Only one day until the NFL Draft, and I have to say I'm pretty excited. Between now and tomorrow, so many events will unravel that will make clear the questions we have today. Instead of going through a mock draft, or writing some pithy editorial comparing one of the players to Miles Straum or some other character from Lost, I am going to go through one thing about the draft I know, one thing I think will happen, and some things I am very curious to see play out.
First with what I know for certain.
The Lions will take Quarterback Matthew Stafford of Georgia...
or Baylor tackle Jason Smith...
or Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry.
I am 100% positive they take one of the three. My sources inside the organization are that good.
The funny thing about how the Lions are handling this pick is that it all depends on whether or not they can get the deal with Stafford done. For whatever the reason, Lions management is more concerned with signing the pick than getting the pick right in the first place. This makes no sense. Yes, Oakland had trouble signing Jamarcus Russell, and that may have hurt them. What would be worse for the Lions though, is to screw up this pick because the guy they want isn't signing right away.
I can see it now. Fast-forward to Saturday with the Lions on the clock. Negotiations with Stafford fall through. The Lions talk with Jason Smith, but he wants a bigger deal than Jake Long, and the Ford family won't give him the money. They try, but can't get a deal done with Aaron Curry as the clock begins to tick down. A flustered Matt Millen calls in the pick, and Commissioner Goodell walks to the podium. “With the first pick, Detroit selects wide receiver Michael Crabtree?”
What?!!!!!!!
But wait... this isn't a parallel universe. The Lions actually fired Millen. So, with the first pick of the NFL draft, they’ll take Stafford whether or not the deal is in place. (The chances of this not happening are about the same as Todd McShay not knowing something about a player).
Next, one thing I think will happen.
Braylon Edwards will get traded. I see Eric Mangini cleaning house, and don’t envision Edwards being apart of his future. with the loss of Plaxico Burress, the Giants would be stupid to pass up on a big, athletic, game changing receiver like Edwards, if he were available. They would be better off with a known entity like Edwards as opposed to a rookie like Hakeem Nicks, Darrius Heyward-Bey, or Kenny Britt. Although Edwards has become the unofficial spokesman for “Butterfingers” lately, he has the ability to separate from coverage, create mismatches for the running game, and make big plays in the passing game: skills that rookie receivers need time to develop.
Lastly, one thing I am definitely eager to see, yet have no clue on.
Where will Mark Sanchez fall? Does a team like the Denver Broncos trade up in the draft to snag him, or does he fall like Aaron Rodgers did in 2005 when he was thought of as a possible top 10 pick before he fell late to the Packers in the first round. There are a lot of stories waiting to unravel on Saturday and it’ll be exciting to see how they pan out.
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