mattlanta

Eh... Horford making rookie mistakes. I think we just lost.

This is what I'm talking about. Losing the rebounds that are supposed to be easy is what will make us lose all of our games...

And why is AJ shooting again?

I just started watching the game. I was watching the UConn game against Neuter Dame earlier, so yeah. Just saw some highlights from our bench players.

I don't consider myself a draft expert, so please don't get frustrated when your favorite team doesn't draft the way you wanted them to or whatever you had in your mind. This is my second ever NFL mock draft, and I will keep it to the first round right now, and who knows, maybe I will extend it to two rounds after the NFL Combine. Please read and enjoy. 1. Miami Dolphins: DE | Chris Long | Virginia I've been preaching this draft pick for quite a while now, and at first, people thought I was serious until a week or two ago when sources in Miami have confirmed that if Parcells can't trade out of the number one overall draft pick, he will draft Chris Long. I don't usually trust those articles considering the amount of crap that we were already fed (including Jake Long will go number 1, Matt Ryan, and some even said Ellis would go number one), but it only goes to show you that Chris Long is definitely on Miami's radar especially him being a Parcells type of player who shows hustle and passion on every single play. If the Dolphins were to play in a 4-3 next year, I would argue that Dorsey is the better and smarter pick, but at this point of the offseason, it looks like Miami is going to play with a 3-4, and the Tuna's going to have to go shopping for the ingredients yet again to rebuild that defense. Chris Long is simply the perfect player to build Miami's defense around. 2. St. Louis Rams: DT | Glenn Dorsey | L.S.U. It turns out that Chris Long didn't fall to St. Louis like they expected earlier, but lucky for them, they get the next best defensive line prospect in Glenn Dorsey. This move allows Adam Carriker to move back to his natural position at defensive end and potentially create one of the best 1, 2, Punch combinations down the road with Dorsey applying pressure inside and Carriker rushing from the outside. Jake Long is an option here, but with the amount of solid offensive tackles in this draft class, look for St. Louis to bounce back in the second round by drafting an offensive tackle. *3. Oakland Raiders: RB | Darren McFadden | Arkansas This couldn't go any better for Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders. They won the coin toss between Kansas and Atlanta and, with that, they get the third overall draft pick of the 2008 NFL Draft. Dominic Rhodes and Lamont Jordan are officially labeled to be nothing more than benchwarmers in the NFL, and they're both already half way out the door. Al Davis has expressed his 'want' for McFadden, and he's shown a lot of interest in players who are natural athletes like McFadden is right now. I would not be surprised to see Dallas trade up to draft McFadden right about now, but judging from the amount of running backs that Dallas can pick up later on, I'm still hesitant to say whether or not it's worth it to trade up while giving up as much as Oakland, I would only imagine, would request for the third overall draft pick. *4. Kansas City Chiefs: OT | Jake Long | Michigan Kansas would address their most pressing need in offensive tackle by drafting Jake Long from Michigan who is just a beast in every aspect. He might have average footwork and might be projected as a right tackle to some scouts in the NFL, but Jake Long, either way, still brings a lot of offensive line star quality on that team, and I can only imagine how he will develop into a leader like he has for Michigan. *5. Atlanta Falcons: DT | Sedrick Ellis | U.S.C. Matt Ryan might be the popular pick here, but I honestly can't see the Falcons drafting a quarterback with the Top 5 overall draft pick after what Dimitroff has already said in his press conferences. Dimitroff claims that he doesn't deem it necessary for the Falcons to draft a quarterback in the first round unless no one else is available, and I would agree with that. I don't exactly have anything against Ryan, but I believe if Jake Long and Glenn Dorsey are gone, we should go with someone who can stuff the run and bring to life what Mike Smith's ideas are of an under tackle in a 4-3 defense. Abraham, Ellis, Lewis, and Anderson will be a very exciting core of young playe6rs in the future. 6. New York Jets: DE/OLB | Vernon Gholsten | Ohio St. Eric Mangini has wanted to install a 3-4 system in New York almost two years ago, but he failed to realize that he had almost nobody who fit the system's requirements. Vernon Gholsten will play as a blitzing outside linebacker in the NFL, and he's shown that he can be very versatile. If he played in the 4-3, he would obviously be a right defensive end. Anyways, if the Jets wanted to, they could possibly trade up and nab Darren McFadden, but I don't think that would be necessary because their pass rush has been very inconsistent as of late, and I can only imagine that they would draft the best solution in this draft class besides C. Long). 