How was your draft? '38 Ed.

[Aston]

Boston
8 players: 5 defense, 2 offense, 1 specialist, 3 players on the line, 1 skill position. Hard to know what we managed to get out of the top few picks, so this draft may be a complete bust. there. I feel good about some of the later picks as utility players, so I hope we made the most of those chances.

2.1 S Johnathan Evans
A guy with world class bars, but is both lower graded and more average combined than we'd like to feel good about in a top pick. We've been depending on veterans for years at safety and hopefully he gives us stable youth. Might also offer something as a kick returner.

2.31 DT Jimmy Knight
He was just what fell to us in the 2nd. Looks quality at a position where we've also been depending on some really old, temporary veterans. I'm looking for a run stopper here with pass rush strength to threaten.

3.31 G Joel Luxmore
A no-combine guard we have no read on. He could blossom into a star...or perhaps more likely, get cut by opening day. Our OL is flush with young talent as well as capable vets. The bar will be set high.

4.31 K Johnathan Galloway
Came back from the interview with 0 intel and a VU grade. With Chicago sniffing around and eventually signing our kicker Harvey Soward, we felt this was a good opportunity to try and grab a new one. Hopefully he can play.

5.18 WR Nolan Coles
We thought about taking WR a few times earlier in the draft, but passed. He has a chance to be a capable player if he can hold, but he's really raw.

6.13 OLB Toby Burns
Really wanted some LBs this year to replace departures, but free agency was barren. I'm actually kinda high on Burns. He's a longshot, but with upside.

7.31 OLB Chris Berry
Late find. Another shot at reinforcing the LB corps here, with a player who hopefully is at least average and provides some coverage ability.

7.32 DE Scottie Morris
He doesn't look special, but was highly graded, and is probably fairly safely pegged as backup-level depth. And we're definitely looking for some of that at DE. A nice match of need and individual for the Mr. Irrelevant pick.

[Nemesis]

Columbus

1 - 19 (19) Herb Hartman CB - TC (+7/+3) - PS2 ()
Didn't really have a need at CB, but I went with what I thought was the best player available. I seriously considered taking DE Shapiro, but went with the CB that I received an Underrated interview for.

2 - 18 (50) Dillon Minter T - TC (+2/+1) - PS2 ()
We have a pretty big need at Tackle, so I was willing to take Minter even without an interview. He looks pretty masked, and hoping for the best. We'll see.

3 - 9 (73) Harry Walters G - TC (+4/+4) - PS2 ()
The dreaded "zomg u traded a buncha worthless picks for this G" guy. Yeah, I traded a future 3rd, and my 6th and 7th this year, no big deal. He was a glaring need as well, and when the interview came back Very Underrated, I figured I'd take a chance on him. If my scouting lied, so be it. I'm still happy to land him.

4 - 16 (112) Trevor Richmond FB - TC (+2/-1) - PS2 ()
I didn't really have a real need at FB, but I did want to pick up a FB with some Endurance. He came back As Scouted, and the thing that made me want to scout him was his Power Inside vs his Bench looked like he may be better than he shows. But he was just As Scouted, and that's fine by me at 4.16.

5 - 15 (143) Oscar Lessard T - TC (+5/+4) - PS2 ()
Still a position of need, but he's not likely going to be what his combines say he'll be. Ben's combine cutoffs suggest that he'll never see 50 rated with that 20 bench score, but I have seen exceptions, lets hope this guy is one. I thought worth it in round 5, even without an interview.

I don't think this was a great draft, but certainly this one is better than the first 2 I've had (in terms of quality over skill player needs) since returning to FOF, and FOF7 specifically.

[Guest]

Portland

1 - 14 (14) Conner Diaz T
The first Tackle off the board and I preferred him over Tim Talbert. Filled a major need on the offensive line and will hopefully be a mainstay for a long time.

2 - 19 (51) George Sullivan OLB
The linebacking corps really needed an upgrade and hopefully Sullivan can step up. Good combine scores.

