CHALK TALK NEWS
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Apr 25, 2012 posted by Josh Angulo-Bartlett
NFL Mock Draft: 1st round
Before I get to my first round mock draft, it would be silly if not dumb not to promote the fact that Chalk Talk had 7 NFL draft prospects on the show last Sunday. Anchor and captain of the USS Chalk Talk, Tim Herb, did an outstanding job in getting the likes of Notre Dame’s Michael Floyd, Clemson’s massive DT Brandon Thompson, TCU’s madman LB Tank Carter, Colorado’s stud offensive tackle Ryan Miller, draft board rising CB Aaron Henry out of Wisconsin, sleeper RB out of Tennessee Tauren Poole and hard hitting safety out of Ok St, Markelle Martin. Of course, we are rooting for all the players in the draft, but we will be watching intendly on where these guys go come the weekend.
Floyd is projected as high as number 10 to the Buffalo Bills and probably won’t fall past the Arizona Cardinals at 13. Size, speed, athleticism comes to mind when you put on the tape of this draft eligible junior. But it’s his productivity that stands out for me, especially since he was double and sometimes triple covered all season. Thompson could also sneak into the late first round and who ever picks “Yams” will be ecstatic. But no matter how it goes, we are sure to reach out to these great interviews after they land with their new NFL team sometime in the future.
So with that out of the way, it’s about that time. The first time of many that NFL-heads everywhere begin to break out their new and old school jerseys. The time of year you think you are Ozzie freaking Newsome and you have under covered the next Thom Brady in the 6th round. The time of year hammered Jets and Giants fans find themselves in the middle of a Jersey Shore episode, only this one takes place inside Radio City Music Hall. The time of year Baltimore’s own Mel Kiper Jr. gets more air time than Ryan Seacrest.
Here is how I see the first round going…
1. Colts-Andrew Luck-Stanford, QB. Best QB prospect since John Elway. Can’t miss, unless he gets hurt.
2. Redskins-Robert Griffin III-Baylor, QB. Welcome to DC, RG3. No pressure.
3. Vikings-Ryan Kalil-USC, OT. This massive road grader will open plenty of holes for A-Pete and keep Christian Ponder’s jersey clean.
4. Browns-Trent Richardson-”Bama, RB. Might be the best athlete in the draft (Or Morris Claiborne) and the Browns need playmakers badly.
5. Tampa Bay-Morris Claiborne-LSU, DB. The Bucs secondary is terrible. Ronde Barber is 100 and the NFC South can sling it (Brees, Newton, Ryan).
6. St Louis- Justin Blackmon-OkSt, WR. Terrell Owens reincarnated on the off the field. But the Rams would have taken him at #2, so the trade works.
7. Jacksonville-David DeCastro-Stanford, G. If the Jags are interested in winning games instead of filling seats, then this should be the pick.
8. Miami-Luke Kuechly-BC, LB. I just don’t believe the Ryan Tannehill hype. All Kuechly does is make tackles and who doesn’t need that.
9. Carolina-Fletcher Cox-Miss St, DT. The Panthers are loaded on offense, but awful on defense. Cox is the best DT tackle so this is a solid selection.
10. Buffalo-Michael Floyd-ND, WR. Call it a bias (since he was on our radio show), but Floyd paired with Stevie Johnson helps circle the Bills wagon.
11. Trade-Kansas City moves back one spot and Seattle takes-Ryan Tannehill, A&M, QB. I’ve heard from enough sources that nut Pete Carroll loves Tanny. But remember SeaChicken fan, this also loved Charlie Whitehurst and Tavaris Jackson too. At least Tannehill’s girl is solid.
12. Kansas City-Dontari Poe-Memphis, DT. The combine hero moves into the top 15. If he is as good on the field as at the combine, then the Chiefs stole the next Hgoti Ngata.
13. Arizona-Riley Reiff-Iowa, OT. That sound you heard was Bolts GM AJ Smith kicking his desk over. Hopefully for the Cards he’s not Robert Gallery.
14. Dallas-Mark Barron-”Bama, S. Jerry Jones might move up as high as 10 to make sure he gets this punisher. The Boys’ need secondary identity.
