Mocking The Draft - Your source for 2010 NFL Draft coverage.

More great Blogs

When news of Steve McNair's death came out, it was impossible not to immediately think about his status as an NFL Draft prospect.

Playing for Alcorn State, it was unheard of for a quarterback from a historically all-black school to be taken in the NFL Draft. McNair was so good, the Houston Oilers took him third overall.

NFL scouts traveled in droves to catch a glimpse of McNair as he shredded opponents in multiple 500-yard performances. Coming out of Alcorn State, a school at the time with 3,300 students, McNair was not some kind of lower-level sleeper. He was an absolute sensation. In tiny Lorman, Miss., he was nearly mythical.

Whenever ESPN would show grainy footage of McNair leading up to and during the 1995 NFL Draft, it was nothing short of an event. McNair had an incredible arm. He was like a power running back in the open field. He broke tackles and the will of defenders. He was tough.

During his senior season, Sports Illustrated even touted him as a Heisman Trophy candidate.

"He's the total package," former Bills director of player personnel Dwight Adams told SI in 1994. "If there's a better athlete—a guy who's got the arm and can scramble and evade and is more durable and more productive—I haven't seen him this year. I've watched him throw the ball on a rope 35 yards consistently, watched him throw 60 yards downfield, watched him run off and run through people. And his judgment...his touch. These guys don't have to break stride when they come out of their turns. The ball is there. This guy's unusual."

What was even greater about McNair was that he seemingly broke that last quarterback color barrier. Doug Williams won the Super Bowl. Warren Moon sustained greatness for a whole career. McNair was the first to be a top draft pick. It's impossible not to think, then, McNair's success played a factor in Philadelphia's decision to take Donovan McNabb second overall in 1999.

Still today, McNair remains one of the greatest quarterback prospects of all time. He was not wasted potential like Ryan Leaf, Todd Marinovich or Vince Young. He was like John Elway and Steve Young – incredible athletes who went on to NFL glory. Much like Jerry Rice and Walter Payton, he was the rare star from the Southwesten Athletic Conference.

It took 13 years for an NFL team to take a Division I-AA quarterback in the first round when Baltimore took Joe Flacco. It's only fitting that McNair's roster spot in Baltimore to be theoretically used by Flacco after his retirement in April 2008.

In the end, though, McNair defined what is great about the NFL Draft.

• More from Music City Miracles, the SB Nation Titans blog.

0 comments | 0 recs |

Several reasons why the NBA Draft is inferior to the NFL Draft

by Mocking Dan on Jun 27, 2009 4:26 PM EDT Comment 3 comments

More photos » by Frank Franklin II - AP

Be honest, before Thursday, did you even know who the hell the guy on the right was? (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Browse more photos »

Watching the NBA Draft, it's clear why the NFL Draft is the premier player selection process.

That's saying a lot considering Chris Berman has nothing to do with the NBA Draft. Let's ponder the reasons why the NFL Draft is superior:

1. The wait is the hardest part: It seems like just about every player in the NBA Draft will need time to develop. Seemingly only about five for 10 of the guys drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft will make an impact as a rookie. Almost no second round picks will matter ever. If I drank every time Jay Bilas talked about a guy needing to develop, my body would be decaying by pick 15.

2. Week night: Really, having a draft on a Thursday night is a bad idea. It's too tempting to just watch reruns of The Office and 30 Rock. Hopefully the NFL doesn't change formats so drastically and has the first rounds of the draft on week nights.

3. Bilas is no Kiper: Jay Bilas is an excellent college basketball analyst. But he's not a presence like Mel Kiper. The other nice about Kiper is that he doesn't seem to have an agenda. Sure, he prefer Maryland and the Baltimore Ravens, but Bilas overtly praises the ACC. Jeff Van Gundy and Marc Jackson, however, are outstanding.

4. Too soon: Didn't the Los Angeles Lakers win the championship a week and a half ago? One of the best parts of the NFL Draft is the anticipation between the Super Bowl and the last week of April.

5. Rodrigue Beaubois: David Stern couldn't even correctly say the name of the 25th overall pick. Beaubois will probably never play in the NBA and he was a first-round pick. He doesn't even have a Wikipedia page!

6. Ric Bucher: Seriously, what's that guy made of, wax?

7 Picks for sale: Need some cash? Sell away your future. Just like a hooker!

8. So many in attendance: Really, why was Christian Eyenga, the 30th overall pick at Radio City Music Hall? Even Stern seemed puzzled watching the Congo native lumber through the crowd.

9. The lottery: Not rigged at all.

3 comments | 0 recs |

Is Darrius Heyward-Bey already a bust?

by Mocking Dan on Jun 25, 2009 2:00 PM EDT in 2009 NFL Draft Comment 31 comments

More photos » by Paul Sakuma - AP

Browse more photos »

Sometimes a bust pick can immediately be identified. The best instance of that in the 2009 NFL Draft occurred when the Raiders used the seventh overall pick on Darrius Heyward-Bey.

When that pick happened, the NFL Draft world collectively giggled.

But, is Heyward-Bey already hurtling toward bust status, even before training camp has begun?

