I swear they put four rounds on one day just to make the life of people like me harder. To add insult to injury, by this point in the draft the names are starting to become obscure. There's a lot of players who I was aware of but just haven't been able to find film on, or not enough film to be useful in some cases.
But when you keep in mind that I had/have lists of over 30 players at most positions, for a player to not even make that list means he's pretty obscure.
With that in mind, I'm going to cover the guys that I know about, as mentioning players I don't is;
a) a little redundant,
b) time consuming for absolutely no good reason,
With that in mind, off we go.
Round Four:
98: Carolina: Brandon Hogan, CB.
Question over pass coverage, which generally tends to be bad for a corner back. Multiple character concerns.
101. Cincinnati; Clint Boling, OG.
So, so, offensive linemen.
102. Cleveland; Jordan Cameron, TE.
Good hands, route running ok.
103. Arizona; Sam Acho, DE.
Miss. Nothing special.
104. Tampa Bay; Luke Stocker, TE.
Fairly safe pair of hands. Should prove a useful target mainly when looking for shorter gains, such as in the red zone.
105. Washington; Roy Helu, RB.
Tough back who can help in pass protection. The big question is who will he be blocking for.
106. Minnesota; Christian Ballard, DE.
Stunned that he fell this low. Apparently tested positive for marijuana at the combine which is a small issue and the first character concern he's had (to my knowledge), but to push a player of his talent to the fourth round? That's just stupid. Has a great combination of power and technique. Should make a great contribution to a great D-line.
109. Tennessee; Colin McCarthy, LB.
Below average linebacker who I expect will struggle at this level without a healthy dose of good coaching.
110. Dallas; David Arkin, OG.
I wrote "If you value your QB, don’t take Arkin. Half the time he doesn’t even know who he’s supposed to be blocking." Tony Romo is set for another season ending injury then.
111. Miami; Edmond Gates, WR.
Not a bad slot receiver in the making, but route running needs some work.
112. St. Louis; Greg Salas, WR.
Excellent receiver. Adds some toughness to that Rams offense at the receiver position. Another toy for Sam Bradford.
115. San Francisco; Kendall Hunter, RB.
Talented, tough kid. Nice addition to the "backfield by committee" in San Fran.
116. Philadelphia; Casey Matthews, LB.
Not sure entirely at this stage how he'll fit into the Eagles scheme, but Matthews is an awesome kid with a great career ahead.
118. Kansas; Jalil Brown, CB.
Looked terrible. Junk pick.
119. Indianapolis; Delone Carter, RB.
Not the greatest back in this draft by any means, but his particular talents mesh really well with what the Colts do on offense. Won't stun, but improves the Colts offense a fair bit.
121. Jacksonville; Chris Prosinski, SS.
The Jaguars need help on the back end and this kid could be the answer, or at least part of it. A great player to have around when you're up against the likes of Manning and Schaub.
122. Buffalo; Chris Hairston, OT.
Has the basics to build on, but he'll need coaching to iron out things like the waist bending habit.
125. Oakland; Taiwan Jones, RB.
Reminds me a lot of Ahmad Bradshaw (that's a good thing). Not sure if running back was exactly the Raiders biggest concern though.
126. New York (J); Bilal Powell, RB.
Cursed forever by a recommendation from Charley Casserly. Has some desirable traits and will probably fit in well with the Jets. His physical "hitting" style of running will impress Rex Ryan.
127. Houston; Rashad Carmichael, CB.
The Texans need the help at Corner. Carmichael is most definitely not the answer.
129. Denver; Julius Thomas, TE.
Safe hands, but that's about it.
131. Green Bay; Davon House, CB.
All round very good corner. Will have time to develop in Green Bay.
Round Five;
133. Buffalo; Johnny White, RB.
Not a bad back, but lacks speed. Might serve as a change of pace in the backfield when compared with C.J. Spiller.
134. Cincinnati; Robert Sands, S.
Can't go wrong with Sands. Good all round safety will serve as a useful addition to that secondary.
