2013 NFL Draft Thread

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Gotta bail for now.

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When the Buffalo Bills traded out of the eighth pick in the draft to move down, it seemed they were moving down with the intention of selecting a quarterback.

The Bills were thought to be high on Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib and West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith. Just about every quarterback was linked as a possibility for the Bills at some point in the process. The Bills were able to accomplish their goal of drafting a quarterback, it just wasn’t the one everyone was expected.

Florida State quarterback E.J. Manuel become the first quarterback off the board in the 2013 NFL Draft. It’s the first time since 2000 that a quarterback wasn’t selected in the Top 10. Manuel comes in alongside recent acquisition Kevin Kolb and Tarvaris Jackson to compete for the Bills starting job. Manuel is the first quarterback taken by Buffalo in the first round since J.P. Losman in 2004.

The Bills weren't high on Geno Smith; Marrone basically owned him as the coach of the Orangemen and it was said didn't really think much of Geno. It is a big surprise the they didn't take Nassib seeing as so far the Bills are becoming Syracuse West. But I really like this pick, but only if Marrone and his staff are the real deal and are able to settle this stallion down and tweak his fundamentals. I think this guy sounds like the can't miss kid unless the development staff is completely fucking terrible...

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The Bills weren't high on Geno Smith; Marrone basically owned him as the coach of the Orangemen and it was said didn't really think much of Geno. It is a big surprise the they didn't take Nassib seeing as so far the Bills are becoming Syracuse West. But I really like this pick, but only if Marrone and his staff are the real deal and are able to settle this stallion down and tweak his fundamentals. I think this guy sounds like the can't miss kid unless the development staff is completely fucking terrible...

I like the pick but it is a gamble. I think they are hoping for RG3 part 2 and when you look at the upside of the available QBs Manuel is surely at or near the top of the list. I think it was a reach but hell, the Lions took Ziggy at number 5 and I'm kind of liking it, why settle for solid when you have a chance at a home run?

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The Steelers added a young outside linebacker to bolster their pass rush and help replace the departed James Harrison, selecting Georgia’s Jarvis Jones No. 17 overall on Thursday night.

Jones (6-2, 245) notched 14.5 sacks in 2012 for the Bulldogs. If Jones is to push for a starting role as a rookie, it would likely be at the expense of veteran Jason Worilds.

That said, the Steelers generally don’t rush their rookies into the lineup. They have to earn their way onto the field. Maurkice Pouncey played in his rookie season of 2010 because he was too good to sit, and guard David DeCastro looked poised to be a Week One starter before a knee injury last summer.

“Quite honestly, I don’t envision anyone coming in and being an impact in Year One,” Steelers GM Kevin Colbert said this week, according to the club. “I never do because I think there is always a growing process that has to occur.”

It can take time for Steelers’ outside linebackers to master Dick LeBeau’s defense. LaMarr Woodley, it should be noted, did not start as a rookie in 2007. If Jones can at least be a solid situational rusher (a la Woodley as a rookie) and pick up the defense, he will have done well, considering how other rookies have fared with this veteran-laden club.

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The 49ers entered the draft with 13 selections and they used some of them to swing a trade with the Cowboys for the 18th pick in the first round.

They used the pick to shore up the safety spot, grabbing Eric Reid from LSU to join a group that lost Dashon Goldson to the Buccaneers in free agency. That made safety one of the few needs on a team that had more picks than they had roster spots open for newcomers.

Reid has the size/speed mix that teams are looking for in safeties in an age when tight ends move like wide receivers. Reid uses that size and speed to lay some serious hits on ball carriers, which should make him right at home alongside Donte Whitner in the 49ers secondary. We’ll see if Reid’s arrival ends the chance that Charles Woodson winds up in San Francisco.

The 49ers gave up the 74th overall pick in addition to sending the 31st pick of the first round to Dallas.

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The Giants needed to add some youth to their offensive line, and found it with their first-round pick.

With the 19th overall selection, the Giants took Syracuse tackle Justin Pugh, who will likely begin inside at guard.

He can push David Diehl out of the starting lineup at right tackle eventually, if not now. The 32-year-old Diehl took a pay cut this offseason to stay, which might buy him some time.

They locked up left tackle Will Beatty prior to free agency, and now have another solid piece to protect Eli Manning.

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The Bears have beefed up their offensive line with their first-round draft pick.

Kyle Long, a guard from Oregon, is Chicago’s choice with the 20th overall pick, and an immediate starter whose job is keeping Jay Cutler upright.

Long is the son of Hall of Famer Howie Long and brother of Rams defensive end Chris Long. Football talent runs in the family.

This isn’t a sexy pick for the Bears, but it is a pick that should make everyone in Chicago who has been grumpy about the Bears’ porous offensive line happy. And it’s certainly a pick that should make Cutler happy.

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For the second time in four years, the Cincinnati Bengals have taken a tight end with their first round selection. The Bengals became the first team to take a tight end in this year’s draft by selecting Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert with the 21st overall pick.

Eifert won the Mackey Award as college football’s top tight end last season over Stanford’s Zach Ertz and Washington’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins. At 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds, Eifert is a more effective pass catcher than blocker.

The Bengals still have Jermaine Gresham under contract for two more seasons after taking him in the first round of the 2010 draft. The Bengals needed to add to their weapons on the offensive side of the ball. A.J. Green is one of the league’s best receivers but Cincinnati still was looking to find more options for quarterback Andy Dalton. While tight end may not have been the most pressing need, Eifert should help Cincinnati be more productive offensively next season.

