NFC West

Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals are quickly becoming what I consider to be one of the more solid front offices in the league. GM Rod Graves has shown to be a shrewd decision maker who, if slightly risk averse, blends needs with available talent very well. The past two first round draft picks are perfect example of this in Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Beanie Wells. Both were extremely talented players, at positions of need, who slipped due to experience and injury concerns respectively. I’m definitely skeptical of Wells being able to handle the pounding of a true feature back in the NFL, but for the 31st pick overall, he was an outstanding value. Knowing now that he has gotten banged up in the preseason and is out injured doesn’t hurt this theory, but I do think he will get healthy and will be an impact player for this team. Tim Hightower will steal some carries, but they are a good 1-2 punch of bigger backs who can wear down defenses late games. Cody Brown has very good pass rush potential, and will be afforded the time to focus on just that as a rush linebacker in their modified 3-4. He was a solid value late in the second round, and they need bodies at the position as this is probably the biggest weakness on this team (lucky for them their secondary is top notch). Perhaps the biggest steal they got was Rashad Johnson in the third round. I’m not a big fan of Johnson’s, but I thought he would go a good bit higher than the late third round. He’s not a physical tackler, but he’s smart and good in coverage. The Cardinals have one of the NFL’s best SS’s in Adrian Wilson, who is a fierce tackler and blitzer, so Johnson is the perfect compliment. I would not be surprised if he’s starting by week one. Herman Johnson sliding to the fifth wasn’t that big of a surprise to me as he’s not nearly as good of an offensive lineman as his size would indicate. He does provide depth though, and with some good coaching he could potentially develop into a starting caliber OG. Seventh rounder Trevor Canfield was also a very good addition and he should battle with Johnson for one of the back up spots at guard. Overall, this is a very good draft day haul.

San Francisco 49ers

I’m still shocked that Crabtree slipped to the 10th overall pick, but I’m also not shocked at all that he is still not signed. He’s a bit too much of a diva, but then again, what WR isn’t these days? If he ever gets signed, he’s going to have one hell of a learning curve and might not contribute right away, but he will eventually be a top flight #1 WR for this team. I was a bit surprised to see a team in need of depth and talent trade their second round pick, especially seeing as Everette Brown is who the Panthers picked with this selection, as he would have been the exact type of player this defense needed. But when you consider that the 49ers will now get a first rounder in 2010, this may end up being an even better decision with the talent pool that will be available. Glen Coffee seemed to slip through the cracks a bit, but he was a nice selection in the third round and should see time with an injury prone Frank Gore in front of him. Plus he’s got good hands catching passes out of the backfield so he will probably see some third down opportunities right away. I liked Scott McKillop a bit more than others due to the fact that he’s a perfect fit as a run stuffing strong side ILB for a 3-4. To be honest, you could put me next to Patrick Willis and he’s good enough to make me productive. I don’t know if he will start right away as he does have physical limitations like a lack of straight line speed, but he is a fighter and I expect him to be in the mix. I don’t think Nate Davis will ever be an NFL QB due to his lack of height and his documented struggles with learning an NFL caliber playbook, but he’s a solid value as a 5th round developmental prospect. The two biggest steals for San Fran were 6th round TE Bear Pascoe and 7th rounder Rocky Jean-Francois. Pascoe will see time immediately as a blocking TE behind pass catching vertical threat Vernon Davis. He’s an old school brand of TE that Singletary will no doubt like. Jean-Francois is about as risk/reward as you get. When he was actually on the field at LSU, I thought he was better at times that former top ten pick Glenn Dorsey. The problem is he was suspended for academics and off the field infractions more than he played. He’s a good fit as a 3-4 DE, and for a late 7th round pick, you can’t go wrong. If he behaves you have a great rotational player who is great at blocking field goals, and if not, you can cut him and not think twice.

St. Louis Rams

All I can say is that I am glad I am not a Rams fan. I don’t think we’ve seen the last of their struggles as this team is still not very good. Jason Smith was a no brainer and a great pick for this team. He should be the day one starter at LT and has potential to be a future Pro Bowler. It’s after this pick that things just don’t make sense to me. How the Rams passed up Rey Maualuga for James Laurinitis is beyond me. Laurinitis was more hype than substance, and I think it will show in the NFL. For him to be successful he needs to have big DT’s in front of him to occupy blockers, and this team does not have players like that on their roster. I think the Rams will not be the only team who will regret passing on Rey once the season concludes. I can’t argue too much with the third round selection of Bradley Fletcher either, as he’s the type of physical press corner that Spagnuolo prefers. With the lack of real playmakers at corner for this team, I could see Fletcher pushing for a lot of playing time right away. DT Dorell Scott wasn’t a bad 4th round pick as well and should play in a rotation, but he’s never going to be starting material in my opinion. The only other pick of note was seventh rounder RB Chris Ogbannaya of Texas, who I liked more than most other experts did. Once again though, he’s nothing more than a nice back up and special teams player.

Seattle Seahawks

I have to admit on draft day that I bought in to the hype that Seattle may potentially snag Mark Sanchez with the fourth overall pick. I’m very glad they didn’t, as they got arguable the best overall player available. Curry is a horse and will be an impact player right away. He’s just a terrific all around linebacker who will be a mainstay on this defense for years to come. Seattle also pulled what might have been the stupidest/smartest trade of the 2009 draft by tricking the Broncos in to giving up their 2010 first rounder for the rights to pick Alphonso Smith. I liked Smith, don’t get me wrong, but I think Denver is going to suck this year and the Seahawks are all the richer for this. I just couldn’t believe that Denver would be stupid enough to give up their pick and not the Bears pick, which is guaranteed to be lower. I understand you want to think you will be better, but they have to have realized that the odds were stacked against them making a big improvement this year and somehow finishing above the Bears in the overall standings. Then Angelo pulled his usual low risk move by trading down for volume on the early part of the second day. Getting Max Unger was huge as I thought he was a high second round pick at worst. He’s versatile and can play pretty much any of the five OL positions, but with Chris Spencer’s recent injury, he is poised to be the starting center right away. This was a great value for them, and in my opinion, worth giving up their third and fourth round picks to the Bears. Deon Butler was another very good selection as he will fit well on this WR needy team. He’s great out of the slot, and can return kicks as well. He’s going to see a lot of touches as a rookie, especially for a late third rounder. I don’t get the pick of Mike Teel, as he’s going to struggle to find a spot as a third QB. The late round picks Seattle made were very good value selections though, as Courtney Greene should be in the mix at their weak safety position, Nick Reed is a good effort guy who should find a way to stick with this team, and Cameron Morrah is a solid second TE option behind John Carlson. Overall, a very good draft considering the potential top 10 pick they will get next year (which for a team looking for a long term QB replacement, you couldn’t have gotten a better year for it).