Despite the fact that we live in an era where spell check applications are available all around us, I can still somewhat manage to look past the misspelling of words like “Kentucky” and “Nationals.” As for the name “Smith,” there is no excusing its misspelling.  In fact, I never even knew it was possible to incorrectly spell that name.  Isn’t that why we always see the name “John Smith” being used?  Doesn’t it have something to do with the incredible simplicity of spelling such a name?

Apparently not.

1 – Detroit Lions – Matthew Stafford – QB

Not much to say really. Right move.

2 – St. Lois Rams – Jason Smith – OT

The debate was Monroe vs. Smith and I think Smith won out because whilst he lacks in pass protection compared to Monroe, he has the athletic framework that can potentially be developed into a great pass blocker and already is a dominant lane opener in the running game. Eugene Monroe looks like he’s hit his ceiling, albeit a very talented ceiling.

3 – Kansas City Chiefs – Tyson Jackson – DE

Shocking! Aaron Curry at 3 was my lock of the draft and the Chiefs choose Tyson Jackson over the best player in the whole draft? I’m still trying to work this out; does Glenn Dorsey, a prototypical defensive tackle who will struggle at nose tackle, slide to DE with Jackson opposite and Tamba Hali at rush linebacker – meaning Hali and Dorsey are out of position. Or do you put Dorsey at nose tackle and Hali at 5 technique and watch them both struggle, now relying on Tyson Jackson to bail you out at left end? What stupidity will the Chiefs try next? Trading for a QB with one season under his belt since high school when they already have an adequate QB in place? Oh wait…

4 – Seattle Seahawks – Aaron Curry – OLB

Seattle isn’t a 4 win team and will likely return to the playoffs, meaning they won’t get a shot at number one overall talent like Curry for a long time to come. It’s no wonder they didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger on him.

5 – New York Jets (trade from Cleveland) – Mark Sanchez – QB

AWESOME DRAFT MOMENT! The Radio City Music Hall is absolutely rocking. 5 down to 17 is a long fall for Cleveland who probably should have secured more than backups and a second, but having said that I like Brett Ratliff and obviously Mangini is thinking the same way. Projecting what Sanchez does in New York is useless, since he’ll live or die by his numbers, but one thing is for sure; Sanchez’s reaction to the news he’s getting top 5 money from a playoff caliber team is almost as good as those three Jets’ fans who were disgusted by him. Who could of possibly made those three guys happy?

Mike Mayock seems to think New York jumped all that way because someone else was sniffing about and I tend to agree. None of the Browns, Bengals or Raiders would have taken him, so I’m thinking Denver or Washington were prowling.

6 – Cincinnati Bengals – Andre Smith – OT

Off field issues and Cincinnati go hand in hand. This guy was being mocked as high as two a few months so I guess the Bengals value talent over character. What a surprise.

7 – Oakland Raiders – Darrius Heyward-Bey – WR

Crabtree is on the board… but our worst nightmares are realised. Al Davis you moron. Reggie Bush had speed and production but neither translated to the NFL, enter Heyward-Bey who doesn’t have the production and you’re sitting on a bust Davis. Oakland will not make the playoffs until Al Davis is gone.

The Jags want out. They’re using all of their 15 minutes, but there seems to be no biters with Sanchez off the board. I think they’re trying to move back for Vontae Davis.

8 – Jacksonville Jaguars – Eugene Monroe – OT

With 20 seconds left, the Jags settle for Monroe. What a ringing endorsement when a team uses all of its 15 minutes trying to get out of drafting you. Khalif Barnes sucks and is gone, so without a top 10 worthy corner this makes sense.

9 – Green Bay Packers – BJ Raji – NT

Puuurfect. Green Bay couldn’t have planned this better; exactly who they want at the nose of their 3-4.

10 – San Francisco 49ers – Michael Crabtree – WR

No one thought he’d be here, so I’m not sure what to make of this. Mike Singletary will have found passing on Michael Oher very difficult, but Crabtree is too talented not to take when you haven’t had a franchise receiver since Jerry Rice.

11 – Buffalo Bills – Aaron Maybin – DE/OLB

You had to replace Jason Peters. You had to. I honestly don’t think they realised Michael Oher was on the board, and considering they picked Aaron Maybin over Brian Orakpo I think the Bills need to seriously look at drafting a new guy to maintain the board.