7. New England Patriots (f/SF): CB | Mike Jenkins | South Florida Unfortunately for the New England Patriots, right when they needed to improve their linebacking core, the best one that was expected to declare stayed in college. I'm talking about James Laurinaitis from Ohio State... What makes it even worse, at this point of the draft, is that the Jets drafted the player that the Patriots, I'm sure, would be eyeing on because they need to get younger in terms of their pass rushers and linebackers. However, with Asante Samuel most likely out the door by now, the Patriots will have another pressing issue at the cornerback position. They've constantly struggled to keep up with the Giants' wide receivers in the Super Bowl, and you can damn right bet on it that the Patriots and Belichick will rebound with a purpose to improve their secondary and bring some youth into their roster. Mike Jenkins is the number one cornerback in my rankings, so I would give him the nod here to replace Samuel's starting role in New England. 8. Baltimore Ravens: QB | Matt Ryan | Boston College How lucky they both are. Matt Ryan doesn't need to travel half way across the country to play in the NFL, and Baltimore gets their quarterback of the future. Kyle Boller has proven time and time again that he is not the solution to their problems and McNair is anything but the way he played in his 'Air McNair' days. Troy Smith is nothing more than a back up in the NFL, and while Ryan has the opportunity to start in the beginning of the regular season, I would imagine Baltimore would sit him on the bench for at least eight weeks to be mentored by Steve McNair. 9. Cincinatti Bengals: OLB | Keith Rivers | U.S.C. The Bengals need to improve their defense, so I don't see them drafting anything else besides the D. I have pondered this draft pick for a little while thinking whether to go with a defensive end to improve their pass rush or an outside linebacker to build the defense around. I eventually settled upon Keith Rivers from the University of Southern Cal. He's someone that can step up and be a leader of this defense, and he's got a very strong athletic body that will make him stand out from the rest of the linebackers in this draft. He's a protypical outside linebacker that I'm sure Bengals fans would be proud to have. 10. New Orlean Saints: CB | Leodis McKelvin | Troy When the Saints go marching in every stadium, the opposing team's gameplan is this: Pass. Pass. Then pass some more. That's how bad their secondary has been for the past few years. Bringing in John David from Indianapolis last year wasn't exactly the boldest move they've made. It was a good effort to improve their secondary, but he's still not a good cornerback to match up with against the best receivers in the league. He needs someone to play along with, and McKelvin is the right guy for the Saints because of McKelvin's right blend of speed and athleticism. He can match up well with many of the NFL's premiere wide receivers, and he brings more value to the table when he's able to returns kicks and/or punts. 11. Buffalo Bills: LB | Dan Connor | Penn State THe Bills can go both sides of the football here by improving their offense or defense. When I thought it through, I realized that it would only make sense if Buffalo drafted another weapon on defense to accompany Posluszny and who else is better to draft than Dan Connor from Penn State who has already played with Posluszny in college and have proven to be one of the most dynamic linebacker combos in the country? 12. Denver Broncos: OT | Ryan Clady | Boise St. Matt Lepsis leaves the Broncos without their starting offensive tackle, and it seems like Clady's the right man to replace him. It's too early to go with someone like Kenny Phillips, and Clady will be one of the better pro prospects in the NFL. The Broncos will realize this when they get to this point of the draft, and they will draft Clady who, coming into the season, was recognized to be one of the potential Top 5 draft picks. 13. Carolina Panthers: S | Kenny Phillips | Miami (FL.) Carolina's got a lot of problems to take care of with both of their offensive tackles looking to be testing the free agency in the future, and I highly doubt Carolina will resign both of them. I am assuming that they will re-sign one offensive tackle (or sign one through means of free agency) and draft a second round offensive tackle, or they will trade down to draft Chris Williams or Jeff Otah. However, it only makes sense here to go with Kenny Phillips after letting go of Dan Morgan. Phillips will be able to contribute to all parts of the defensive field, and The U's defensive players almost always end up being very good football players. 