More Draft Grades and More Mel Zaniness (3 of 3)

Jets
Mel's Grade: B
Smittblog Grade: C+
The Jets plugged their biggest need with Revis, but they gave up a TON to do it. They moved up eleven spots and gave up three picks. Now it's clear they LOVE Revis, but was he really worth giving up three picks when they needed so much help? That remains to be seen but they really shouldn't have given up two more for David Harris after that. That seemed excessive. They only got 4 players out of this draft, did not improve offensively and still lack depth on defense. I don't understand this draft considering how close this team was to making a run last year and how they were positioned in the draft before the draft day trades. They could have used their first three picks (a 1st and two 2nd's) on Beason, Eric Wright and the best WR or even Tank Tyler at DT.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: After Mel's freak out regarding D'Brickashaw Ferguson last year (Kiper said about the Jets potential selection of D'Brick, “I just don’t understand why they would take D’Brickashaw Ferguson, an offensive tackle, with the fourth pick in my mock draft when they have far greater needs than help on the offensive line. Ferguson will be a solid pro, but this mock draft mistake by the Jets is just another in a long line of draft errors made by the organization. As sad as it is, I can’t say I’m surprised I made them make a bad pick in my mock draft.”), Mel was ready to kiss and make up. So giving them a B was kind of predictable despite the fact that they wasted mulitple opportunities. Mel says that he had Harris going in the first half of the first round in his mock draft, which is true but he wasn't in ANY of his prior mocks and NEVER made "the Big Board". It' not like Mel was all over this guy. Harris isn't a bad pick by any stretch, it just blows me away that a team with as many problems defensively and a desperate need at WR filled two spots in this draft and got a B from Melbert.

Oakland
Mel's Grade: C+
Smittblog Grade: A
Other than the Zach Miller reach (my favorite TE in the draft but a guy who should have gone in the third), I loved their first 6 picks. The Miller pick should have been Justin Blalock or Tony Ugoh. For a team who gave up the most sacks in the league last year, taking a shot at yet another run at a TE was kinda embarrassing. That being said, they needed offensive help and they scored big time. Getting Michael Bush with the 100th pick in the draft is OUTSTANDING value. Maybe the best pick of the entire draft. Mario Henderson was a solid pick as was Higgins, especially in the third. I REALLY liked the Quentin Moses pick. He is a freakish talent and Oakland needs to replenish the talent on the D-Line. All-in-all, a great draft.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel has nothing bad to say about this draft. He said that he would have taken Charles Johnson over Moses, but he still didn't think Moses was a bad pick. When you get the best QB, a first round talent RB, a top DE, a top OT and a talented WR, what the hell else would you want that? If he thought they should have taken Ugoh, and that was their one bad pick, then how could the grade be so low? They needed so much help that taken some risks is worth it. It's not as though a good draft was going to make the Raiders a playoff team. What they needed to do was grab some solid players and then take some shots on injured or talented players who slipped for reasons other than skill. Jamarcus alone is worth a B+. It makes very little sense to me that they could get such a bad grade from Mel.

Eagles
Mel's Grade: C-
Smittblog Grade: Z-
This draft was bad on a biblical scale. Even if it were true that Kevin Kolb was the second best QB prospect in the entire draft and was on par with Russell in terms of athletic ability (in some imaginary fantasy world), taking him in the second round with what became their first pick in the draft AFTER TRADING WITH their DIVISION RIVAL still would have been the worst pick in the draft. This offseason, the Eagles re-signed their back-up QB, AJ Feeley, AND signed Kelly Holcomb. Both players have started at this level and are above-average backup QBs. They didn't need a backup QB and they didn't need to draft "the next starting Eagle QB" in this draft. I could forgive them for picking up Kevin Kolb with either the 57th or 87th picks, but they NEED linebackers, DTs, CBs, and A FUCKING WIDE RECEIVER! Are you kidding me? Was Andy Reid paying attention last year when Donte Stallworth and Donnie were hooking up week after week for big plays before Donnie's knee injury? THAT IS WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH A TOP WR TALENT. What the fuck, guy. But almost worse than the first round trade that netted them Kolb was the rest of the draft. They took a pretty big risk with Abiamiri, they got nothing in Brent Celek, very little in Bradley and absolutely nothing in Ilaoa. Then they take Barksdale from f'n U of Albany for cripes sake. I can't make any sense out of this draft. I kinda like the Tony Hunt pick, but I just can't get over how they started this draft. It blew their whole draft for me.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel's grade was a little high considering how awful he thought the Kolb pick was. Mel is VERY protective of his QB grades and the reason he was pissed about the Kolb pick wasn't because it was a QB, but because it wasn't Stanton, Edwards or Beck. What I really don't get is how he gave them the same grade he gave Giants, Texans, Skins and Titans. Those drafts weren't that bad. I don't think there's any question that this was the worst draft of any team in the league, he should have made it more clear in his grade.