12 – Denver Broncos – Knowshon Moreno – RB

You just switched to the 3-4. You just brought in a whole bunch of running backs. What are you doing with your franchise Denver? Seriously. You were meant to be contending the AFC championship and now you’ve just condemned yourself to picking inside the top 10 next year. This is in no way anti-Moreno – I think he’s a phenomenal player – but this is the second stupidest pick behind Heyward-Bey so far.

13 – Washington Redskins – Brian Orakpo – DE/OLB

Orakpo escapes the top 10 and Maybin is taken over him; so despite whiffing on a Sanchez trade, this is mighty fine compensation.

14 – New Orleans Saints – Malcolm Jenkins – CB/FS

This has been a lock for a while.

NFL Network’s Pieces of the Puzzle graphic being used to compare the 2008 New Orleans secondary to the 2009 secondary with Jabari Greer and Jenkins inserted is pretty redundant, but slick nonetheless. The Saints are a REALLY dangerous team. Possible NFC Superbowl representatives?

15 – Houston Texans – Brian Cushing – OLB

I don’t think that Houston were thrilled with the talent available at this point and neither am I. I’ve always maintained that Houston would trade down, or reach at 15 and they decided to do the latter. Cushing is a meh for me; this guy looked so serious at the combine, and even his family can’t crack a smile in the green room. The whole Cushing family looks thoroughly miserable at the prospect of their son making tens of millions of dollars in a NFL uniform.

16 – San Diego Chargers – Larry English – DE/OLB

Larry English isn’t an Igor Olshansky replacement so this pick knocks me sideways a little. A right tackle made more sense, especially with Michael Oher still there.

The NFL Network crew are loving that last selection; Gruden is beside himself at the prospect of Shawne Merriman AND Larry English blitzing. I think you’re the only one Jon.

Primarily, it’s the cyclical battle between offensive and defensive coordinator; your left tackle is your strongest, so they put their best defensive end on the right to apply effective pressure. More pressure needs better tackles, better tackles mean more pressure is required – you can see the circle that has been created. So how does this process start? Well, working under the assumption that you’re running a conventional offense with a right handed QB, you’re going to have a huge vulnerability. Peyton Manning took just 14 sacks all year but it wasn’t because of an incredible line or outstanding athletic ability, it’s just the product of the league’s smartest player’s incredible internal clock and ability to get rid of the ball whilst making his check downs. However, no matter how clever Manning is he doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head, obviously making his blindside the logical point of attack from your defensive end or rush linebacker – hits to the back have a higher probability of forcing a fumble and provide the rusher with access to the quarterback’s throwing arm.

Whilst superior pass protection is mandatory, head coaches also have to consider the run. The right tackle and tight end make the offside the common direction of most run plays – most but not all. As the most dominant back of the last 5 years LaDainian Tomlinson has shown, much success can come from the counter play in which he feigns to the right before kicking the play back to the left. This requires your left tackle to possess an athletic build and light footwork to change direction and seal the edge for the runner, two of the key defining attributes when evaluating right and left tackle prospects. Compare a prototypical left tackle in Baylor’s Jason Smith, to the man who will be a career right tackle at the next level Phil Loadholt. Loadholt lacks Smith’s athleticism, his combine 40 was .4 seconds slower, meaning he would struggle with speed rush at the next level, but his 30lb weight advantage is perfect for opening running lanes.

The Lions, Bears and Eagles head the list of teams needing a dominant left tackle, whilst St Louis and Minnesota require sizeable right tackles to aid their run first offenses. Focus on footwork and athleticism when determining left from right and remember: in 2008 Jay Cutler was sacked 16 times less than 2007, the only addition to the Bronco line? Ryan Clady at left tackle.

Andre Smith admitted to being out of shape and subsequently didn’t participate at all. Nice honesty, but why are you out of shape in the first place? The combine is the purest test of a collegiate athlete’s physical abilities and that’s when you choose to let yourself go? Smith falls back behind fellow left tackle prospects Jason Smith and Eugene Monroe in my eyes, though he’ll hope for redemption at his pro-day.

The much heralded Michael Crabtree fractured his foot and didn’t workout, making him 50-50 to run a 40 at his Texas Tech pro-day. Maybe a blessing in disguise? On a slow Lucas Oil Stadium that has provided most with slower-than-expected times, a projected 4.5 could slide to a worryingly sluggish 4.6; not running leaves scouts focusing on his stellar tape and elite route running. It is also worth noting that he measured in at 6-1 – Texas listed him as 6-3. He still won’t escape the top 7.

