Three Cardinals Mocks

[kerouac9]

The thing about mock drafts is that you really have to use SOMEONE'S Top 200 board if it's going to work out. Otherwise, you're just sort of hoping someone's going to be available. While the draft never goes "chalk" according to someone's board, it's important that you have a couple ideas how the draft is going to play out.

These three Cardinal mocks are based on the Top 200 Boards of The Huddle Report, CBSSports/NFLDraftScout.com, and NFL.com's "Best Available" list.

THE HUDDLE REPORT
1 (26) - Jerry Hughes, OLB, Texas Christian. The Cards are faced with a possible trade down scenario here, but take Hughes because it gives them more flexibility with Clark Haggans competing at SILB in training camp.
2 (58) - Brandon Ghee, CB, Wake Forest. Another position where the players the Cards need just don't fall. Ghee will compete for the 3rd CB spot right off the bat, and give the Cards a very bright future in the secondary.
3a (88) - Donald Butler, LB, Washington. Had a good round of post-season workouts and should immediately complete for the WILB job.
3b (89) - Jordan Shipley, WR, Texas. A little bit of a reach, but the Cards will like loading up on possession-type WRs to continue to give Matt Leinart places to throw the football.
4 (123) - Pat Angerer, LB, Iowa. Will start off on special teams, but fans will enjoy watching him compete for the SILB job early in camp.
6 (195) - Ed Wang, OT, Virginia Tech. I think that if you have the chance to let your fans purchase jerseys with "Wang" on the back (especially if he wears the OL-eligible "69"), you have to take it.
7 (233) - Zac Robinson, QB, Oklahoma State. The team doesn't feel like it's going to have great options for UDCFAs following the draft, so they invest in a late-round prospect with some good athleticism who they can groom for the future backup job.

NFLDraftScout.com
1 (26) - Jerry Hughes, OLB, Texas Christian.
2 (58) - Linval Joseph, DT, East Carolina. The upside with Joseph is that he's going to immediately contribute in a rotation at the NT position. The possible downside is that he's Alan Branch, Pt. 2.
3a (88) - Brandon Spikes, LB, Florida. The 40 time doesn't say everything about this kid who is tough and physical in the run game.
3b (89) - Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati. The former Bearcats star will earn his living on special teams while he becomes more finished in the receiving game--just like the player to whom he best compares, Steve Breaston.
4 (123) - John Skelton, QB, Fordham. Skelton has all the physical tools. As the #3 for at least the first year, he'll have time to adjust to the speed of the game. The bigger question is where he'll look for help on becoming a leadrer of men.
6 (195) - Vincent Rey, LB, Duke. The Cards just couldn't find value at the WILB position in this draft. They're stuck with another developmental prospect in Rey, who was not a Combine invitee.
7 (233) - Darryl Sharpton, ILB, Miami (FL). Will compete for a spot on special teams.

NFL.com
1 (26) - Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri. Surprisingly, NFL.com has Weatherspoon rated in the 30s. He's an easy pick here.
2 (58) - Daryl Washington, LB, TCU. Washington may be a risky pick for the scheme, but he can quickly become a contributor in nickel coverages. Also, I've heard that the children of his enemies wish he was their dad.
3a (88) - Brandon Lang, OLB, Troy. Lang may not be active often in his rookie season, but the Cards hope that he can develop like another DE conversion from Troy.
3b (89) - Dominique Franks, CB, Oklahoma. Franks will contribute immediately as a punt returner and on coverages teams. Eventually, he should become a solid nickel cornerback.
4 (123) - Torell Troup, NT, Central Florida. Troup will immediately contribute as a wave player, spelling Gabe Watson at the nose tackle position. The Cards are thrilled that he's still on the board.
6 (195) - A.J. Edds, LB, Iowa. The Cards love drafting former Hawkeyes, and Edds continues the re-making of the Arizona Cardinals' interior linebacking corps. If Edds is able to add weight to his frame, he could be able to play on the strongside of the defense either inside or outside, as Clark Haggans is able to do now.
7 (233) - Mike Tepper, OL, California. The Golden Bear is a mature prospect (after being granted a sixth year of college eligibility) and falls this far because of severe medical concerns. But he's the kind of massive prospect (6'5", 324) that Russ Grimm loves to take and mold into his system.
Priority Free Agent - Tim Hiller, QB, Western Michigan. Small-school QB should at least find himself a spot on the practice squad.
Priority Free Agent - Riar Greer, TE, Colorado
Priority Free Agant - Nate Bynam, TE, Pittsburgh