3 - 18 (82) Marty Smaron ILB
Another Linebacker to beef up the position. Good size and strength. We will probably be starting two rookies in the middle of the defense on gameday one.

4 - 17 (113) Colby McWilliams WR
A lot of good receivers were taken before McWilliams was selected but I am happy with my pick. A little undersized, probably no more than a slot / backup receiver.

5 - 16 (144) Gavin Sellers TE
Sellers filled a need at TE and I am glad he dropped to me. Little undersized but decent combines and bars. Backup role.

6 - 15 (175) Broderick Watz QB
I was always looking to draft a decent backup QB and Watz was my second choice behind Kaden Benson (taken in round 5). Smallish for a QB but hopefully he can contribute when called upon.

7 - 14 (206) Diego Cunningham DT
Simply filled a need and I felt he was the best DT available at this point. Backup / 3rd string.

This draft was more about filling needs than picking up real quality. It was my first draft as GM so we will have to see how successful it has been once the ratings are in.

[Guest]

Kalispel Stags

Round 1.4 Fred Glover: MLB, Arizona (Autopick - I like this one)
Fred Glover is a top MLB who the AI drafted probably because the game says I need help at Linebacker Corps. I'm not sure who I would of taken instead, but I like this pick very much. With one of the best Linebackers at SLB, Glover stands to add a lot of talent to an already powerful Front 7. His excellent ability against the run and pass will allow him to fit very well with the aging unit.

Round 2.3 J.C. Hartman: QB, LSU (Autopick - Eh)
All good NFL teams need a good QB. This is the 3rd straight year of drafting a QB for the Stags, and I plan on sticking with Hartman. Other than his horrid deep passing ability, Hartman should be able to throw balls quite well and quite accurate. In addition, he has the wheels to pick up some extra yards thanks to his superb 4.58 40 yard dash. Ultimately, Hartman will not be able to make that long passing play, but he will be able to move the ball down the field. As long as the Offense clicks, I think he will be good.

Round 3.4 Buddy Shahade: CB, Northern Illinois (Autopick - ugh)
-and-
Round 4.3 Trenton Hickman: CB, Kentucky
Both of these players are essentially the same - superb coverage CBs who are too short to make the big plays. One of them may make the switch to FS in order to take advantage of speed. However, neither of them will be able to cover the NFL's best receivers in terms of getting the INT. Thankfully, they both show very good broad jump scores. Overall, these two CBs will bolster the weak CB unit and are easily capable of covering any receiver - though their ability to keep said receiver from catching the pass is questionable. Solid players.

Round 5.4 Emmanuel Carraway: DE, Colarado
Carraway is not a good hitter, but not every player should be required to make the big play. His small stature does not make him the best DE. In fact, because of his size, speed, and smarts I'm thinking Carraway may become the next WLB of the Stags. However, if all else fails he will make a decent DE in case one of the members of my aging line takes an injury.

Round 6.3 Cesar Hixon: TE, Tulane
Hixon is somewhat small for a TE, and is not bulky enough either. However, i think he may be able to increase his ability in blocking - but that's not why I drafted him. Hixon is a very agile TE who can sometimes make the block, but is a very solid route runner who has great endurance. Hopefully, Hixon can develop into one of the better receiving TEs in the league by the end of his career.

Round 7.4 Robert Farley: RB, Nevada - Las Vegas (Autopick)
Small, but agile and quite strong for his size Robert Farley will be able to stand out as a go-to man for 3rd down + short yardage situations. My scouts say he is very good as an inside power runner, and as a short yardage back. This is all he's good at though - but he's a flippin 7th Round RB what did yall expect.

[Guest]

YUMA

1.29 - CB Troy Smoot - Well, Smoot's combines are spectacular, but his bars are really sketchy. My hope is that he is at or above the high end of what my scouts see, but if he tops out at 45/45 or better I think we'll be fine with it. Clearly not what we would want from this pick, but he can help at a position we're rapidly aging at, and that would be at least some kind of return on investment.