14. Chicago Bears: QB | Brian Brohm | Louisville I can only imagine how tempting it is to go with another defensive player for Chicago in the first round, but they've constantly put aside the quarterback problems and tried signing guys like Brian Griese hoping he will make things better, but they've come to a harsh reality: Grossman, and especially not Griese, is not, in any way, shape, or form, a solution to their quarterback problems. It would only make sense to draft a quarterback here like Brian Brohm who's already proven himself as a top quarterback as a junior in college and help resolve it... for another three to four years, at least. 15. Detroit Lions: DE | Calais Campbell | Miami (FL.) Matt Millen would of loved to have gotten a cornerback at this point of the draft, but Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie doesn't seem to be worth a Top 15 draft pick especially coming from a league with little competition. Calais Campbell gets the nod here as he is a very solid defensive end who has tremendous potential. He's an excellent pass rusher who always seems to get to the quarterback. I wouldn't be surprised if the Lions drafted a running back here either. 16. Arizona Cardinals: RB | Jonathan Stewart | Oregon For Arizona, it's starting to make more and more sense to draft a [future] replacement here for Edgerrin James more than anything else. Seeing that Campbell has already been drafted, the Cardinals will look to improve their offensive game by drafting the second best running back of this draft class. Jonathan Stewart and Edgerrin James might prove to be an excellent combination in Arizona's offense. Stewart is arguably the best natural athlete in the running back draft class. 17. Minnesota Vikings: WR | Malcolm Kelly | Oklahoma The Vikings eagerly look for another weapon on offense, and they find the perfect one in Malcolm Kelly. Gifted with a tall body, Kelly is one of those wide receivers that has a nose for the end zone. As long as Minnesota keeps its faith in Tarvaris Jackson, they will continually build around him and AD. In order to wear the defense down, one must have a downfield target to throw to. Malcolm Kelly is the smart pick. 18. Houston Texans: RB | Rashard Mendenhall | Illinois Anyone remember Ron Dayne? Yeah, the Heisman winner back then... yup, that's the one. I haven't heard of him ever since he declared for the NFL Draft either. In order for Houston to get that extra push in offense, they must have a consistent running back. Enough with the veteran running backs... Rashard Mendenhall would of been a Top 10, arguably, even a Top 5 overall draft pick next year if he hadn't declared. Gifted with a freakishly toned body, Mendenhall is the kind of running back that doesn't exactly have the best timed speed but always finds the hole to burst through and has a knack of picking up extra yardage on the way down. Houston needs a franchise running back, and they can sure find one in Mendenhall. 19. Philadelphia Eagles: WR | DeSean Jackson | California Philadelphia's offense is begging for another playmaker. With DeSean Jackson, they will not only get a deep threat on the offensive side of the ball but also a special teams speed demon who would make Philly's special teams coordinator proud that they drafted him. Not only would McNabb be happy with this draft pick, but Kevin Kolb will be too knowing he will be throwing the pigskin to one of the most exciting players in the country in the very near future. 20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: DT | Kentwan Balmer | North Carolina Pairing Kentwan Balmer up with Gaines Adams sounds frightening for the other team. Gruden has not impressed much interest in the quarterback draft class, so I don't think Woodson is anywhere near the picture for Tampa Bay right now. Gruden looks to be more focused on improving the defense and giving Gaines Adams another teammate to help him apply pressure to the quarterback. Considering Derrick Harvey is still here, I would not be surprised to take a risk on Harvey. 21. Washington Redskins: DE | Derrick Harvey | Florida It only makes sense to see the Redskins look for a defensive end to apply pressure to the quarterback other than Andre Carter. To make it easier on the secondary, the Redskins will draft Harvey, who I think is slightly overrated but is still an excellent solution to Washington's dilemma. 