My Cards draft 2007

[red desert]

1. Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma

I think he will be there at 5. We throw caution to the wind and select the big back from Oklahoma. It's a no brainer. He will be that good. His injuries are being way over-hyped.

2. Marcus Mccauley CB Fresno State. Offensive line be damned. This guy clearly has first round talent, but his sub-par senior year allows us to nab him with our second pick.

3. Doug Free OT Northern Illinois. Never seen him play. But from what I hear and read, he is the type of brute that Whis's running game calls for.

4. Johnny Lee Higgins WR UTEP. How does 4.3 40 speed sound? He will provide the deep speed (and hands) (and cajones) that the Cards have been sorely lacking. He will get 2 or 3 50 plus td's his rookie season.

5. Brandon Frye OT Virgina Tech. If Jonathon Lewis was good enough, why not this guy. Lots of upside. So I hear.

7. Jay Alford Defensive Tackle. Just threw a dart onto my draft board and came up with guy. He may go earlier, but you never know with Penn State guys. Sometimes, they just slide.

Editor's note:

I originally had 7 picks, but, as you all know, we don't have a sixth round pick. Duh. Thanks, Okie.

 

[POISON]

We don't have a 6th round pick.

 

[Duckjake]

2. Marcus Mccauley CB Fresno State. Offensive line be damned. This guy clearly has first round talent, but his sub par senior year allows us to nab him with our second pick.

The profiles on this guy do look good. He could be an intriguing selection but I wish I had seen some actual game film on him.

Anybody out there familiar with Fresno State?

 

[Mitch]

The profiles on this guy do look good. He could be an intriguing selection but I wish I had seen some actual game film on him.

Anybody out there familiar with Fresno State?

I've seen him play a few times and I agree with red desert, this kid is a baller.

I like your draft, red desert. Thanks.

AP is a special player, no question.

Love the Higgins pick in Round 4.

 

[red desert]

I've seen him play a few times and I agree with red desert, this kid is a baller.

I like your draft, red desert. Thanks.

AP is a special player, no question.

Love the Higgins pick in Round 4.

Mitch, or anyone else, additional thoughts on my bad boy Higgins from UTEP? I saw him play a lot. Live at the Sun Bowl a couple of times. Jordan Palmer also. I wasn't as impressed with Palmer as I was with Higgins. IMO, Higgins is similar to Troy Williamson but with much better hands. And Higgins is not afraid to go over the middle. The knock on Higgins, I suspect, will be the lack of big time competition.

 

[Mitch]

Mitch, or anyone else, additional thoughts on my bad boy Higgins from UTEP? I saw him play a lot. Live a couple of times. Jordan Palmer also. I wasn't as impressed with Palmer as I was with Higgins. IMO, Higgins is similar to Troy Williamson but with much better hands. And Higgins is not afraid to go over the middle. The knock on Higgins, I suspect, will be the lack of big time competition.

It's funny, red desert...the only draft magazine that has Higgins even listed is Lindy's...no mention of him in ESPN's, PFW or TSN's.

Lindy's has him rated as the #10 WR and project him going in the 2nd round. They liken him to Joey Galloway. Here's their summary: "Higgins has few peers in terms of break-away, separation speed, and is a willing, coachable player likely to improve." They also raved about his toughness, as you do. Good call, pal.

He may be flying under the radar a little...but, I think you have found one of the drafts real gems. Higgins would fill a real need as a burner #4 or #5 WR and punt returner.

I've read some good things about MLB Tony Collavo...lacks height and ideal speed, but apparently has excellent instincts and is a real plugger in the middle. What are your thoughts? TSN thinks he may get drafted in the 7th round. He may be a UCFA the Cards could snag.

 

[stretchthefield]

Red,

Dansby & Hayes at LB who do you see as our 3rd starter at LB this year?

 

[red desert]

It's funny, red desert...the only draft magazine that has Higgins even listed is Lindy's...no mention of him in ESPN's, PFW or TSN's.