3.29 - ILB Colin Washington - Really want this guy to be the gem of our draft class, and hopefully we're not asking too much of him. His bars are entirely believable based on the combines numbers that go with them, but definitely stretching the feasibility factor. If he lands and is what we see him as right now, he's a steal. I think there is a better chance he last for less than one contract.

5.28 - RB Heath Bell - I think his combines plus bars are solid, so the hope is that he is a 40/40 plus backup RB who can split the load with whoever else we decide to start. Decent speed, solid strength, built like a bowling ball.

6.30 - RB Russell Walters - If his hole recognition bar holds and he can catch out of the backfield, he will be a solid addition to the backfield. Could challenge for a starting role if that holds up.

7.29 - OLB Gregory Blackwell - Top backup material off the bench, or potential waste of space. Believable combines to bars, hopefully he is a little better than advertised.

Overall this draft became about just keeping our depth respectable. We may not have found one impact player here, but then again we may have 2 if Smoot and Washington pan out. If we end up with that, this draft will have been a resounding success. If not, well hopefully it is not a complete disaster. I am not feeling exceptional about it at the moment, but maybe EX 2 will change my mind.

[Guest]

Camden

1.24 WR Drew Roberson (31/59)

We do not have a passing game in Camden so taking a WR in the first round might seem like a bit of a waste. But we could not help but notice that for some reason, after our #1 WR and out starting TE got hurt in the middle part of the season, our team went from an 7-0 monster to needing help from Memphis to sneak into the playoffs. This might be coincidental, but just in case it isn't I felt we had to pick Roberson here.

Overall we had Roberson rated as the #2 WR in this draft, but in this draft that doesn't mean much as none of them were particularly impressive.

Prediction: High 40s to low 50s overall. Spends the rest of his career watching us hand the ball off to Curtis Shea.

2.24 LB Courtney Hutek (15/52)

Another need pick, we only had one LB on our team who was worth a damn last season and rather frequently found ourselves in situations where more than that number would be ideal.

Hutek looks like he has the size to move to SLB, which is good because I doubt he will turn out good enough to unseat fellow 2nd round pick Kennedy Nolan at MLB (and he would be wasted at WILB if we switch back to a 3-4). None of Hutek's combines are spectacular, but none of them are particularly terrible either. He does have that higher than expected Punishing Hitter Bar, but I'm not convinced high "previously fixed" bars mean anything in FOF7, and am particularly unconvinced when combined with the lower PRS and B&R bars.

Prediction: Mid to High 40s after a position change bump offsets part of his first year Training Camp dive.

3.24 OT Bill Jenkins (29/44)

As mentioned earlier, we have no passing game in Camden and it is for this reason that I was OK drafting a 0 Pass Blocking tackle here. That and I plan to move him to guard anyway.

There were other tackles I liked better than Jenkins and who I thought could maybe actually play tackle (Lamb and Cannida), but they both went earlier in the 3rd round. Which, I suppose, means I should have taken one of them instead in round 2 during that crazy run on tackles.

Prediction:Low 40s rated Guard, cut after actively trying to get our QB killed in a preseason game.

5.24 WR Darius Plante (27/44)

We didn't have a 4th round pick this season (we had previously traded it away for a player who will leave as a free agent next year) and although my list still had plenty of players in it when I logged off after 3.24, by the time this pick rolled around they were all gone.

Not wanting to slow the draft down more than necessary I just grabbed the player with highest "Draft" rating in the Draft Analyzer who also happened to have a potential affinity. Because these late round picks for us usually only end up making the teams as backups and if they're never going to be a starts they might as well bring something to the table. A closer (after it was too late) examination of Plante reveals that the Draft Analyzer really likes WR with big BPR bars.

Prediction: He ends up having a 0 personality and no affinity. Stays with the team only until he costs less to cut than to keep.

