NFL Mock Draft Madness
The Kansas City Chiefs may have to rely entirely on the NFL Draft to upgrade their team this season because the labor dispute between the players and owners could stretch into the summer and prevent a free agency period.
I believe there will be football in 2011 but this labor crap could extend so far into the year that the NFL Draft in April could be the last significant Chiefs event we have for a while. Here at AA we’ll be hitting it hard every day, free agency or no free agency.
That is why, as you might have already heard, Thursday’s at Arrowhead Addict will now be mostly geared toward the upcoming NFL Draft. Our hope is to fill your brains with so much quality draft coverage that by the time April rolls around you’ll be throwing mock drafts together by yourself. We want you to know something about every player the Chiefs might draft.
Here at FanSided we have a lot of great draft resources and we added another one last night. We already bring you NFL Mocks and DC Pro Sports Report. Now, we’ve added With The First Pick to our stable. WTFP used to be Pro Prospects before joining FanSided officially last night and taking on it’s new name.
Our draft sites are craning out mocks like nobody’s business and they’ve got player scouting reports, college all-star game recaps, podcasts and any other draft related coverage they can think of.
Right now, NFL Mocks and With The First Pick have a couple of mock drafts up so let’s take a look at who they have the Chiefs taking.
From With The Fist Pick:
"Cal Berkeley DE, *Cameron Jordan – The Chiefs are in a poor position to fill their needs. At 21, the best receivers and offensive linemen are already off the board. The Chiefs need a nose tackle, but Phil Taylor doesn’t fit the character traits that Pioli/Haley look for in their players. So, which way do they go? They go with yet another defensive end. The Chiefs may be losing a few players in their defensive line rotation, so Cameron Jordan would be a nice pick here. It isn’t truly a position of need, but Jordan is the best player available that fits the Chiefs defensive scheme, and character needs. The former Cal team captain is a multidimensional player who has 3 years of experience playing in the 3-4. Jordan is a stud against the run. It is extremely difficult to move him off of his spot. Unlike most 5-techniques, Jordan is an explosive pass rusher that can rush from either the 5 or 3-technique. He can team up with Wallace Gilberry on 3rd/passing downs and wreck havoc on the pocket. Adding Jordan causes a trickle down effect. Getting more pressure up the middle helps Tamba Hali get more sacks, and helps the secondary cover for less time. Jordan is one of the safest picks in this years draft."
My Take:
I’m not crazy about this pick. The Chiefs have a lot of money tied up in Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson and taking another DE in the first round would have them spending a ludicrous amount of money on the defensive line. The fact that they still wouldn’t have a nose tackle would make this move look even more preposterous.
Larry, at WTFP is right though. The Chiefs are in sort of a weird spot here in the draft. They could consider trying to move up but if they do that it had better be for a home run. I think the more likely move would be to go backwards in the first round if they can find a trading partner.
One way I could see this move making sense is if the Chiefs were to trade away Tyson Jackson. The obvious problem there is that Jackson is basically worthless at this point and he has a bloated contract so the likelihood of the Chiefs being able to move him would be nearly impossible. Cutting him at this point would also be a little shortsighted. While Jackson has been disappointing, he has only been in the league two years and he was injured for a sizable portion of 2010. It may be that after sitting behind Shaun Smith and Wallace Gilberry that Jackson will see the writing on the wall and get motivated. My guess that is what the Chiefs are hoping for anyway because they are stuck with Jackson for now.
"Phil Taylor- NT- BaylorI have to admit this is a little high for Taylor but he showed at the Senior Bowl that he has the potential to be an unblockable force. The nose tackle position is a big need for the Chiefs and they have shown in the past they will reach for a player at a need position."
My Take:
Taylor was mentioned by Larry from WTFP as having character issues. If you don’t know much about Taylor, as I didn’t before researching this article, it appears he got into a fight in the student union at a fraternity function while he was at Penn State. He got charged with felony assault and although the chargers were dropped, Taylor got kicked off the team. Taylor then ended up at Baylor where he would play his best football, particularly in the second half of 2010.
While I know Chiefs GM Scott Pioli values leadership and intangibles, it appears Taylor pretty much cleaned up his act after the incident at Penn State. I think Pioli could give Taylor the benefit of the doubt if his due diligence proves that this Taylor doesn’t show a pattern of ill behavior. Kids, especially stupid college kids, make mistakes. Hell, if Pioli knew some of the crap I pulled in college he’d never hire me.
The scouting reports on Taylor are pretty good, as was his Senior Bowl performance. He shows excellent strength, especially in his initial burst. The dude is listed at 6-4, 337 pounds for goodness sake. He has the elite size to be a force in the middle of a 3-4 defense. Scouts have noticed some stamina issues late in games, however I am sure Todd Haley’s conditioning program would get Taylor in elite shape fairly fast.
The problem with this guy being KC’s first round pick is that it is a reach. Most experts are projecting Taylor as an early 2nd round pick. If Pioli really did want to take Taylor it might behoove him to move back into the end of the first round if possible and pick up an extra pick. The obvious problem here is that he’d have to worry about someone else snagging Taylor before he got another crack at him. What would work in Pioli’s favor here is that he’d be able to look at the teams behind him to figure out if someone would take Taylor. If all the 3-4 teams drafting before the Chiefs, if they were to move back, were set at NT, then Pioli would only have to worry about a team leap frogging the Chiefs, which is possible but unlikely.
I like the pick, I’m just not sure I like it in the 1st round.