The Redskins Blog

A Comparison That Makes Jake Locker Seem Both More And Less Appealing

If any of you are new to this blog, you probably think that I do nothing but complain about mock drafts in the most passive-aggressive way possible. And, recently, that’s kind of true. But I used to have a much broader spectrum of interests: I used to complain about Brett Favre also.

With Favre’s seemingly final retirement underway, I thought that maybe I could table the Favre complaints moving forward, but Michael Silver has put a stop to that.

Over at Yahoo! Sports, Silver has written an excellent profile of “Rogue Scout” Dave Razzano, who spent more than 20 years as a talent evaluator for three NFL teams, and who is opinionated enough that it’s cost him jobs. There are a lot of things in the piece that are worth a look:

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A Poll About The 25 Prospects Attending The NFL Draft

The NFL sent out a press release announcing that a record 25 prospects will be attending the NFL Draft, topping the previous record of 17 from last year. Here’s the whole list, in alphabetical order:

1. 1) Prince Amukamara – CB – Nebraska
2. 2) Akeem Ayers – LB – UCLA
3. 3) Adrian Clayborn – DE – Iowa
4. 4) Randall Cobb – WR – Kentucky
5. 5) Marcell Dareus – DT – Alabama
6. 6) Nick Fairley – DT – Auburn
7. 7) Blaine Gabbert – QB – Missouri
8. 8 ) AJ Green – WR – Georgia
9. 9) Mark Herzlich – LB – Boston College
10. 10) Mark Ingram – RB – Alabama
11. 11) Cameron Jordan – DE – California
12. 12) Julio Jones – WR – Alabama
13. 13) Ryan Kerrigan – DE – Purdue
14. 14) Corey Liuget – DT – Illinois
15. 15) Von Miller – LB – Texas A&M
16. 16) Rahim Moore – S – UCLA
17. 17) Cam Newton – QB – Auburn
18. 18 ) Patrick Peterson – CB – Louisiana State
19. 19) Mike Pouncey – G/C – Florida
20. 20) Aldon Smith – DE – Missouri
21. 21) Tyron Smith – T – Southern California
22. 22) Phil Taylor – DT – Baylor
23. 23) Danny Watkins – G – Baylor
24. 24) JJ Watt – DE – Wisconsin
25. 25) Ryan Williams – RB – Virginia Tech

I believe it’s pretty well-established that I’m a bit leery (or maybe weary?) of mock drafts this year. There’s just too many variables with the NFL Draft for me to put too much stock in a mock draft … but this list lends itself well to a nice, easy, binary question: Given this list of 25 attendees, will the Redskins’ first-round pick be at the Draft?

If you’re a believer in the hivemind of mock drafts, your answer should be Yes. DC Pro Sports Report’s quixotic mock draft database says that 49% of mocks have the Redskins selecting receiver Julio Jones, who can clearly be found at number 12 on the list above.

But if you subscribe to a few of the other popular theories — Jake Locker, Robert Quinn — you’re answering No.

Plenty of people have suggested to me that Phil Taylor would make a terrific second-round pick for the Redskins if he slips, and I’ve heard a few people mention Hokie RB Ryan Williams for that spot as well … but that’s outside the purview of this very simple yes-or-no question:

Okay, technically I added a third option to the simple yes-or-no question, but … well, this is the internet. SOMEONE is always going to quibble. Read more »