6.24 DT Roderick Henson (20/38)

I find myself in FOF7 taking more players I'm sure I have a roster spot for (even if they suck) and fewer "Why not? Maybe he'll jump in TC." guys. I'm not sure if there is anything that has changed in this version of the game to justify this change, or if I am just becoming more conservative in my old age. And it doesn't seem to be working as I usually end up cutting them anyay. Despite this we had a need for a backup DT and Henson was there (and might have an affinity, don'cha know)

Prediction: His 6th round salary will still be less than previous #4 DT and UDFA Daquan Covington is asking to resign. Although it will also still be more than that of some other random UDFA that I could have signed after the draft.

7.24 OG Bennet Brignac (23/43)

In case I haven't already mentioned it, we do not have a passing game in Camden.

If we could put the whole league in a time machine and go back to a point before the before Roosevelt (Teddy that is) administration, Brignac would seem like the the steal of this draft. Unfortunately for us no league sized time machine exists and the game has moved on in the last 110 years or so.

Prediction: If 3rd round pick Bill Jenkins doesn't pan out as a guard to doesn't know how to pass block, then perhaps Brignac can step in to fill those shoes.

Final Analysis

It is easy, when all of the players you want are being taken just one pick before you, to feel like you are having a bad draft. It takes a bit more work to feel like you are having a bad draft when all the players you like are being taken one pick after you. For the most of this draft Washington was leaving me with that feeling. I'd take one guy, then delandis would pick and I'd be all "D'oh, he woulda been a much better fit for us, and probably a better player too."

Fortunately this feeling went away in the later rounds, and by later rounds I mean round 7. I didn't really like that guy he took more than mine. He wouldn't have had an affinity.

[Aston]

I almost picked Hutek in Round 1, and again at 2.1. I was getting hopeful about him making it to 2.31, but alas! Hopefully he ends up at least in the mid 50s.

I find myself in FOF7 taking more players I'm sure I have a roster spot for (even if they suck)

Yeah, this rules my thinking too. It sucks to cut a draft pick -- any draft pick -- at any time. The cap penalties start to pile up and you miss out on 4 years of cheap labor, too.

[Delandis]

Washington Bombers


1.25 DT Abraham Brandon, Purdue
Brandon is a combine darling projected to be a very good pass rusher up the middle of the field. What I loved most about this kid is he's smart and has a good motor. Those are things we normally like to see in Washington draftees. The big question mark with this kid is is ability to stop the run. But we didn't get him to stop the run. Last year we got killed with the high powered offenses, likely because we weren't able to get even adequate pressure on the QB. Hopefully with Brandon added to veteran defensive end, Percy Campbell and newly acquired (by trade) defensive tackle, Jim Quinn, that issue is resolved in 2038.

2.26 TE Nathaniel Whiting, Liberty (VA)
I was very happy to get Nathaniel at this point as I almost selected him in the first round due to the scarcity of quality tight ends in the draft. Probably a little short for the position, Nathaniel does project to be a decent blocker in both the run and the pass but more importantly, he's projected to be a good receiver which should help alleviate the loss of Bryant Snyder (WR) to free agency. It also helps that our scouts interviewed the kid and think he's very underrated.

3.25 LB Arnold Wade, Miami (FL)
Another combine beast that we picked up, Arnold is projected to be a guy we can put in as a cover linebacker in nickel and dime situations. He's got the speed to keep up with all but the fastest tight ends and adds the ability to drop back in zone if we need him to. On top of that, Arnold is a ferocious rusher off the end, so don't be surprised to see him sacking your quarterback on a weak side blitz or two.

4.26 DE Stan Andersen, Kent State
We actually interviewed Stan AFTER he was already drafted and he came back as very overrated. But even so, we'd like to see where he ends up as he may still be a good option as a rusher off the end in passing situations.

5.25 RB Jose Parrish, Nichols State
Parrish will serve as a reminder to always have my draft list organized because I wasn't around for this selection and my assistants made this selection from the unorganized list I left them. Nonetheless at 5'9 and 197 pounds, Parrish is an elusive little bowling ball with a low center of gravity. He's an excellent receiver for a running back and has the ability to make things happen once he catches the ball out of the backfield. We hope he can become an excellent safety valve for Granberry when opposing defenses ramp up the pressure.

