Well, this is a labor of love and a lot of work if ever there was one.  Feel free to excoriate me and tell me how stupid I am in the comments section.  Obviously neither I nor anyone else has much information on who or  how many underclassmen will declare.  This will receiver a major overhaul after the Senior Bowl as some declare, others stay, unexpected stars emerge and old favorites fade.

 

 

FIRST ROUND

1. Cleveland Browns - Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame

I've had people tell me that this won't be Clausen because the Browns will fear taking another Notre Dame QB in round 1. This, of course, makes zero sense. Whether it's Mangini wanting the proverbial "his guy" or a new coach who'll be after the same thing, Clausen with his experience in a pro style offense is the best of this year's bunch.

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

Go ahead and chisel this in stone because if Suh is on the board when the Bucs draft (and he almost certainly will be), they are taking him.

3. St. Louis Rams - Jake Locker, QB, Washington

I recently read that Steve Sarkisian made the pitch to Locker to stay another year. While it's true his game could benefit from another season, it's also true that he could potentially be passing up on millions of dollars if he stays because of the very real possibility of a rookie salary cap. We'll see what happens, but for now I'm keeping Locker to the Rams, who desperately need him.

4. Detroit Lions - Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State

Now that Matthew Stafford has not only been knocked around like a pinata, but injured, Detroit will see the need to protect him. I'll give their new, non-Millen regime the benefit of the doubt that they'll do the right thing.

5. Kansas City Chiefs - Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa

Speaking of things getting knocked around, witness Matt Cassell, the Human Pinball. With Okung gone, Bulaga is the ticket here. Eric Berry is also a very, very real possibility.

6. Washington Redskins - Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas

Much like Al Davis, Dan Snyder falls in love with big names with big physical gifts. Mallett has caught everyone's attention this year and with the Jason Campbell experiment likely winding down, it doesn't take a great leap to imagine Snyder drooling over the big, cannon armed Mallett. Mallett is another guy who should probably stay 1 more year in college, but will likely come out for the big bucks. Can't blame him

7. Oakland Raiders - Joe Haden, CB, Florida

The Raiders have the best cover corner in the league. They also have no one behind him. Chris Johnson has spent this season doing an effective impersonation of burnt toast and Stanford Routt is just horrible. Now think about Al and his first round defensive backs. Now consider that Haden can run a 40 time in the low 4.4's without much difficulty. You can write this in as a virtual lock if Haden can run a sub 4.4 at the Combine. Fortunately for Al, Haden has real football talent to go along with his track skills.

8. Buffalo Bills - Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma

Zero run defense. Gerald McCoy is a good run stopper. Mark it.

9. San Francisco 49ers - Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

THE steal of the draft, no question, since Berry is a top 3 talent. 49ers should be thankful for other teams' needs and retardation.

10. Denver Broncos - Cameron Heyward, DE, Ohio State

I know this is way high for Cameron Heyward, but they need a 3-4 end and Heyward is probably the best option. Plus, based on Denver's goofy draft last year, it's pretty clear that we can expect the unexpected from Josh McDaniels  

 

11. Seattle Seahawks - Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland

Seattle is a mess at the tackle position right now and there's really no QB or RB they can justify taking at this spot.

12. New York Jets - Damian Williams, WR, USC

The Jets have some holes on defense to fill, but I can't see them passing up the opportunity to give their young franchise QB a chance to throw to a guy he knows and trusts.

13. San Francisco 49ers - Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma

Now that Alex Smith is at last emerging, the Niners have got to keep him protected so his confidence isn't shattered again.

14. Houston Texans - Donovan Warren, CB, Michigan

I'm really not fond of the Texans secondary. Warren can help in a big way, though a safety like Taylor Mays wouldn't go amiss here either.

15. Tennessee Titans - Ras-I Dowling, CB, Virginia

Dowling can play corner or safety. Depth and versatility are never bad things.

16. Miami Dolphins - Dan Williams, NT, Tennessee

The Fins need a NT and Williams has had an absolutely brilliant season. Parcells would probably shy away from someone with Cody's issues anyway.

17. Jacksonville Jaguars - Tim Tebow, QB, Florida

If you're into mock drafts, you're already well aware of the logic at work here.

18. Atlanta Falcons - Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech

Among other problems, the Falcons have a pathetic pass rush. Morgan can fix that in a big way.

