T1B

We all do the post draft grades. But how about taking a look at your favorite team's picks now that the rookies have a year of experience in the bank. Here's my breakdown of the Steelers draft.

1- Miller, Heath, TE: A pure stud. Were it not for a Tommy Maddox fueled midseason slump and Carnell Williams' late season surge, Miller would be the Offensive Rookie of the Year. It doesn't hurt at all that he can block. This kid is primed to join Witten, Shockey, Gonzo and Gates as one of the elite TEs in the game.

2- McFadden, Bryant, CB: Has made some big plays and looks ready to make the jump to starter when needed. But with Ike Taylor, Deshea Townshend and Ricardo Colclough ahead of him on the depth chart, that may not happen right away. For now he looks quite comfortable in the nickel and dime packages.

3- Essex, Trai OT: He's done as well as could be expected filling in for Marvel Smith when needed. He got 6 games of valuable game experience and figures only to get better.

4- Gibson, Fred WR: Cut at the end of training camp. Now on the Dolphins practice squad. They took a flyer on the kid hoping that they could get another Plaxico Burress on the cheap. It didn't work out so well. They did better by trading for Quincy Morgan. Gibson is the only one of the Steelers 05 draft picks not on an active NFL roster.

5- Wallace, Rian ILB: Currently backing up Larry Foote at RILB. Not seeing a lot of game time.

6- Kemoeatu, Chris G: Kemoeatu actually got some first team reps late in the season during practice. The coaches seem to like what he brings to the table. Look for him to move to a solid #2 on the depth chart next year and maybe even see some significant playing time.

7- Nua, Shaun DE: One of those 3-4 tweener DE/Linebackers the Steelers love to steal in the late rounds. The jury is out on him as he's not been able to get much in the way of playing time.

7- Herron, Noah RB: A numbers casualty that may come back to haunt the Steelers. Herron was signed by Green Bay and actually saw some game time after Sam Gado went down for the year. He's one of those guys that doesn't have 4.4 speed, but runs the ball north-south with authority. He's going to play, and contribute for somebody.

Overall grade- B+ but could be an A depending on the development of players like Kemoeatu, Wallace and Nua. They got solid production from their top 3 picks and none of their picks have washed out completely from the league.

Alright you myopic homers. Let's hear it.

Giving a grade for Oakland's draft at this point is pissin' in the wind.

Kirk Morrison was one of the better rookies in the leauge.
Fab Washington held up very well as a rookie CB.
S. Routt got some playing time and was spotty. A work in progress.
A. Walter, QB of the future...? Dunno.

Just too early to say.

No grade.

1) Cadillac Williams - ROY in the NFL. SHowed that he could carry the ball 30 times a game and still be strong in the 4th. Finished w/ 1178 yards while missing 3 full games w/ ankle injury. Will be the staple for this offense for the next 5-7 years.

2) Barret Ruud (MLB) - Aggressive ball hawk who played well on special teams and contributed well off the bench. Will push for a starting position next season. Poor man's Dan Morgan.

3) Alex Smith (TE) - Steal in the 3rd Round. Great hands and ability to find openings in defense. Will make a couple of Pro Bowls before he is done.

4) Dan Buenning (OG) - Biggest suprise as far as the draftees. came in and started from the get go. Tough and mean as hell. Dont know if he is a Pro Bowl guard but a very reliable starter for 6-8 years.

B+ Overall

The one thing Millen has done right has been drafting some talented players. Not a big fan of the '05 draft class though. Mike Williams had to be one of the least productive first round picks this year. It makes me sick that they passed on Merriman, Ware and Derrick Johnson, who all would've been impact guys on defense and considering how banged up the linebacking corps was, Merriman could've helped stabilize that position because he was outstanding for San Diego. I'd like to see both Williams and Rogers let go after this year and build around (Roy) Williams and Scotty Vines with some veterans. Shaun Cody looks like he'll be a nice rush guy from the inside but I don't think he's tough enough to play the run on first and second down next to Rogers. He might be used exclusively in a pass rush role. Stanley Wilson has gotten very few snaps at corner but is a decent special teams guy because of his speed. Dan Orlovsky only played that little bit in the Thanksgiving game but I doubt he's the answer at QB for the longterm. The two 6th-rounders, Bill Swancutt was used sparingly and Jonathan Goddard was let go after camp.

Grade: D+

Cowboys rookies contributed a lot this year. Marion Barber III, Chris Canty, Marcus Spears, Demarcus Ware, Rob Petiti all had significant playing time this year. While I'd like to see more consistency from Ware, I was impressed with the other rookies. I give the Boys a solid B+

You were impressed with Petiti? Not me. I thought he hamstrung our offense by making them get him help all year. Once flozell went down they couldn't help two guys at the same time and our offense went down the tubes. I think he migh be a serviceable backup, but Leonard Little made him look like a punk ass bitch on Sunday. Maybe another off season and camp and he comes around, but I don't want to see our offense baby sitting a lineman next year.

Overall, I still drop an A- on the Boys draft. Petiti shouldn't have had to start his rookie year, but they Barber pick looks genius. Canty will be considered a steal after a few years.

Indianapolis Colts:

The '05 draft didn't produce much for the Colts in terms of impact players. The pick that got the most playing time was DB Marlin Jackson who was taken in the first round out of Michigan. But he was brought in mostly in garbage time or when starters were dinged. But the fact that he was taken in the first and DB Kelvin Hayden out of Illinois was taken in the second and neither of these guys were starters all year tells you that their arrival proved to be a big motivator for the DBs that were already here. Jason David and Nick Harper fought hard to keep their jobs and did well. But the biggest upgrade on the Colts D was clearly the FA pick up of Corey Simon from Philadelphia. Running on the Colts was no where near as easy this year as in recent years.

The biggest bust of the Colts '05 draft was clearly their 7th round pick of Kicker Dave Rainer. For the second year in a row, the Colts used a draft pick on a kicker to relieve Mike Vanderjagt of kickoff duties. And for the second year in a row, the pick was a waste. After week 16 the Colts ranked 32nd in opposing teams' drive start position after kickoffs. Dave Rainer was waived and Jose Cortez was brought in for the final regular season game. The Colts jumped from 32nd to 28th in that stat. Sure they were playing Arizona. But it was still a 4 position jump in a stat in week 17. That's tough to do. Something about the way Rainer kicked just didn't allow for good coverage and it's probably good that they made this change just before the playoffs. And hopefully, that's the last time they waste a draft pick on a kicker.

I believe one offensive player was drafted and that was OG Dylan Gandy and he has gotten spotty playing time when guys have gotten dinged. It can be noted that he was in there quite a bit in the loss to San Diego in which the O-line was flat out run over by the Chargers, which then ended the perfect season dreams. So I guess that doesn't look good on him.

poptart wrote:Giving a grade for Oakland's draft at this point is pissin' in the wind.

Kirk Morrison was one of the better rookies in the leauge.
Fab Washington held up very well as a rookie CB.
S. Routt got some playing time and was spotty. A work in progress.
A. Walter, QB of the future...? Dunno.

Just too early to say.

No grade.

How are those extra picks working out for you.........

T REX wrote:How are those extra picks working out for you.........

Oakland had no extra
picks this year, trixxxie.
Raise your football
acumen and check
back with us later.