Lunatics Stir-crazy Mock

[StLunatic88]

 

Alright biys, Ive had alot of time to kill, so I actually ranked all the prospects, and put together a mock that I think is a combination of my vision and what I think could be realistic

Pre-Draft

TRADE: Rams trade Gerald Everett to Buffalo for pick #128 (4th) + Conditional 2021 pick (4th or 5th depending on re-signing)

• I do still like Everett, but we made our choice pretty clear by giving Higbee the deal. On top of that, GE has been pretty underwhelming outside just a few games last year. But he did show that flash of talent, and the Bills need to continue to give Allen weapons (especially short/intermediate over the middle) in order to win now with the AFC East wide open. A pick outside the Top 125 isnt ideal for a guy you picked inside the Top 50 3 years ago, but he just hasnt panned out. The extra conditional pick helps some as it is always nice to have some extra draft capital in the future, but this is just salvaging something for a guy who feels like he doesnt have a prominent spot in the offense this year much less in the future. Although he is probably just as talented as any of the TEs in this draft, but only under contract for one more season, the Bills are trying to win now, not wait on a lottery ticket to hit down the line.

NFL Draft

R2) #52 - TRADE: Rams trade #52 to Washington for #66 (3rd) + #97 (3rd) + #142 (4th)

• I feel like its pretty obvious that we are going to try an manipulate the early part (for us) of the draft in order to gather a good chunk of picks this season that can contribute pretty quickly and be cheap talent for a while that will supplement our very top heavy balance sheet. And I really like that idea for this draft, as I see ony like 17-20 studs in the 1st Round with a good chunk between the 40-100 pick range that can be immediate contributors, but likely wont ever be superstars. And still plenty of upside talent beyond that. Some of you who are in tune with draft picks might be curious how the Skins even pull this off; They basically have no choice but to trade away Trent Williams at this point, and Cleveland seems to be the most likely landing spot, but Washington doesnt have much leverage, so the Browns extra 3rd they got late in the round is probably the best they are going to be able to do, possibly with a conditional sweetener pick for 2021 or beyond. Washington doesnt have a 2nd round pick right now, and getting a deal done for second Top 50 talent on their board, and potential corner stone, is more valuable than accumulating a few extra solid guys as they rebuild

R3) #66 - Prince Tego Wanogho OL Auburn

• I can already see the "he wont make it close to that pick" responses. And you may be right, but I disagree. He is in my 60-75 range of prospects as it is when I rank them. And on top of that, i think alot of the lineman other than the top handful of studs are going to slide in this draft. Outside of QB, its going to be the hardest for Lineman to adjust and contribute quickly with what will be an abbreviated offseason. And some will draft scared that way with their First couple of round selections. Even when we get down to the prospet himself, Wanogho is neerly a complete potential pick, without participating in the offseason due to recovery time, he will slip some. We dont worry about that, and make a pick that could really pay off down the line. He is the exact athletic type of lineman we need, and I think we could use him at 4 of the 5 spots along the line. Some see him pegged at Tackle, but I think he has the tools to be a really good guard as well. Out of the gate, he will just battle with the growing group of guys for the final Guard spot. For a more long term view, I think he and Noteboom make a very nice looking pair of bookends (dont see Havenstein sticking much longer with that contract) but should contribute somewhere along the line for a while, assuming his heart is with Football. 

R3) #84 - Jon Greenard LB Florida

• JG has been in plenty of our mocks, so we all know what he is at this point, just a solid defender that could help us on the edge. He isnt going to be flashy, but we could look at the stat sheet at the end of the year, and with this group of lunch pail LBs, he could lead the group in Sacks. Overall this year's Edge class isnt that great, its basically Chase Young and a whole bunch of potential after that (although I like Chaisson more than most) but getting a dependable guy in the Top 100 picks should be our goal in this draft. Ive said it a few times, Im not yet convinced that Floyd (assuming he is signed) will line up on as an Edge guy, atleast not exclusively. He has some grat talent as a sideline to sideline defender, who can also cover, and it feels like he would be a better fit inside. Thats just a hunch, and if that were the case, grabbing a reliable guy like Greenard would become even more important.

R3) #97 - Akeem Davis-Gaither LB Appalachian St

• Credit where credit is due, you guys turned me on to ADG and he would be a really nice fit in this defense. Even if Floyd does play inside (and even more so if he doesnt) we still need more talent at that ILB spot. I honestly dont see a true starter on this roster from last year. I am a big fan of Kiser's talent, but coming off an injury, unproven, and a brand new scheme, I wouldnt count on him as anything more than a ST ace at this point. I didnt love anything I saw from Reeder last year, and everyone else is less than a JAG for me. But with his impressive length, ability to play sideline to sideline, and impressive ability to get off blocks, I think he could be the real leader of this defense in short order, plus his ability to cover alittle bit could allow him to stay on the field.