6.26 OT Tyrell Freeman, Washington
Honestly, I couldn't believe Tyrell was still around at this point. A hometown favorite and one of the better tackles in nation last year, Tyrell is easily our favorite selection in this year's draft. He doesn't have the endurance that we usually like to see out of our draftees, but he is very well developed (54%) and should be able to step in and be a solid contributor in the event of injury to our starters at guard or tackle.

7.25 S Edwin McIntyre
Safety is still a concern for us even after drafting Edwin, although I do like his intelligence and ability to read the play and come up and help stop the run. If nothing else, Edwin will likely make the team just for his ability to contribute as a special teams specialist.

[irabowman]

Las Vegas Outlaws

This may turn out to be another bust year for the Outlaws however we learned a lot of things in this draft. We do feel overall this draft will turn out better than last years draft. Now to take a first hand look at who we took

1.1 QB Alonzo Mandel: We really wanted to trade down here but stay in the top 10 somewhere. However we got no offer. We had a lot of needs especially on offense. Other than Mandel I felt no other QB would end out with a higher scouting of 60 and we felt even doubtful of 50. We liked Mandels combine scores especially PD of 92. We was disappointed with some different bars. Scouting him we got Hard to read which felt was no help.

We hope he scouts out somewhere 75 - 78 if turns out higher we will be tickled and feel like we won lottery. I will say this now and it goes for all my picks I really don't know how to predict scout ratings so you all may get good laugh out of my hopes.


1.21 CB Carlos Poole: Around pick 1:14 we started trying to trade up to get RB Grim. Waco made us a offer and they knew who I wanted Rob told me he felt Pearl Harbor would take Grim so he lowered his asking price if I would go ahead and pull the trigger so we did. I should of contacted Pearl Harbor then and tried to swap picks. Anyway looking at Poole we really liked his combines & most of his bars we would of liked to seen his Man to Man and zone a little higher. We feel though he will be a huge benefit to our secondary though.

Projected Score around 68 we hope.


2.2 TE Sebastian Rudy: Avg Combines nothing low or high. Good bars all around. His size & weights was below avg, not sure how this effects his play or scout ratings. We do feel he will be a major improvement over what we have TE wise. Also felt he was better than other players at positions we needed to address.

Projected Score 60? I can hear the laughing already, but I can hope.


3.32 RB Ivan Erickson From this point on I mainly went needs and who had best bars as combine scores were avg & some lows. Breakaway speed was the big thing I liked and elusiveness. Hoping he turns out a little better than what I am going to project.

Projected Score 48


4.19 WR Maybe Lamb What a name rather it was "Maybe Ram Tough" if he turns out decent we may nick name him Ram Tough. He just seemed to be best WR available at time. Another GM made a commit at time I picked him that he could be a real steal, hope he is.

Projected score 47


4.28 T Omar Kennedy We were planning on drafting 2 T's and converting 1 to C other to G. However due to FA and that both T's would need lot of developing to be C we are going with converting both to G Omar LG his combines would of been excellent for C but they are good for a G. Looking for bars to also improve with move to G

Projected score 58?


4.30 T Dean Page This T converting to RG not as good of bars here. Hoping his bars improve some when we convert him.

Projected score 45

5.30 K Larry Davidson Think I made a major mistake with this pick, was hoping he be a improvement. However I doubt he is much if any improvement over Jaun thus possibly be cut and giving me a cap penalty.

Juan is a 54 hopping Davidson would be 65 at time of draft now I am thinking more like 52 - 56.


6.2 S Corwin Vines FS is a spot we are hurting at also and we have done nothing to address this problem. Therefor we drafted Vines just to fill the hole we don't expect much from him.

Projected score 39

My Projected scores was what I was thinking during draft. However after reading other owners post, I know my projections are overrated. Hopefully though the players we drafted are a improvement to what we currently have and they help us improve overall play and get us some wins. We will edit this posting with pre training camp Scout Ratings when they come out.