The case against Heyward-Bey began at his first mini-camp. He reportedly looked pretty bad, albeit against the league's top cornerback in Nnamdi Asomugha. His claim to infamy was dropping passes on three consecutive plays.

This led Heyward-Bey to utter the cringe-worthy line "I'm not in college anymore." Yikes.

The next day, Heyward-Bey was held out of practice for fatigue and soreness. That's not good. It's not like Heyward-Bey is some 38-year-old veteran. He's a fresh, 21-year-old. Should he really suffer from fatigue? Heck, even teammate Javon Walker was free of pain following the practice.

Heyward-Bey is also suffering from a hamstring injury he suffered last month. The injury has been so problematic for Heyward-Bey that he left practice last week after just one play.

Not a good start.

It also won't help that Heyward-Bey has a mostly unproven quarterback in JaMarcus Russell and a weak-armed on in backup Jeff Garcia.

Also consider that Oakland's first three opponents are San Diego, Kansas City and Denver, teams with pretty good cornerbacks. Or that Heyward-Bey has never been known to have great hands.

It might be too early to call Heyward-Bey a bust, but he's certainly not off to a good start.

31 comments | 0 recs |

Traveling the Nation

by Mocking Dan on Jun 24, 2009 10:00 PM EDT Comment 0 comments

This is a look around the SB Nation football blogs for the best draft-related content.

Over at Gang Green Nation, John B wants to know if draft picks are valued too highly. His example? Consider the picks traded for Jay Cutler and those for Mark Sanchez.

John B isn't the only one pondering things this time of the year. Dave the Falconer wonders about the importance of projects. I can say, if you stick around to watch the entire NFL Draft, you understand the importance of projects.

Intrigued by Penn State's Evan Royster? Graham Filler from the excellent Rivalry Esq. breaks down the running back.

Mr. Irrelevant Ryan Succop cult superstar. Sure, why not?

0 comments | 0 recs |

Brandt breaks down senior wide outs

by Mocking Dan on Jun 24, 2009 7:52 PM EDT in 2010 NFL Draft Comment 0 comments

Gil Brandt of NFL.com has been putting together his senior positional rankings the past couple of weeks. So far he has released his quarterbacks and running backs.

Today, he put up his wide receiver rankings. They are as follows:

1. Brandon LaFell, LSU
2. Mardy Gilyard, Cincinnati
3. Eric Decker, Minnesota
4. Jordan Shipley, Texas
5. Chris McGaha, Arizona State
6. Jeremy Williams, Tulane
7. Jacoby Ford, Clemson
8. Shay Hodge, Mississippi
9. Dexter McCluster, Mississippi
10. Greg Matthews, Michigan
11. Andre Roberts, Citadel
12. Alric Arnett, West Virginia
13. Riley Cooper, Florida
14. Naaman Roosevelt, Buffalo
15. Kerry Meier, Kansas
16. Armanti Edwards, Appalachian State

It's no surprise to see LaFell as the No. 1 wide receiver. He nearly entered the 2009 NFL Draft. Coming back for his senior season almost ensures a spot somewhere in the first round, depending on which underclassmen leave early.

Even including LaFell, none of these guys come across as a No. 1 receiver. One player I would have much higher is Roosevelt, an electric player. He has great hands and is a game breaker.

Another Mid-American Conference player who should be up there is Bryan Anderson of Central Michigan. At 6-foot-5, 214 pounds, Anderson is a good red zone threat.

Clearly, though, the best NFL-eligible receivers in college football are juniors. That would include Arrelious Benn (Illinois), Damian Williams (USC), Dez Bryant (Oklahoma State), Dezmon Briscoe (Kansas) and Golden Tate (Notre Dame).

0 comments | 0 recs |

Follow Mocking the Draft on Twitter

If you're interested in such things, you can now follow MTD on Twitter.

Basically the goal for our Twitter page is to provide some behind-the-scenes updates on what's going on here at MTD. On the right rail, you'll see our Twitter badge for a special announcement!

14 days ago Mocking Dan comment 0 comments 1 recs

2010 NFL Draft rankings: Defensive ends

by Mocking Dan on Jun 18, 2009 10:35 AM EDT in 2010 NFL Draft Comment 5 comments

The defensive end rankings were somewhat difficult to knock out, mostly because a number of the players who are ends in college won't be in the NFL.

For instance, Texas' Sergio Kindle has played outside linebacker for the Longhorns but will move to end this season. But in the NFL, he's strictly a linebacker prospect. For now, he's in the end category. The same goes for guys like Jerry Hughes of TCU, Antonio Coleman of Auburn and Eric Norwood of South Carolina.

Like many other position, the best ends seem to be juniors. Carlos Dunlap of Florida is an incredible prospect and Everson Griffen of USC has scary potential. But the best defensive end in college might be Greg Hardy of Mississippi. At least, that is, when he wants to try hard or is not injued.

So, check out the defensive end rankings. Use this post to tear them apart or offer your own. After all the positional rankings are revealed, a top 200 will be put out.

Previous: CB | FS | SS | OLB | MLB | DT

5 comments | 1 recs |