selected by the Pats at the end of the 3^rd round, 4 rounds earlier than expected and ahead of esteemed quarterback prospects Andre Woodson, Erik Ainge, Josh Johnson, Colt Brennan, etc.  They jut had to snag that game changing back up as soon as possible.  Of course as a result of the media’s infatuation with the Pats front office this unorthodox move has been lauded as genius.

7)   Jerome Simpson out of Coastal Carolina, was considered a 4^th round developmental receiver until he was selected by the Bengals ahead of Limas Sweed, DeSean Jackson and Malcolm Kelly.

8)   8)   Todd McShay for saying DeSean Jackson doesn’t have elite speed on film.  Yeah… he should probably learn the difference between the play and pause on his TIVO next time.  He's probably looking at the photo above muttering "See I told you-- it's like he's not even moving"

9) The Chargers decision to trade up and draft Jacob Hester.

10) How did Adarius Bowman go from top 15 senior to undrafted in a span of 4 months after a another 1,000 yard season?