NFL Draft Day

[Ken Gargett]

now it is even more puzzling to me - they take a DE in the 2nd round. know nothing about this bloke but he gets some very positive reviews and some lesser ones - love it when a fan for the steelers praises him and hopes to get him in round 4!

but if you want to get a DE this high - first or second round - why not take the bloke who is universally acclaimed as a likely hall of famer? makes no sense to me. you can still get a quality offensive line player - not as good but...

the only possibility is that they spotted this guy a while back and were much higher on him than anyone else and so happy to miss williams. but i'll take some convincing.

[wabashcr]

hang on. "all indications"? do you mean endless mock drafts because no one has ever, as i understand it, got one of those fully right.

'all indications' were that the skins would take a pass rusher. didn't happen.

all indications were that williams was extremely unlikely to get as far as the skins.

"the bears were clearly going..." again, did you have inside knowledge? there were plenty of other suggestions about what the bears might do.

you are, with respect, working this backwards. there was a good possibility but unless someone from the giants is leaking to the skins, they had no real knowledge. it may have even been that the jets were keener on scherff than they were on williams. we will never know most of this stuff.

with respect, this is nothing but 20/20 hindsight. the amount of rubbish that gets written in the lead-up is staggering. it is entertaining and some of it is more reasoned than the rest.

i think scherff is not a bad pick and will be a serious contributor for many years in a position of need. but if williams is anything like the player 'all indications' suggest he is, then we have missed a rare opportunity.

With respect, 20/20 hindsight is saying Washington could have traded down and still taken Scherff, although 20/20 would indicate there is at least some chance it could have happened. Overwhelming thinking was that NYG were taking him, and for good reason. He filled a need, he was the highest rated player at his position, and they as much as said they were taking him. Maybe that was all a smokescreen, but it would have been foolish for Washington to expect him to still be there at 10. If Scherff was their guy, they probably had to take him where they did

I'm not saying they made the right pick. I don't know what they're trying to do. I'd be a little miffed they passed on Williams, too. Scherff will make their O-line better, and they need that. Whether he represents good value at 5 or not is certainly debatable. But that's the draft. You have to choose between value, best player available, and need.

[Hypersomniac]

No big names, but it was cool to see two guys from my old school (North Dakota State University) go to teams. Kyle Emmanual was drafted in the fifth round by the Chargers and John Crockett was signed as a free agent by the Packers an hour after the draft ended.

[anacostiakat]

Well I am happy with the pick. I think because they signed Pot Roast and the other defensive players in the off-season and this guy is an awesome offensive lineman that is why they went that way. I truly believe that if they did not address (even partially) the offensive line problems when they had the chance they will have another record sack-allowed season.

I am pretty happy with their picks. Although they have been questioned also on the running back he is a 6' 3" back and will be a good addition. Crowder, the wide received is small but seems to have been highly regarded. Plus I have a sneaky suspicion that he will be their punt/kickoff returner.

[purpleloki]

My Vikings killed it!

[Ken Gargett]

With respect, 20/20 hindsight is saying Washington could have traded down and still taken Scherff, although 20/20 would indicate there is at least some chance it could have happened. Overwhelming thinking was that NYG were taking him, and for good reason. He filled a need, he was the highest rated player at his position, and they as much as said they were taking him. Maybe that was all a smokescreen, but it would have been foolish for Washington to expect him to still be there at 10. If Scherff was their guy, they probably had to take him where they did

I'm not saying they made the right pick. I don't know what they're trying to do. I'd be a little miffed they passed on Williams, too. Scherff will make their O-line better, and they need that. Whether he represents good value at 5 or not is certainly debatable. But that's the draft. You have to choose between value, best player available, and need.

no real argument with that. in fact, i think what you say supports what you say (obviously) and also what i say.

i think you are probably correct re the giants pick though plenty of mock drafts had them with wide receivers and secondary, though most with the O line. we'll never know. it may be that the jets were keen on scherff and would have taken him.

i'm not overly unhappy with the pick. i think it was a need and a top player so hard to argue but if williams turns out to be such a talent, it could be a regret.

after all, this is the side that had pick ten the year jj watt went at 11 and the side which had pick 6 when adrian peterson went at 7. (both times we got good players - kerrigan and landry so not a complete disaster. ). we picked carlos rogers the pick or two before demarcus ware. and most of the other years we'd given away our first round. our track record would suggest williams will be a superstar and scherff will be a good to very good player.

[wabashcr]

no real argument with that. in fact, i think what you say supports what you say (obviously) and also what i say.

i think you are probably correct re the giants pick though plenty of mock drafts had them with wide receivers and secondary, though most with the O line. we'll never know. it may be that the jets were keen on scherff and would have taken him.

i'm not overly unhappy with the pick. i think it was a need and a top player so hard to argue but if williams turns out to be such a talent, it could be a regret.

after all, this is the side that had pick ten the year jj watt went at 11 and the side which had pick 6 when adrian peterson went at 7. (both times we got good players - kerrigan and landry so not a complete disaster. ). we picked carlos rogers the pick or two before demarcus ware. and most of the other years we'd given away our first round. our track record would suggest williams will be a superstar and scherff will be a good to very good player.

