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"The penalty of
success" - The Cardinals are expected to draft in the #16-hole this year
instead of drafting in our usual "Top 10." Which means that, if the Cards
compile a list of their 16 best available prospects (weighing in
such factors as skill, fit within the system and team-need), they are
guaranteed to get one of those players.
We, therefore,
respectfully offer our updated list of top-16 prospects. It will be an
imperfect list - Right now, information is sketchy since all the bowl and
All Star games have not been been played, the Cards haven't dipped their
toes in free agency, the Combine hasn't been held and Pro Days have yet to
be held.
So this will
be our first list. It will be based on incomplete information and we'll
update it regularly as we receive new intelligence. We will omit some
high-profile prospects at positions where their talent isn't high enough
in light of our lack of need. We'll include some explanatory remarks at
the bottom of the list). So here goes:
|
Rank |
Player |
Size |
Forty |
Comments |
|
1 |
Chris Long
DE U Va |
6010 312
|
4.95 |
First
class on and off field. Terrific mobility and leanly built for a 312
pounder. |
|
2 |
Dominique
Rodgers Cromartie |
6-2 183 |
4.37 |
Great
production in post season all star games. Off the charts in Combine
(forty and vertical jump). Outstanding movement and ball skills in
Combine position workouts. Tall and physical playmaker. |
|
3 |
Vernon
Gholstin DE/LB Ohio St |
5117 257 |
4.67 |
Our
concern was whether he had enough athleticism to match his
production. How about a 4.67 forty and 37 bench press reps at the
Combine? |
|
4 |
Keith
Rivers OLB USC |
6030 236
|
4.60 |
|
|
5 |
Leodis
McKelvin CB Troy |
5105 185 |
4.44 |
Don't be
put off by his small school bkrd. Some say he could go higher than
D. Ware |
|
6 |
Sedric
Ellis DT USC |
6-1 308 |
4.75 |
|
|
7 |
Glen
Dorsey DT LSU |
6035 275
|
4.75 |
He and
Laurenaitis may have the best "intangibles" of all the players on
this list. |
|
8 |
Kenny
Phillips S Miami |
6020 208 |
4.46 |
Safeties
aren't usually rated this high. Release of T Holt may be a factor |
|
9 |
Darren
McFadden RB Arkansas |
6-2 210 |
4.27 |
We had him
ranked below Mendenhall and Stewart, but his Combine 40 time blew us
away |
|
10 |
Rashard
Mendenhall RB Illinois |
5110 210 |
4.48 |
|
|
11 |
Jake Long
OT Michigan |
6-7 315 |
5.08 |
|
|
12 |
Malcom
Jenkins CB Ohio State
|
6-0 189 |
4.50 |
Not listed
as Combine attendee. Scouts say
he has everything except, perhaps, speed. Monitor his forty. |
|
13 |
Calais
Campbell DE Miami |
6-8 282 |
4.70 |
Prototypical size and speed for a 3-4 defensive end. |
|
14 |
DeJuan
Morgan, S NC State |
6000 200 |
4.55 |
Covers
and hits. Pefect! |
|
15 |
Ryan Clady
OT Boise |
6-6 319 |
5.28 |
|
|
16 |
Fred Davis
TE USC |
6-3 250 |
4.75 |
He and
Rucker have similar stats. Davis comes from USC. Neither a great
blocker. |
-
We expect
as many as 4 QB's to be drafted ahead of us (Ryan, Brohm, Booty,
Brennan)
-
And 3 or 4 more receivers (including Doucet, D. Jackson and
Caldwell).
-
The draft is also deep in big, talented offensive
tackles. (The most talented is probably Keith Dunlap of Auburn, but
there's a question about how much he wants it). It's quite possible
that out of that top 5 group (Dunlap, Clady, Hills, Cherilus and
Baker) more T's might go higher.
-
Although
TCU defensive end Tommy Blake is rated as high as #3 on some
mocks, he's evidently struggling with some mental issues which
will make him more of a risk factor. Should he rebound to a point
where he can reassure teams he's OK, he could return to Top 16
status (or higher).
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DT Frank Okam
of Texas has such
impressive physical numbers that some team in the top 16 might draft
him.
-
Laurenaitis reminds me of overachievers like Vrabel, Urlacher and
Bruschi. He may not be the most physically talented, but all he
does is make your defense better when he's in there.
All of
which means that the more guys not on our list who actually go
early, the more from our list we'll have available when we
draft.
And
remember. This list will change dramatically during the weeks to
come. |
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