My 2006 NFL Mock Draft

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First off I'm not going to predict playoff winners or final season records. This draft order is simply by the win/loss records of the teams as it stands at this point of the season. I also will not be looking into possible trades that involve other teams moving up or down.

 

1.) Houston - D'Brickashaw Ferguson - OT, Virginia: This pick could very well be traded down a few spots if Houston winds up with the first overall pick. That being said they don't want to drop too far because this is their man. After seeing glimpses of promise from David Carr they need to know he'll be fine if they get him an O-Line to protect him. He's once again the most sacked QB in the league and this pick immediately helps end that. A Walter Jones type tackle with alot of upside. Houston just can't pass on him with their O-Line troubles.

2.) Green Bay - Reggie Bush - RB, USC: The Packers have their QB of the future and with Ahmad Green looking at free agency and being an injury risk you go for the RB of the future. It will take some time to adjust to the frigid air of Green Bay after playing in the hot sun of Southern Cali for so long, but Reggie will do fine wherever he goes.

3.) New Orleans - Haloti Ngata - DT, Oregon: The Saints are 29th against the run and 5th against the pass in the NFL. When you have a back with the talent of Deuce you need to be the one grinding down the clock with the run. Ngata is an absolute beast at his position and eats up blockers as if they were nothing. Paired up with Johnathan Sullivan on the inside and having Charles Grant and Will Smith on the ends gives New Orleans a top 10 D-Line.

4.) Tenn - Matt Leinart - QB, USC: Tenn is still trying to build themselves back up from the depths of salary cap hell. With this being Steve McNair's last season there most likely and Norm Chow now being the OC this pick becomes a no-brainer. Don't expect Leinart to realistically be there at #4 since there will be a bidding war for his services, but if he's there then Tenn grabs him. Volek might then be traded for additional picks (to a team like The Jets?)

5.) San Fran - Jimmy Williams - CB, Virginia Tech: The 49ers are the worst team against the pass in the league. There's really nothing else that needs to be said.

6.) Arizona - Mario Williams - DE, North Carolina St.: I'd be shocked to see this player still around for the 6th pick, but if he is then Arizona will snatch him up. He's been compared to Julius Peppers and has all the talent in the world to back that up. Arizona desperately needs a pass rusher and they get him here.

7.) NY Jets - Vernon Davis - TE, Maryland: There won't be a QB worth taking at this spot since Leinart will be long gone and Vince Young said he's going back for his senior season (even if he didn't one would think Arizona would take him one pick earlier) so the Jets finally get a TE that can actually help them. If its Chad Pennington or somebody else at QB, they'll be happy to have this option running over the middle for them.

8.) Baltimore - Marcus McNeill - OT, Auburn: Oh how Baltimore would love a QB here as well, but there isn't going to be one. With Ogden getting noticabley slower and Orlando Brown being a big lump of shit; enter Marcus McNeill. He's built almost exactly like a young Ogden (1 inch shorter and 5lbs heavier) and he also brings great skill at run blocking where he helped boost Ronnie Brown and Carnell Williams from the backfield every week for a couple years. If Baltimore can't get their QB of the future they might as well get somebody who can help keep Jamal Lewis running for big yards.

9.) Oakland - A.J. Hawk - OLB, Ohio St: After trying the 3-4 for one season the Raiders were told by Al Davis to go back to the 4-3. The only problem with that is that they did not have the LBs to do so. You can't have 260lb+ outside LBers in the 4-3, so they grab themselves an OLB that does fit in. A.J. Hawk is possibly one of the best LBers coming out of this draft and while the Raiders could use a better RB I don't see them taking one here with all the money they invested in Lamont Jordan this past off-season.

10.) Cleveland - Mathias Kiwanuka - De, Boston College: There's been alot of talk about the Browns drafting a RB with their first round pick, but both Romeo Crennell and Phil Savage are defensive minded guys. Kiwanuka has been compared to Jevon Kearse by many scouts and with the Browns dropping their whole D-Line to Denver there's obviously a need for a DE, nevermind one compared to Kearse. Look for Romeo and Phil to shore up the defense here and possibly look at a RB in round 2 or 3.

