| 2006 Draft Round 1 Review |
| | This first round had a very clear identity. Teams were willing to bet on rare traits, premium positions, and long-term upside, even if some of the players were still raw in awareness and needed time before becoming truly complete. At the top of the round there were some very safe picks, a few obvious blue-chip talents, and then as the board moved deeper into the 20s, the risk level started to rise. Some teams clearly drafted for immediate help, while others were chasing ceilings and trusting that development would take care of the rest. |
| | 1.01 |  | MLB DeMeco Ryans
Age: 22
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 247 | We knew this pick well ahead of the draft because the Panthers had already declared it, and honestly it is easy to see why. Ryans looks like the kind of middle linebacker who can immediately become the centerpiece of a defense. He already has the athletic profile to separate him from most rookies at the position, and the awareness base is high enough that he does not feel like a long-term stash. There are only a couple of MLBs in the league with both 90+ speed and 90+ acceleration, and that alone makes him rare. For me MLB is around the fourth most important position after QB, CB, and RT, so even if people debate whether he might have lasted a little longer, the player quality itself is easy to justify here.
Pre-skew: 91 SPD, 77 STR, 70 AWR, 95 ACC, 91 TAK
After skew: 90 SPD, 77 STR, 71 AWR, 92 ACC, 87 TAK
Grade: A-
NOVR: 86 |
| 1.02 |  | CB Antonio Cromartie
Age: 22
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 210 | Cromartie is the best corner in the class and one of the cleanest picks in the entire first round. He has the frame teams want at 6'2", he already has strong awareness for a rookie corner, and his physical traits give him true CB1 upside. The best thing about this pick is that he is not just a raw traits gamble. He looks ready to contribute from day one while still having plenty of room to grow into an elite long-term player. Most people already view CB as the most important position on the defensive side, and when you combine size, movement, and readiness like this, you end up with a very easy selection to defend.
Pre-skew: 90 SPD, 62 STR, 73 AWR, 89 AGI, 91 ACC, 71 CTH
After skew: 91 SPD, 64 STR, 73 AWR, 91 AGI, 95 ACC, 74 CTH
Grade: A
NOVR: 87 |
| 1.03 |  | WR Brandon Marshall
Age: 22
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 232 | Marshall stands out as the best wide receiver in the class because he brings the sort of size-speed blend that is very difficult to find. A 6'5" receiver with this kind of movement profile immediately changes the conversation, because he is not just a jump-ball specialist or a straight-line athlete. Even though the awareness came down a little, the final version is still extremely attractive, especially because the catch rating remains good enough that development can be focused toward the right places. In a receiver class with a few interesting names, Marshall still feels like the safest bet to become a true WR1 and eventually carry a passing game.
Pre-skew: 92 SPD, 47 STR, 69 AWR, 90 AGI, 95 ACC, 88 CTH
After skew: 93 SPD, 54 STR, 65 AWR, 94 AGI, 95 ACC, 86 CTH
Grade: A
NOVR: 83 |
| 1.04 |  | ROLB Chad Greenway
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 237 | Greenway took a real speed hit after the skew, so at first glance it might feel like some of the shine came off the pick. But once you actually look at the final player, he is still very strong. He still finishes with well above 90 in both speed and acceleration, his strength improved, and the awareness ticked up too. That means the post-skew version is actually more balanced even if the raw top-end speed is not quite as flashy as before. He still has the size, range, and tackling to become one of the better outside linebackers in the league, and that makes this a very strong selection near the top of the round.
Pre-skew: 99 SPD, 72 STR, 54 AWR, 84 AGI, 95 ACC, 86 TAK
After skew: 92 SPD, 76 STR, 58 AWR, 85 AGI, 92 ACC, 86 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 78 |
| 1.05 | | QB Vince Young
Age: 23
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 232 | Young is the best quarterback in the class, and this is one of those picks where the tools matter more than the surface NOVR. The really important detail is that his awareness went up while his throw accuracy came down by the same amount, and for a rookie quarterback that can actually be a very favorable trade because it helps him become usable faster. The arm talent is still obvious, and the bigger issue is not whether he has franchise traits, because he clearly does. The issue is whether the team is willing to pay for the tendency change, because leaving him as a scrambler limits the upside in a CPU environment. If that gets handled, this could become one of the defining picks of the class.