 

[imaCafan]

Great work, k9. Let's see, hmmmmm, I'll take mock #3 please.......

 

[Buckybird]

give me door #2.

I think in that draft all 4 of the top picks would contribute this year. I still think Spikes & Gilyard could go in Rd 2 because they are very good football players who produce dispite question marks with speed (Spikes) & size (Gilyard). Hughes, Spikes & Gilyard will be stars in this league.

 

[Stout]

What is the best top 200 or so rankings list out there? Is there one that you would recommend, K9?

 

[Monty]

Interesting perspective on the construction of mock drafts there K9. However i would be very disappointed if we came away with either of the first two drafts primarily becuase we dont address our primary needs sufficiently. I have no problem in picking up elite prospects at positions like OLB and CB but that has to put into consideration with addressing our primary needs early in the draft to capitalise on the quality available in those areas. in the first draft we have only 2 picks out of 7 that address our primary needs which are both questionable talents who at the moment wouldn't be close to an upgrade over Lenon and Hayes and i dont think will be any time soon either. I like Butler actually but i dont think he has the necessary skill set required to push Lenon at the WILB spot in camp or early in the season as he is an underdeveloped talent. Pat Angerer is slightly overrated in that he is still very raw at the ILB spot. He is good tackler but the problem with him is that he has problem tracking runners and therefore doesnt have the instincs to close them down quickly enough for his tackles to be effective. Ive only seen a bit of footage from him but id much prefer A.J. Edds who has better instincts and closing speed and footwork then Angerer.

I do really like your third draft though but ive got to think that it is unlikely a view of those players are available at the spots you have them in that draft namely Edds and Troup who will be gone before the 6th and 4th respectively. I think with quite a few teams needing NT and only Williams, Cody, Joseph and Cam Thomas considered better then Troup i would have to think there is a good chance he is gone before the end of the third. I would be salivating if that draft came true though.

 

[HookemCards]

Yeah, I'd be pretty happy with any of those, but think I like 3 best.

 

[RugbyMuffin]

Great work, k9. Let's see, hmmmmm, I'll take mock #3 please.......

+1
:smiliefan:

The more I read on Torrell Troup the more I am circling him as a great pick for the Cardinals in the middle rounds.

 

[Cardiac]

2 (58) - Daryl Washington, LB, TCU. Washington may be a risky pick for the scheme, but he can quickly become a contributor in nickel coverages. Also, I've heard that the children of his enemies wish he was their dad.


If you could combine the best of all 3 drafts that would be awesome.

Just wanted to make sure this gem in the comments section wasn't missed by .....say cheesebeef.

 

[lauraw]

Three, please!

 

[kerouac9]

What is the best top 200 or so rankings list out there? Is there one that you would recommend, K9?

Here is a grading of three years' worth of top 100 lists: http://www.thehuddlereport.com/Free/top100scoring.shtml I like THR's the best because it's cheap ($9.95/yr) and Drew Boylhart's prospect evals crack me up. But there are tons of options there.