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11.) Detroit - Eric Winston - OT, Miami (Fla): Lions fans expect defense and get more offense. Winston is a tough kid that can provide Harrington time to actually finish his reads

12.) Miami - Andrew Whitworth - OT, LSU: Nick Saban goes back to his old stomping grounds and gets a premiere Tackle. Whitworth will help open up more holes for Ronnie Brown while protecting whomever their QB may be

13.) Minn - Laurence Maroney - RB, Minn: Whizzinators, Injuries, and Sex Boat Trips, oh my! The Vikings are in serious need of a fresh start in the backfield and some good PR. Bringing in the Golden Gopher RB will do just that.

14.) Buffalo - Gabe Watson - DT, Michigan: Its no surprise the run defense in Buffalo has suffered with Pat Williams leaving for Minn. Watson provides them another hog that can clog the middle and shut down the running game.

15.) Philli - Derek Hagan - WR, Arizona St: No T.O.? No worries. Philli struck gold with Reggie Brown in the early second round of the 05 draft and in the first round of the 06 draft they take the best reciever in college football right now. Primed to get over 1,000 recieving yards and around 10 touchdowns he's just what the Eagles ordered.

16.) St. Louis - Marcedes Lewis - TE, UCLA: The greatest show on Turf has been playing in Indi the past few seasons, but this pick brings St. Louis one step closer to bringing it back to the Edward Jones Dome. Marc Bulger will be like a kid in a candy store looking at the weapons he has after this pick.

17.) New England - Kelly Jennings - CB, Miami(Fla): Most people have Michael Huff of Texas slated here, and while he is vercatile they have enough of those types in the secondary. The Patriots have lacked a big play corner since Ty Law went down with a foot injury last season and then left in the off-season. Jennings is one of the faster CBs in this draft and also has good size. He's also not afraid to hit somebody which is something Belichick looks for in a DB.

18.) San Diego - LaRon Landry - S, LSU: San Diego front 7 are starting to look mighty impressive but you can still throw the ball easy on them. They're weak at the safety position and having a safety with the talent of Landry who also spent two of his seasons being coached by Nick Saban will certainly help San Diego out here.

19.) Dallas - Michael Huff - S, Texas: The Cowboys rebuilt defense is raising some eyebrows but Roy Williams needs a partner to man Center Field. Huff comes in knowing the kind of pressure that goes with playing Texas football and gives Parcells somebody with an eye for the ball.

20.) Denver (from Wash) - Darnell Bing - S, USC: John Lynch isn't getting any younger and Champ Bailey isn't going to man the secondary on his own. Three safeties in a row off the board is unlikely, but crazier things have happened (Like Maurice Clarrett being drafted on the first day by the Broncos in the previous draft). Denver would probably look WR but there are no real WRs worth it at this very spot.

21.) Tampa Bay - Jonathan Scott - OT, Texas: The Tampa Bay O-Line is just dreadful. That alone makes Jonathan Scott an obvious choice. The All-American Tackle from Texas was one of the main reasons Cedric Benson was as succesful as he was and why Vince Young doesn't find himself getting hit on the blindside often, if at all.

22.) Kansas City - Chad Greenway - OLB, Iowa: The Chiefs big problem is still their defense. Drafting Derrik Johnson and signing Kendrell Bell helped that out but with Greenway they solidify their LB corp. The only real concern with him is how that reconstructed knee will hold up, but he's definately a playmaker

23.) Jacksonville - Will Blackmon - CB, Boston Coll: They have nothing for corners other than Rashean Mathis, this solves that problem. The Jaguars secondary is the only questionable part of their defense but if Darius comes back healthy and they add Blackmon then Jack Del Rio has finally built a defense very similiar to the one he helped coach in Baltimore.

24.) Chicago - Santonio Holmes Jr - WR, Ohio St: Chicago will most likely be looking at one of the big OTs in this draft, but at this spot there isn't one worth taking. They do stay on the offensive side of the ball with their pick though taking a WR that can compliment Muhsin Mohamed.