Pre-skew: 59 AWR, 97 THP, 96 THA
After skew: 63 AWR, 97 THP, 92 THA
Grade: A
NOVR: 74 |
| 1.06 |  | LT DBrickashaw Ferguson
Age: 23
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 310 | Ferguson is the best offensive tackle in the class, and to me he is one of the safest premium-position picks in the round. The +7 acceleration change was huge, and the strength bump only made him more attractive. He is already ready to start, the blocking ratings are elite for a rookie, and the awareness is good enough that you can comfortably plug him in immediately. With even a little bit of normal development luck, he should get over 70 awareness fairly soon and become a true long-term anchor. This is exactly the kind of pick teams hope to make when they want both immediate usefulness and future stability.
Pre-skew: 73 SPD, 93 STR, 62 AWR, 73 AGI, 62 ACC, 93 PBK, 92 RBK
After skew: 71 SPD, 97 STR, 61 AWR, 73 AGI, 69 ACC, 93 PBK, 92 RBK
Grade: A
NOVR LT: 93
NOVR RT: 87 |
| 1.07 |  | QB Jay Cutler
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 231 | Cutler does feel like a slight reach compared to Young, but if a team needed a quarterback badly, I can still understand the logic. The arm talent is the clear selling point, because 97 throw power will always give a player a ceiling worth chasing. The issue is that the rest of the package is less polished than you would ideally want at this slot. The awareness is still middling, the accuracy came down, and he is going to need time before he becomes a steady CPU starter. That does not make him a bad pick, but it does make him more of a projection than a finished franchise answer. Quarterback scarcity always pushes players like this upward, though, and that is probably what happened here.
Pre-skew: 54 AWR, 97 THP, 91 THA
After skew: 56 AWR, 97 THP, 87 THA
Grade: B+
NOVR: 63 |
| 1.08 |  | TE Leonard Pope
Age: 23
Height: 6'8"
Weight: 264 | This is one of the most fun picks in the whole first round because Leonard Pope is one of those players where the frame alone changes the conversation. He is 6'8", and that is enough to stress defenses before you even get into the rest of the profile. But he is not just huge. He also has real speed, real acceleration, and enough catch ability to become a serious matchup problem. The awareness is obviously the reason the NOVR lags behind the raw excitement, but the moment that awareness starts rising, the value is going to jump fast. This is exactly the kind of pick that can end up looking like a massive steal if the growth goes the right way.
Pre-skew: 90 SPD, 62 STR, 50 AWR, 92 AGI, 89 ACC, 70 CTH, 43 RBK
After skew: 90 SPD, 62 STR, 49 AWR, 87 AGI, 89 ACC, 74 CTH, 44 RBK
Grade: A+
NOVR: 69 |
| 1.09 |  | CB Johnathan Joseph
Age: 22
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 186 | Joseph is one of the cleanest picks in the first round. He already had a strong starting profile, and then he skewed upward in nearly every physical category that matters. That makes the final player even more appealing than the pre-draft version. The 65 awareness is a huge plus too, because it means he is not entering the league as some raw, long-term stash. He should be able to get on the field early and still has room to become one of the better corners in the league. This is exactly the sort of pick that looks good on draft night and still looks good years later.
Pre-skew: 90 SPD, 62 STR, 65 AWR, 95 AGI, 95 ACC, 67 CTH
After skew: 94 SPD, 67 STR, 65 AWR, 97 AGI, 97 ACC, 66 CTH
Grade: A+
NOVR: 82 |
| 1.10 | | DT Haloti Ngata
Age: 22
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 340 | Ngata is one of the more interesting interior defenders in the round because a lot of his value is already visible right now. He starts with strong awareness and tackling, which pushes the NOVR up and also means he should be useful much sooner than many rookie linemen. At the same time, the long-term path is still excellent because the strength and acceleration should continue to develop and eventually turn him into one of the better interior defenders in the league. He is not just a project and he is not just a present-value pick. He is both, and that is why this is such an attractive top-ten investment.
Pre-skew: 69 SPD, 92 STR, 63 AWR, 72 AGI, 77 ACC, 93 TAK
After skew: 69 SPD, 89 STR, 67 AWR, 72 AGI, 76 ACC, 90 TAK
Grade: A-
NOVR: 92 |
| 1.11 |  | RE Mario Williams
Age: 21
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 300 | Mario Williams is just a very solid player from almost every angle. He has the size, the youth, and enough athletic upside that it is easy to picture him becoming one of the better defensive linemen in this class. The skew helped in good spots too, with speed, awareness, agility, and tackling all improving. That makes the post-skew version feel more playable and more flexible. He is the type of player who could even be discussed as an outside linebacker in some setups, although his best long-term home is probably still along the defensive line. For a first-round end, this is a strong combination of current value and future upside.