R3) #104 - TRADE: Rams trade #104 to Houston for #111 (4th) + #171 (5th)

• Trying to explain why BoB does anything is already a fruitless task, but I think it he is now going to dig in, trying to prove he is smarter than everyone. More so, he is going to need to win in order to keep his job, or atleast keep a real GM off his back. Here he really wants to grab the last guy they deep worth helping them this year, plus he wants to make one more pick on Friday night, and doesnt care much about long term projects found in the later rounds. We look to keep adding to the depth of this roster, hoping to alleviate the pressure on the Salary cap.

R4) #111 - Van Jefferson WR Florida

• I have been in love with Van for awhile now. He is my favorite kind of receiver, who doesnt have to rely on his size or speed to be productive. He is a savvy receiver, who runs impressive routes, and can shake just about any defender when breaking off at the top of the stem. Dont get me wrong, he has NFL size, and is plenty fast enough, he just wont be a stand out in those categories.The best thing about watching Van was seeing him do it all against some of the Top CB talent in the country all with below average QB play. Which I believe exacerbated one of the things some have called a weakness, his hands. His QBs just havent thrown very catchable balls, not in terms of catch radius, just not receiver friendly. Its something I dont think will stick with him in the NFL. He wont ever be a superstar, but I think he could be groomed to replace Robert Woods after this season. So along with Kupp, and whoever we find to take over the Cooks role, they could be an impressive and reliable group of weapons for Goff.

R4) #126 - Darrell Taylor LB Tennessee

• Another LB? Some of you may ask, and I say absolutey. Its our clear weak spot, and there is some solid talent to build up the LB Corps this year, even if none of them are studs. Tayor is the first of my picks that Im iffy will be here at this pick, but Id rather grab Van, and hope Taylor slips a bit. He jumps off the screen some gmes, and its hard to find him in others. I love his hand usage, and has show he knows a good repertoire of pass rush moves but hasnt really mastered any of them. Im still questioning his bend, looks very impressive at times, but never against NFL caliber OTs. And thats the rub with Taylor, do any of the things you need out of an Edge guy (Bend, Explosiveness, recovery speed) translate to the NFL level. I think some of them can, but I think that holds back his draft stock severely. By grabing all of these LBs, we throw them all in the pot this year, which Floyd's versitility allows us to do, and see who shakes out of the bunch as real contributors (Reeder, Howard, Young, Kiser, Greenard, ADG, Taylor, Polite, Holland, etc.). I think we have a decent LB corps in there, good enough with what I think can be elite DL and Secondary, and enough to contend for a playoff spot.

R4) #128 - Reggie Robinson II CB Tulsa

• Ive been eyeing up RegRob for a while now, and just recently he has been shooting up draft boards. I thought he would be seen as a reach in the mid 4th just a month ago, now im not sure he even lasts this long. His size, strength, speed combo is really impressive. He plays physical and shows good awareness along with some good footwork. Although that footwork is a bit more methodical than you would like out of a Corner. The big thing is he gets stiff pretty quick, but at his size,thats understandable, and he makes up for it in other ways (like how physical he is at the LOS). Im more and more impressed with his Football IQ the more I watch of him. It will be a talent jump in year one, so he will likely need to wade into playing time. And dont leave him against the elite speedsters or route runners without some help, but he could be real good as early as his second year.

R4) #142 - Raequan Williams DL Michigan St

• I originally didnt even look at any of the DL for this mock, thinking we were pretty set there, but seeing we are still meeting with guys makes me think that both Brockers and Robinson's  deals have pretty quick outs in them. So looking for a guy who could be rotational for a year or so and then an anchor for a while after that seems like a good idea, especially if we add more mid round picks. I really like Raequan, dude is a monster in the run game, actually reminds me alot of a poor mans version of what Brockers has become in his career. Which as we know, is actually very valuable to pair with Aaron Donald. I usually end up debating between Williams and Fotu, and went with Leki in my last mock. But the more I watch, the more I feel like Fotu thinks he is AD, where he is clearly not. Id rather grab the guy who knows his role, and seems committed to being a master at it, especially when we already have the real AD.