25.) Pittsburgh - Max Jean-Gilles - OG, Georgia: The Steelers aren't a team with a ton of needs, and while they'd probably like to upgrade at the corner position I don't think there are any left worth a first rounder. They go best player available for what they do, and that's run the ball. Jean-Gilles gets plugged in on the right side of the line and makes the offense even more dangerous with the run.

26.) Carolina

27.) NY Giants

28.) Denver

29.) Seattle

30.) Atlanta

31.) Cinci

32.) Indi

 

I'll get to the rest later.

[Guest Vitamin X]

I actually wouldn't be surprised to see Green Bay take a defensive lineman in this draft. They've needed one for at least 3 years or so (look back at any of the NFL draft threads, I've been clamoring for it at least) and with guys like Grady Jackson getting older, and not enough interior depth, I wouldn't be surprised to see Green Bay part with the top 3 pick for a later top-10 pick and a second 2nd round pick also in the top 10, possibly to a team desperate for Leinart like Tennessee or any other team in need of a QB. The defensive line depth in the draft this year is amazing. I have faith the offensive line will get its shit together by next year, or if anything, they can take a good free agent guard. If Favre retires, that'll free up a good chunk of cap space to surround Rodgers with some playmakers, hopefully.

 

I'm so not used to the idea of having someone else at quarterback.

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This draft is going to be loaded with talent on the D-Line. Green Bay could still get a first round talent D-Lineman with their second round pick.

[Damaramu 0]

I wonder where Vince Young would fall if he decided to come out. Then again he's told everyone he's staying.

I'd still rather have LenDale White on my team as a pro RB than Bush.

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Vince young is a Randall Cunningham/Daunte Culpepper mold of QB. I'm sure the Ravens would take a chance on him as a first round pick if he had declared. He'll certainly be a first round talent next year barring injuries.

[razazteca 0]

I wonder where Vince Young would fall if he decided to come out. Then again he's told everyone he's staying.

I'd still rather have LenDale White on my team as a pro RB than Bush.

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7-8 to the Jets or Ravens?

[Damaramu 0]

Kiper was claiming he would be 2nd or 3rd overall if he came out this year.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Vernon Davis is a good player and a very good receiving TE, but I don't think he's close to being worth a top-10 pick.

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Vernon Davis is a good player and a very good receiving TE, but I don't think he's close to being worth a top-10 pick.

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It might be a bit of a reach but...

 

A.) I went by the team's needs and they are lacking big time at TE. They could have drafted Heath Miller last year but for some reason they shipped off a first rounder for Doug Jolley and a few later round picks.

 

B.) This is the Jets. Making a reach pick is never unusual for them.

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I think the Jets would get the 6th pick and Arizona the 7th at this point based on their conference records and whatnot.

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Laurence Maroney lacks that toughness a good RB needs. Russell is the Gophers go to guy, when they need to pick two-three yards. Maroney seems to only look to break off a big run, when all he might need to do is pickup a first down.

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He is a little on the small size at 5'11" and 205lbs but he's somebody the Vikings have been scouting all season. I think he's the 3rd best back in the nation though behind Reggie Bush and DeAngelo Williams of Memphis. He seems to be the Vikings' guy though and if he's available for them to grab then he's as good as there.

 

He has big play capability and really only needs to work on his recieving skills.

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It would help if the Gophers used him more out of backfield.

 

I've actually seen in several mock drafts. That Maroney is ahead of Williams. NFL draft countdown has Maroney going 5th to New York, and Williams going to Minnesota like 13th.

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I doubt any TE goes in the top 10, but if one does it will be Marcedes Lewis from UCLA. He's far and away the top TE in this draft.

 

Also I think Arizona would take a DT before DE. They already have Bertrand Berry, who's one of the top pass rusher's in the NFL. So I wouldn't say they desperately need one.

[Vampiro69 0]

The Cardinals need a D-tackle before a DE. For the ends they have Bert Berry and Chikie. Only DT is Dockett. They could use another cornerback, or an OL. I would leave the QB spot for the second round.

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Berry is good but they can still use another DE and you don't turn down a player with the potential of being a Julius Peppers type player. Also, as I previously said, this draft is heavy in defensive line help. You can get a good DT in the second round but you won't get a DE of this caliber that late.