Pre-skew: 78 SPD, 87 STR, 51 AWR, 62 AGI, 86 ACC, 72 TAK
After skew: 83 SPD, 87 STR, 54 AWR, 65 AGI, 85 ACC, 74 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR LE: 81
NOVR RE: 73 |
| 1.12 |  | CB Devin Hester
Age: 24
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 190 | Hester is one of the more unusual picks in the first round because he offers value in more than one way. As a corner, he looks like someone who should become solid over time, especially since the awareness and catch base are already better than what many rookie defensive backs get. He is not physically overwhelming in the same way some of the top corners are, but the profile is still useful. Then there is the second layer: he also has return value, which makes the pick more flexible and more fun. The danger there is the carrying rating, which could create some ugly moments, but if used the right way, he can affect more than one phase of the game.
Pre-skew: 90 SPD, 62 STR, 65 AWR, 95 AGI, 95 ACC, 67 CTH
After skew: 91 SPD, 61 STR, 62 AWR, 92 AGI, 91 ACC, 70 CTH
Grade: B+
NOVR: 77 |
| 1.13 | | WR Greg Jennings
Age: 23
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 197 | Jennings is one of those receivers where the speed profile jumps off the page immediately. He is going to be a 99 speed, 99 acceleration type of weapon in a few seasons, and that is always going to be tempting. The bigger question is how much you value this type of smaller-frame receiver this early in the round. Personally I usually prefer waiting a bit on this archetype, especially when bigger receivers can offer similar upside. But there is a real counterargument too, because smaller speed receivers absolutely can become stars if the rest of the profile is good enough. Jennings has that chance, and even if I am not totally in love with the archetype at this slot, I still understand the swing.
Pre-skew: 99 SPD, 60 STR, 59 AWR, 97 AGI, 94 ACC, 80 CTH
After skew: 97 SPD, 65 STR, 57 AWR, 96 AGI, 94 ACC, 80 CTH
Grade: A
NOVR: 80 |
| 1.14 |  | TE Vernon Davis
Age: 22
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 248 | Vernon Davis is a rare player, full stop. He is the only tight end in the league right now with 90+ in both speed and acceleration, and that instantly changes how a defense has to think. He is still raw because 51 awareness is not trivial, but he is also only 22 and already has enough catch ability and strength to make the upside obvious. This is the sort of tight end who can force linebackers and safeties into bad matchups and become a true offensive weapon once the awareness catches up. It is very easy to see why someone would fall in love with this pick.
Pre-skew: 85 SPD, 83 STR, 47 AWR, 90 AGI, 99 ACC, 79 CTH, 41 RBK
After skew: 90 SPD, 80 STR, 51 AWR, 89 AGI, 92 ACC, 79 CTH, 42 RBK
Grade: A+
NOVR: 83 |
| 1.15 | | SS Donte Whitner
Age: 21
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 208 | Whitner is the best strong safety in the class, and this feels like a very fair place to take him. He is one of the few safeties with both 90+ speed and 90+ acceleration, and the skew made him even more appealing by improving his strength, awareness, and tackling. That matters because it turns him from just a nice athlete into someone who actually looks much more ready to play the position correctly. Safeties can sometimes be hard to value in round one, but when the player is this balanced physically and also gets a favorable skew, the case becomes much stronger.
Pre-skew: 88 SPD, 70 STR, 55 AWR, 92 AGI, 91 ACC, 69 CTH, 77 TAK
After skew: 91 SPD, 75 STR, 58 AWR, 91 AGI, 91 ACC, 68 CTH, 81 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 74 |
| 1.16 | | DT Kyle Williams
Age: 23
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 303 | Kyle Williams is not the most flexible defensive lineman in the class, but he does not need to be. He is a pure 4-3 defensive tackle, and he looks like a very good one. His strength is already where you want it, the awareness is strong, and the tackling is high enough that he should be useful much sooner than some of the more developmental interior players. So while he may not have the same “what if” upside in different roles, he does offer a stable, trustworthy projection for exactly what he is supposed to be. That sort of clarity has real value in the middle of the first round.