Lindy's has him rated as the #10 WR and project him going in the 2nd round. They liken him to Joey Galloway. Here's their summary: "Higgins has few peers in terms of break-away, separation speed, and is a willing, coachable player likely to improve." They also raved about his toughness, as you do. Good call, pal.

He may be flying under the radar a little...but, I think you have found one of the drafts real gems. Higgins would fill a real need as a burner #4 or #5 WR and punt returner.

I've read some good things about MLB Tony Collavo...lacks height and ideal speed, but apparently has excellent instincts and is a real plugger in the middle. What are your thoughts? TSN thinks he may get drafted in the 7th round. He may be a UCFA the Cards could snag.

Two things jump out at me:

1) The guy can play. He really does have "instincts" for the game. And the "instincts" to play the middle.

2) He's not that big. Then again, neither was another UTEP alum, Seth Joyner. But Joyner didn't have to play the middle in the NFL.

7th round? Maybe.

 

[red desert]

Red,

Dansby & Hayes at LB who do you see as our 3rd starter at LB this year?

I don't think he is on our team yet. Seriously. I think we pick that player up at some point from today to the first preseason game. Blackstock just doesn't excite me. But if I had to choose from what we have, I'd say James Darling. Is he still on the team?

 

[joeshmo]

I've seen him play a few times and I agree with red desert, this kid is a baller.

I like your draft, red desert. Thanks.

AP is a special player, no question.

Love the Higgins pick in Round 4.

I think Marcus could be a baller, and showed as much his Junior. But after seeing absolutely zero heart and about the worst attitude out of a college player in his senior year. The kid saw his name as the #1 CB in preseason and got dollar signs in his eyes and he just didnt care anymore about playing his senior year. He had so little heart the coaches benched their best CB for half of the season becuase of it, so you wont see much tape on him for his senior year. I just dont want this guy.

I dont mind taking guys who may have a few minor character issues (lazy, not smart, minor run in with the law, and so on_, but I just refuse to want a guy with zero Heart. This is coming from a poster who called Marcus his favorite defensive college prospect the beginning of the season in a post I think Russ started or something. He was such a dissappointment, becuase he easily could have been a top 10 pick if he wanted to.

 

[joeshmo]

I don't think he is on our team yet. Seriously. I think we pick that player up at some point from today to the first preseason game. Blackstock just doesn't excite me. But if I had to choose from what we have, I'd say James Darling. Is he still on the team?

Darling is not on the team. But I believe their was rumblings from Sommers and or Urban in one of their articles that we may be talking to him pretty soon.

 

[joeshmo]

3. Doug Free OT Northern Illinois. Never seen him play. But from what I hear and read, he is the type of brute that Whis's running game calls for.

I was down on him coming out of the bowl games, because he just didnt look like he improved at all and was just average, until I heard that he played the whole season with a broken bone in his foot or something like that, then I raised his stock again almost to the point where I had him preseason (mid 2nd rounder).

 

[red desert]

Joe -

Your thoughts on Higgins?

 

[joeshmo]

Joe -

Your thoughts on Higgins?

Never actually seen UTEP play this year that I could remember.
All I can do is repeat what the scouting mags say about him and what his stats say about him.

Looks like he absolutly killed it as a punt returner. 12 times with an average of 23 yards and out of 12 times 2 of them were for TD's. That is some crazy punt return ability right there. Never knew he was that good at punt returning because he isnt on the top of the Punt return average list in college, but they anly count players that have returned it 15 or more times I think hence he isnt on those lists. The #1 ranked player in the league was 18 times for a 18.1 yard average, just to put it into perspective. A full 5 yards better then the #1 ranked punt returner in the league, and Higgins would have been on that list for everyone to see if he returned the ball 3 more times. Thats better then Devin Hester good.

As a kickoff return man though he kind of stunk.

