Redskins Land McNabb

posted by cochise April 5, 2010

Never in a million years did I, or really anyone, think that the Eagles would trade quarterback Donovan McNabb to their division rivals, the Washington Redskins. After all, the move guarantees that McNabb will play against the Eagles twice a season, and have his fair shot at revenge on the team he excelled on for the past eleven years.

But for a variety of reasons, the most prevalent one being Donovan’s lack of interest in any other teams outside the Redskins, the deal did get done. The Eagles will receive a second-round pick this year and a third or fourth-round pick in next year’s draft.

The immediate impact for the Redskins is clear; they finally have a proven quarterback to helm their team, one who should be able to score more touchdowns than the team managed in 2009. Should Washington also revitalize their running game, which is to be expected from a Mike Shanahan offense, they could be very dangerous in 2010. For the Eagles, they opened up playing time for a promising young passer, Kevin Kolb, while acquiring additional picks for the future.

In my opinion, this was a win-win trade. The Eagles have been stuck in a rut for a while, as they have been good enough to get to the playoffs but not good enough to win a title. The worst thing a team in that position can do is wait and watch their roster age and lose trade value. They need to rebuild for the future and this move, along with the release of Brian Westbrook, is a clear indicator that they know it. And I’ve always believed that professional teams shouldn’t be so short-sighted as to rob themselves of better trade value just to not improve a division rival. If you are trading to rebuild, chances are you won’t be contending immediately anyways so why not take the best value?

And the Redskins were going nowhere with Jason Campbell or a rookie quarterback. They have a good defense and could be a playoff team again this upcoming year, McNabb should definitely help their improvement efforts. But it sure will be weird to see Donovan in burgundy next year.

I’ll be posting a new mock draft tomorrow, that reflects this trade (which takes away the need for the Redskins to draft a QB completely) and other news from the past week.

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McNabb Is The Right Fit For Vikings

posted by cochise March 29, 2010

In my first mock draft, finished yesterday, I projected the Minnesota Vikings trading away their first-round pick for Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback Donovan McNabb. McNabb, who has spent his entire career thus far with the Eagles, has long been on the rocks with Philadelphia fans and upper management for his inability to lead the talented team to a Super Bowl win. This offseason, the team finally seems ready to part ways with Donovan, as reports have surfaced that they would trade him for a top-42 draft pick.

The Vikings, who came oh-so-close to a Super Bowl berth a few months ago, are currently without a quarterback. Brett Favre, their passer last year, has yet to confirm if he is retiring after his best statistical season ever, or returning for one more chance at a championship. As in previous years, he could remain undecided until as late as a month before the regular season begins.

For the Vikings, waiting that long is a ridiculous proposition. Without Favre, they would be stuck with either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels as their starting quarterback, and both are more suited for backup roles. Minnesota is a team that has, and rightfully so, serious championship aspirations. They have a solid defense, a terrific rushing attack, and good playmakers at the receiver and tight end positions.

Donovan McNabb is the easy solution for the Vikings. McNabb will turn thirty-four in November, but he can still play football at a very high level. Last year he passed for over 3500 yards, in only fourteen games, with close to a 93 passer rating. He should thrive, just as Favre did, in the Vikings offense. And more importantly, he would be a sure thing for opening weekend, a player who won’t shirk his responsibility to his teammates and coach to let them know his playing status.

Maybe Brett Favre wants to play again, maybe he doesn’t. But unless he is able to tell the Vikings definitively which option he will pursue before the draft in late April, the team should ensure they have a leader at their helm. As I said before, this is the right move, for both the Vikings and McNabb, and the sooner it gets done, the better for both sides.

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NFL Mock Draft: 27-32

posted by cochise March 28, 2010

Finishing off the mock draft, here are the final six picks of the first round.

27th Pick – Dallas Cowboys – Rodger Saffold, OL, Indiana – Dallas plays in a division full of fearsome defensive linesmen, and suffered a playoff loss because of their inability to protect their quarterback. They are another team that needs to work on their offensive line depth.

