| PICK | TEAM | POSITION NEEDS | PLAYER OPTIONS | ANALYSIS |
| 1.01 |  | CB / WR / DT / DE / OLB | CB Darrelle Revis
WR Calvin Johnson | At 1.01 the ideal pick is tacking a purely exceptional talent that will help your team at a position of need. As the worst performing outfit in 2006, the Raiders have several vulnerabilities with their current roster that could be addressed through the draft, however not all those positions give the expected value at this pick. CB Revis appears to be a lock here with his top of the range speed, agility, acceleration, and jump, combined with decent rookie game smarts, catch, and tackle. The black sheep here is the promise that Calvin Johnson could turn out with, which for a 6’5” receiver potentially creates a massive gap in capability. The skew is the kicker here and is why some GMs are won’t be convinced that Revis is #1 until he is actually drafted. |
| 1.02 |  | ROLB / LOLB / WR / HB / OT / RG / SS / TE / CB / FS | CB Darrelle Revis
WR Calvin Johnson
LT Joe Thomas LOLB Anthony Spencer
SS Aaron Rouse
RE Greg Peterson
MLB Patrick Willis | The options here become excessive as the Packers start their massive draft day haul with whatever player they deem to be best value here and likely a position they decide won’t be available by pick 8. Many of their positions of need would not constitute value for money this high so they must plan accordingly for their full range of picks. Again, depending on if the Megatron skew is positive they may be tempted as he’s unlikely to fall too far, or they consider the athletic supremacy of Patrick Willis, or shore up their offensive line with Joe Thomas. Depending on their scouting report we could see an outlier such as Greg Peterson skewing into stud level if they look that far, although with so many 1st and 2nd round picks, they’ll need to be careful with their scouting reports unless they buy a lot more. I will be keen to see who they take here as it will impact my choice next. |
| 1.03 |  | CB / MLB / WR / OT / OG / DT | MLB Patrick Willis
CB Darrelle Revis
WR Calvin Johnson
LT Joe Thomas
RG Ben Grubbs | We’ve managed to plug a few holes cheaply but there are some glaring gaps in our roster that a real stud could help elevate the Bears to the next level. The list doesn’t change much at pick 3 as we seek to get the maximum value at this pick without voiding a position of need in the process. |
| 1.04 |  | CB / WR / OT / S / OLB / RE / TE | WR Calvin Johnson
WR Sidney Rice
LT Joe Thomas LOLB Anthony Spencer
SS Aaron Rouse
RE Greg Peterson | The Buccs jumped up from 1.10 by selling their future, so they obviously have a target in mind. Knowing that they did not approach me a t pick 3 they are either accepting of what will be taken with the first three selections, or they were more worried about what someone else was going to take between 4 and 9. As this catapults them in front of divisional rival the Saints they may be trying to cut them off at the knees and snipe their target, otherwise they want a fair chance at a generational talent. Surprisingly the needs list looks like the Packers, and they may end up with a player that Brad Barber may rue himself for not taking at #2. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were all in for Calvin Johnson with the hope he doesn’t skew down. |
| 1.05 |  | SS / DT / OG / CB / RE / C | SS Aaron Rouse
SS Laron Landry
DT Alan Branch
DT Brandon Mebane
RG Ben Grubbs | The Saints have some decent depth across the board with youngsters and veterans but can use an injection of some outstanding physical talent to get them over the hump. They may wish to move up and snag one of the top talents ahead of the Buccaneers, but they have plenty of options here that will elevate a position of need or shore up the offensive or defensive line with a quality playmaker. |
| 1.06 |  | SS / LOLB / LE / OT / OG | LT Chris Denman
RG Ben Grubbs
SS Aaron Rouse
SS Laron Landry
LOLB Anthony Spencer
RE Greg Peterson
LE LaMarr Woodley | The Giants sit in a decent draft position as they’ll have the tail end of the really outstanding talent available along with the very good and for the most part they can’t miss on value with this pick. Personally, I’m not a fan of taking my chances on defensive ends early in the draft due to the skew on speed, but they could really use a top pass rusher in the Big Apple and I can envisage a few private workouts heading this way. Aside from that need I could see an offensive tackle added to the roster to help Romo and propel their offense to the next level, or taking a top safety to round out their defensive backs. |
| 1.07 |  | WR / OT / TE / FS | WR Sidney Rice
WR Steve Smith
LT Chris Denman
RT Ken Shackleford
FS Dashon Goldson | The offseason has been good to the Panthers so far and they’ve addressed a number of roster issues with trades a free agency, leaving a remarkably scarce needs list for a team that didn’t perform well in 2006. Continuing to help QB Andrew Walter wouldn’t go astray so a developmental receiver of size or speed would fit here, or a solid offensive tackle to give him more time to make plays. Daren is spoilt for choice here as the options available allow him to pick the style of player he prefers at most positions, and his team will be better for it. |
