5/4/09
2010 NFL Draft E-mails – Hate Mail, Hated Players
Should I start a thread titled, “Bills fans hate Walter for hating on their draft?” or “Bring out the homerism because we don’t have enough homers here, homey.” Why do fans take draft grades so personal? Damn.
My Response:
I was actually thinking about doing that. I think it’s because their team has sucked so much (Lions, Bills, etc. haven’t made the playoffs in years) that they need some hope. Some fans (not all) lie to themselves and believe their draft class is a good one, and when they read that I give their team a bad grade, they lash out at me when they really should be yelling at the owner.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE BUCS? Why did they have to draft Josh Freeman? Not only that they trade up for him and pass on Jeremy Maclin? I wasn’t happy with their draft at all. The only two picks I liked were Xavier Fulton and Sammie Stroughter. I’m not sure on Roy Miller and Dre Moore. I didn’t care for the Moore pick. I would’ve taken Lawrence Sidbury because he was right there and they traded up then also.
My Response:
Drafting Josh Freeman was a great move. To win in the NFL, you need to have a quarterback, protect your quarterback and get to the other quarterback. Though you may not like Freeman, it was definitely a great move because the Buccaneers needed a face for the franchise. It’s not like they reached for him either. Your team is rebuilding and it didn’t have a quarterback – the move was a no-brainer.
Roy Miller and Kyle Moore weren’t sexy picks, but they were the right ones. Going back to my original premise, Tampa now has a QB and can protect it, but the defensive line is in shambles. Miller and Moore certainly weren’t reaches, so they were the right players to target. You need depth and talent on the defensive line if you want to win in the NFL. The Buccaneers clearly understand that, and that tells me they’re moving in the right direction toward being competitive in 2010.
As an Eagles fan, I am cautiously optimistic about the upcoming season. We only won 9 games, after all, tied the Bengals, and were 2-4 in our division. I do not disagree on your ranking of 8 for them. What I take issue with are two teams you have above them: Bears and Chargers.
While I think that their move for Cutler was nothing short of amazing, let’s remember that the Bears leading receiver last season was a rookie running back and they did nothing in the offseason to address this, save third- and fifth-round receivers in the draft. Orlando Pace is nice, but let’s face it, he is past his time and could have a rough time against some of the pass rushers in his own division and he will face the Steelers, Eagles and Ravens pass rushers, as well. I also think their defense is on the way out, but we could argue that one all day.
As for the San Diego, again, on offense, LT is a huge question mark and I like Sproles, but he found a little lightning in a bottle (to steal some of your verbage) towards the end of last season. They can kid hemselves all they want, but if LT is not LT, they are in deep trouble. And quite honestly, the Chargers would have been one and done in the playoffs if they had played anyone other than the Colts. They also would have missed the playoffs altogether if not for a complete collapse by Denver, who lost four of their last six and Cutler’s paseer rating was below 75 in all of those losses. The same Cutler which has helped moved the Bears above the Eagles in your mind. I am not sold on an 8-8 team who did very little in the offseason being ranked above a 9-6-1 team from the NFC East who upgraded at five key positions.
Just my thoughts, for what they’re worth. And since you will probably ask, I think the Falcons, Titans and Cardinals could all take the Chargers and Bears’ place in the top 10 somewhere.
My Response:
I guess that’s the fun of power rankings. You can make arguments for 2-3 teams for being in front of the Eagles, and I can say they belong behind them, and vice versa.
I look at it this way – the Bears nearly had the same record as the Eagles with wishy-washy QB play. Now, they have Cutler and a much deeper offensive line. The Chargers, meanwhile, are all healthy again. I picked them to go 8-8 last year and took some heat for it. The prediction came true. The reason I was down on them is because their four main players were coming off major injuries. Now, they’re all healthy, including LT.
After the draft, I checked around at the draft grades and noticed that everyone marked the Carolina Panthers draft down because they traded away their 2010 1st round pick. One analyst went on to say that it was one of the worst moves in the draft and that they should learn from the Patriots on how to draft. It looked like a solid move to me considering that Panthers will likely move Peppers for atleast a 1st rounder plus some extras. If you know you are getting picks after the draft, then it makes perfect sense to get the best replacement available during the draft. Sure, there is the argument that Everett Brown is a 3-4 lineback and would be undersized at 4-3 defensive end. It just happens that the new defensive coordinator has made his living off an undersized defensive end.
Back to the, ‘learn from the Patriots’ thing for a second. Have those guys really evaluated the Patriots 2006 and 2007 drafts? They are living off the hype of great drafts of the past. I don’t see the best drafting team in the NFL when I run down their recent drafts. I don’t think 2008 was that great other than Mayo.
My Response:
I do NFL Draft Re-Grades three years after each draft, so I’ll be looking at those more closely. But you’re right in that the Patriots haven’t drafted well. They’re maneuvering is remarkable though.
In my power rankings, I sort of suggested that the Patriots could still go after Julius Peppers. If you think about it, the Panthers seem ready to move him, while New England stockpiled a ton of second-round picks. Maybe New England gives up a first and a second next year, leaving them with two second-rounders so they’re not completely hurt in that department. The Patriots didn’t address the rush linebacker position, so maybe they’re targeting Peppers.
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2011 NFL Draft Mailbag Archive:
2011 NFL Draft Mailbag Home
Post-Round 1 E-mail - April 29
Hate Mail Volume 7 - April 10
Crackhead Mail Volume 2 - April 10
Random AFC Questions and Comments Volume 5 - April 10
Random NFC Questions and Comments Volume 5 - April 10
Hate Mail Volume 6 - April 3
Crackhead Mail - April 3
Trade and Prospect Speculation - April 3
Hate Mail Volume 5 - March 28
Cam Newton Mailbag - March 28
Random AFC Questions and Comments Volume 4 - March 28
Random NFC Questions and Comments Volume 4 - March 28
Hate Mail Volume 4 - March 13
Random AFC Questions and Comments Volume 3 - March 13
Random NFC Questions and Comments Volume 3 - March 13
Random Questions and Comments - March 7
Hate Mail Volume 3 - March 7
Combine Questions and Comments - March 7
Combine Hate Mail - March 7
Hate Mail Volume 2 - Feb. 22
Random AFC Questions and Comments Volume 2 - Feb. 22
Random NFC Questions and Comments Volume 2 - Feb. 22
Quarterbacks - Feb. 15
Hate Mail - Feb. 15
Random AFC Questions and Comments - Feb. 15
Random NFC Questions and Comments - Feb. 15
NFL Picks - Nov. 28
2025 NFL Mock Draft - Nov. 27
NFL Power Rankings - Nov. 25
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