Interesting perspective on the construction of mock drafts there K9. However i would be very disappointed if we came away with either of the first two drafts primarily becuase we dont address our primary needs sufficiently. I have no problem in picking up elite prospects at positions like OLB and CB but that has to put into consideration with addressing our primary needs early in the draft to capitalise on the quality available in those areas. in the first draft we have only 2 picks out of 7 that address our primary needs which are both questionable talents who at the moment wouldn't be close to an upgrade over Lenon and Hayes and i dont think will be any time soon either. I like Butler actually but i dont think he has the necessary skill set required to push Lenon at the WILB spot in camp or early in the season as he is an underdeveloped talent. Pat Angerer is slightly overrated in that he is still very raw at the ILB spot. He is good tackler but the problem with him is that he has problem tracking runners and therefore doesnt have the instincs to close them down quickly enough for his tackles to be effective. Ive only seen a bit of footage from him but id much prefer A.J. Edds who has better instincts and closing speed and footwork then Angerer.

I do really like your third draft though but ive got to think that it is unlikely a view of those players are available at the spots you have them in that draft namely Edds and Troup who will be gone before the 6th and 4th respectively. I think with quite a few teams needing NT and only Williams, Cody, Joseph and Cam Thomas considered better then Troup i would have to think there is a good chance he is gone before the end of the third. I would be salivating if that draft came true though.

I'm not saying I'd be happy with either of these three drafts. But I'm a big, big advocate of value. I'm not going to reach 20-25 picks down the value chart because there's a guy there that fills a more immediate need. That's when you settle for Bryant Johnson and Calvin Pace. From looking at the value rankings, we'll be drafting BPA more than many here think, we'll be getting some excellent value picks if guys at our position needs fall, or we'll be reaching for a lot of lesser prospects to fill needs.

In all honestly, if Weatherspoon and McClain are off the board, I expect the Cards to trade down, perhaps out of the first round altogether. But I can't really make that prediction, because I'm not going to say that the Bills, for example, are going to want to trade up and give this, this, and this for it. Then it becomes a fantasy draft.

As for your response about players not being available: these aren't my ratings. According to these guys, this is where their values fall. It's easy for us inside the "bubble" to decide that there's no way Sean Weatherspoon falls to us, because we need that player so bad that we convince ourselves that many other teams see him as similarly valuable. I like using this method for mock drafts because it takes some of the hoping out.

 

[cardsfanmd]

Draft #1 was the best by a mile, it's not even close IMHO. Draft #2 would be an F and #3 would be a C IMO. I don't mean to sound harsh, but why would we use our 1st and 2nd rounders on two guys who play the same position and are only suited to play that position? That would be like drafting 2 QBs in the 1st and 2nd. Then we went and used a later pick on the same position again, even though we only keep 2 active at that position during the year and just signed a FA (Lenon) and already have another back-up at (Highsmith)

 

[Monty]

I'm not saying I'd be happy with either of these three drafts. But I'm a big, big advocate of value. I'm not going to reach 20-25 picks down the value chart because there's a guy there that fills a more immediate need. That's when you settle for Bryant Johnson and Calvin Pace. From looking at the value rankings, we'll be drafting BPA more than many here think, we'll be getting some excellent value picks if guys at our position needs fall, or we'll be reaching for a lot of lesser prospects to fill needs.

In all honestly, if Weatherspoon and McClain are off the board, I expect the Cards to trade down, perhaps out of the first round altogether. But I can't really make that prediction, because I'm not going to say that the Bills, for example, are going to want to trade up and give this, this, and this for it. Then it becomes a fantasy draft.

As for your response about players not being available: these aren't my ratings. According to these guys, this is where their values fall. It's easy for us inside the "bubble" to decide that there's no way Sean Weatherspoon falls to us, because we need that player so bad that we convince ourselves that many other teams see him as similarly valuable. I like using this method for mock drafts because it takes some of the hoping out.

I did say in my previous post that you have to take BPA into consideration with need which is where i was referring to value. If we believe the value we were looking for at #26 isnt going to be there then of course the logical thing would be to trade down. However im of the opinion that the term value is such a relative matter that somebody can use to justify almost any selection so im a bit weary of using that to justify why ive selected somebody especially in a mock draft. I only look at value in terms of when an actual selection is made and try and evaluate if that is the best we could have done.

trading scenario's are impossible to predict because so many variables are possible that it just be a lottery in deciding who trades with who and for what so i never enter into debate before the draft.