22. Dallas Cowboys (f/CLE): RB | Felix Jones | Arkansas Earlier in the season, people were outrageously saying Jones was better than McFadden. Although I don't agree with those comments, I do believe Felix Jones can be something special on the right team. I would only imagine that Dallas will re-sign Marion Barber unless they trade these first round picks for a top draft choice in order to pick up McFadden. Anyways, it makes sense to pick Jones up now before the teams like Seattle and Tennessee even think about drafting him. 23. Pittsburgh Steelers: OT | Jeff Otah | Pittsburgh Hometown college boy Jeff Otah gets lucky here as he stays in the same state he played college football in. With Faneca and Starks out the door already, it would almost be crazy not to address your offensive line issues with your top pick. Otah is a powerful tackle who can definitely impress you with the amount of leverage he gets when blocking. Otah might also be a solution to Faneca leaving considering he can play offensive guard as well, but that is unlikely to happen. 24. Tennessee Titans: WR | Limas Sweed | Texas They meet again. Limas Sweed and Vince Young have played together in Texas and have already won a championship when they were on the same team. The Titans will look to build chemistry from the two as they try to rebound from an injury plagued year. They should also look into improving their pass rush, but I don't know if it's really smart to pass up on a chemistry/bond like this. It just makes too much sense. 25.Seattle Seahawks: TE | Fred Davis | U.S.C. Seeing that the three projected first round running backs are already drafted, disappointed Seattle goes for Fred Davis knowing Pollack's career is washing ashore. Fred Davis is an explosive playmaker and can do a lot of things as a tight end in the NFL. Seahawks need to realize that the running back position is very deep, and they can bounce back in the second round by drafting Jamaal Charles or Ray Rice. 26. Jacksonville Jaguars: OLB/DE | Quentin Groves | Auburn Coming off a foot injury, Quentin Groves watched as his stock fell down, down, down. However, it doesn't seem like it had too big of an effect on him, and the Jacksonville Jaguars desperately need to improve their pass rush. Playing off as a blitzing linebacker or a defensive end, Quentin Groves' athleticism shines in all parts of the field that he's on. Groves has loads of potential and can make this defense a lot better just by being who he is. 27. San Diego Chargers: CB | Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie | Tennessee St. Drayton Florence for the San Diego Chargers has already left the building by now, and they will be looking to replace him. Rodgers-Cromartie might be one of the most underrated backs to come out, and I've seen him ranked as the number one cornerback in many player write ups, and the only thing that would really hold him back is the level of competition he's gone up against in college. However, watching him in the Senior Bowl, he has really, really impressed me with the way he's shown how physical he can get, his athleticism, and his knack of always getting to the ball. Cromartie might just be the biggest steal of the draft. 28. Dallas Cowboys: CB | Aqib Talib | Kansas Cowboys lose one of their cornerbacks in Jacques Reese, and they're all of a sudden in a small pickle on how to solve their cornerback problem. However, luckily for them, Aqib Talib is there for them to pick up, and they find a replacement in Talib. Aqib Talib, a coverage specialist, is considered by many quarterbacks in the NCAA as one of the best interception cornerbacks in the country. Sounds good for me, sounds great for Dallas. 29. San Fransisco (f/IND): WR | Early Doucet | L.S.U. Having been in a program that has experienced winning, Doucet will witness his stock rise [barely] higher than that of James Hardy which would enable him to be drafted at this moment by the San Fransisco 49ers. With Mike Martz as their new offensive coordinator, it almost makes too much sense for the 49ers to address their offensive problems with their first draft pick. They also need to bring someone else to the plate to spread the field and help on the offensive side of the ball instead of just Davis and Gore. 30. Green Bay Packers: CB | Reggie Smith | Oklahoma The Packers' aging cornerbacks have been quite a concern for Green Bay. It looks to be a perfect opportunity for a young cornerback to step in and develop their mentality and skill set behind Harris and Woodson. Reggie Smith has slipped under the radar, so it doesn't seem like Green Bay will have to trade up in order to get a solid cornerback. 31. New England Patriots: FORFIETED 32. New York Giants: ILB | Curtis Lofton | Oklahoma I know a lot of people's mock drafts have the Giants drafting Dan Connor, but I don't see it happening here because Connor is already gone. The Giants have plenty of their linebackers leaving, and after the Combine, I can see Lofton shooting up every one's draft boards. The Big 12 Player of the Year has a lot of potential to do a lot of damage to the other team's offense in a defense run by someone like Spagnuolo. Another option here would be Xavier Adibi, but that would be an even bigger reach than Lofton. *Subject to Coin Flip