You have peaked my interest on this kid.

 

[red desert]

You have peaked my interest on this kid.

Cool. Enlighten the rest of the bozos (I say that lovingly) on this board about The Kid from UTEP.


By the way, the only UTEP athlete I have ever seen that was quicker:

Tim Hardaway, with the now fabled UTEP 2-STEP. His crossover is one for the ages.

 

[Garthshort]

Proposed Draft

Red Desert, unless I missed something (and if so I apologize), I have three thoughts about your draft:
1. No LB.
2. No DE.
3. No thanks.

 

[red desert]

Red Desert, unless I missed something (and if so I apologize), I have three thoughts about your draft:
1. No LB.
2. No DE.
3. No thanks.

I forgot to mention:

We'll be trading next year's number 2 for Lance Briggs.

And signing Chike to an extension.

 

[Shogun]

LOL @ Doug Free considered a brute. He's about as finesse as one can get.

 

[overseascardfan]

Now that I realize that if the season started today Oliver Ross would be our LT, I am really worried. With that said I fix our line with the first two rounds get a DE in Round 3 and a LB in Round 4.

My Draft as of today:
Round 1 - OT Joe Thomas/Joe Staley
Round 2 - OT Justin Blalock/Tony Ugoh
Round 3 - DE Tim Crowder/Victor Abimiari
Round 4 - LB Prescott Burgess/Juwan Simpson
Round 5 - CB Travarious Bain/John Talley
Round 7 - DE Mkristo Bruce

 

[Arizona's Finest]

1. Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma

I think he will be there at 5. We throw caution to the wind and select the big back from Oklahoma. It's a no brainer. He will be that good. His injuries are being way over-hyped.

2. Marcus Mccauley CB Fresno State. Offensive line be damned. This guy clearly has first round talent, but his sub-par senior year allows us to nab him with our second pick.

3. Doug Free OT Northern Illinois. Never seen him play. But from what I hear and read, he is the type of brute that Whis's running game calls for.

4. Johnny Lee Higgins WR UTEP. How does 4.3 40 speed sound? He will provide the deep speed (and hands) (and cajones) that the Cards have been sorely lacking. He will get 2 or 3 50 plus td's his rookie season.

5. Brandon Frye OT Virgina Tech. If Jonathon Lewis was good enough, why not this guy. Lots of upside. So I hear.

7. Jay Alford Defensive Tackle. Just threw a dart onto my draft board and came up with guy. He may go earlier, but you never know with Penn State guys. Sometimes, they just slide.

Editor's note:

I originally had 7 picks, but, as you all know, we don't have a sixth round pick. Duh. Thanks, Okie.

If we don't draft a tackle # 1 i really like the idea of getting two ot's before round five. In fact i would do this 1 - Peterson 2 - BOTA (best OT available) 3 - OLB 4 - BOTA

 

[Brewster10]

We need to stop bein cute with the Adrian Peterson pick.. and address the real area of need... OT and LB...

First pick has got to be Joe Thomas, Levi Brown, or Patrick Willis...

Obviously i'd be interested in a trade down option if we plan on taking Brown or Willis...

Regardless of which of the 3 we pick... the second rounder should be addressing the other position...

OT and LB... by far and away the two most glaring weaknesses on this squad... Solidify those two spots in the first two rounds.. and our team can actually compete for something in 07...

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

We need to stop bein cute with the Adrian Peterson pick.. and address the real area of need... OT and LB...

First pick has got to be Joe Thomas, Levi Brown, or Patrick Willis...

Obviously i'd be interested in a trade down option if we plan on taking Brown or Willis...

Regardless of which of the 3 we pick... the second rounder should be addressing the other position...

OT and LB... by far and away the two most glaring weaknesses on this squad... Solidify those two spots in the first two rounds.. and our team can actually compete for something in 07...