19. Baltimore Ravens - Brandon LaFell, WR, LSU

Lots of little holes in the Ravens roster, but Joe Flacco needs targets most of all. Always have to put your young franchise QB first.

20. Green Bay Packers - Charles Brown, OT, USC

Green Bay's offensive line has been atrocious this year. This has to be an OT.

21. Pittsburgh Steelers - Taylor Mays, S, USC

If Polamalu's abscence proved anything this year, it's that the Steelers need help at safety. Mays is the biggest athletic freak in the draft, but struggles in pass coverage...not good for a FS. But his talent is too great to ignore and the Steelers need another dominating presence in the defensive backfield if/when Polamalu goes down in 2010. You have to figure Tomlin and LeBeau can coach him up.

22. Dallas Cowboys - Anthony Davis, OT, Rutgers

Flozell Adams is a joke and should be out of football.   There's a strong chance this is his last season in Dallas and Jerry Jones like his linemen to be enormous, just like Davis.

23. New York Giants - Travis Lewis, OLB, Oklahoma

The Giants linebackcorps corps is falling apart. Lewis is a great place to start the rebuilding.

24. New England Patriots - Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama

They're still so desperate for help at ILB that they went out and signed 40,000 year old Junior Seau...again. McClain and Jerod Mayo will make the most formidable young inside linebacker duo in the league.

25. Philadelphia Eagles - Mike Iupati, G, Idaho

Philly's had some struggles along the whole offensive line this year, but especially at guard.  Iupati is one of those rare dominant guards worth of a mid-to-late first round pick. 

26. Seattle Seahawks - CJ Spiller, RB, Clemson

Justin Forsett? Julius Jones? What a cruel joke to play on the good people of Seattle. Spiller can do everything.

27. Arizona Cardinals - Jason Fox, OT, Miami

It's shocking how effective Kurt Warner is, given the turnstiles currently occupying the tackle slots in Arizona.

28. Cincinnati Bengals - Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State

The Bengals need receiving help and they've never shown hesitancy on taking a gamble on players who had problems in the past. They're like the Statue of Liberty for troubled players: "Give us your fined, your arrested, your rulebreaking masses yearning to make bank"

29. San Diego Chargers - Terrence Cody, NT, Alabama

A gift from the football gods for the Bolts--A true, elite 3-4 NT falls to 29. AJ Smith will pounce.

30. Minnesota Vikings - Brandon Spikes, ILB, Florida

EJ Henderson's ugly, very serious injury suddenly made ILB depth a top priority on a team with not many other holes. Spikes fills the bill.

31. Indianapolis Colts - Jerry Hughes, OLB, TCU

They need an upgrade at SLB and Hughes fits the Colts mold: fierce competitor on the field, solid citizen off it.

32. New Orleans Saints - Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State

Stick this guy next to Sedrick Ellis and the Saints will have a truly terrifying front four

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What is UP, my fellow Raider Nation faithful?!  What a day for us all yesterday.  Sorry I wasn't there to share with you all, but I live here in Pittsburgh so I was watching the game on TV with copious amounts of beer.  Unfortunately, finances prevented me from getting a ticket to attend, but that was okay.  Probably just would've got in a drunken brawl anyway.  I'm writing this in an attempt to bleed off some excitement and offer my thoughts on the exciting day just passed.

GAMER: BRUCE GRADKOWSKI - A no brainer here. Gradkowski turned in what was easily the best individual performance by a Raider all season.  He completed almost 2/3rds of his passes for the first 300 yard game by a Raider QB since Kerry Collins.  His leadership and calmness were simply amazing.  I was particularly impressed by his ability to extend the play and avoid a sack.  Two or three times he looked to be caught or tripped up but kept his balance and wriggled away.  In fact, he looked a lot like his opposite number in black and gold on his better days.  To turn in the performance he did after two DISASTROUS previous Heinz Field outings shows him to be a true gamer.  Now the million dollar question:  Can he do it again and again and again consistently?

 

GAMER: LOUIS MURPHY - For a receiver more than any other positions, it's all about the stat sheet.  Murphy's:  4 catches, 128 yards, 2 touchdowns, including a 75 yarder featuring a sick deke on Ike Taylor that allowed him to reach the end zone.  He also made an incredible leaping catch on a wobbly duck of  a ball, outjumping multiple defenders.  The kid has hands...maybe he just needed someone who could put some touch on the ball.  Now...will we see the same from Darrius Heyward-Bey?

