boomboomsroom

Draft Day one is in the books.  It’s Friday and rounds two and three are on tonight’s happy hour menu.  The restaurant business is tough.   We are a competitive bunch.  So we offer you a buy ten nuggets get ten free below.  Enjoy and TGIF.

1.  Too bad it rained on Nashville’s party as the evening wore on.  The only thing that looked better than the setting was the size of the crowd.  Estimated at 150k by most, Commish Roger Goodell thanked the over 200k who attended.  Regardless, that’s one hell of a block party.  NashVegas was in full swing.
2. The Kliff Klingsbury era is in full swing in Arizona as well.  Taking QB Kyler Murray is King Kliff’s statement.  He chased him and chased him as a high schooler when Kliff was coaching college.  He caught up to him as each advanced to the next level.
3.  When Goodell read Murray’s name, King Kliff’s lost what little leverage he had in attempting to trade Josh Rosen, the Cardinal’s answer at QB just 12 short months ago.  We wonder if on one level Kliff really cares that much.  Call Rosen a sunk cost.  Arizona is moving forward and will hold a Josh Rosen fire sale today or tomorrow.  Rosen was a polarizing pick last year.  Knocks on him are plenty, with the most damaging being his indifference to his occupation.  A burning desire to compete and win at a leadership position is a must.
4.  San Francisco said thank you very much, and picked Nick Bosa, pass rusher extraordinaire from THE Ohio St U.   More than a few NFL “insiders” gave him the highest draft grade this year.
5. Those who did not have their highest grade on Bosa did on Quinnen Williams, the latest interior defensive line disruptive force to come out of Saban’s Alabama based NFL training grounds.  The J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets wisely pounced.  In baseball having a strong up the middle defense (C, 2B, SS, and CF) is a must. NY has Jamal Adams at safety and Williams now plugging the middle.  It is crowded up front on the Jets DL though.
6.  Then the fun started.  Longtime NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock, turned Raiders GM, selected Clelin Ferrell, DE Clemson.  Ferrell very likely could have been had 5-10 picks lower.  Good player, high motor, high football IQ guys are wonderful but so are more draft picks.  Jon Gruden probably snarled.  He always does.
7. Tampa Bay at 5 picked LSU LB Devin White.  In today’s NFL LB’s don’t  litter the first round landscape.  However, he was one of two LB’s taken in the top 10 this year.  And he was one of  two LB’s taken this year named Devin.  Devin Bush went at no. 10.  Pittsburgh, who never trades up, traded up to take the Michigan product.
8. And then the fun really started.  The New York “Football” Giants took Daniel Jones, Duke QB.  Embattled Giants GM Dave Gettleman tied his future Big Apple based employment to this pick.  Around the NFL opinions on Jones vary greatly.  One scout labeled his ceiling as a “backup with pedestrian talent.” Is he Eli II, or is JAG (just a guy)?  Eli I is 38.  We’ll find out soon enough.
9. At no. 8 Detroit broke the seal on a deep tight end class.  Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson joined a team who now is labeled as the New England of the west.  Detroit is in the east, but it matters not.  Labels are labels.  Head coach Matt Patricia even dons the ever-present pencil behind his ear like his teacher Bill Belicheck.   Is Patricia the next Belicheck?  Is Hockenson the next Gronk?  The answers likely are “hell no” and “hell no.”
10. Ed Oliver, DL Houston, fell into Buffalo’s lap with the Ferrell and Jones picks coming before them.  Oliver could dominate at the next level.  He’s that good.  But, going to Buffalo from H Town is a bit of a change.  Oh, and Buffalo finished 30th in offense last year.
11. Pittsburgh jumped, as mentioned earlier, into the 10 hole to grab their coveted LB.  They moved one ahead of Cincinnati who picked 11th.  Cincinnati is used to looking up at Pittsburgh. They’ve had to do so in the same division for decades now.  They took Jonah Williams, OT Alabama.  The Bengals have struck out with three recent high round OL picks.  Is Williams the game changer.  The answer is likely “no.”  But, he is a safe pick as a versatile lineman.
12. Green Bay followed with the first of their two first round picks.  They worked New Orleans over last year when the Saints moved up a dozen spots and gave up this year’s first rounder that GB used later.  With the 12th pick they took Rashan Gary, DE, Michigan.  Rashan looks the part.  Rashan has the potential.  Potential means you haven’t done anything yet.  Three and 1/2 sacks last year at Michigan isn’t anything.  Rashan might need surgery for a torn labrum at some point as well.  Hmm.  Boom or bust are both in play here we think.
13. With two QB’s sitting on the board, Miami took the highest player on their board, period.  It wasn’t the highest available. It was the highest coming into the draft. Christian Wilkens, DT, Clemson heads to Miami.
14. The Atlanta Falcons took two offensive lineman in the first round.  The first of the two is Chris Lindstrom who played guard at Boston College.  The second was Kaleb McGary from Washington at pick 31 via trade.   Both have mean streaks and need them to keep Matt Ryan upright.  Atlanta seems soft to us.  Good moves we think.   GM Thomas Dimitroff needs to better coordinate high fives and hand shakes in the Atlanta war room though.  Owner Arthur Blank dressed in style but lacked style on the bromance moves.
15. Washington picked a QB, Dwayne Haskins from THE at 15.  The Redskins already have Colt McCoy, Case Keenum, and Alex Smith.  They already had Kirk Cousins, RG III, Rex Grossman, Jason Campbell, Mark Brunell, and Brad Johnson.  Are you picking up what we are putting down?
16. The NY Giants made Dexter Lawrence, DT, Clemson the third Dabo Sweeney coached defensive lineman taken in the top 17 picks.  Impressive Dabo.  Very impressive.  It’s no wonder Nick Saban was back in his office this week a mere 36 hours after hip surgery.  You have to keep up with the Dabo’s.
17.  The Packers continued to add defense picking Darnell Savaage at safety with pick 21.  It was somewhat costly for a team that had a lot of draft capital to spend though.  They packaged the Saints pick from a year prior and two early fourth rounders to get him.  Like the Saints Marcus Davenport in reverse of a year ago, it’s not sometimes what you gain (either might turn out to be very good picks) it’s the potential of what you give to get.  Time will tell.
18. Oakland took the first RB in the draft, Josh Jacobs, from the football factory known as Alabama.  His pedestrian stats in college aside, he runs hard.  Gruden just snarled smiled so it must be a good pick.  We are underwhelmed.
19. The Redskins might have struck gold with top ten talent Montez Sweat, DE Mississippi St .  His injured past and somewhat troubled past raised his risk.  The reward might be well worth it.  The run on defensive line talent in this draft was impressive.  Getting to the QB and protecting the QB is what makes this league what it is these days.
20. The NE Pats stood pat and used the final pick in the first round on N’Keal Harry, WR Arizona St.  Belicheck always trades down and around.  Last night he didn’t.  N’Keal rhymes with Shaquille which isn’t easy to do.  The pick seems quite underwhelming to us.  However, Belicheck drafts last every year for a reason.

Round two starts in 10 hours.  It might take that long to digest the above.