135. Kansas; Ricky Stanzi, QB.
Nice pick. Will likely start as a backup to Matt Cassel and assume his role unless Cassel shows some significant improvement this year. Stanzi is a good QB who should transition well to the pros.
137. Cleveland; Buster Skrine, CB.
Excellent little pick. Joe Haden showed promise last year and with Skrine opposite this could be the start of a pairing that lasts a long time.
138. New England; Marcus Cannon, OT.
Fits the size and strength mold that the Patriots look for in their O-line, but I have serious questions over his pass blocking ability at this level.
139. Minnesota; Brandon Burton, CB.
I like the fact that the Vikings are looking to repair their secondary. Burton is great against the pass which makes facing Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford a little easier, but run support needs work.
141. Green Bay; D.J. Miller, TE.
Hands are not a problem, nor is run blocking, but speed and run after the catch are question marks. Not sure how good a fit he'll be for the Green Bay system.
142. Tennessee; Karl Klug, DE.
Blurgh! By my "board" Tennessee are having a truly horrible draft.
145. Atlanta; Jacquizz Rodgers, RB.
Vision is a concern, but other than that Rodgers is a solid back who might bring some much needed big play ability to the Falcons backfield.
148. Oakland; Denarius Moore, WR.
Isn't the fastest in the world in pads, but route running is very good.
149. Philadelphia; Dion Lewis, RB.
Last season the Eagles started to find their rushing attack again and Lewis just makes them all the more dangerous. An excellent back, and excellent value in the fifth round.
150. Cleveland; Jason Pinkston, OT.
Steal for the fifth round. Stick him on at right tackle and let him develop over time. Excellent pick.
151. Tampa Bay; Ahmad Black, S.
Good pick to help shore up the back end of the Buc's D. Like it.
153. New York (J); Jeremy Kerley, WR.
If you're thinking Kerley might replace Brad Smith perhaps, then think again. Thumbs down for Kerley.
156. Seattle; Mark Legree, S.
The player I described as a phenom. I was hoping the 49ers might take him, but instead he ends up with the enemy. Shame. And a pain in the arse at the same time.
157. Detroit; Doug Hogue, LB.
Has speed, but much of his future career will depend on the quality of his coaching. This lockout could prove very problematic for him.
160. Chicago; Nathan Enderle, QB.
Very nice pick in the fifth round. Enderle is a really talented, unheralded kid. Terrible O-line at Idaho should give him a head start in working behind the Bears O-line. If Cutler shits out again, Enderle could get his shot this year and has the talent to take advantage. Rooting for you kid.
161. Philadelphia; Julian Vandervelde, OG.
Nice pick. Nice value in the fifth. Should help stiffen that Eagles line which - along with Danny Watkins - is looking very good for 2011.
162. Pittsburgh; Chris Carter, OLB.
I can see Carter becoming a great outside rusher in the Steelers scheme. With the quality of talent they have, the quality of the coaching, and time to work with this kid, he's couldn't have landed in a better spot.
Round Six;
166. Carolina; Lawrence Wilson, LB.
Not a bad pick. Needs to work on his run fits.
169. Buffalo; Chris White; LB.
Not a bad later rounder. With time and hard work has potential.
170. Minnesota; Mistral Raymond, S.
Tackling is good, pass coverage needs work.
171. Arizona; Quan Sturdivant, LB.
Good value pick. Needs to work on his counter running game, but plenty of scope for development and has good pass coverage skills.
173. Seattle; Byron Maxwell, CB.
Another good pick for the secondary. The back end of the Seahawks D is shaping up nicely, especially with Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas already in the bag from last year.
174. Miami; Charles Clay, TE/FB.
Wasted pick. Bring back Parcells.
176. Dallas; Dwayne Harris, WR.
Hands are good. Everything else sucks.
182. San Francisco; Ronald Johnson, WR.
For some reason I have him listed as Ronald Jackson? It is Johnson, I double checked, so I don't know what happened there. Anyway, excellent receiver. Route technician.