15. Philadelphia- Quinton Coples-UNC, DE. Extremely talented, but a 10-cent brain. Perfect fit for that knuckle-headed roster in the City of Brotherly Love.
16. New York Jets- Kendall Wright-Baylor, WR. The Jets are a circus, so this pick fits perfectly. They need offensive and defensive help up front, so a Santonio Holmes clone makes perfect sense.
17. Cincinnati- Stephon Gilmore-SC, CB. Randy Milligen’s Bungles snap up a player that was projected to go in the top 10. With two first rounders, they can do that.
18. BOLTS- Jonathan Martin-Stanford, OT. Not sexy, but since Reiff and Barron are both gone the Bolts need to over-draft Martin or move back. I also like another ‘Bama product in Dre Kirkpatrick, but AJ doesn’t like guys with character issues. Martin is a right tackle, but I see him taken left tackle snaps once Jared Gaither quits on the Bolts like he’s done everywhere else.
19. Chicago-Kevin Zeitler-Wisconsin, OG. Jay Culter got his bi-polar former teammate Brandon Marshall in a trade. But he will have a tough time getting him the ball from his back and a Wisconsin offensive lineman is usually safe pick.
20. Tennessee-Melvin Ingram-SC, DE. The Titans haven’t had anyone that can disrupt the passing game since Jevon Kerse. Ingram was also projected by many to go as early as 12, so this would be a value pick.
21. Cincinnati- Courtney Upshaw, ‘Bama, DE. The Bengals get lucky again. Upshaw is loved by Marvin Lewis and no Bengal had more than 7 sacks last year.
22. Cleveland Browns-Michael Brockers-LSU, DT. This raw, but promising 6-5, 322 pounder could play nose or a more versatile tackle role. Like ‘Bama defensive players, you can’t go wrong drafting LSU ones either.
23. Detroit-Mike Adams-Ohio St, OT. This guy was a top ten pick before last season, but was injured and just didn’t perform like a high pick during Big Ten Play. He has also had weight issues in the past, but his talent is worth the pick at this spot.
24. Pittsburgh-Coby Fleener-Stanford, TE. Been compared to former Raven Todd Heap and with Heath Miller getting up there in years the 4th Stanford product is a solid selection.
25. Denver-Nick Perry-USC, DE. Pairing this USC product with last years first rounder Von Miller could be like deja vu for Peyton Manning. Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis 2.0.
26. Houston-Stephen Hill-G-Tech, WR. If it wasn’t Poe making waves at the combine, it was Hill and his freakish skills that was turning heads. Unbelievable speed and size makes this a perfect pick for the rising Texans.
27. Cleveland-Brandon Weeden-OK St, QB. This guy might be 40, but he is accurate and smart. Incumbent QB Colt McCoy will be pushed by this former MLB player early in training camp.
28. Green Bay- Doug Martin-Boise St, RB. Martin is the kind of versatile back cold-weather back who would fit in perfectly at Lambeau. Plus he is a winner and good character guy. Another solid selection for the Pack brass.
29. RAVENS-Dont’a Hightower-’Bama, LB. Ozzie does it again. Somehow, some way the Ravens consistently make solid selections. Even though they need offensive line help, Hightower is the best player on the board and you know how Ozzie does.29. Detroit-Mike Adams-Ohio St, OT. This guy was a top ten pick before last season, but was injured and just didn’t impress during Big Ten play. He is also considered someone who could have weight problems down the line, but his risk is worthy of the selection.
30. San Francisco-Harrison Smith-Notre Dame, S. The 2nd best safety in the draft is a steal for the best defensive team from last season. Smart, fast and hits like a truck, Smith will fit in perfectly with coach Jim Harbaugh’s scheme.
31. New England-Jerel Worth-Michigan St, DT. Any defensive player is an upgrade over what the Pats had last season, and they still made the Super Bowl. Worthy could pair with that monster Vince Wilfork to create havoc from AFC East QB’s.
32. New York Giants-Peter Konz-Wisconsin, C,G. The Super Bowl champs could use some OL help and Konz is the best center in the draft. He can also play both guard positions and like I stated before, you can’t go wrong with a Badger lineman.