Brian Orakpo and Rey Maualuga both limped out of on-field drills, a blow for both of them. Orakpo, the undersized Aaron Maybin and Florida State’s Everette Brown are looking for any edge in the race to be the number one DE/OLB hybrid that 3-4 scheme teams covert, what Orakpo didn’t want to be doing was sitting on the sidelines. The shallow inside linebacker class will let Maualuga hold onto his mid-first round status.

Defensive Lineman
Connor Barwin: 40.5” vertical, 6-4 256lbs and the second fastest 40 of his class. Mature and articulate in his TV interviews, this guy tore up the combine and will be looked at by the Lions, Rams and Chiefs at the top of the second. Really good player.

Linebackers
Aaron Curry played with a smile on his face and had every right to: fluid in coverage, balanced, fast and took really tight lines in the ‘swim move’ drill. On the other hand, USC’s Brian Cushing didn’t get going. His head was locked on his feet during agility drills and in coverage he failed to follow instructions and turned his hips the wrong way. He just looked like he was trying too hard – the antithesis of the relaxed Curry.

Running Backs
What to say. Unless you were a receiver your 40 time was slow, ask the running backs. No Chris Johnson-esque performance. Chris Wells is 20lbs heavier but runs quicker than Knowshon Moreno. LeSean McCoy gets the flu, weighs in sub-200lb, doesn’t participate and has some of the smallest hands in the group. Ouch all round.

Quarterbacks
Not a lot to say for the QBs, it’s pretty much as you were. Pat White will be drafted inside 4 rounds but I would doubt if it’s at QB. Josh Freeman coupled his 6-6, 250lb prototype size with a sub-5 second 40, showing nice athleticism.

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends
Jared Cook is the modern collegiate tight end: a phenomenal athlete with great size. Excellent measurables mean all he needs to do now is plead his case as a blocker in interviews. Jeremy Maclin will be disappointed with his 4.45, but it was Hakeem Nicks who really stood out; he was fast and caught everything that was thrown at him in drills. Marques Colston ran a 4.5 40 at 6 foot 4 with a 37” vertical, Clemson’s Aaron Kelly ran a 4.49 at 6-5 and jumped 38 inches. You may not hear much about him, but this guy has serious sleeper potential.

Offensive Line
Jason Smith edged to the front of the left tackle debate, and the centre class remains arguably the strongest in the draft.

Defensive Backs
Top ranked corner Malcolm Jenkins had a nightmare; a slow 40 and poor showing in the drills may make him safety material. It was safeties Sean Smith and Chris Clemson who really raised their stock; Smith looked super smooth during coverage drills, has a phenomenal physique and exhibited strong hands as well, whilst Clemson ran faster than any DB… as a safety not a corner – impressive.

Be Sure to keep an eye out coming this week for our updated version of the 2009 NFL Mock Draft: 4.0 by Chad Ellis.

2.  Ottawa Senators Season Preview

After getting off to a hot start they took a big nose dive in the second half of last season and even ran a possible risk of missing the playoffs. I see them finishing stronger this year.

The Sens forwards are lead by the three amigos: Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza. I’m a fan of Antonie Vermette and he should help out with the secondary scoring, but that’s pretty much it. Mike Fisher is far from horrible but has yet to reach 50+ points in the NHL and should be looked on to win faceoffs and play solid in his own end rather than put up points. Nick Foligno, Chris Neil, Shean Donovan, Dean McAmmond and Jarkko Ruutu are okay options for the bottom 6, but wont be looked upon to fill the net.

Even with the addition of Jason Smith, Ottawa’s defence is weaker than last year losing both Redden and Meszaros. Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov are solid defencemen, but are a step down from what they had as their top pairing last year. Filip Kuba is a decent 2nd pairing defenceman but isn’t quite capable of leading a PP which is what he’ll have to do in Ottawa. Brian Lee, Alexandre Picard and Luke Richardson are good depth guys but wont be making any type of impact.

In net the Senators are taking a risk with Martin Gerber as the #1. Unlike most people, I do believe Gerber is a good goalie, but I don’t think he’s good enough to steal games, especially in the playoffs. Alex Auld is solid as the backup.

This team isn’t as good as last year with a lack of depth up front, no real big threat on the blue line and so-so in net. However, as I stated the Northeast is weaker that it’s been in a while so I still expect them to finish second in the division.