R5) #171 - Nick Harris OL Washington

• Here's one that most of you will say no chance hes still there in the 5th. Well, I explained a bit before how I think most lineman will fall, and Harris already has half of the suitors pulling him completely off their board due to scheme fit. He is undersized, with short arms, and with no sand in his pants. But once you get past that, he has plenty to like about his game. Good Football IQ, great quickness off the ball especially for a Center (that video is so impressive), and a great athlete for a lineman. While all of that is good, he just has no power to him right now, and even in college you could see him get bullied at times. I feel like he has a place in the NFL, it might be as a backup, but as important as Center's are in todays game, it would be nice to have. (Basically who wins out between him and Brian Allen)

R6) #199 - Jeff Thomas WR Miami

• Heres a pick that is completely against what we normally go for, but with a pick this deep, we are trying to strike some gold. Thomas should not have left school for the draft, most knew that the minute he declared. And he has some maturity/influence issues attached to him as well. But with all that said, dang is he fast, and quick, and has some surprisingly good ball skills with some flashes of impressive hands. The problem is he never really puts it all together, but likes to run his mouth like he has. We need to start looking for that field stretching dynamic to replace Cooks very soon, and there are some guys I like in this drat that would supply that, but all project alittle too early for our pick/value matchups. But taking a flyer on Thomas might be worth it here, as he could immediately contribute as a returner, and I think be a big play threat pretty quickly in some 4 WR packages, with the potential to carve out a true role for this offense in the future. And if not, its a late 6th, and we move on.

R7) #234 - Tyler Bass K Georgia Southern

• Still shocking to me that we let Greg walk..... And while we could throw some money at Succop or Gostkowski, they are probably holding our for a desperate team to throw substantial money at them, which we wont do as we wouldnt even buck up for GZ. And while most will look at Blankenship in the draft, someone is going to be dumb and take him with a Top 150-175 pick. hes not worth that, even as the best Kicker in the draft. On the other hand, Bass is probably a guy who should be a UDFA, but with a very late 7th, we just lock him up as our Kicker for the next few years. He was very accurate from 30-50 yards last year, and the few things he does need to fix are teachable mechanics. He is also really good on kickoffs, showing potential as a deep range guy. Plus he showed well at the Senior Bowl, sounds exactly like the type of guy we would pick.

Post-Draft

It seems that we will have to make a move to restructure a contract or two, just to get our current signings and draft picks in, so if we have to make the move, might as well also grab a few more cheep guys who can help out this season.

Re-Sign Blake Bortles QB

• While originally hoping to get some of that McVay rub and parlay it into a new contract and better shot at starting, this market was just never going to be favorable to him. So might as well run it back, for another year and try again in 2021. With a team that should have an impressive defense, its nice to have more than a young project as your #2 QB. Even if thats Blake Bortles, he has show that he can win with a very good defense, and less weapons than we currently have on offense.

Sign Jordan Reed TE

• Just seems like this one is inevitable, which is why I think a trade of Everett is more than likely on or before draft weekend. Now we clearly cant count on Reed in this offense, but if he could stay healthy projecting to take half or less of the snaps that Washington normally planned for him, he could be a really nice secret weapon to this offense. Higbee showed that he can be the guy at TE,  Mundt is solid as the blocking guy for now, and Reed goes down maybe we see if Kendall Blanton actually has anything. But in reality, Reed is only the cherry on top of this high powered offense, if hes not there, it shouldnt disrupt much.

Sign Carlos Hyde RB

• Heres the real impact post draft addition. I dont love any of the RBs in this draft class, and outside of Dobbins or Moss, Im not really all that interested in any of them, which both should go way before we should be adding a RB. We already have a group of mid round project guys in Brown, Henderson, and Kelley (who they havent given up on yet) why should we be adding another guy of that talent level to this cluster? Hyde on the other hand has show the ability to be a Bell Cow back, has shown that he can be a valuable receiving threat (although most of his recent OCs dont have the vision to do so) and most importantly I actually trust him in Pass Pro, even if he is average. I actually think Hyde could be a great back in this tye of system if given the chance to be.

 

[BStanRamFan]

I don't think Washington trades two 3rds and a 4th to get into the mid/back of the 2nd round. 

I think Greenard is better fit as 4-3 DE.

I like Gaither.

I like Van Jefferson.

Would not touch a CB in this draft with so many other pressing needs.

I like the Bortles, Reed, Hyde signings.

soooo kind of all over the place on this one. B- to C+. 