GAMER - NNAMDI ASOMUGHA - The best player in the league who never makes an impression on the box score.  Nnamdi quietly had what I feel was his best game of the year yesterday, absolutely shutting down whoever he was covering at the time.  He gave up one short completion to Mike Wallace, which also happened to feature a spectacular catch by the young Steelers WR.  Other than that, Nnamdi was shutdown city, also recording two tackles.  If the Raiders would actually assign him to shadow a particular WR and not just one half of the field, life would be oh so good.

 

More after the jump

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This game is gonna be real fun for me.

Greetings to all the denizens of BTSC.  I am Raybin and you'll find me discussing all things related to Raider Nation over at Silver and Black Pride.  For the first half of the season, I went to the blogs of the Raiders opponents and made a FanPost inviting fans of the other team to post comments/questions about the Raiders that I would attempt to answer.  Then things got just too depressing and I haven't.  But I wasn't going to miss this for the world.

You see, despite being raised a Raider fan from the cradle, I was born and grew up in Indiana County and now live here in Pittsburgh itself.  There's an outside chance I'll be going to the game, but regardless of if that happens or not...I'm stoked like I haven't been in a long time for a football game.

So let's do this.  Got questions about the Raiders?  I'm your man.

By the way, I'm gonna come right out and say you can pin the loss to the Ravens on me.  For maybe the 3rd or 4th time in my life I was rooting for the Steelers because of Dennis Dixon....I don't think the universe was able to handle it.

Finally, a request.  Being a Raider fan involves enduring levels of pain, alcoholism and despair on levels you can't imagine unless you followed the Penguins from 2002-2006.  So throw me a bone and please don't mention the You-Know-What Reception.  I might have to take hostages otherwise and no one wants that.

Well, this is the product of quite a lot of labor.  I'll probably update it in 1-3 weeks (a long period, I know, but it really depends on work and life schedule).  You can feel to disagree...but you'll be wrong! :-)  I pretty much have juniors staging a jailbreak from the NCAA, which at this point is what I think will happen.  Obviously it'll change as they make up their minds.  On to the show!

 

Round 1

1. St. Louis Rams - Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame

Even more than the Bucs or Even more than the Bucs or Raiders, the St. Louis franchise is in desperate need of a a complete reset. You start with that by building from the most important piece: quarterback. With Sam Bradford getting knocked silly twice this year, Clausen becomes the #1 prospect and the #1 pick

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

As close to a no-brainer as you can possibly get. With the Bucs drafting their (hoped for) QB of the future in Josh Freeman last year, it's time to pay attention to the trenches. From what I read, Tampa's coaching staff is already totally in love with Suh and by picking #2 they're virtually guaranteed to get him.

3. Cleveland Browns - Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

Certainly quarterback is a big temptation here, but I just get the feeling Eric Mangini is going to search in the mid-rounds for his new QB. That is, if he doesn't trade his entire draft to the Jets for Kellen Clemens. Anyway, the Browns defense is atrocious and in desperate need of playmakers. Eric Berry defines the term. If there is one player who (barring injury) will NOT bust this draft, it is Berry.

4. Kansas City Chiefs - Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State

 think the Chiefs are gonna pull a Robert Gallery move with Brandon Albert. Albert appears to be out of his depth at tackle, but I believe he could be a dominant guard. With Cassel getting knocked around like an unpopular pinball, the Chiefs will take the best lineman in the draft to keep their $63 million dollar man upright and throwing.

5. Oakland Raiders - Jake Locker, QB, Washington

Two things have to happen: 1) 2010 has to be an uncapped year so they can comfortably rid themselves of JaMarcus Russell. 2) Locker has to actually declare for the draft. If both those things happen, Davis will take Locker in a heartbeat. Locker has arm strength and athleticism, so as far as Al is concerned he can stop evaluating right there. Fortunately for the Raiders, Locker is a decent overall prospect beyond Al's only two criteria. If there is a cap for 2010 or if Locker returns for his senior season, then this will probably be Taylor Mays, Carlos Dunlap or some other equally stupid Davis pick based mostly on 40 times and upside.

 

6. Detroit Lions - Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland

The Lions are a team that is definitely trending in the right direction. Unfortunately, they're still not very, you know.....good. Stafford appears to have a real future in the league, so you've gotta put the pieces into place to keep him healthy and developing. This is a very deep draft on the defensive side of the ball, so I can see the Lions addressing that in the mid-rounds. For now, they'll take Bruce Campbell. He can protect Matthew Stafford AND fight demons. Groovy.