[Nemesis]

Overall we had Roberson rated as the #2 WR in this draft, but in this draft that doesn't mean much as none of them were particularly impressive.

Prediction: High 40s to low 50s overall. Spends the rest of his career watching us hand the ball off to Curtis Shea.

Damn, quite an ambitious expectation of longevity for Shea eh?

[Cory]

Overall I'm pretty happy with this draft. I think we plugged a couple big holes, and gained some depth in places where we have some aging players. One of our biggest goals was to find some late round players that could provide us with cheap labor to fill out our roster, allowing us to focus more money on a handful of good players that we could build around. Our team has is currently in the position of having a lot of mediocre guys that eat up our cap and prevent us from building a core of standouts. We'd like to slowly transform into a team of several playmakers surrounded by role players that can do one specific job. We made a couple of moves this draft to move back and pick up later picks that we were very happy with. Each time we were still able to get the guy we were targeting, so we essentially just picked up free draft picks without giving up anything. I'm hoping that a couple of those late rounders are able to make the roster and give us the financial freedom we've been desperately lacking, while the early picks become serious contributors that we can build around. Realistically, they'll all probably tank in PS2 and we'll limp along to mediocrity again this year.

1.16 G Wesley McCorkle, Maryland
This was a big need for us. We really struggled on the interior of our line last year. We gave up way too many sacks up the middle and had trouble establishing a consistent ground game. McCorkle was the top O-lineman on our board, and therefore was our number one target. We were very happy that he was still available at 16, as we would have taken him even if we were in the top 10.

2.15 WR Ashton Charles, Oregon
This was another area where we really struggled last year. Our top receiver was rated under 50 and ended the year with 63 catches for 816 yards. That's just not going to cut it for a number one in this league. Ashton isn't a dream number one receiver, but he does give us the ability to go downfield with the ball. I'm hoping that he can elevate this receiving corps enough to get the job done until we can find a true number one. With the prices the top free agents are going for at this position, we'll likely have to draft high at this position again in the near future to get Ashton a compliment on the other side of the field, as nobody on our current roster warrants anything higher than a #3 slot on a respectable offense. I had a couple of receivers I thought would work for us, as this was a down year in that position, and Ashton was the last of that group available. I feel fortunate that we were able to grab him before the bottom fell out on the receivers.

3.22 RB Jameson Walters, North Carolina
I had a list of positions I was looking to upgrade, and this was a BPA pick out of those positions. Jameson is a gamble, as we didn't interview him and he has some shaky bars. We feel that he's a good compliment to the backs that we already have on our roster, and we're excited about his ability to find the holes, puck up blitzes, and his elusiveness. He can also return punts pretty effectively, which allows us to keep Cannida out of special teams duty. I never felt comfortable with our best player being a return man.

4.29 DE Raul Wilson, Kentucky
This was a full out BPA pick. We don't really have a need at DE, as we used a first rounder on this position last year and a second two years ago. We also have a veteran backup/mentor that we really like in Wilmont Phillips. However, you can never have enough edge rushers, and we were excited to get a player with Raul's bars this late in the draft. He is solid across the board, with his only real weakness being endurance. Endurance shouldn't be an issue, as we envision Raul being a spot player and acting as our primary backup at both end positions as Wilmont's abilities wane.

5.31 CB Brant Ackerman, Tennessee
This is where we veered from the beaten path and started making picks based on specific roles that we wanted to fill. We felt that we would be better served finding specialists at this point in the draft than trying to find players that would be able to hold down a certain position. Ackerman is a return and special teams specialist. He definitely has the skills to make our depth chart in the defensive backfield, but things would not go very well for us if he had to see any significant time as a defender. We feel that at the end of the fifth round a player that can shore up our return game is valuable enough to take a shot on.

6.17 FB Corbin Bolyn, Tennessee
We have a couple of good, young fullbacks on our roster. Unfortunately, neither of them can pass block or pick up the blitz. We're hoping that Corbin can show us some good things in training camp and will be able to make the roster. He'll have to work his butt off to unseat either of the players ahead of him on the charts, but we're hoping he does it as he's a different kind of player than either of them are. He's also a huge asset on special teams.