[jrry32]

Plenty of players that I like, but I just am not sold on taking another upside OT out of Auburn with our first pick. I also don't think Darrell Taylor makes it to Day 3. There aren't a lot of guys with high caliber traits on Day 2 at the EDGE position. Taylor is one of the few guys who has a high ceiling. His film is very disjointed, but he has bend, explosiveness, and smoothness. Somebody will take a shot on developing him before the 4th round.

[holt_bruce81]

Great work @StLunatic88 I've actually been trying to catch up and familiarize myself with this draft and was in the process of putting my own mock together, and some of the guys you have the Rams taking were guys I was looking into as well. And it seems like ADG is a really popular pick around here. 

Also, I know this is nitpicking and it sounds dumb when I say it out loud, but I was really turned off by PTW when I listened to a few of his interviews. Idk, maybe Greg Robinson still haunts me, but the kid doesn't seem the brightest. 

[StLunatic88]

13 hours ago, BStanRamFan said:

I don't think Washington trades two 3rds and a 4th to get into the mid/back of the 2nd round. 

2 things here - It irks me when people phase it like "two 3rds and a 4th to move up" thats not what is happening. They are trading One 3rd and One 4th to move up from the 3rd round pick they currently have. Its 2 picks, not 3. And to make it clear, they are both Compensatory picks in those rounds, not some top 10 pick in their respective rounds

Secondly - None of us have any real idea of what GMs actually measure draft trades by, but using a few of what I consider trustworthy Draft Value Charts, this is a pretty reasonable trade, we are coming out +20-30 pts, but nothing overwhelming. They are moving up 14 spots, getting what is likely at Top 40 (maybe even Top 30) player on their board. Plus they arent going to continue to wait from Pick #2 all the way to Pick #66, Rivera is going to want to add more talent than that in his first year. He is there looking to turn it around quickly, not working on a 4 year plan (hence why Tua is even an option)

13 hours ago, BStanRamFan said:

I think Greenard is better fit as 4-3 DE.

Better fit? Possibly, but that doesnt mean he isnt a good fit as an Edge guy in a 3-4. If you are saying he wont work in this scheme, we are just going to disagree there

13 hours ago, BStanRamFan said:

Would not touch a CB in this draft with so many other pressing needs.

What other pressing need hasnt been addressed at that point in the draft? The only one that you could even bring up might be a RB, and I made my feelings clear on that situation when talking about Hyde later on. Id much rather grab a very high upside CB than a JAG like Ke'Shawn Vaugh or the very over-hyped Eno Benjamin.

Also you might want to check again about how much of a need CB is for this team. Obviously we have Ramsey, and I really like David Long as a Slot guy. But the real problem is, as long as we plan on paying Ramsey, its going to be hard to also pay Troy Hill, who is a UFA after this season. It would be nice to have a guy grooming to take over that spot instead of having to buck up for some vet, or force our hand early in next years draft (with out a first again)

 

13 hours ago, BStanRamFan said:

soooo kind of all over the place on this one. B- to C+. 

Appreciate the feedback, it might come off defensive a bit, but i just love the discourse about this stuff

[StLunatic88]

11 hours ago, jrry32 said:

but I just am not sold on taking another upside OT out of Auburn with our first pick

Completely understand there. PTW is actually one of the picks I see as more of "something realistic they would do" and not actually who I woud want to grab there. We have obviously showed interest in him, he has major upside, and he is likely to slide because of the injury, and thats the type of thing we need to take advantage of without our First round picks. Id actualy have my eye on a WR to start taking over that Cooks/Djax spot in this offense.

11 hours ago, jrry32 said:

I also don't think Darrell Taylor makes it to Day 3. There aren't a lot of guys with high caliber traits on Day 2 at the EDGE position. Taylor is one of the few guys who has a high ceiling. His film is very disjointed, but he has bend, explosiveness, and smoothness. Somebody will take a shot on developing him before the 4th round.

That is completely fair, and you are most likely correct. I just love Taylor, he is one of my favorite Edge guys in this class. I am probably letting that cloud me of where he will go, But i do think this is the back end of his range, so slightly possible. But with how thin this Edge class is after the Top 2-3, he will likely be gone on Day 2

[StLunatic88]

1 hour ago, holt_bruce81 said:

Also, I know this is nitpicking and it sounds dumb when I say it out loud, but I was really turned off by PTW when I listened to a few of his interviews. Idk, maybe Greg Robinson still haunts me, but the kid doesn't seem the brightest. 

Like I said, completely get it. I dont love him, but I see the value there. And its more of a pick that I think Snead would make than one that I would like

But to be clear, picking him with our "First Pick" at #66 is very different than when its #2 overall  

Edited April 9, 2020 by StLunatic88