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May 03, 2006
Go Niners
The 2006 NFL Draft happened this past weekend and my beloved Niners did fairly well, if the media grades are to be believed (anywhere from an A to a B+). Most writers were complimentary of the Niners draft, especially their Day 1 picks (Rounds 1-3).
Prior to the draft, the Niners gave up a 2nd round pick and a 3rd round pick to Denver for a 1st rounder (the 22nd overall), giving them two 1st round picks (6 and 22). This put them into position to select the top TE in the draft (Vernon Davis) at #6 and DE/OLB Manny Lawson at 22. A couple draft sites had called this correctly in their mocks, and many of the fans on the online forums were rooting for these two picks, but at the same time, many people also projected Lawson to go higher than 22, and there was rising buzz the past week that Davis was coveted by both New York at 4 and Green Bay at 5. (Looks like a smokescreen in hindsight).
Here's my take on each of the picks:
1st round (6th pick) - Vernon Davis
Vernon Davis was a junior tight end out of the University of Maryland. He broke some records at the NFL Scouting Combine, running the fastest ever time recorded for a tight end (4.38) and some other excellent numbers. Supposedly, he's more than just a workout warrior (please, not another Mike Mamula/Jim Drukenmiller), the initial signs are bit concerning.
He had one good year, his junior year, after which he decided to submit his name for the draft. And in some quote before the draft, he actually make note to thank a company that makes supplements! hmmmm. . .
on the flip side, there were quite a few highlights of him actually doing more than just lifting weights, such as ragdolling a cornerback trying to tackle him, as well as some pretty nifty route-running and some nice hands on some catches. The hope is that his production will exceed the hype and that he will be the security blanket that Alex Smith needs to take the next step in his development at QB.
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1st round (22nd pick) - Manny Lawson
At 22, the Niners took Manny Lawson out of North Carolina State. He was the 2nd defender taken from that school (DE Mario Williams went #1 to Houston) and eventually 5 people from the NC State defense would go in the draft. Naturally, one would assume that the NC State defense was dominant and set all sorts of records. In fact, the team as a whole went 9-7 and had some pretty bad losses along the way.
Apparently, Lawson popped out on film while the Niners were scouting both him and Mario Williams. This is another guy with pretty good measurables. He is 6'6", 241 pounds, and ran a 4.43 at the Combine (Sad Factoid: After these two picks, Niners coach Mike Nolan said, "We just drafted the two fastest people on the team." That's pretty sad and shows how far the Niners have fallen.) Lawson also showcased a non-stop motor as well as the intelligence to read and react to various offenses. It looks like the Niners are taking Lawson to replace Julian Peterson, who went to Seattle. From a measurables perspective, he brings a similar size-speed combo, too light to be a true DE, but perfect for a 3-4 OLB. Hopefully, he can fulfill the unrealized sackmaster dreams that people had of Peterson when Nolan brought over the 3-4 defense. The jury is still out as to whether it was injury or some other cause that prevented Peterson from reaching his potential in the 3-4. In his first season back from an Achilles injury last year, he got 3 sacks in the first game and was shut out for the remainder of the season. It seemed like Peterson never had good timing when rushing out of the 3-4 and had only 1 move, beat the OL to the corner. I really hope Lawson will be able to do better than that.
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3rd round (84th pick) - Brandon Williams
Due to the pre-draft trading, the Niners then had a long break until the 3rd round, when they drafted WR Brandon Williams out of Wisconsin. NFL Draft Scout (here) called all 3 of the Niners picks correctly. This was a bit more confusing to us armchair quarterbacks, as the Niners have a lot of needs, and there were higher rated WRs on the board. Coach Nolan was quoted as saying they were bringing in Williams to help with the return game, as he has college experience in returning punts and kicks (The Niners had Otis Amey and Rasheed Marshall splitting these duties last year, which made for great storylines with Amey being an undrafted free agent and Marshall a converted QB, but made for some bad football). Maybe its wishful thinking, but maybe this guy can turn out to be another Steve Smith, who was undersized, drafted low, but is one of the best receivers in the NFL right now.
Posted by spoof747 at May 3, 2006 02:23 PM