I actually never said anything about there being no way a player was going to be available at certain spot, rather i indicated that it is unlikely the likes of Troup and Edds would be available at their spots. Ofcourse none of us know any of this for sure and its all based on our own questimations as to where a player will go but its still a credibile arguement in my opinion as both those players are better then where they are projected by those draft boards.

 

[O]

I would love to see the Cards draft Mardy Gilyard.

 

[Doug]

Pretty confident in Whiz by now to know in this supposed strong defensive draft to get us "A" guy to really contribute THIS year.Looks linebacker with a major surprise if its Cody in the first round with possible trade down.

Love the "Hope" of adding Jordan Shipley anywhere we can add a guy who already can run pro routes and most importantly his hands are in Bilitnekoff(sp?) range.Shipley as our slot guy will add to the help that Matt succeeds.Only wish Warner had Shipley to work with.

Hope we do end up with one of the Iowa Lb's.I'd be happy with either one.Also hope for the brightest young CB talent to speed up the replacement of losing our old FSU CB from Pittsburgh after this year.

Not confident in a major help at the NT position with Cam or Troup in the later rounds.We could really use a stud to show Robinson retirement early.Shame neither Michigan DT's ever showed up to fill our glaring need at NT.Gabe nor Alan worked out as we had hoped.Do hope Gabe's knee problems are now gonna be in the past tho.

One of my biggest hopes is to find a true THUMPER to show the defense "IF" we had a healthy Hayes for 16+ games what it would mean to our defense.
Our first game last season we lost but Gore had 30 yards rushing and Hayes had one of his 3 10 tackle games.Before the hidden back problem sidelined Hayes for two weeks last season.One being the Titans game and once he returned,he was a 3 tackle at most a game player.In our system,that is a ghost.We need a healthy guy who can dominate at that position and not get freight trained by a Houston Texan WR on the five yard line as the WR scored.Hayes got put on his back and that just can't happen anymore.

Even though most here are focused on replacing Lenon as fast as possible.I feel Hayes should also be a backup this year too.Dansby is not unreplaceable.I truly feel Spoon can Eventually be Better at it with proper coaching and a true thumper beside him.Add a real NT and our defense will become a strength again.I believe CC is gonna even get more sacks with all the near misses he had last year.Plus the thought of losing Dockett would be unforgiveable.

 

[kerouac9]

Draft #1 was the best by a mile, it's not even close IMHO. Draft #2 would be an F and #3 would be a C IMO. I don't mean to sound harsh, but why would we use our 1st and 2nd rounders on two guys who play the same position and are only suited to play that position? That would be like drafting 2 QBs in the 1st and 2nd. Then we went and used a later pick on the same position again, even though we only keep 2 active at that position during the year and just signed a FA (Lenon) and already have another back-up at (Highsmith)

We're going to play 2 linebackers during the game. Linebackers are also the main source of your special teams contributors. You need a lot of linebackers to play a 3-4.

Check out the Cards' current depth chart at the ILB position. You have Hayes who was terrible last season and is in a contract year, Monty Beisel who is old, Paris Lenon who has played for the two worst Ds in the NFL the last two seasons, and UDFA nobodies Reggie Walker, Ali Highsmith, and Mark Washington. The position needs an infusion of talent.

With Weatherspoon and Washington, you suddenly have a lot of positional flexibility at ILB, where you don't really need to depend on one to be a "thumper" and the other to be a coverage guy. Both guys can be strong there. A.J. Edds could be deactivated for most of the year while he adjusts to the Pro game, and goes into 2011 (if there is a 2011) as the primary backup at SOLB and SILB.

Also, Ali Highsmith was active for 14 games last season. Beisel was active for every game he was here. With Haggans playing some snaps at ILB last year, we keep 3 or 4 ILBs active on game days.