6.20 S Dominique Watanabe, San Diego State
Dominique has two options in order to try to make the team. He can either become a huge special teams leader or he can get a volatility boost and have his man to man skills develop. At this point in the draft, we're looking for cheap players that can contribute. It's quite possible that Dominique is able to do that as a special teams player. He'll probably never be good enough to see plays on defense.

6.31 ILB Mercury Shea, Tennessee
Mercury is the less talented younger brother to Camden standout Curtis Shea. Sometimes you take a player based on his pedigree and hope he turns out. Mercury is in the same boat as Brant Ackerman, in that I could see him making the depth chart on the defense, but if he ever had to put in serious time we'd be in trouble. He's another special teams standout, and we were looking for players with hustle at this point in the draft.

7.16 OLB Rich Heath, Oregon State
At midway through the seventh round we were happy to get a guy that could play special teams and had any bars at all. We're pretty deep at outside backer, if not especially talented, so I don't foresee him putting in any real time on defense.

[Guest]

4.19 WR Maybe Lamb What a name rather it was "Maybe Ram Tough" if he turns out decent we may nick name him Ram Tough. He just seemed to be best WR available at time. Another GM made a commit at time I picked him that he could be a real steal, hope he is.

Projected score 47

6.2 S Corwin Vines FS is a spot we are hurting at also and we have done nothing to address this problem. Therefor we drafted Vines just to fill the hole we don't expect much from him.

Projected score 39

I really like these two mid-to-late round picks by Las Vegas.

Draft analyzer shows WR Lamb with 50 overall bars with a 81 volatility. There is a chance that he could go up in preseason. I think that he was the best WR prospect taken in the 4th round.

I was surprised FS Vines lasted to this late in the draft. Zone Defense is the most important bar for safeties and my scouting staff shows the range of 66-92. His high zone rating is backed up by a blue 45 score on his position drill. His punishing hitter bar also shows 74-100 by my staff.

[Guest]

5.31 CB Brant Ackerman, Tennessee
This is where we veered from the beaten path and started making picks based on specific roles that we wanted to fill. We felt that we would be better served finding specialists at this point in the draft than trying to find players that would be able to hold down a certain position. Ackerman is a return and special teams specialist. He definitely has the skills to make our depth chart in the defensive backfield, but things would not go very well for us if he had to see any significant time as a defender. We feel that at the end of the fifth round a player that can shore up our return game is valuable enough to take a shot on.

I think that Memphis had a really strong draft. Since you are in my division, I wish I didn't help you buy trading extra picks to you.

CB Ackerman was a guy that I was hope to get in the later rounds. He looks like a good returner both on punts and kickoffs. Also my staff came back with a "Very Underrated" impression after interviewing him.

[Guest]

Waco Warhawks

With the loss of many key players due to both retirement and free agency we decided to focus on positional need rather than our usual strategy of BPA drafting.

1.21 - Traded to Las Vegas

Given our low amount of available cap space we decided to tradis the pick to Las Vegas in a deal for a 2039 1st and a swap of multiple draft picks.

2.30 - DT Wes Cooley

After the loss of DT Oliver Wunder in free agency (Boston) we felt that drafting a pass rushing DT was a major priority. We considered 4 players at this spot: Cooley, Jimmy Knight (2.31 to Boston), William Harper - DT (3.2 to Denver) and Sebastian Armstrong (3.7 to Lake County). We decided to draft Cooley because he looks like he can play in both rushing and passing situations.

3.3 - K Leo Jackson

With the loss of kicker Orlando Alston in free agency (San Francisco), we felt that we wanted a new kicker in this draft. Our staff believes that Jackson is the best kicker in the draft and we felt the he might get taken by someone else in the 3rd round. At 3.13, Charlotte drafted K Griffin Newsome. The third kicker drafted was Johnathan Galloway (4.31 to Boston).