Steelers
Mel's Grade: B
Smittblog Grade: B
Loved their Timmons pick and the Woodley pick. Those were kind of mistake free selections. I probably would have been more corner or receiver conscious and made a trade or two because it was talent they needed in this draft, not depth. Basically, I think they made some safe picks but didn't do anything notable or praiseworthy. Plus, they drafted a punter from Baylor. When you draft a punter from the worst program in the country, that can't be good.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel felt the same way I did about the draft. Good picks all across the board but nothing to write home about, yet he gave them his "second best" grade of the draft. I don't have any real qualms with his grade if he was more consistent in giving it. It's just that he gave the Falcons and Panthers a B and they had great drafts. B seems like the right grade to me because the Steelers draft was better than average.

Rams
Mel's Grade: C+
Smittblog Grade: A-
I gotta tell you, I REALLY like this draft. Carriker was a guy they couldn't have thought was going to be on the board when they picked. They could have gone for either Revis or Hall but Carriker might have had the best "motor" in the entire draft. I'm generally not a "motor" guy but when you match it with speed, talent and size, that's not a bad a combo. But let's cut to the chase, these guys got the steal of the draft in B-Lo in the second round. I don't think this is necessarily the best fit for him, but it may help him out that he has absolutely no pressure since he's on an offense already very capable without him. But what I really liked about this draft were the late round picks of the OT from Georgia, Shackleford, and DT Keith Jackson from Arkansas. Shackleford has great size and came from a terrific O-line program while Keith Jackson was an absolute menace in college. He's a little short for a DT at 6'0", but I don't see that affecting his role as a playmaker on the D-Line. He's got the football gene (son of TE Keith Jackson) and I think he can overcome his average measurables.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel didn't love the Wade pick and it seemed as though he wanted the Rams to grab Revis or Hall, but it's hard for me to believe that he dropped them down for not grabbing him. He loved the Leonard pick and seemed to like the late round picks. I'm really confused about the low grade he gave them. It would be nice if he actually suggested what he thought they should do.

Chargers
Mel's Grade: C
Smittblog Grade: B-
The Craig Davis pick was a little strange considering Gonzalez, Jarrett and Smith were all still on the board. They needed the surest handed wide receiver left on the board and maybe they think Davis is the guy. Rivers needs some toys in the passing game and I don't think Davis will grab enough attention. I REALLY like the Weddle pick. In a great draft for safeties, Weddle was a guy who stood up with almost any of the prospects. The only reason he wasn't talked about with the likes of Landry and Nelson was because he isn't all that big or all that fast. Since when did being a safety require 4.3 speed? Since never. That's when (take that!). I really think they needed a top corner so I don't think they did great. It wasn't horrible though, so if Davis becomes a starter, they did their job.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel's grade made sense again. He was lukewarm on Davis, kinda liked Weddle and liked the shot they took with Legedu Naanee (awesome name). He didn't really love any other pick and didn't hate any picks. That equals a C. Well that makes sense Mel. If you'd stuck to that script, I wouldn't be bitching so much, Melton.

Niners
Mel's Grade: B+
Smittblog Grade: B-
I wasn't really high on Patrick Willis so I didn't love the first pick. I thought they should have gone for a DE like Carriker or Moss. B.Y. is getting up in years and they need some help on that line. Taking an LB wasn't a bad pick, I just thought they could have done better. Joe Staley seems like a good pick and I like that they were aggressive and moved up to get him, but giving up next year's first is kind of a big deal. Presently, they don't have a first rounder next year and I (though I may be alone) don't think they have a shot of making the playoffs next year. Or at least not a good shot. One thing to keep in mind is that neither Willis or Staley are from decent programs. Taking a shot on one great player from a crappy program is one thing, but to use your first two picks on those types of players is a risky proposition considering they had to give up a first rounder next year. Plus, you know who the last first rounder from Mississippi was? Eli Manning. And we all know how that worked out (here's a hint: not very well).

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel thought San Fran had the best draft of any team in the league. They took his favorite player Joe Staley. They took his favorite defensive player Patrick Willis. And they filled some serious needs in taking both of those guys. He even liked that they took Thomas Clayton in the 6th round as a backup to Frank Gore. He legitimately loved this draft. If he were running the Niners, I think he would have drafted the exact same way. So, my only question is: WHY THE FUCK DIDN'T HE GIVE THEM AN A? Mel's got to lighten up.