Pre-skew: 72 SPD, 90 STR, 65 AWR, 69 AGI, 77 ACC, 90 TAK
After skew: 68 SPD, 93 STR, 64 AWR, 67 AGI, 74 ACC, 89 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 86 |
| 1.17 |  | CB Jarrett Bush
Age: 22
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 200 | This is one of the first picks in the round where I really start to get uncomfortable with the value. Bush should become a solid player over time, but he clearly needs a lot of work, especially in awareness, and probably still wants some physical growth too. That makes him feel more like a long-term development corner than a true first-round-ready investment. He still has enough movement ability to be interesting, and because corner is such an important position I do not hate the player. I just think this is a little bit early relative to how much work still needs to be done before he becomes really trustworthy.
Pre-skew: 95 SPD, 70 STR, 47 AWR, 99 AGI, 93 ACC, 53 CTH
After skew: 91 SPD, 63 STR, 49 AWR, 93 AGI, 90 ACC, 56 CTH
Grade: B+
NOVR: 54 |
| 1.18 |  | ROLB Chris Gocong
Age: 23
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 263 | Gocong is definitely raw, but he also has the sort of profile that makes you comfortable projecting him forward. He is not as flashy as some of the more elite athletes earlier in the round, but he is balanced, he tackles well enough, and the skew helped in a few very useful spots. That gives him a believable path to becoming a solid outside linebacker or even a hybrid-type defender depending on how he is used. This feels like one of those picks that may not wow people immediately but could look a lot better a few seasons down the road than it does on draft night.
Pre-skew: 86 SPD, 72 STR, 53 AWR, 78 AGI, 83 ACC, 80 TAK
After skew: 85 SPD, 76 STR, 50 AWR, 83 AGI, 85 ACC, 80 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 57 |
| 1.19 |  | CB Jimmy Williams
Age: 22
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 216 | Jimmy Williams is a long-term upside pick, and the upside is easy to see. He is 6'2", has 93 speed and 91 acceleration after skew, and that kind of size-athletic combination is always going to be attractive at corner. The obvious downside is that he is still raw mentally and not yet much of a finished playmaker, so patience is going to be required. But if the development goes well, he could absolutely turn into the sort of outside corner teams dream about. At a premium position, with this kind of frame and movement profile, I can definitely understand the bet.
Pre-skew: 92 SPD, 56 STR, 53 AWR, 87 AGI, 89 ACC, 50 CTH
After skew: 93 SPD, 64 STR, 51 AWR, 90 AGI, 91 ACC, 49 CTH
Grade: A
NOVR: 56 |
| 1.20 | | SS Pat Watkins
Age: 24
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 220 | At first glance this can feel like a reach, but once you remember Watkins is 6'5", the whole conversation changes. A safety with that kind of size and this kind of athletic profile is just not something you see often. He is not a perfect player, and there is definitely work to be done, but the physical uniqueness here is real enough to make the pick much more interesting than it might seem on the surface. He may not be the safest player in the round, but he is absolutely one of the more unusual and intriguing ones, and I get why a team would want to bet on that kind of rare body type.
Pre-skew: 82 SPD, 89 STR, 55 AWR, 83 AGI, 93 ACC, 57 CTH, 67 TAK
After skew: 85 SPD, 83 STR, 52 AWR, 91 AGI, 92 ACC, 55 CTH, 67 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 74 |
| 1.21 |  | MLB Gerris Wilkinson
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 231 | Wilkinson is raw, and that is clearly the central issue with the pick. The awareness is low enough that he is going to need real time before he becomes dependable in the middle. But the physical base is strong enough that I can still see the vision. He has good strength, useful speed, and enough upside that this is at least understandable, even if it is not especially exciting. This is not a plug-and-play first-round MLB. It is a development bet, and that makes the pick more understandable than impressive.
Pre-skew: 86 SPD, 85 STR, 48 AWR, 88 ACC, 75 TAK
After skew: 86 SPD, 85 STR, 49 AWR, 87 ACC, 75 TAK
Grade: A-
NOVR: 52 |
| 1.22 |  | DT Gabe Watson
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 338 | Gabe Watson is one of the more fascinating upside plays in the first round. When a 338-pound interior defender has 80 speed and 94 strength, you notice immediately. That kind of body-athletic combination is extremely unusual and gives him a ceiling that a lot of defensive tackles simply do not have. He is clearly much rawer than Ngata, so this is not about immediate polish. It is about what he can become by year three or so if the progression breaks right. For that kind of upside, I think this is a very fair gamble in the 20s.