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The Falcons, who had the draft-pick surplus necessary to make a move up the board in Round One, did just that, trading into the No. 22 spot to take Washington cornerback Desmond Trufant.

The No. 22 pick belonged to the Rams, who had acquired it from Washington in the trade that landed Robert Griffin III in Washington last year. According to the Rams, the Falcons surrendered picks Nos. 30 (Round One), 92 (Round Three) and No. 198 (Round Six). St. Louis also included a conditional 2015 seventh-rounder in the deal.

Trufant (6-o, 190) helps address a need for the Falcons, who released Dunta Robinson and had Brent Grimes depart in free agency. Trufant,who intercepted six passes in four seasons with Washington, is likely to compete to start opposite of Asante Samuel. An All-Pac 12 performer in 2012, Trufant is the third corner to be selected in the draft, joining Dee Milliner (Jets) and D.J. Hayden (Raiders).

Desmond Trufant is the third member of his family to get an NFL shot. His brothers, Marcus and Isaiah, both have league experience, with Marcus a first-rounder of Seattle 10 years ago.

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The Vikings recently restructured defensive tackle Kevin Williams‘ contract so that he will become a free agent after the 2013 season.

They may have taken his replacement with the 23rd pick of the first round. The Vikings selected defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd of Florida, ending an unexpected slide down the draft board for the former Gator.

Floyd had been linked to the Raiders with the third overall pick, but Oakland traded down to 12 and then selected cornerback D.J. Hayden to send Floyd tumbling all the way to Minnesota. Williams is one of four impending free agents on the defensive line for the Vikings, so Floyd may spend this season working in a rotation until he gets his feet fully under him. If his athletic ability and quickness translate to the NFL, the Vikings shouldn’t miss a beat if Williams does leave the team after next season.

The Vikings also own the 25th pick, which could be used for a middle linebacker. There’s one from Notre Dame that you may have heard of, especially if you’ve been watching the television coverage of the first round.

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The Colts needed a little bit of everything other than quarterback, and added some help for their pass rush with the 24th pick, taking Florida State defensive end Bjoern Warner.

The former German exchange student played with his hand on the ground in college, but will rush in the 3-4 now. He had 13 sacks last year, leading him to leave school a year early.

He’s still developing as a player, but walks into an defense that needs a lot of help, and fits with the try-hard mentality the Colts have developed in a short time.

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For the second time tonight, the Minnesota Vikings have added a defensive player who should start from Week One.

First Minnesota drafted defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd with the 23rd overall pick, and now the Vikings have drafted Xavier Rhodes, a cornerback from Florida State, with the 25th overall pick.

After saying goodbye to veteran cornerback Antoine Winfield, the Vikings wanted to add a youngster at the position. Rhodes is a solid choice who should be able to start as a rookie.

There was talk that Minnesota was high on Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, but Te’o remains unpicked. Instead, the Vikings have gone with Floyd and Rhodes.

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The Green Bay Packers elected to go back to the defensive line for the second straight year in a row by selecting UCLA defensive end Datone Jones with the 26th pick.

While last year’s selection, USC defensive end Nick Perry, was used in more of a standup linebacker role by the Packers last season, Jones is more likely to play with his hand on the ground. Jones could be a very solid fit for the Packers as an end in their 3-4 defense. At 6-foot-4, 283 pounds, Jones is a bigger end that can still pressure the quarterback.

Jones joins Jerel Worthy, C.J. Wilson and Mike Neal at the end position for Green Bay.

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The Texans, who have had a good run with first-round picks lately, selected Clemson wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins with the No. 27 overall selection in Round One on Thursday night.

Hopkins hauled in 82 passes for 1,405 yards and 18 touchdowns in his junior season at Clemson. The Texans, who lack a clear-cut starting wide receiver opposite of Andre Johnson after the release of Kevin Walter, could make Hopkins a first-stringer right off the bat.

The Texans’ drafting has been key to their success in recent seasons. Consider their last five first-round picks: outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, defensive end J.J. Watt, cornerback Kareem Jackson, linebacker Brian Cushing, offensive tackle Duane Brown. Watt is a dynamic player — one of the very best defenders in the league — and Brown has become an excellent left tackle. Cushing too has shown difference-making ability at times. Jackson’s play has stabilized after a rough start to his career, and Mercilus notched six sacks as a rookie as a key reserve.

The Texans are not afraid to plug rookies right into important roles. Mercilus, Watt, Jackson, Cushing and Brown all got chances to contribute in their first NFL seasons. Given the Texans’ track record and their WR situation, Hopkins could very well get on-the-job training.

Hopkins has denied involvement in the alleged mistreatment of a hotel room assigned to him and Rutgers’ Mark Harrison.

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The Broncos used their first draft pick on defensive lineman Derek Wolfe in 2012 and they followed up this year by opening their draft with another big fella to stick on the front line.

Defensive tackle Sylvester Williams from North Carolina is the man this time around. The Broncos made him the 28th overall pick of the draft in hopes of improving their defense after winning the AFC West last season.

Williams should join Kevin Vickerson and Terrance Knighton in the rotation at defensive tackle and should be on the field when the Broncos are trying to get after the quarterback on passing downs. He’s got the right size and ability, but Williams will have to show consistency to move to the top of the depth chart in Denver. With Wolfe at end and Von Miller at outside linebacker, the Broncos are starting to put some young foundations in place for their defense moving forward.

They might need to turn to a veteran for pass rushing help in the short term, though. Elvis Dumervil’s shoes haven’t been filled and the Broncos might not have a better choice for that role than signing either Dwight Freeney or John Abraham.