NFL Draft Overview

The 2009 NFL Draft was another exciting and interesting draft with lots of good choices, some poor ones, and some big shocks. The first five picks were made by teams with new head coaches. Cleveland traded their pick 3 times in the first round. Here is an overview of the first ten picks in the first round:
1. Lions- Matthew Stafford (QB): After going 0-16, you might as well start a long rebuilding process with the best quarterback in the draft. Maybe the Stafford-Calvin Johnson tandem can bring some excitement and joy to an economically depressed Detroit. Grade: A+
2. Rams –Jason Smith (OT): The Rams will try again to build a strong offensive line that can’t seem to get better. Grade: A
3. Chiefs- Tyson Jackson (DE): From the best defensive conference in college football, Jackson should help the Chiefs’ new 3-4 defense. Grade: A+
4. Seahawks- Aaron Curry (OLB): Another young linebacker for the Seahawks could help their speed, but they are inexperienced. Still, it always helps to get one of the best defensive players in the draft. Grade:A
5. Jets from Browns- Mark Sanchez (QB): This was a phenomenal deal for the Jets despite losing a couple of good defenders. It’s simple, the Jets needed a quarterback and they got the 2nd best one in the draft. Grade: A+
6. Bengals- Andre Smith (OT): After the college season ended, Andre was thought to be the best offensive tackle in the draft. Then he had a dreadful pro day, leading to the thought that he might not be picked in the Top 10. But the Bengals obviously are going to take their chances with another questionable prospect instead of a highly talented Eugene Monroe. Grade: C
7. Raiders- Darrius Heyward-Bey (WR): This is by far the biggest shock and mistake in the draft. The front office made this pick solely based on his excellent 40-meter dash time. This was an obvious error with superstars Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin still available. Grade: D-
8. Jaguars- Eugene Monroe (OT): Monroe was expected to be picked much earlier, but the Jaguars are all but sad about that. Grade: A-
9. Packers-B.J. Raji (DT): The best defensive tackle in the draft was picked a little late, but he will increase the number of sacks for the Packers. Grade: A
10. 49ers- Michael Crabtree (WR): The 49ers lucked out with this one. It was an astounding pickup for Mike Smith, who can control young players if they get out of hand (Crabtree failed a drug test). The most entertaining player in the draft might finally be able to put San Francisco in a position to finally be better than .500. Grade: A
Biggest shock outside the Top 10: Rey Maualuga was thought to be a Top 20 pick in the first round at line backer. Instead he was picked 6th in the 2nd by the Bengals, behind his two fellow linebackers from Southern Cal (Brian Cushing, Clay Matthews).
The New York squads seemed to accomplish good things with their picks in the first few rounds. The Jets got highly-rated QB Mark Sanchez and a very talented running back Shonn Greene. The Giants added Hakeem Nicks to replace Plaxico Burress, instead of trying to trade for veteran Anquan Boldin. Talented tackle William Beatty also fell to the fortunate Giants. Hopefully Nicks will live up to the hype and make an impact for the Giants’ passing game.
This draft was very strong in offensive and defensive lineman and wide receivers, but not in running backs, with just 3 drafted in the 1st round. But 4 o’clock was a very special and busy time yesterday for sports fans. At the same time the draft was going on, the classic rivalry of the Yankees and Red Sox was on Fox. Also at four were the Penn Relays, one of the biggest track events in the country, and the NBA playoffs, where the Mavericks overcame 43 points from Tony Parker to beat the Spurs. The Penn Relays had a record number of fans supporting the runners representing various countries. It is thrilling and exciting when so many great sporting events are on at the same time, even though you can’t see all of each game. A sports writer’s dream is fulfilled when sports can make a huge impact on the world, and yesterday’s events showed just that.