I did say in my previous post that you have to take BPA into consideration with need which is where i was referring to value. If we believe the value we were looking for at #26 isnt going to be there then of course the logical thing would be to trade down. However im of the opinion that the term value is such a relative matter that somebody can use to justify almost any selection so im a bit weary of using that to justify why ive selected somebody especially in a mock draft. I only look at value in terms of when an actual selection is made and try and evaluate if that is the best we could have done.

trading scenario's are impossible to predict because so many variables are possible that it just be a lottery in deciding who trades with who and for what so i never enter into debate before the draft.

I actually never said anything about there being no way a player was going to be available at certain spot, rather i indicated that it is unlikely the likes of Troup and Edds would be available at their spots. Ofcourse none of us know any of this for sure and its all based on our own questimations as to where a player will go but its still a credibile arguement in my opinion as both those players are better then where they are projected by those draft boards.

I see what you mean, but when I look at the value charts and see where the Cards are picking and the guy I want is 25 spots lower than where we're picking (which was the case with Terrance Cody in the THR draft), then I can't convince myself that there aren't better values on the board.

In this case, the "value" is obvious. Go look at the value charts (it's free for the CBSSports and NFL.com lists. If you see a guy that you like better within 10-15 spots of our choice, let me know who you think. Trust me, this wasn't easy. As I said, I think that we might be surprised at some of the PBA/value choices that the Cards exercise here, or how much we move up/down in the draft to get guys to match needs. At least, from what these three "experts" are seeing, the Cards' needs aren't frequently matching up with who is there.

 

[kerouac9]

Pretty confident in Whiz by now to know in this supposed strong defensive draft to get us "A" guy to really contribute THIS year.Looks linebacker with a major surprise if its Cody in the first round with possible trade down.

Love the "Hope" of adding Jordan Shipley anywhere we can add a guy who already can run pro routes and most importantly his hands are in Bilitnekoff(sp?) range.Shipley as our slot guy will add to the help that Matt succeeds.Only wish Warner had Shipley to work with.

Hope we do end up with one of the Iowa Lb's.I'd be happy with either one.Also hope for the brightest young CB talent to speed up the replacement of losing our old FSU CB from Pittsburgh after this year.

Not confident in a major help at the NT position with Cam or Troup in the later rounds.We could really use a stud to show Robinson retirement early.Shame neither Michigan DT's ever showed up to fill our glaring need at NT.Gabe nor Alan worked out as we had hoped.Do hope Gabe's knee problems are now gonna be in the past tho.

One of my biggest hopes is to find a true THUMPER to show the defense "IF" we had a healthy Hayes for 16+ games what it would mean to our defense.
Our first game last season we lost but Gore had 30 yards rushing and Hayes had one of his 3 10 tackle games.Before the hidden back problem sidelined Hayes for two weeks last season.One being the Titans game and once he returned,he was a 3 tackle at most a game player.In our system,that is a ghost.We need a healthy guy who can dominate at that position and not get freight trained by a Houston Texan WR on the five yard line as the WR scored.Hayes got put on his back and that just can't happen anymore.

Even though most here are focused on replacing Lenon as fast as possible.I feel Hayes should also be a backup this year too.Dansby is not unreplaceable.I truly feel Spoon can Eventually be Better at it with proper coaching and a true thumper beside him.Add a real NT and our defense will become a strength again.I believe CC is gonna even get more sacks with all the near misses he had last year.Plus the thought of losing Dockett would be unforgiveable.

Interesting points here. I really don't think that outside of Terrance Cody there is a guy who is going to step in next year and play solid NT. You just don't usually see that happening. Even Vince Wilfork played a year behind Ted Washington in New England. Whomever comes in is going to play in sub packages--maybe 20% of total plays--behind Gabe Watson and Alan Branch coming into the middle on passing downs. I don't like Cam Thomas because he wasn't a standout at North Carolina, and I'm not sure he's going to dominate at this level. I don't like him until the 3rd round. But I agree with you that fans are really underestimating the amount that the team is likely focused on the NT position. It's the only position with a gaping hole on the roster, and the team made zero effort to fill that hole through free agency.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cards draft Williams or Cody in the first round.

