A lot of teams don't have a 1st round grade on any of the DT's in the draft. I was listening to podcast yesterday with the Chiefs GM and they brought in about 12 Defensive Ends for top 30 visits. He mentioned the reason they did not bring in any Defensive tackles is because they did not have any that were graded high enough. The transition to offensive line in the 1st round is also about managing the cap. Stroud and Anderson are both looking to get paid, and if you have a starting LT and RT on rookie deals, then you can easier fill out your roster. Blake Miller will not make it to 28. The Texans will have to trade up. The reason the Texans would do it is for the same reasons the Texans tried to move up to 12 last year for Guard Tyler Booker. Blake is a slam dunk pick. He has over 54 starts at tackle. Never missed a game or practice. Has prototypical size with over 34 inch arms. He has elite athletic ability. He put up exceptional NFL Combine numbers. He was a team captain and has been praised for his locker room leadership. He's the most pro ready tackle in the draft and the best combination of run/pass blocker
First off, I think your post is great. With that said, I don't believe anything that comes out of a GM's mouth before the draft. I think Kayden McDonald is definitely 1st round talent. As for Blake Miller, I believe he'll go top-15 IF he is as highly thought of as you described. But again, I think your post is great.
As fans we're not paid huge sums of money to watch and scout college players all year long in order to be able to determine who is draft worthy and how high. Therefore it's hard to know if CJ Allen, Jacob Rodriguez, or Anthony Hill are truly the best or if there are others just as good from the MAC.
My preference is quickly becoming 1st round: your highest rated DL whether that’s Woods, Miller, Lawrence, McDonald, etc. Though if one of Lomu, Miller, or Iheanachor are there, it would be hard to pass them up. 2nd round: your highest rated IOL. Should be lots of good options between Bisontis, Rutledge, Pregnon. If Nick wants to trade down with a team coming up to get Ty Simpson I’m also totally good with that. Adding an additional 2nd or 3rd next year would be great. I’m feeling really good about the types of talent we should be able to add in our first two picks, let alone the rest of the picks we have day 2.
I've come to the conclusion that no matter how bad Nick's choices are, they are likely better than mine. So I'll cheer for the laundry as usual. Just a note - Two of the three teams in our division have a history with either Texans or Houston. Kansas City is the oddball as it's AFL Dallas Texans became the Kansas City Chiefs. Indianapolis does not have a direct tie, but when the NFL Dallas Texans folded and the NFL took over it's properties and players, they were given to the new Baltimore Colts which later moved to Indianapolis. Most of us know the connection of Tennessee with the Houston Oilers, but few realize there are connections with two other existing teams.
We need to do an analysis of Nick's picks. Off the top of my head I think he's done a good job in the draft, with the exception of OL. And we'll have to see what CJ does this season before we can grade that pick. I will say that drafting a QB with the #2 pick and then having a rookie QB coach mentor him was apparently a monolithically stupid decision, but that's another thread.
It's my understanding that 26' is the final contract years for Azeez Al-Shaair and Henry To'oTo'o. We can probably anticipate drafting a LB.
I think this mock is best suited to help us win NOW. It brings quality youth and depth to the IDL, which we badly need. We get a stud LB that might be better than TooToo. We get a TE that can (hopefully) become a legitimate weapon on day 1. We get a quality CB to give us depth at that position as well as a starting, 5th, DB in the secondary. Then we add a potentially dynamic playmaker at WR (in case Tank can't go) as well as quality depth if and when a regular starter goes down. We add a C who can provide depth this year for the IOL and, if Nick is lucky (for once) he'll turn into a quality, starting, center. And we cap it off with a G from Texas that might also provide some IOL depth and hopefully more in the future. Again, I believe this mock is an example of a draft that is best suited for us to win it all this season.
This is my "Let's go all-out" on playmakers at TE, WR, & RB when Sadiq fell to 28. Thereafter I did my best at DT, CB, S, and OL.
I actually like looking at folks mock drafts and the grades. I can tell by yours that you are going to jump up and down with excitement if Delp wears the Steel Blue.
Thanks. I think Delp could potentially be a great weapon for Stroud. I might be wrong, of course, but his size, speed, and athletic ability are worth the risk, IMHO.