Pre-skew: 80 SPD, 94 STR, 50 AWR, 67 AGI, 70 ACC, 61 TAK
After skew: 80 SPD, 94 STR, 51 AWR, 68 AGI, 73 ACC, 62 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 86 |
| 1.23 | | ROLB James Anderson
Age: 23
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 235 | I do think Anderson will eventually become a solid player, but this is one of the picks where I really push back on first-round value. Awareness matters a lot for linebackers, and starting at 42 means the development road is going to be long. He has enough athletic ability to stay interesting, so this is not some hopeless player evaluation, but there is a real difference between “solid long-term piece” and “deserving first-round pick.” To me, this lands much more in the first category. That is why I see this as one of the shakier decisions in the round.
Pre-skew: 91 SPD, 77 STR, 40 AWR, 84 AGI, 92 ACC, 64 TAK
After skew: 89 SPD, 79 STR, 42 AWR, 88 AGI, 88 ACC, 65 TAK
Grade: C+
NOVR: 47 |
| 1.24 |  | MLB A.J. Hawk
Age: 22
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 240 | Hawk is not the fastest middle linebacker in the class, and that is the main reason he does not feel more exciting. But this late in the first round, I think he is actually a pretty solid value play. The awareness bump helps, the tackling improved slightly, and he is younger and sturdier than some comparable linebackers who went earlier. So even if he may never be the most explosive second-level defender in the league, he still projects as the kind of player who can justify the slot. The speed is a concern, but at least it is one that training camp can help soften over time.
Pre-skew: 82 SPD, 82 STR, 51 AWR, 85 ACC, 71 TAK
After skew: 82 SPD, 82 STR, 55 AWR, 84 ACC, 72 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 57 |
| 1.25 |  | RT Winston Justice
Age: 22
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 317 | This is one of the tougher evaluations in the round because the skew hit him pretty hard overall. He still looks playable, and the run blocking is strong enough that he should be able to start immediately, but the post-skew version is clearly less exciting than the pre-skew one. That is what makes the value question feel a little uncomfortable. Even this late in the first, I am not fully convinced it is a true value pick after the skew. Still, the role is obvious. He starts right away, and the hope is that he develops fast into the long-term solution at right tackle. So the path makes sense even if the final profile feels a bit underwhelming for the slot.
Pre-skew: 42 SPD, 94 STR, 56 AWR, 61 AGI, 80 ACC, 84 PBK, 85 RBK
After skew: 49 SPD, 90 STR, 56 AWR, 59 AGI, 71 ACC, 84 PBK, 89 RBK
Grade: NA
NOVR LT: 75
NOVR RT: 74 |
| 1.26 |  | CB Kelly Jennings
Age: 24
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 180 | Jennings is one of those corners where the physical profile does a huge amount of the talking. There are only a handful of corners in the league with this combination of elite speed and elite acceleration, and that alone gives him a strong foundation. Yes, he is already 24, which shortens the runway a bit, but the movement traits are so good that he should still carve out a very useful career. This is not the type of pick that wins because the player is already polished in every area. It wins because the physical upside is too strong to ignore late in the first round.
Pre-skew: 96 SPD, 70 STR, 54 AWR, 89 AGI, 99 ACC, 53 CTH
After skew: 96 SPD, 64 STR, 53 AWR, 97 AGI, 97 ACC, 53 CTH
Grade: A
NOVR: 64 |
| 1.27 | | DT Johnny Jolly
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 325 | Jolly is raw, but he has the kind of strength base that gives him a real chance to stick around for a long time as a useful interior defender. He is not a finished product by any means, but 96 strength after skew still stands out, and that sort of foundation is worth betting on near the end of the first round. He may never become a true star, but he looks like the type of player who could eventually settle into a strong NT/DT role if developed with patience. For pick 27, I think that is a perfectly reasonable outcome to chase.
Pre-skew: 69 SPD, 99 STR, 56 AWR, 65 AGI, 68 ACC, 68 TAK
After skew: 68 SPD, 96 STR, 53 AWR, 63 AGI, 70 ACC, 64 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 71 |
| 1.28 | | MLB D'Qwell Jackson
Age: 23
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 242 | Jackson does not have the same superstar feel as the top linebackers in the class, but he does look like someone who can become a solid player with time. The small across-the-board improvements after skew help, and even though the tackling came down, it is still in a playable enough range. This is not the kind of first-rounder that makes a huge statement, but by this point on the board, a player who can eventually grow into a useful middle linebacker role is still a fair investment. I do not see elite upside here, but I do see long-term functionality.
