Final Mock

[Joe]

This is the final mock I'm going to do here. I'm going by gut instinct more than anything else here. That explains some of the trades that are likely to occur here as we saw Gute wheel-n-deal last year. For example, I can't help but think the Redskins are going to trade up ahead of Miami to grab a QB. It's pretty obvious IMHO given their amount of draft capital compared to that of Miami's. The general consensus seems to be that the Giants are going to pass on Haskins, at least at 6, and that Drew Lock is a lock to go to the Broncos(no pun intended). Miami needs a long-term solution at QB and with Haskins and Jones still on the board, Washington trades up giving us picks 15 and 76 in order to have their pick of the two; Washington has a good amount of draft capital in this particular draft and elects to use some of it here.

 

1.15: Brian Burns, EDGE, FSU:

 

Burns is athletic, Burns trusts his coaches, Burns has put on healthy weight while adding speed and strength. He has the fluidity to drop back into coverage if need be as well. He will need to tweak a few things as he adjusts to the league, but gives us an incredible upgrade. If we were to stay at 12, my gut feeling is that we would actually take Dillard as Hockenson will be off the board and given our trade down, Miami would probably select Dillard if the Redskins select Haskins. With Montez Sweat going to the Jags at 7 and Ed Oliver being drafted by the Falcons at 14, Burns is the next guy on our board.

1.30: Kaleb McGary, OL, Washington:

 

Before you go ripping my head off, consider the fact that McGary is flying up the draft boards and could go as high as 24 or 27 to Oakland. McGary gives us the luxury of plugging him in at Guard to let him adjust to the NFL game and refine some minor issues before kicking him out to RT to replace Bulaga. Lane Taylor had a questionable season last year and the speculation is that he may face an open competition at LG. Personally, I'd rather go DL, but we take advantage of a rather deep OL class early on.

2.44: Juan Thornhill, S, Virginia:

 

Converted CB that plays like a CB. He's who we want in a Safety at this point in the draft. He also ticks all the boxes we are looking for to pair him up with Amos at the FS spot while Greene and Jones are moved to SS roles at least for the time being. What Thornhill lacks, he will be able to make up for over the long-term. I would've liked to have taken him at 30 and we just might, but we also like McGary and there's no way he makes it past Oakland's three picks from 24-35 IMHO, especially after Oakland lost Osemele.

*Trade* We see a particular prospect we like slipping and give up picks 75 and 118 to Philadelphia who feels strapped for draft capitol.

2.57: Jace Sternberger, TE, Texas A&M

 

This is probably the most obvious pick that will be made and we may pull the trigger on him in the 2nd round at 64 if we were to make that trade. We've shown a lot of interest in Sternberger given his use in Jimbo Fisher's offense. Sternberger may not have an eye-popping 40 time and he may have some separation issues a la Richard Rodgers, but like Richard Rodgers, his sideline-to-sideline mobility, route-running, and balance is what catches MLF's eye....only Sternberger is better at all those things. Personally, I would've rather gone with a slot guy here and/or have used pick 30 or 44 on Irv Smith Jr., but with those picks being dedicated to other players and with New England opting for DL or WR help at pick 32, they'll certainly be looking for Gronk's replacement a few picks later.

 

3.76: Trysten Hill, DL, UCF:

 

He's got a big mouth and can be inconsistent, but he's quite disruptive and provides both the run support we're looking for and definitely the pressure Pettine wants to generate along that DL. We're not drafting him to be an immediate starter, however, and Mike Daniels will take care of his attitude in quite a hurry if he steps out of line. 

 

4.114: John Cominsky, EDGE/DE, Charleston:

We give Pettine another toy to develop as Cominsky's technique catches up with his athleticism. Cominsky's athleticism allows us to plug him in off EDGE or at DE. 

5.150: TJ Edwards, ILB, Wisconsin:

He's not the flashiest player, but he gets the job done. Depth.

6.185: Jeff Smith, WR, Boston College:

Smith is a gadget player who checks all of the boxes we are looking for as a receiver. Additionally, he is cut out to play in the slot.

6.194: Corey Ballentine, CB, Washburn:

Checks all the athletic thresholds, but is better in off-coverage, possibly a FS convert?

7.226: Andrew Beck, FB/TE, Texas:

He essentially replaces Rip as our FB.

 

Notable UDFAs:

Blace Brown, CB, Troy; Ty Johnson, RB, Maryland; Damarea Crockett, RB, Mizzou; Oli Udoh, OL, Elon; D'Cota Dixon, S, Wisconsin; Sutton Smith, LB, Northern Ill.