I think that Hayes' replacement is already on the roster in Clark Haggans. Both are liabilities in coverage, but Haggans can be more effective against the run if there's anyone on the roster to play SOLB. One thing that'd be nice about drafting Hughes is that he would add pass rush ability to the SOLB position and depth to the SILB position because it may make Hayes a backup, or at least give him competition.

 

[Monty]

I see what you mean, but when I look at the value charts and see where the Cards are picking and the guy I want is 25 spots lower than where we're picking (which was the case with Terrance Cody in the THR draft), then I can't convince myself that there aren't better values on the board.

I think this is the equilibrium in the argument. But what i was alluding to was the falsities portrayed by value charts as they currently stand. Becuase value is relative i dont like to nail down the value of a player on the basis of what one draft board or several for that matter rates that player at before the draft. I like to consider how they value a player but i take that into account with my own knowledge of players, what ive seen of that player and what the people whose values and judgements ive come to trust over the years, say about that player. If after considering these the player i really would like to draft at #26 is actually considered to be 30 spots lower on the value charge of say cbssports then i would think about it a little bit more but it certainly wouldnt sway my opinion.

What im trying to say is that because it is difficult for us to really guage a players value without having the defined info NFL scouts have, its difficult to say what player has what value. Therefore i dont tend to go by what draft boards say about a player but i do take into account what they have to say in the evaluation of a player as these draft boards are often set by knowledge individuals with a good knowledge of the game and the players concerned.

 

[slinslin]

The third draft is fantastic.

Weatherspoon and Washington are the best picks in the first 2 rounds for our needs and then we get Troupe for NT in the 4th and Edds in the 6th.

Think we could get better picks in the 3rd though. Rather have Arenas than Franks and Shipley, Ford, Gilyard, Spikes or someone else rather than another OLB.

 

[Chopper0080]

We're going to play 2 linebackers during the game. Linebackers are also the main source of your special teams contributors. You need a lot of linebackers to play a 3-4.

Check out the Cards' current depth chart at the ILB position. You have Hayes who was terrible last season and is in a contract year, Monty Beisel who is old, Paris Lenon who has played for the two worst Ds in the NFL the last two seasons, and UDFA nobodies Reggie Walker, Ali Highsmith, and Mark Washington. The position needs an infusion of talent.

With Weatherspoon and Washington, you suddenly have a lot of positional flexibility at ILB, where you don't really need to depend on one to be a "thumper" and the other to be a coverage guy. Both guys can be strong there. A.J. Edds could be deactivated for most of the year while he adjusts to the Pro game, and goes into 2011 (if there is a 2011) as the primary backup at SOLB and SILB.

Also, Ali Highsmith was active for 14 games last season. Beisel was active for every game he was here. With Haggans playing some snaps at ILB last year, we keep 3 or 4 ILBs active on game days.



I see what you mean, but when I look at the value charts and see where the Cards are picking and the guy I want is 25 spots lower than where we're picking (which was the case with Terrance Cody in the THR draft), then I can't convince myself that there aren't better values on the board.

In this case, the "value" is obvious. Go look at the value charts (it's free for the CBSSports and NFL.com lists. If you see a guy that you like better within 10-15 spots of our choice, let me know who you think. Trust me, this wasn't easy. As I said, I think that we might be surprised at some of the PBA/value choices that the Cards exercise here, or how much we move up/down in the draft to get guys to match needs. At least, from what these three "experts" are seeing, the Cards' needs aren't frequently matching up with who is there.

This is what I have been on board with this entire offseason. Our depth at linebacker, the most important position in a 3-4 defense, is extremely thin and unproven. We are kidding ourselves thinking that if we draft Weatherspoon in round 1 or Sean Lee in round 2, linebacker is set. Not even close. If we don't draft at least 3 linebackers, inside and out, in this draft it could be a long season. Not to mention that neither Washington, Baggs, Highsmith, Walker, Will Davis, Cody Brown, Beisel, Paris Lenon, or Gerald Hayes have shown me that they deserve to start on our defense. Training camp should thin this field, but we could be worse off than having to get rid of some of these guys because we have better talent.