3.14 - FS Victor Ohm

The losses of veteran safeties Larry Anderson (retirement) and Terrell Donovan (free agency to Boston) left us with only one safety on our roster entering the draft. We originally had the 3.22 pick. We felt that there was a chance that North Liberty (3.15), Los Alamos (3.16), Gainesville (3.17) San Francisco (3.20) could all looking to draft a safety. Because of this we decided to trade 3.22 along with 4.29 and 6.22 to division rival Memphis for 3.14. After the trade our choice was between Ohm and SS Damon Masterton. We chose Ohm because our staff believes that he will be strong in Zone Defense, Interceptions, Endurance and Special Teams and he has much lower volatility than Masterton. It sound like our trade paid off as San Francisco was strongly making considering Ohm their pick at 3.20.

4.2 - SS Damon Masterson

We expected Masterton to be gone by this pick. We decided to pick him to give us more depth at Safety and as insurance for the Ohm pick.

5.1 - P Neal Fields

We had hoped to draft punter Alfred Sutton (3.19 to Port City) to replace Bryce Henry who left in free agency (Charlotte). As we did with the kicker in round 3, we started round 5 by drafting the punter because we felt like that was the round he would be drafted. The next drafted punter ended up being Lincoln Fallon (7.10 to Chicago). We probably should have waited until 7.1 to draft a punter.

7.1 - LS Zach Joyner

This was mostly a financial decision as the cap cost this year of Joyner will be lower than the cap cost of our current long snapper, veteran Albert Riffle. Joyner may be a slight upgrade as Draft Analyzer projects him to be 88 overall while Riffle is 84 overall.

7.3 - CB Chase Maciel

With our final pick of the 2038 draft we chose Maciel to be our Dime cornerback. We liked his blue dash (4.45) and position drill (45) scores and we feel that he can play both man-to-man and zone coverage.

[IrishGuy65]

South Maryland had 5 picks. I'm happy with 3. The other 2... meh.

1.7 S Claude Dugger. Felt he was the best safety in this draft. VERY happy with this pick. My interview showed him as underrated, and he had a very good combine and bars.

1.30 ILB Philip Bergeron. We traded up to get him, so again we are very happy with him. He didn't have the greatest combine, but he has good run defense and pass rushing bars and the related combines were good. As a blitzing 3-4 defense, he is exactly what we look for in the middle. I'd also like good pass coverage, and he has a good man to man bar... but don't know if that will last. Finally, he has a good ST bar, which adds to another dimension of the team. If he holds up in the way his bars look, we'll be ecstatic. If he ends up with high run defense and pass rushing technique, we'll be happy. This pick is basically, IMO, the key to our draft, since we traded up to get him and he's a little bit of a guess.

4.7 C J.R. Gerhardt - Liked his combines, and hope his bars can grow a little bit. My hope in drafting him is that he can be a good backup. More than that would be a bonus.

5.6 DT Gage Milum - All we ask of our defensive linemen is to stop the run. Milum has a good looking run stopping bar and a good agility combine. Anything more will be icing for us.

7.7 FB Norbert Reado - Not really in the market for a FB, but we have two specific bars we look at in a FB, run blocking and special teams, and he looked good in both, so we felt we'd give him a try as probably the best player available at this point. We'll see if he's an upgrade after the preseason.

Overall, I give us a B+. I like our top picks, but not really 100% about Bergeron, and don't really feel we hit the top of the market with our other picks, although we did fill open roster spots at Center and NT. If Bergeron were more certain, I'd give us an A, but he is not.

Ratings... I had Dugger rated the top player in the draft, so getting him at 1.7 was a steal for us. I had Bergeron rated as #21 player in the draft (and #2 ILB), so it was good value at 1.30. Had Center Gerhardt rated late 2nd early 3rd, so again good value in the 4th. Milum I had rated as a mid to late 5th rounder, so OK value where we got him at 5.6. And, I had Reado rated as a 6th round pick, so decent value there.