183. San Diego; Jordan Todman, RB.
Solid, versatile running back.
187. Tampa Bay; Allen Bradford, RB.
Strong back, with surprising speed and agility.
189. Denver; Mike Mohamed, LB.
Overall has some intriguing skills, but came away from his tape oddly under whelmed.
191. Philadelphia; Jason Kelce, OG/C.
Meh. All that hard work with some of their other picks on the O-line could be undone by a weak link. Not a Kelce fan.
193. Philadelphia; Brian Rolle, LB.
Has most of the physical skills, but needs to work hard on the mental side. Again, not helped by the lockout.
195. Chicago; J.T. Thomas, LB.
Love this pick and this late? I think he's great value. I can see Thomas slotting in as the Will linebacker in the Bears 4-3 scheme. Don't be surprised if this kid impresses in training camp (if there is one) and is starting day one.
197. Green Bay; Ricky Elmore, DE/OLB.
Love Ricky Elmore. Might play with his hand in the dirt as a DE in the Packers 3-4, but most likely to make the transition to OLB. I think he's a nice fit for the Packers.
198. New York (G); Tyler Sash, S.
Not sold on sash. Tackling is good and positioning is ok, but a bit lucky in college. Luck is in short supply in the NFL.
200. Minnesota; Ross Homan, LB.
Has the mental tools I think, but needs to bulk up and hit the weight room.
201. San Diego; Stephen Schilling, OG.
Pretty good standard. Needs to focus on pass blocking, especially given the team he's playing for.
Round Seven;
204. Denver; Virgil Green, TE.
A good pick for where he was taken. Has some potential.
208. New York (J); Greg McElroy, QB.
I like McElroy and considering how low he fell, this is a good pick. Sanchez may be the face of the franchise right now, but he needs to show it this year. No more excuses. McElroy is good enough to give him a run for his money.
211. San Francisco; Bruce Miller, DE.
C'mon Jim and Trent, you're killing me. Hence forth to be known on this site as Bruce "Lumber" Miller. Slow as hell off the snap.
221. New York (G); Da'Rel Scott, RB.
Slow, slow, slow.
222. Tampa Bay; Anthony Gaitor, CB.
Thought he might end up this low. Steal for the Buccaneers. Superb corner. Will make a nice replacement for Aqib Talib.
226. New Orleans; Greg Romeus, DE.
The back surgery did count against him, but the Saints just got a great pick. Likely to play DE in their 3-4 scheme as opposed to OLB, but that obviously depends on how he works out in training camp. If he can work on his run fits and find a little more speed, he'll develop into a great front seven player.
230. Atlanta; Cliff Matthews, DE.
Went in the right round, to the right team. Will get to learn from some good D-linemen and has the tools to go on and be successful in the future. Like the pick.
238. Tampa Bay; Daniel Hardy, TE.
Love Daniel Hardy, think this is an absolute steal. Combines lots of good qualities required from a tight end and can learn a lot from Kellen Winslow II.
242. Seattle; Malcolm Smith, LB.
The Seahawks strike again on defense. I really like Smith. I think he can make a good inside backer to complement the talents of someone like Aaron Curry.
244. Carolina; Lee Ziemba, OT.
About average. Likely to spend a lot of time sitting on the bench in the coming years.
247. Denver; Jeremy Beal, OLB.
I'm surprised he fell this far. I can see Beal playing as a rush linebacker which is something the Broncos really need. Excellent prospect who should prove to be great value.
254. Houston; Cheta Ozougwu, DT.
Don't know anything about him, just thought you might like to know who Mr. Irrelevant 2011 was.
Right, that's it. No really, not just for the draft. Unless the league and union come together and play happy families soon, this could be the last football related thing we hear about for a while.
As I mentioned earlier, in the next couple of days I'll be drawing up a list of undrafted free agents to keep and eye on. There's some surprising names, including LB Mark Herzlich who many though might be a mid-round draftee.
Funny old game this one.
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