 

Marcedes Lewis is my second TE off the board. He's got alot more TDs but look at the competition his team has faced. Vernon Davis has held his own against some very good defenses and I feel he has alot more upside. Both TEs are going to be very productive though and you can't go wrong with either one.

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and I updated picks 15-20

[Brett Favre 0]

The Jets aren't going to draft a TE. It's going to be QB, or HB.

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another TE? The Jets haven't drafted a good one in recent memory. Also, if you want to draft a QB then you're looking at drafting Charlie Whitehurst of Clemson. If you want the Jets to take a 3rd/4th round pick with their number one pick then I won't complain. There isn't a RB worth a first round pick that fits the Jets system.

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The system?!? How about taking the best RB available?

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Bush said he wants to be a Jet. So yes there is a HB that would love to go there. And its more than possible the Jets are there to pick him up in the top 5.

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The system?!? How about taking the best RB available?

 

You'll get more value out of Vernon Davis than just taking some back. Curtis Martin has at least another year left in him and next year's draft will be much better when it comes to RB (Adrian Peterson, LenDale White who I think stays at USC to boost his draft value to first round, and Mike Hart)

 

Bush said he wants to be a Jet. So yes there is a HB that would love to go there. And its more than possible the Jets are there to pick him up in the top 5.

Maybe the Jets will be there to grab him, but right now they aren't in the top 5 in draft order so that doesn't matter. They'd have to be in the top 3 to get him anyways. Not to mention if the Jets are high enough in the order to get Bush then Leinart is most likely still available and they wouldn't pass up on him. Green Bay and Houston aren't going to look at the QB position and I think they're going to be in the top 3.

[Brett Favre 0]

They'd pass up on Leinart with other QBs being availabe later on (or they can just trade for one), especially if Bush is available. And if you've seen every Jet game this year, which you haven't, you'd realize that Curtis Martin is on his last legs.

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Green Bay has Najeh Davenport and Tony Fisher though. I don't see them taking Bush. They've already considered Rodgers to be trade bait at this point so them taking Leinart is possible.

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You don't seem to understand that this year's draft is going to be crap as far as QBs go after Leinart. By the way, I've watched about 4 Jets games this season and the reason for Martin's dreadful year is the fact he has to shoulder the whole load. Teams are stacking up against the run because there's no passing threat. It also doesn't help that your pro-bowl Center is done for the year.

 

Next year's draft is going to be pretty good for QBs though as you'll most likely see Marcus Vick and Omar Jacobs join Vince Young in the talent pool. Its going to be the year of the Black QB when it comes to the 07 draft.

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Whatever it is, we're not passing up on Bush. If not Bush, DeAngelo Williams. We have to many options for trades at the QB position if Chad isn't healthy (Rivers, Brees, Volek, Ramsay). We're not drafting a TE. End of story. Bradway would get fired the minute that happens.

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Green Bay has Najeh Davenport and Tony Fisher though. I don't see them taking Bush. They've already considered Rodgers to be trade bait at this point so them taking Leinart is possible.

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Neither back is really somebody you want shouldering the load though. Najeh is a good change of pace back and Tony Fisher provides depth but that's about it. I'll tell you who they do have that I've found impressive and that's Sam Gado. He could be the Packers' version of Bettis/Duckett/Lorenzo Neal in years to come.

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Yeah Gado is good, and supposedly he's very fast. He should find a permanent spot soon.

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Whatever it is, we're not passing up on Bush. If not Bush, DeAngelo Williams. We have to many options for trades at the QB position if Chad isn't healthy (Rivers, Brees, Volek, Ramsay). We're not drafting a TE. End of story. Bradway would get fired the minute that happens.

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You probably didn't think they'd draft a kicker in the second round either, but it happened. Philip Rivers will cost you a king's ransom, Drew Brees isn't going anywhere now, Billy Volek might end up a FA and could go to the Jets but its no lock, Patrick Ramsey isn't the answer. This draft goes by team need and by what the team has at the moment, not what they could possibly attain in the future via trades and/or Free Agency (said that at the top but you obviously have a tough time with comprehension). You can clamor for Reggie Bush all you want but if he's already taken then its going to be tough shit for you.