Hmm... PG: Acie | ??? SG: JJ | Salim | West SF: J-Smoov | Chillz PF: Horford | ??? C: Miller | Ilgauskus Sixth Man: Ilgauskus I'm still new to this NBA thing, so I don't know all the nicknames. I had to look up Big Z, and I don't know who you guys mean by 'Lo'.

Would of been a smart trade. This is what is so hard about the NBA trades. I've only recently started watching other teams in the NBA besides the Hawks, so I'm still 'new' to the NBA fan community, but it's really frustrating when every one just wants to trade but the salaries for both sides wouldn't match.

I saw his leadership in him last night. Josh Smith committed a stupid foul that should not have happened, and Horford got on his case about it. He wasn't screaming and hollering about it, but it looked like he was talking to Smith in a calm way. I think he's a quiet leader who has a lot of leadership potential. I think him staying an extra year in college just made it better off for him in terms of developing that leadership mentality.

A veteran PG or a post-offense C would be ideal for this team IMO. Veteran PG makes more sense though. How is Solomon Jones developing by the way? I don't know if that was him in the suit last night, but I don't get to watch a lot of Hawks games up here in CT.

Quote: Josh Smith was amazing last night. Horford is and has the heart of a champion. Lots of other nice pieces. Just need the PG. I think they should be making an attempt for Jason Kidd. Marvin and Sheldon and a No. 1 for Kidd. Kidd Johnson Childress J. Smith Horford Not a bad 5 I don't know if I want to have Horford keep playing center. He seems to get reboudns but has problems scoring on the post. I feel that he would be a perfect PF for us. I also think Josh Smith is the perfect SF for us. While that line up looks good now, it looks like we will have problems down low.

Who do you guys want to keep in the long run? I've been thinking that we have a lot of trade pieces, and I didn't know who I really wanted to trade or keep. For me, my "core" of players would be: Acie (won't be elite, but can still be a solid PG if developed properly) JJ (will improve with a better coach and/or PG) J-Smoov (great all-around player) Horford (best young PF in NBA) and if we can, Chillz is a very good 6th man. I don't really want acie to start because I don't know if he can yet, but if possible, he can play as a role player.

Joe Johnson: 3-13, 0-3 3pt, 4 ast, 3 turnovers. Nice stats, Joe!

You know those little letter icons on the left of a subforum that show whether or not there's a new post in that certain forum? Why is there only an icon for the forums that have new posts? I think it looks better if we have one for all of them except the forum that doesn't have any new posts in them will have a gray icon instead. It's hard to explain, and I don't know how to show you so if you still don't get it, then I guess I'll try to explain again. I'm talking about these things:

A possible trade piece for Candace Parker?

The only thing I really, really liked about this game was Al Horford's rebounding ability. However, he made a huge mistake when he lost that ball because that's when Detroit's momentum started rolling. 16 rebounds playing a position that he's not really fit for is very good nonetheless.

There is no silver lining to all the losing except maybe every one of them a stepping stone towards the removal of Woodson and, I only hope, Billy Knight. We don't even have a first round draft pick. Ridiculous is a word that's been repeatedly worn out on this forum. I wish I had something else to say.

Can someone explain to me why AJ is playing over Acie Law? I don't see any positives. Law is still very raw, bu the needs to get more playing time in order to show more of his potential and to get more seasoned. Anthony Johnson can not play defense at all, he is far too slow for this type of offense, and he just has no upside at all... I might as well throw Law into the fire to get him seasoned.

Game. Nice airball, JJ.

Is it just me or does Woodson look bored in every single game? I mean... have some enthusiasm or something, this is ridiculous.

Wow, the turnovers are stupid. They're like turnovers that middle schoolers would make... c'mon guys, pull this one through!

THIS is what wins games. Getting second chance buckets to go in, getting the easy rebounds, etc. Childress is having a great game. Smith is leading the pack with an excellent performance.

Wow, at the half, I went downstairs to work out a little, showered, and got something to eat. When I got back, we were down by two points, and now, we're winning... This is a great game. Josh Smith is having a great game. What a momentum shifter his blocks can be. On an another note, Marvin needs to stop trying to dunk it over every one because he's really not that good at it.

Smith is the only one consistently playing on the offensive side of the ball.

I don't think you'd want to see this game anyways. We're getting raped...

It's televised on NBA TV channel. I'm pumped! Not every day you get a Hawks game up here.