 

Analysis

I know CB wasn't exactly addressed in this draft, but finding proper value, plus finding guys with who we've been attached was a bit of an issue TBH so it was a bit difficult to go off of the information we had there. Additionally, you look at the 7 guys we already have and you'd notice that four of them were either high picks or have significant experience such as Tramon. I suspect the coaching staff will look at either Redmond or Brown to lock down the CB4 position or for Josh Jackson to make a rather big step forward. On the other hand, a lot of people will clamor for more OL or ILB. While we're struggling with depth at ILB, hence the Edwards pick, but there was really nobody that stood out in rounds 3-5 where we've generally taken an ILB. Plus, there was just too much value at other positions of greater need as well. Part of the reason I went with Trysten Hill is that Pettine likes pressure from his front-7, mainly from the DL. We have two bonafide starters along that DL and a bunch of rotational guys. We thought Wilkerson would've been that third guy that could have stepped up, but got hurt instead; the fact he hasn't been resigned speaks volumes.  If Cominsky can put on a good 10-15 lbs. of healthy weight, there's really not reason to question why he couldn't line up as a 5-tech with some good coaching. Overall, I suspect our coaching staff is going to continue to focus on EDGE the way it did with DB last year while adding to the Safety room. I suspect next year will be the year of the ILB and possibly DL if we are unsatisfied with what we have.

 

Fire away!

 

[Cadmus]

Ripkowski was cut by the Packers on September 1, 2018. 

[Jaegybomb]

You forgot Sternberger's name in his header.

[James Lofton]

Love the first three picks. Not a fan of trading up -- but I wouldn't begrudge it either.

Nice work.

[Joe]

4 hours ago, Cadmus said:

Ripkowski was cut by the Packers on September 1, 2018. 

I'm aware of that. We went into last year with an offense that was completely disjointed thanks to the feud between A-Rod and MM. I think we'd all rather forget last year's offense.

[n8ghee]

Good work, I like your draft more than 95 percent I’ve seen...and I’m not even a big fan of Burns.

[Joe]

Thanks.

[Reaper]

8 hours ago, n8ghee said:

Good work, I like your draft more than 95 percent I’ve seen...and I’m not even a big fan of Burns.

Same here Im not high on Burns but this works well for me.

[Leader]

15 hours ago, Jaegybomb said:

You forgot Sternberger's name in his header.

Yes....but the fact that Sternberger's a top "second tier" TE talent and I recognized his picture meant that he didnt need to put his name.
Different position........different player.......(read: one I'd not been looking in to.....) - it would have been: "Who's that?" 

[BrettFavre004]

I would love this 

[jleisher]

No complaints from me, nice job.

[deathstar]

On 4/20/2019 at 4:12 PM, Joe said:

1.15: Brian Burns, EDGE, FSU:

1.30: Kaleb McGary, OL, Washington:

2.44: Juan Thornhill, S, Virginia:

2.57: Jace Sternberger, TE, Texas A&M

3.76: Trysten Hill, DL, UCF:

4.114: John Cominsky, EDGE/DE, Charleston:

5.150: TJ Edwards, ILB, Wisconsin:

6.185: Jeff Smith, WR, Boston College:

6.194: Corey Ballentine, CB, Washburn:

7.226: Andrew Beck, FB/TE, Texas:

Notable UDFAs:

Blace Brown, CB, Troy; Ty Johnson, RB, Maryland; Damarea Crockett, RB, Mizzou; Oli Udoh, OL, Elon; D'Cota Dixon, S, Wisconsin; Sutton Smith, LB, Northern Ill.

 

In my opinion I'd be happy with a Burns pick if we traded down, so I like that. I would be happy with McGary in the 2nd, but if there's a run on offensive linemen early then I could see his value be there at 30. Sternberger would be the worst athlete we've spent a premium pick on in a long time, so I just can't see us picking him. I like Hill and the slot is good value, but I can't help but wonder if we will find better DT value on the third day. I could see Cominsky going in the 2nd or 3rd to some desperate team, but I wouldn't take him period; I think he's more of a UDFA. I like Van Ginkel more from Wisconsin, and he's the one whose likely available at this pick. Jeff Smith makes sense - we brought him in for a visit and he's a gadget type player that we don't have. Ballentine would provide Tony Brown with good competition, but I don't know where his position is long term. Beck again makes sense - visited and would immediately upgrade our FB position.

[Leader]

1 minute ago, deathstar said:

In my opinion I'd be happy with a Burns pick if we traded down....

Works for me - so long as you know for sure you're not going to lose the talent between 12 and 15.
Otherwise - whats the gain? A lower draft pick simply so you can get the most precise, exact, down to the last detail draft "value" on a player?

If Burns (or any other guy) is your guy at 12 -- you draft him. You take the talent. Unless you know for sure nobody else is gonna nab him - or move up to steal him.
 

 

[deathstar]

Just now, Leader said:

Works for me - so long as you know for sure you're not going to lose the talent between 12 and 15.
Otherwise - whats the gain? A lower draft pick simply so you can get the most precise, exact, down to the last detail draft "value" on a player?

If Burns (or any other guy) is your guy at 12 -- you draft him. You take the talent. Unless you know for sure nobody else is gonna nab him - or move up to steal him.
 

 

I think what that means is Burns isn't the guy at 12; he's on the same level as players like Hock/Fant/Baker/Tillery/Simmons. 

[Leader]

2 minutes ago, deathstar said:

I think what that means is Burns isn't the guy at 12; he's on the same level as players like Hock/Fant/Baker/Tillery/Simmons. 

Understood....but postionally....he holds his ranking IMO.
Hell - I'd rather draft Simmons with our #1 than draft an OT.