5/3/10
2010 NFL Draft E-mails – More Post-Draft Mailbag
I’m in shock that the Chiefs had Russell Okung staring them right in the face and still picked Eric Berry at No. 5. Seattle cashed in on this foolishness and not only got Okung, but with their 14th pick they got just almost as good a safety in Earl Thomas.
Most of the Chiefs fans are ecstatic, but I’m not. I’ve been a Chiefs fan for 41 years going back to when I was 9 years old. You mentioned Pioli being “abducted by aliens and replaced with a doppelganger” if Berry was the pick. Well this doppelganger caved in to the wishes of the many Chiefs fans who were posting all over the Web that Berry was the guy they had to draft at No. 5. Somebody laundered his brain and you are right — he has no plan.
I disagree with the choice. When the first round was over there were a number of good safety prospects that were still out there. If the Chiefs had yielded to logic and taken Russell Okung (and in the process give their O-line a two-fold upgrade by plugging Okung into LT and moving Albert to guard or RT ) they could have easily drafted a couple of safeties in Rounds 2 through 5 and paid them less money combined than what they are going to have to pay Berry.
Speaking of which, they are going to make Berry the highest paid Safety in the NFL before he ever sets foot on the field. If not, you can bet on a long-term holdout, which I can already see happening.
If the Chiefs had traded down and got extra picks and gotten Berry or Thomas later on, that would have been one thing. But to take Berry at No. 5 when they had a stellar tackle like Okung staring them in the face, as well as the fact that in the last 10 years the Chiefs have drafted only two O-Lineman in top four rounds of the NFL Draft, with Branden Albert being one of them in 2008 and some obscure player in 2004 or 2005 that never made the team. Small wonder that they’ve only won 10 games in the last three years and have not really tried to fully address their offensive line since Willie Roaf and Will Shields retired.
This pick at No. 5 in the 2010 NFL draft gets my personal grade of a big fat F. I think it will backfire on the Chiefs.
–> I completely agree with your e-mail. Not only was taking Eric Berry fiscally irresponsible, it was also a foolish football position because the safety position provides minimal value. You can find good safeties anywhere – Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu weren’t even drafted in the top 15.
I’d say I was surprised by the pick, but it came from the same guy who paid the noodle-armed Matt Cassel $63 million.
It’s unbelievable that Kansas City hasn’t attempted to rebuild its once great line. That’s why the Chiefs were great in the early part of this decade in the first place. How the front office hasn’t realized this is beyond me.
Chiefs fans are very loyal and passionate, so it really pains me to see a man like Pioli ruining this franchise in a Matt Millen-like manner.
Explain to me how a young team that upgraded it’s biggest weakness in its defensive line in a big way and lost no one of significance in FA or through trades could get worse. What makes you think a team like the Broncos or Bucs will be better than the Jags?
–> Because the other teams got better. The Jaguars simply replaced John Henderson with Tyson Alualu, which in reality is a downgrade for the 2010 season. I can’t recall any other team intentionally downgrading a position with a top 10 pick before.
How are the Jags going to get to the quarterback if Kampman’s not healthy? Who is Garrard going to throw to besides Mike Sims-Walker? Where’s the replacement for the horrific Brad Meester?
And most importantly, how are the Jaguars going to avoid blackouts except for the opener against Tim Tebow and the Broncos? If they keep failing to sell out games, they’ll be moving to Los Angeles soon.
After remembering that Tyson Alualu played in Cal s 3-4 defense and D’Anthony Smith could play in a 3-4 as well I thought: could the soon-to-be LA Jags be switching to the 3-4? Both Kirk Morrison and Darryl Smith can play the inside and they have enough DE s to play rush linebacker. So, your thoughts?
–> They tried the 3-4 last year and it didn’t work too well. I don’t like the switch to the 3-4 because then they’d have wasted money on Aaron Kampman. Kampman struggled in the 3-4 last year in Green Bay, so why ask him to play in that scheme again? D’Anthony Smith isn’t a good fit for the 3-4 either.
How was signing Jake Delhomme a bad move? The Browns at the time had Seneca Wallace as their only legitimate starter at QB. The Eagles wanted at least a No. 1 for McNabb, which was more than the Browns wanted to pay.
If Delhomme is horrible, they have only lost money. Its not as if there were a bunch of other possible veteran QBs they could have signed who would have been any better. They have so many holes to fill, I guess they are probably going to go after a QB in next year’s draft if Colt McCoy doesnt pan out (which I dont think he will).
–> Delhomme is one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL and they gave him $7 million. And the Eagles didn’t get a No. 1 for McNabb; the Browns could have just surrendered their second-rounder. Mike Holmgren is terribly overrated as a GM; he was so bad in Seattle he was relieved of that role. You cannot defend this Delhomme signing because the Browns are the laughing stock of the NFL (yet again).
Also, you don’t know if McCoy will pan out because the Browns won’t be playing him this year. So no quarterback for Cleveland in the 2011 NFL Draft.
Cliff Avril, Donkeykong Suh, Corey Williams and Kyle Vanden Bosch. Does this crack the top 10 for best defensive line in the NFL?
–> That’s pretty damn good, and you also have good depth with Sammie Lee Hill. If Jason Fox pans out and can protect Matthew Stafford, the Lions are going to have an awesome team – perhaps capable of reaching the playoffs in 2011.
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 - Dec. 13
2025 NFL Mock Draft - Dec. 11
NFL Power Rankings - Dec. 9
2026 NFL Mock Draft - Nov. 29
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