28th Pick – San Diego Chargers – Ryan Matthews, RB, Fresno State – Matthews is a between the tackles runner that should make the Chargers offense multi-dimensional again. This should be an easy pick if he is still on the board at 28.

29th Pick – St. Louis Rams (traded from New York Jets) – Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame – Those who are patient will be rewarded. The Rams move up to this late first round pick to draft the free-falling Clausen, who after being bypassed early in the draft finds a lack of suitors up until this point. The Rams still need more positions filled before they can become competitive, but drafting a potential franchise quarterback this late is too good value to pass up. The Vikings, picking next, could be in the market for a quarterback, not to mention other teams such as Cleveland that may look to leap frog St. Louis for Clausen this late. Thus it makes sense for the Rams to trade up a few spots to guarantee getting the Notre Dame product. The exact projected trade is that the Rams trade their 2nd round pick and 4th round pick for the Jets 1st round pick.

As for the Jets, they trade down because the players they are projected to take will still be available four picks from now, and picking up extra selections always makes sense.

30th Pick – Philadelphia Eagles (traded from Minnesota) – Brian Price, DT, UCLA – The Vikings are the team that should trade for Donovan McNabb. Enough waiting for Brett Favre to make up his mind on playing or not, the Vikings need to move on and make sure they have a quarterback for 2010. McNabb is a proven player and leader who could perform just as well as Favre did in 2009 for Minnesota, and giving up a late first round pick, especially after Clausen is taken, is worth it.

After all, what happens if Favre decides to stay retired? The Vikings are left to choose between Tavarias Jackson and Sage Rosenfels to run a team with championship aspirations. Why leave that nightmare scenario to chance?

As for the Eagles, Price helps them reaffirm their commitment to overhauling their defensive line.

31st Pick – Indianapolis Colts – Charles Brown, OT, USC – The consensus seems to be that the Colts need to add depth to their offensive line. It makes sense. Even with holes on defense, the primary focus of a team whose best asset is Peyton Manning should be to protect him.

32nd Pick – New Orleans Saints – Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri – With the loss of Scott Fujita, this should be an easy pick. Weatherspoon fills a gap in the defense. And his weaknesses, notably his tendency to be a disturbance, shouldn’t be as big of an issue on a veteran team with a winning history like the Saints.

Thus concludes the first round of the mock draft. I will repost the entire draft as a list for easy reference, along with notes on the terms of the trades projected.

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NFL Mock Draft: Picks 21-26

posted by cochise March 25, 2010

Remember the standard for picks is what teams should do based on their needs and weaknesses. I also project trades where they make more sense then a selection.

21st Pick – Arizona Cardinals (traded from Cincinnati Bengals) - Sergio Kindle, OLB, Texas – The Cardinals have had a tumultuous offseason, losing quarterback Kurt Warner to retirement, linebacker Karlos Dansby to free agency, and wide receiver Anquan Boldin via a trade to Baltimore. The gut reaction for many will be to insist the Cardinals draft a WR to replace Boldin and to work on repairing the explosive offense that led the team to playoff berths for the last two years.

But with Kurt Warner gone, it seems foolish to try to replicate that success. Matt Leinart isn’t the same kind of passer Warner was, and the team will probably be more successful next year if it focuses on pounding the ball with Beanie Wells and defending well. Sergio Kindle is seen by many as a top-fifteen talent, a player who for some is even a better prospect than Rolando McClain is. He also is a player who could be snatched up by the Patriots, who hold the twenty-second overall pick. Kindle could be an immediate high-impact player, and that is what the Cardinals desperately need on defense.

The Cardinals only would have to sacrifice a third-round pick to move up to get Kindle, of which they have two this year anyways, and should make the move up. The Bengals benefit from moving down because the player they likely covet, Oklahoma TE Jermaine Gresham, will likely still be around five picks later.