Seahawks
Mel's Grade: C
Smittblog Grade: C-
There is absolutely nothing to be excited about in this draft for Seattle. They didn't have a first round pick so it wasn't like they were big factors, but they didn't really do anything after that either. I thought they should at least grab a backup QB somewhere in the draft so they wouldn't be forced to play Seneca Wallace in the event Hasselbeck goes down. Instead they just kinda added depth. That's fine, I guess, it just isn't very remarkable.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel and I again agreed on this one. He like liked the Wilson pick and kinda like the D-line pick for depth, but just came away unimpressed overall. The Seahawks are vanilla and everyone seems to know it.

Bucs
Mel's Grade: C
Smittblog Grade: A-
I liked the Bucs draft. They didn't waste the draft running after Calvin Johnson and they instead just grabbed the best guy on their board. Then they got one of the top tackles in the draft, Aaron Sears. Piscitelli was a reach in the second but they made up for it with their third and fourth round picks. They probably had the best middle of the draft of any team. Great value there. They got a ton younger on D and picked up some O-line depth. Maybe they should have grabbed a WR somewhere in the draft but maybe they're comfortable with Clayton, Galloway and Stovall, and the rest of those guys. This was a great draft for next year and beyond next year.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel also like this draft for Tampa, and gave them a C. I'm sick of his shit.

Titans
Mel's Grade: C-
Smittblog Grade: B+
They needed some help all over the offense and D backfield, so they drafted one of the best safeties in the draft and then took three WRs. Not too shabby. Sure there were plenty of good WRs available when they picked in the first, but they definitely had a need in the defensive backfield and Griffin fills that need. Then they just filled the roster with WRs. That seems pretty good to me. Everybody hated the Chris Henry rb pick from Arizona. Other than the Ted Ginn and Kolb picks, Chris Henry was the most universally disliked pick in the draft. I don't know shit about Henry other than he didn't do anything in the Pac Ten and he was a combine freak. They needed an RB and got the fastest one in the draft in the second round. That seems ok to me. Other than those skill position picks, they didn't do anything to warrant a bad or great grade, but I liked their initial picks and strategy overall. So that's a B+ for me.

Analysis of Mel's Grade: Mel was not impressed with the Griffin pick at all. He thought Meachem was a no brainer and essentially a "must pick." He was pissed because they didn't give Vince Young the help he needed, even though they picked up 3 wide receivers in the draft of varying skill sets. They took an RB in the second round and added depth at all their other need positions. How is that not helping Young out? Apparently the only thing the Titans needed to do in this draft was grab Robert Meachem and then trade the rest of their picks for funny money at Flashdancers. Mel, sometimes I just don't get you.


Mel's Grade: C-
Smittblog Grade: A-
The Skins didn't screw up this draft, so that's a B right there. They didn't make some outrageous trade and they didn't lose any picks for next year's draft. Pretty impressive. Plus, they got the best defensive player in the draft. Landry and Sean Taylor are going to be an absolute force. They are going to make posters with those two standing side by side with sunglasses on and come up with some ridiculous nickname for them. And I will own that poster even though I'm not a huge fan of the skins. It will just be a funny poster to own. You know? They don't make posters like that anymore. Only Fatheads. But I digress.... Suffice it to say, I like Landry. But that's not the end of it, not even close. HB Blades was the best linebacker in the country last year. He reminds me so much of Zach Thomas it's disgusting. A little undersized but even his dumps reek of football. He defines football player. Blades has started for Pitt since he stepped foot on campus. He was a three-time first team Big East selection, Big East defensive player of the year last year and if that's not impressive, he was first team All-American last year. So when a guy is that productive in college and doesn't run a sub 4.5, inevitably he'll get overlooked, fall to some lucky team and end up making the pro bowl for 10 straight seasons. It's funny how average players in college are good if they can run fast but dominant college players are bad if they aren't the fastest guys out there. How does that work exactly? So anyway, that is why I love HB Blades (he's also one of those "Blades").

Analysis of Mel's Grade: This seemed like an easy C grade for Mel so I'm a little surprised he put the minus on it. I don't think he liked the Jordan Palmer selection and views that as a wasted pick. I just think that Landry is so good he kind of saves the fact that they didn't have that many picks. I can't fault Mel too badly here because they didn't need Landry and they didn't address some needs like CB and D-Line, but they didn't have that many picks and they got some GREAT players. I liked it.