The Rams & their fans were not happy. There did not seem to be a good tackle we could take with the 2nd overall pick in the Draft. Mel Kiper Jr. claimed there was. Andre Johnson of Alabama was supposed to be a potential #1 overall selection according to Mel. He turned out to be the guy the Bengals' took with the #7 pick, and he could not crack the starting lineup... at any point in the 2009 season.
The Rams and their fans did not see eye to eye with Kiper. We felt Andre had a serious weight problem. Most agreed when they saw those sagging man-boobies flopping around in the wind when he ran his 40 yard dash bareback. We all wished he had found a T-shirt.
It took Mayock a bit of time to finish his evaluation of Andre Johnson, but he went against both Kiper and Casserly, declaring that Johnson was in poor physical condition, and lacked intensity. Me and Mike saw eye-to-eye on that one. I am glad the Rams paid no attention to Kiper and Casserly. I am glad we took Jason Smith, Mayock's hand-picked #1 tackle. He's a good one. We played some head-games with him during camp, but he took it well. He's going to be great.
Yesterday, I saw Mike Mayock on the NFL Network giving us a quick look at the WRs in the Senior Bowl. He focused on one of my favorite guys: Dexter McCluster. Just like me, Mike said he was a big play maker and compared him to Darren Sproul of the Chargers. I did that about 2 months ago. Mayock says that McCluster is one of his favorites in this draft. He's one of mine too!
I was so excited I wanted to write this blog entry right then, but I did not. I wanted to blog that great minds think alike... but waited. Why? There was one burning issue out there that I needed some feedback on before making this post. What does Mike Mayock think of Jimmy Clausen? You know what I think of Jimmy Clausen...
Well the word just came in. Take a look here. To summarize quickly: Mayock believes that the Rams are in need a QB, but there is not one to be had at the top of the draft. If there is one, it would Bradford, not Clausen. Mayock is not a big fan of Clausen, and he thinks there is no way Clausen can be projected at the top of the draft. I am paraphrasing due to the poor quotes chosen by the article writer.
Guess what partner? We're on exactly the same sheet of music. I'm in total agreement. To make one clarification, I would add the following. The only reason Bradford is not worthy of the absolute #1 is the injury issue. As I have said several times before, he injuried and re-injured his passing shoulder. Now Bradford will enter the combine with a surgically repaired right shoulder. That is a medical flag if I have ever seen one. If you are about ready to lay down $50 million, you better be worried about damaged goods.
For this reason I am in total agreement with Mayock: The Rams either take Ndomukong Suh, or trade the pick. Clausen is out of the picture; he is not an option.
For those still chanting for Clausen and siting Mel Kiper Jr. as their gospel writer I want to issue you a stern warning. Mel Kiper Jr. has given ringing endorsements to all of big-bust quarterbacks that have come down the pike in the past 20 years. Names like Rick Mirer, David Klingler, Andre Ware, Ryan Leaf, David Couch, Joey Harrington, Alex Smith and JaMarcus Russel all got great reviews and ringing endorsements from Mel Kiper Jr. If he had accurately forecast the bust of even one of those guys, I would think better of him. Nope, Mel Kiper has never accurately projected a bust, not even one time. Don't look to Mel Kiper Jr. as an early warning system when approaching a candidate with high-bust potential.
