Monday Morning Draft is back! This is a column that delves into the past weekend’s action from an NFL Draft perspective. As the season goes on, the draft picture and slotting will become more clear, but every Sunday will provide a few hints for next April.
By Charlie Campbell.
Send Charlie an e-mail here: [email protected]
Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell for updates.
Play like a Carcass For Marcus:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs have the No. 1 pick and must use it to land a franchise quarterback. The only question will be whether to take Oregon’s Marcus Mariota or Florida State’s Jameis Winston. Sources with Tampa Bay say that Winston is the early leader between the two.
Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht and head coach Lovie Smith have to get the pick right. Tampa Bay is a perfect example of how drafting a bust quarterback sets a franchise back for five or more years. Josh Freeman had flaws coming out of Kansas State, but those were ignored. Freeman went bust, and as a result, the Bucs have gone 30-66 since firing Jon Gruden and drafting Freeman in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. The pressure is on for Licht and Smith.
Tennessee Titans: Tennessee is more likely to draft a quarterback than to try to trade the pick away. Zach Mettenberger wasn’t good enough to convince the franchise to pass on Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston if they both grade out high enough to be worthy of the No. 2 pick.
WalterFootball.com knows from sources that Mariota has already impressed the Titans organization, and he could remind Tennessee fans of the glory days when the team had Steve McNair. The Titans also have the potential for a nice nucleus on offense around Mariota or Winston.
Let’s Play Matchmaker:
This section will look at some of the top talent in college football and match those prospects up with teams that have a dire need at the position.
Seattle Seahawks: Malcom Brown, DT, Texas 
The Seahawks’ pass rush struggled in the fourth quarter and in other stretches of the Super Bowl as Tom Brady marched down the field. While he got the ball out quickly, there were a number of plays where he stepped up in the pocket to avoid the edge rush and complete some passes to receivers who had mismatches. The only pass rush that can really combat a quick-passing signal-caller is from the interior, as the tackles are closer to the quarterback. Seattle has good edge rushers, but the Seahawks could use more interior defensive linemen who can get to the quarterback.
Brown (6-4, 305) has the speed to be a dangerous pass-rusher and has demonstrated some power to shed blocks. He overwhelmed offensive linemen in many games. Brown totaled 6.5 sacks, 71 tackles, 13 for a loss, one pass batted and two forced fumbles in 2014. He was tough to block with a good motor. Brown has the quickness to serve as a three-technique with enough size and strength to also play nose tackle in a 4-3 defense. Thus, he would be a great fit for Seattle.
Picking 31st in the first round, Brown would be an appropriate value, and Seattle could do a lot worse than him. Having an interior pass rush could have made the difference for the Seahawks to repeat as champions.
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