Pre-skew: 82 SPD, 73 STR, 55 AWR, 82 ACC, 82 TAK
After skew: 85 SPD, 75 STR, 56 AWR, 83 ACC, 78 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 55 |
| 1.29 | | RG Rob Sims
Age: 23
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 312 | Sims is the first guard off the board in what looks like a pretty interesting guard class. I do not think it is a class loaded with true first-round guard talent, but there is definitely useful depth in the middle rounds, and Sims fits that general feeling. He is still raw and needs development before he becomes a dependable starter, but there is enough strength and enough underlying promise here that the pick still makes sense. This is not a glamorous selection, but it is a fairly sensible one if the team is willing to wait on him a bit.
Pre-skew: 60 SPD, 90 STR, 55 AWR, 67 AGI, 70 ACC, 76 PBK, 85 RBK
After skew: 60 SPD, 91 STR, 51 AWR, 66 AGI, 76 ACC, 76 PBK, 83 RBK
Grade: A
NOVR: 58 |
| 1.30 |  | RE Victor Adeyanju
Age: 23
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 284 | I was thinking about him myself a few picks earlier, but the awareness scared me away, and that is still the central problem here. He is a solid player overall, and in a thin defensive end class he is definitely one of the better options. But he is clearly more projection than polish. That said, at this stage of the first round I can understand the gamble. The class is not deep at DE, and when a board gets thin, teams naturally become more willing to bet on players with useful size and movement traits even if the awareness is lagging behind.
Pre-skew: 91 SPD, 77 STR, 42 AWR, 79 AGI, 82 ACC, 55 TAK
After skew: 84 SPD, 77 STR, 46 AWR, 76 AGI, 79 ACC, 55 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR LE: 64
NOVR RE: 60 |
| 1.31 | | HB DeAngelo Williams
Age: 23
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 207 | DeAngelo is one of the better value picks in the first round. The only thing really dragging him down is the size concern, because otherwise the player profile is very strong. I do not care much about the height for a halfback, but the low weight is enough to at least make you think. Even so, at this point in the round the value is simply too good to ignore. He is explosive, he got stronger, the break tackle jump was meaningful, and the awareness is already good enough that he should not need a long runway to become useful. For pick 31, I think this is a very strong selection.
Pre-skew: 96 SPD, 76 STR, 64 AWR, 94 AGI, 90 ACC, 81 CAR, 75 BTK
After skew: 93 SPD, 82 STR, 64 AWR, 97 AGI, 90 ACC, 79 CAR, 82 BTK
Grade: A
NOVR: 85 |
| 1.32 | | ROLB Clint Ingram
Age: 23
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 240 | I still think Ingram is first-round talent. The final player is not perfect, but there is enough here to believe in. The awareness is already at a level where it does not scare me as much as some of the other linebackers taken in this range, and the athletic profile is balanced enough that he should keep improving with time. If the acceleration and speed both continue rising over the next few seasons, he can become a very sturdy outside linebacker. At the final pick of the round, that feels like a perfectly acceptable way to close out day one.
Pre-skew: 82 SPD, 75 STR, 54 AWR, 90 AGI, 89 ACC, 76 TAK
After skew: 84 SPD, 76 STR, 54 AWR, 86 AGI, 87 ACC, 72 TAK
Grade: A
NOVR: 59 |
Final Thoughts
This round had a very clear split between immediate-value players and long-term projection plays. At the top, the round was loaded with premium talent. Cromartie, Joseph, Ferguson, Marshall, Young, and Ngata all feel like players who were worthy of their range even before you start talking about ceiling. Then as the board moved into the middle and late first, the focus shifted more toward athletes who still need time, patience, and awareness development before they become truly dependable. That is where names like Jimmy Williams, Gocong, Watkins, and Ingram become more interesting than safe.
The quarterback story is pretty straightforward. Vince Young clearly has the best raw tool set in the class, while Cutler feels more like the second option pushed upward by positional importance. At receiver, Marshall feels like the true alpha bet, while Jennings is more about long-term speed and explosive upside. The tight end group is especially fascinating because Pope and Vernon Davis are both rare in completely different ways. One wins with absurd size, the other with absurd movement. Both have the chance to make this first round look stronger years from now than it might have looked on draft night.
Overall, I think this was a first round with a very strong top, an interesting middle, and then a few later picks where teams were clearly betting on growth more than immediate payoff. The best values to me are probably Ferguson, Joseph, DeAngelo Williams, Cromartie, and Vernon Davis. The picks I feel the least comfortable with are James Anderson and Jarrett Bush, mainly because their awareness leaves too much work to be done for real first-round comfort. But that is also what makes this class interesting. Some of these players are already good. Some of them may need three seasons before we know what they really are. |
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