| 1.08 | | OLB / WR / HB / OT / RG / SS / TE / CB / FS | WR Sidney Rice
LT Chris Denman
RG Ben Grubbs
FS Dashon Goldson
ROLB Justin Durant
MLB Lawrence Timmons | The Packers are the first team to make a second selection in the 2007 draft and they have plenty to pick from still. They look comfortable to stay at this position and keep adding pieces for their rebuild and if they want to change it up, I can see an out of position pick made here to make best use of some talented middle linebackers to address their outside linebacker shortages. |
| 1.09 |  | WR / FS / MLB / ROLB / DT / OT / OG | WR Dwayne Bowe
MLB Lawrence Timmons
FS Dashon Goldson
LT Andrew Carnahan | For the second best team last year to have back-to-back picks this early is scary for how easy it can push them to the top (and I have to face them twice a year too). Whilst there are some positions of need on the team I feel Rodany will be looking for the best value here and go BPA. Luckily that still addresses some team needs and he’ll make it count. |
| 1.10 | | WR / FS / MLB / ROLB / DT / OT / OG | WR Jacoby Jones
MLB Zak DeOssie
RG Ben Grubbs
DT Alan Branch | The Lions have drafted well in previous years and these two picks will be no different. Expect to see some physically talented players head to Detroit to plague me for years as they bolster their offensive line, add another passing target for McNabb, get add even more speed at linebacker, or find a physical freak for their interior defensive line. Whatever the choice it will be well worth it. |
| 1.11 |  | FS / LOLB / DT / OG | LOLB Anthony Spencer
LOLB Tim Shaw
FS Daren Stone
DT Justin Harrell | We haven’t heard boo out of Mellon Jr this offseason as he retains all his pieces and evaluates what will help him beat those dastardly Steelers. I feel we’ll definitely see a pick of need here to fill a hole rather than something from left field. There would still be plenty of choice at OLB and DT here and those positions would be decent value and impact for the Bengals if they find a good skew. |
| 1.12 |  | MLB / S / OLB / OT / WR / OG | MLB Lawrence Timmons
WR Steve Smith
ROLB Justin Durant
RT Joe Staley
SS Eric Frampton | Even post free agency there are a number of vacant and depth only positions on this roster. The Cardinals milked Amani Toomer for all he was worth last year, but I doubt the 80-speed veteran can give the same return now, so a quality speedster wouldn’t go astray. On the flip side if you can’t keep your quarterback upright and injury free then a target is worthless, so a good blocking linemen could be the first step. With the depth of exceptional linebacker talent in this draft, we may see a new body filling the middle from this pick as well, noting that even though MLB appears to be the strongest position in this class, not a lot of teams in the early picks actually need one, so Will could be surprised by his choice here. |
| 1.13 |  | FS / OLB / DE / OT / QB / MLB / WR | FS Michael Griffin
LOLB Keyunta Dawson
RT Herb Taylor
WR Dwayne Bowe
QB Jordan Palmer
MLB Jon Beason | Whilst I don’t think the Redskins have enough kickers I can’t see them pulling a Rock and going all in here. They have some great core pieces to build around it’s just a matter of finding their right one here knowing they’re quickly on the clock again at pick 16. I have also listed QB and MLB as a need even though they have valuable veterans here they may be tempted to find an athletic freak or the future signal caller whilst they have the chance. Outside those conundrums they can still find several outside linebacker prospects, decent offensive tackles, and developmental safeties or receivers to pick up. |
| 1.14 |  | CB / RE / WR / MLB | WR Dwayne Bowe
RE Greg Wesley
DT Alan Branch
MLB Anthony Waters
CB Brandon McDonald
CB Dante Hughes | What I’m seeing here is a team that is looking for upgrades rather than glaring holes. Cornerback could be their biggest weakness as they lack support to Derek Ross with someone possessing both physical capability with game smarts (or the time and ability to get there). Their miss on match eligible free agency does leave a need at right end where they could find a sleeper pick here, or they choose a true receiving threat to pair with the speed of Jerome Mathis. |
| 1.15 |  | WR / DE / OT / SS | WR Jason Hill
WR Laurent Robinson
LT Levi Brown
RT Ken Shackleford | Another well balanced team but a couple of offseason moves or trade blocks have left holes or indicate a lack of enthusiasm for the current player group. QB Cody Pickett could always use some help and picking a new receiver or a replacement offensive tackle would fit the bill nicely with this pick. Based on availability from previous selection they may have more options to choose from in these two positions, otherwise they take a gamble on a defensive end and scout a few out. |
| 1.16 | | FS / OLB / DE / OT / QB / MLB / WR | MLB Zak DeOssie
ROLB Justin Durant
FS Reggie Nelson
LT Allen Barbre | No point doubling down in the space of two picks, the Reskins would have decided at 13 who was likely to drop or not and picked accordingly. It’s a strategic advantage Scott will have to think about because both the Jets and Ravens are well rounded teams that could easily snag a BPA choice if a studly option is left floating. |