The only guy who should be picked before AP is Thomas. When you have a top 5 pick you better get the undisputed best player at their position. If it's a position of need then it's even better. There is no question that AP,Thomas, Johnson, and Landry are head and shoulders above the next best player at their respective positions.Every other position you can make an argument as to who is the best. When it comes to Brown and Willis, they may not even be the second best at their positions.Staley could easily be better than Brown. Beason,Timmons,Posluzny, and my favorite, David Harris, are all on level with Willis.To take them either of them over those other 4 guys is just plain bad drafting,not that the Cards haven't done that before.

 

[BigRedArk]

Yeah if Peterson is there at #5 you take him. Nothing cute about that. RB's like him just don't come along every year. Reaching for an OT over him will almost certainly bring several years of angst and "what were they thinking".

 

[lobo]

We need to stop bein cute with the Adrian Peterson pick.. and address the real area of need... OT and LB...

First pick has got to be Joe Thomas, Levi Brown, or Patrick Willis...

Obviously i'd be interested in a trade down option if we plan on taking Brown or Willis...

Regardless of which of the 3 we pick... the second rounder should be addressing the other position...

OT and LB... by far and away the two most glaring weaknesses on this squad... Solidify those two spots in the first two rounds.. and our team can actually compete for something in 07...

I like to think that there are less of "them" than you might think. No passionate fan will deny the crying need for getting our OL to something far better than okay. Thomas/Brown have to be the pick. Peterson if he stays healthy has great upside, but for us as you point out that is not need one or two. Two being a LB and Willis would be terrific.

 

[Stins]

Red Desert, Thanak you for your selections. I only agree with one of your selections though, Doug Free in the 3rd. I give you my thoughts on the draft.

#1 (5th) I believe that the Cardinals must address the Offensive Tackle position. At #5 take Joe Thomas if he drops down. If he is not there, either trade down for an extra pick but no farther than #9 or stay at #5 and take Levi Brown. I believe picking Brown is not a stretch as he is a better drive blocker than Thomas and will become a very good pass blocker with the help of Grimm.

#2 (38) I like your idea to take a cornerback in the second round, but here is where the controversy begins. My pick is Eric Wright. Before everyone jumps all over me, please read his resumes. His only fault is that he takes some chances, easy to fix. Has the speed, size, fluid hips to make his turns, can stay with any reciever; one of the top 3 corners in the draft. I know he had an off-the-field incident. If he didn't he would be in the 2nd half of the first round. the Cardinals need another top notch corner.

#3 (69) Love the pick of Doug Free. I believe that he will be an excellent tackle for a long time. He has the size with excellent feet and a very hard worker. Don't forget he played hurt all year (2006), before last season Free was a top 5 Tackle. This would finally complete the quest to im prove the o-line which is what is holding the offense back the last decade.

#4 (105) Time to address the Defensive End/Linebacker position. My pick is Brian Robison (Texas) 6' 3" 260 lbs. He has explosive upfield speed (4.67-40) quickness and agility. Played DE and OLB.

#5 (142) Matt Spaeth, TE (MN). Spaeth is an outstanding in-line blocker and the best blocking tightend in the draft. At 6' 6", 270 has decent hands and would compliment Pope. Wiz said he was looking for good blocking TE and now he'd have one.

Also thought of Zak DeOssie for the 5th round, arguably the best defensive player in division II over the last two years. At 6'5", 250 has great size and ran a 4.58-40.

#7 (215) Anthony Waters, LB (Clemson) Take a chance on superb all-around LB. Waters was hurt in 2006 but before his injury, he was the proverbial tackling machine. Gets great drops in coverage and has excellent instincts. Without his injury, probably would have been in the top 60 players in the draft. Great size at 6' 3", 245 and a 4.59-40. Could be a steal.

O.K., I will listen to my critics but as I mentioned earlier, I believe we must take care ot o-line first and take a corner early. I appreciate everyone that posts on this site, its great fun.