It's much more likely Williams will be a superstar than Scherff, just by virtue of their positions. You don't see many offensive linemen turn into stars, but defensive monsters? Of course. But offensive linemen tend to last longer, and if he can help keep RG3 healthy, it will be a sound investment.

I'm one of the few who thinks RG3 still has a bright future. Admittedly I expected it to be with another team. He never seemed to be on the same page with Gruden, and his relationship with Snyder surely does him no favors in the locker room. But he's a smart guy with brilliant ability. He's got to find that balance of being the electric playmaker and protecting himself from injury and the team from turnovers. Maybe that balance doesn't exist for him in Washington. Keeping him upright in the pocket and giving him time to make plays will go a long way for him.

[Ken Gargett]

It's much more likely Williams will be a superstar than Scherff, just by virtue of their positions. You don't see many offensive linemen turn into stars, but defensive monsters? Of course. But offensive linemen tend to last longer, and if he can help keep RG3 healthy, it will be a sound investment.

I'm one of the few who thinks RG3 still has a bright future. Admittedly I expected it to be with another team. He never seemed to be on the same page with Gruden, and his relationship with Snyder surely does him no favors in the locker room. But he's a smart guy with brilliant ability. He's got to find that balance of being the electric playmaker and protecting himself from injury and the team from turnovers. Maybe that balance doesn't exist for him in Washington. Keeping him upright in the pocket and giving him time to make plays will go a long way for him.

i'm also very postitive on rg3. rg3 has had his problems, some of own making, but i think the injuries have really done him much more damage than many realise - of course, if he can't overcome that then none of it matters.

and i think that gruden is the worst coach in the comp. a big part of his being hired was him assuring synder he could help rg3 and then after about two minutes, he threw in the towel. he has made error after error, not just with rg3. i think he is clueless.

with everything that has been put in place for the skins now, while realistically we shouldn't expect a superbowl this season, there must be a big improvement. if not, gruden is on very thin ice. and rg3 must be part of that improvement. if rg3 stinks and the skins stink, both gruden and rg3 could go.

that said, with rg3, we have this season and the skins have taken up the option for the following season so we have a potential two years for rg3 to click again. and if at the end of that, there is some reasonable light at the tunnel (if he tanks before that, or can't stay healthy, then this is immaterial) but the skins not going great, i wonder if it will be gruden who goes and not rg3. synder very big on him. and he has a rep for dumping coaches who don't succeed. if i recall, marty Schott was 8-8 and still went after one season.

all that said, if the skins stink this year, every chance gruden gone and then rg3 has a 3rd coach. that will either work or if it doesn't, i think even derilious dan will cut the cord.

[Orion21]

Ken,

I like your optimism concerning RGIII, but he's done. The mental edge he had due to his athletic ability has dried up, since his last injury brought him down to earth. Now he can't even outrun a fast LB and does not have the skills to throw the ball as a pocket passer. Additionally, his cozy relationship with the Skins owner made him feel like the directions from his coach were "suggestions" vs orders. His attitude is the final straw that broke his back. A talented guy he was, but now I see more of Vince Young than anything else.

[Ken Gargett]

Ken,

I like your optimism concerning RGIII, but he's done. The mental edge he had due to his athletic ability has dried up, since his last injury brought him down to earth. Now he can't even outrun a fast LB and does not have the skills to throw the ball as a pocket passer. Additionally, his cozy relationship with the Skins owner made him feel like the directions from his coach were "suggestions" vs orders. His attitude is the final straw that broke his back. A talented guy he was, but now I see more of Vince Young than anything else.

i think what you say is a possibility but i'm not prepared to draw a line yet. that might be wishful thinking - what we saw in 2012 was so exciting it would be tragic to think it was just one shining hour.

i think he came back way too soon. clearly not fully fit. if he has been able to get his fitness back, and most of his speed, there is cause for at the very least, limited optimism.

he has returned from bad injuries before and shone. of course, it gets harder each time. everything one hears about his mental state and mental toughness is extremely positive - which says heaps for the kid, given the roller coaster he has been on.

the skins have beefed up the offensive line, perhaps not enough but a good start; they have brought in a dedicated QB coach; they have taken up his option; there is clearly a plan to run it more often, which can only help take the pressure off; there was massive hype and pressure on him first year and then again 2nd year to repeat, which is not quite the same this year - expectations have been lowered; and he has some excellent receivers at his disposal.

in other words, he has been given every chance. if he can perform well in the first couple of games then the confidence must build and who knows. of course, if he gets sacked a squillion times week one, the reverse might apply.