22nd Pick – New England Patriots – Demaryius Thomas, WR, Georgia Tech – With Kindle no longer available, the Patriots focus on strengthening their receiving corp, which could be without Wes Welker due to the brutal injury he sustained last year. Thomas also provides security for the future, as Randy Moss is 33 years old already.

23rd Pick – Green Bay Packers – Anthony Davis, OL, Rutgers – The Packers are another good team that gives up way too many sacks to their quarterback. The problem could be part Aaron Rodgers’ fault, as the quarterback tends to wait out deep routes instead of hitting short patterns, but it is an issue that needs to be addressed. In 2009, because of injuries, the Packers consistently had an offensive line that looked like it had been put together Frankenstein-style. Players were out of position, on the other side, etc. Clearly the team needs depth at the offensive line, and Davis is the best prospect available at 23. Green Bay should supplement this pick with more offensive linemen later in the draft.

24th Pick – Philadelphia Eagles – Jared Odrick, DL, Penn State – Much like the Falcons, the Eagles are a team that is fairly complete. One area they could improve in is their pass rush, and so drafting a defensive linesmen makes sense. The best defensive teams often have depth stacked on top of more depth at their defensive line, as players who play the strenuous position often tire easily or are injured. Odrick is a solid player who comes from a good college system and should fit right into the Eagles’ locker room.

25th Pick – Baltimore Ravens - Patrick Robinson, CB, Florida State – Robinson is talented enough to draw comparisons to playmakers such as Antonio Cromartie. His biggest knock is an attitude problem, and if that is indeed the case then the Ravens are the perfect fit for him. With proven leaders on defense, like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, the Ravens should have no problem steering in Robinson and getting the most out of his talents.

Robinson also fills a need for Baltimore, as the team recently lost Samari Rolle to retirement.

26th Pick – Cincinnati Bengals (traded from Arizona Cardinals) – Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma – A tight end is often a quarterback’s best friend, and Carson Palmer needs a best friend in Cincinnati. Gresham, when healthy, is a reliable, big target that should open up the Bengals’ passing game and make the offense more dynamic. The fact that the Bengals got Gresham and an extra third-round pick in this mock should make them very happy.

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A Word On Brian Westbrook

posted by cochise February 24, 2010

In the last few days, two longtime stalwarts of their organizations, LaDanian Tomlinson and Brian Westbrook, were released. The moves were made because both players had passed their prime and seen a decline in production, as well as an unfortunate increase in injuries. But while most of the attention thus far has been on the expected release of Tomlinson, Westbrook’s is the one that resonates deeper with me.

As a fan of the miserable Detroit Lions, I eagerly jumped onto the Philadelphia Eagles bandwagon when, by chance, my sophomore roommate in college was from the area. This was the same year the team was the best in the NFC. The year in which both Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens posted ridiculous offensive statistics to help the team reach the Super Bowl. But even still, Westbrook remained our favorite player.

I was won over by a story of Westbrook’s heroics early in his career. As recounted by my roommate, the Eagles trailed the Giants 10-7 in a critical game in 2003. Their offense had been shut down to such a degree that my roommate’s father gave him permission to skip school the next day if the team somehow won the game. With only a few minutes to go, the Giants punted the ball to the ever-dangerous Westbrook and the rest is history. Eagles win the game, make the playoffs. My friend got a day off of school that he still remembers vividly eight years later.

Brian Westbrook was always one of the best running backs in the NFL, only he never got credit because of his team’s offensive style. His rushing yard totals only topped 1000 twice, and journalists lost sight of his total yard contributions, which regularly was over 1500 yards. He was the perfect weapon for the pass-happy offense of the Philadelphia Eagles. But even harder to replace than just his on-the-field contributions will be his ability to resonate with his fan base.

So farewell to a true Eagle. Even if he chooses to sign with another team to end his career with, he will always be just that.

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