Draft 3 has the proper appreciation for our need at linebacker. We would probably add an undrafted FA or 2 as well.

 

[Crazy Canuck]

Interesting points here. I really don't think that outside of Terrance Cody there is a guy who is going to step in next year and play solid NT. You just don't usually see that happening. Even Vince Wilfork played a year behind Ted Washington in New England. Whomever comes in is going to play in sub packages--maybe 20% of total plays--behind Gabe Watson and Alan Branch coming into the middle on passing downs. I don't like Cam Thomas because he wasn't a standout at North Carolina, and I'm not sure he's going to dominate at this level. I don't like him until the 3rd round. But I agree with you that fans are really underestimating the amount that the team is likely focused on the NT position. It's the only position with a gaping hole on the roster, and the team made zero effort to fill that hole through free agency.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cards draft Williams or Cody in the first round.

I think that Hayes' replacement is already on the roster in Clark Haggans. Both are liabilities in coverage, but Haggans can be more effective against the run if there's anyone on the roster to play SOLB. One thing that'd be nice about drafting Hughes is that he would add pass rush ability to the SOLB position and depth to the SILB position because it may make Hayes a backup, or at least give him competition.

I've got 2 years of tapes showing Dockett in the middle on obvious passing downs. Last season they were often lining up, Calais to the left, Dockett in the middle, B-Train to the right, and linebackers threatening the gaps.

 

[kerouac9]

I've got 2 years of tapes showing Dockett in the middle on obvious passing downs. Last season they were often lining up, Calais to the left, Dockett in the middle, B-Train to the right, and linebackers threatening the gaps.

B-Train is gone now. I don't really worry about it.

 

[Crazy Canuck]

B-Train is gone now. I don't really worry about it.

So, B-Train is replaced by Porter in this alignment.

Point is - Dockett has been extensively used at nose in passing downs.

 

[Stout]

Thanks, K9.

 

[CardLogic]

I don't mean to sound harsh, but why would we use our 1st and 2nd rounders on two guys who play the same position and are only suited to play that position? That would be like drafting 2 QBs in the 1st and 2nd. Then we went and used a later pick on the same position again, even though we only keep 2 active at that position during the year and just signed a FA (Lenon) and already have another back-up at (Highsmith)

I think your right, cfmd. The reasoning for picking a player for the same position in consecutive selections is hedging your bet, i.e. - hoping that if one does'nt pan out, the other will. But I don't believe the Cardinals will operate with lack of confidence, and therefore they would not follow the suggested draft of two ILB's with picks #1 and 2; but I do believe they will take an additional ILB further along (rounds #4-6), you know, just in case - **coughbusterdaviscough**

 

[cardsfanmd]

We're going to play 2 linebackers during the game. Linebackers are also the main source of your special teams contributors. You need a lot of linebackers to play a 3-4.

Check out the Cards' current depth chart at the ILB position. You have Hayes who was terrible last season and is in a contract year, Monty Beisel who is old, Paris Lenon who has played for the two worst Ds in the NFL the last two seasons, and UDFA nobodies Reggie Walker, Ali Highsmith, and Mark Washington. The position needs an infusion of talent.

With Weatherspoon and Washington, you suddenly have a lot of positional flexibility at ILB, where you don't really need to depend on one to be a "thumper" and the other to be a coverage guy. Both guys can be strong there. A.J. Edds could be deactivated for most of the year while he adjusts to the Pro game, and goes into 2011 (if there is a 2011) as the primary backup at SOLB and SILB.

Also, Ali Highsmith was active for 14 games last season. Beisel was active for every game he was here. With Haggans playing some snaps at ILB last year, we keep 3 or 4 ILBs active on game days.

I disagree. These guys aren't 3-4 ILBs, they're 3-4 WILBs. Highsmith, Dansby and Beisel were the only consistently active WILB's on our roster last year. Either Weatherspoon or Washington would get destroyed at Hayes' SILB spot. Also, Washington is an OLB IIRC.