By Kris Jones With the amount of story lines that could fill a compendium coming into the 2016 draft, people around the NFL community knew that this draft would be one of the most memorable in decades. Roger Goodell was met with a chorus of boos yet again this year, which is a trend until Goodell is kicked out of the commissioner position. The Los Angeles Rams picked California quarterback Jared Goff with the first pick. How fitting seeing the Rams recently moved back to LA. The Rams traded the struggling Titans three picks in order to go first in the draft. Must be that “King’s Ransom” Jon Robinson mentioned in order to acquire the coveted prize of first overall pick. As for Goff, he is a experienced pocket passer who is very natural while throwing. Goff will need to get used to a professional (and albeit slower) playbook, so, expect the Rams to use star sophomore Todd Gurley a lot next season if the Rams’ staff deems Goff the starter.
The Eagles, after trading with the Cleveland Browns for the second pick, chose Carson Wentz from North Dakota State. If you do not know a thing about Carson, check out the Combine article I wrote in March. My personal take on Wentz going to the Eagles is that it was a smart move to get a quarterback, but, they should have worked on the defensive problem first and solved the quarterback problem later. Bradford is not a star, we all agree on that, yes? But, he can sort of produce. Carson Wentz is a good pickup for the Eagles that could replace Bradford in about a year or two, but, I think the defense should have been upgraded first. The shocking pick of the first round has to go to the Miami Dolphins, as they picked Laremy Tunsil from Ole Miss. Laremy is a wall of a blocker and had no major red flags, but, something controversial came up during the draft on Twitter. A video of Laremy wearing some sort of gas mask with a bong as the breathing cap surfaced, not really sinking his projected state, but, many teams backed off of the linesman. But, if the Dolphins can handle the risk of Tunsil, they will have a blocker that can hold the line for years to come. Another risky pick had to be Laquon Treadwell to the Vikings. Laquon can extend himself for being only 6’2” and can make some tough grabs in coverage, but, he’s more of a catch first, speed later kind of player and has a large history of injury to his name. But, the Vikings got a wideout who is hungry for competition and possibly a starter in a couple of years. In the entirety of the draft, the Jaguars made it known that they were working on the defense, drafting FSU corner Jalen Ramsey and UCLA linebacker Myles Jack in the first and second round respectively. Jalen has the versatility to line up in multiple spots in the secondary and can either be a corner or a safety. Myles, although there are problems with his durability, is the most explosive athlete experts seen in this years’ draft. In more local college news, Christian Hackenberg was picked up by the New York Jets in the second round, much to the dismay of Jets fans. Hackenberg has an laser arm and the size to be a potential starter for the Jets, but, his unexciting tape, career completion percentage in college and his ball placement are huge concerns. Hey, remember that German wide receiver I wrote about 2 months ago? Well, his dreams were realized as he went in the sixth round to the team that started his interest in American football, the Minnesota Vikings. He would also make history, as he is the first native-European player to ever be officially drafted into the NFL. At 6’4”, 227 lbs, this guy has some jets for being above average in height and weight for wide receivers. But remember, this guy has not played a down of college ball and the amount of competition in Germany does not even compare to the NFL. The Mr. Irrelevant of the 2016 NFL Draft goes to Southern Mississippi’s Kalan Reed. Kalan has good production and size for a guy in corner. Well, that ends another eventful NFL Draft and as always, I wish the rookies the best of luck in careers and hopefully, all of them can make their mark on a forever changing sport.
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February 2020
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