7. Tennessee Titans - Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma

Who saw this coming at the beginning of the year? Anyway, Kerry Collins is done and the Titans appear to have given up on Vince Young. Forget Bradford's injuries: I still firmly believe he's going to be an excellent NFL quarterback. Plus, the Titans are in a situation where they need someone who can step in and start on day 1. Bradford has the college experience and work ethic to make that happen.

8. San Francisco 49ers (from Carolina) - Terrence Cody, NT, Alabama

Is Terrence Cody a legitimate top 10 pick? No. Do the 49ers need him? Most definitely yes. Can they afford a luxury pick here since they have another 1st rounder coming? You betcha. Can Mike Singletary kick Cody's butt enough to keep him motivated and in shape? Absolutely. San Francisco should send a Christmas card to the Panthers for sucking so bad this year.

9. Washington Redskins - Carlos Dunlap, DE, Florida

Yeah, yeah, I know. They need a quarterback. Somehow, I can't see Dan Snyder falling in love with Colt McCoy, though, and the other, better options are off the board. What the 'Skins do need in the worst way is an upgrade at defensive end. Whether or not Dunlap is that guy remains to be seen, but I can envision Dan Snyder convincing himself that he'll have found his Mario Williams. Caveat: If Jon Gruden is the next head coach, this pick is Tim Tebow.

10. Buffalo Bills - Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma

The Bills can't stop the run and McCoy is the BPA.  You do the math.

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Well, it's certainly been a few weeks since I've been able to do one of these and hold my head up high. 

Hello Jets fans!  I am Raybin and I am a denizen of Silver and Black Pride.  As I've done every week this season, I am coming onto the SB Nation site of our weekly opponents and writing a short FanPost offering to answer any questions/comments you may have about the Raiders, their players, our upcoming matchup this week....etc, etc, etc.  It's been fun for all up until this point in the season and I expect it to continue with you fine folks here at Gang Green Nation.  Fire away if the spirit moves you!

 

Oh, one more thing.  You may be in trouble this Sunday....we've got a secret weapon and we're not afraid to use it

I really enjoyed doing this one because the Browns currently have 11 picks in this upcoming draft, which allows us fantasy GM's to go nuts.  I did this on the assumption that the Browns would be picking 3rd overall in the first round. The same rules apply as when I did this for the Raiders (which can be found here)

1) The title is firmly tongue in cheek

2) This is a draft of who I would take were I the GM, not who I think those teams will take.

1st Round:  Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

 Wow, the Cleveland secondary is just awful.  Awful's not even a strong enough word.  Maybe the ancients had  a word to describe just how bad they are, but I don't know Latin or Greek.  They have no true playmakers on the whole defensive side of the ball.  I'll tell you this:  if there is one player I absolutely promise you will not bust, it is Eric Berry.  He is everything the Browns need on the defensive side of the ball.  Quarterback is a big temptation here, but I'm just not going to do that....there are better options in free agency and in the later rounds.  When your secondary is as weak as it is, you can't pass a guy like Berry. 

2nd round: Zac Robinson, QB, Oklahoma State

Some people might hoot at me for this, but so be it.  I'm a lot higher on Robinson than a lot of people.  I like that he plays in a hybrid offense, so he has experience taking snaps under center as well as from the shotgun.  I like that he can make plays with his feet.  I like that he has good size and arm strength.  He's excellent clay to mold an NFL quarterback from.  I question his decision making at times, but that can be fixed.

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Raider Nation offers greetings to Bleeding Green Nation!  This Sunday in Oakland our teams will lock horns on the gridiron and battle it out to....

Oh who the hell am I kidding?

This Sunday the Eagles will take the field in Oakland and win 38-13.  McNabb will be pulled by the second quarter, Kevin Kolb will still have a 300 yard passing day and LeSean McCoy will get 150 yards rushing on 15 carries.  Brian Westbrook will play all 11 offensive positions in the 4th quarter and still engineer a touchdown drive.

Anyway, I am Raybin and I (for some reason) remain a Raider fan and a member of Silver and Black Pride.  As I've done every week this season, I've posted a FanPost on the SB Nation site for our weekly opponents to answer any questions/comments you may have about the Raiders or our upcoming matchup and to shed some light on the team or Raider Nation at large.

If you can muster up anything but guffaws, feel free to fire away.