First Round NFL Draft Blog Up to the 11th Pick

I'm watching the NFL draft and recording my thoughts as I go.

Draft Pick #1 overall: Gee the Colts took Andrew Luck.  No surprise here, they won the Suck for Luck contest.  Lately, I've been hearing that RGIII is statistically the better QB and most likely will be going #2 with Washington.

Chomping at the bit waiting for the 11th pick for my Chiefs.  Sports Illustrated has them taking Luke Kuechly out of Boston College.  I kind of like the idea of another high draft pick on defense.  When the Chiefs were a dominant force in the 90s (even though they never got to the Super Bowl) they had a killer defense.  With Derrick Johnson, Tamba Hali, and a lockdown secondary, I'm excited to see this.

#2 Robert Griffin III goes to the Redskins.  Again, no real surprise.  I'm curious to see how Griffin deals with Shanahan's system.  Now the NFC East has two speedy big armed quarterbacks (Vick).  Washington also needs to work on a defense.

ESPN has four selections for who the Chiefs will take at #11.  The People's Choice is Courtney Upshaw, DE/OLB from Alabama.  Not a bad choice either.  Expert Todd McShay choses Kuechly; Mel Kiper chooses David DeCastro, OG from Stanford.Kent Babb of the KC Star also says DeCastro because he doesn't think the DE that they want (Upshaw) will be there.

While I do like to watch a great defense, and the Chiefs have a young one going into the next season.  They're going to have to brush up on pass defense with Manning, Palmer, and Rivers as opposing QBs in their division. I've made no secret of my disdain for Matt Cassel.  But now, he is undoubtedly the worst starting QB in the division.

#3 Cleveland selects Trent Richardson.  Another no-brainer.  The Chiefs just took the Browns disgruntled former starting RB and Richardson is the best RB on the list.  They have a QB up and coming in Colt McCoy, so now they have a more dynamic offense instead of allowing linebackers like James Harrison to just key on (and unload on) McCoy.  My question is why did they trade away draft choices to move up one spot in the order?  The Vikings had this pick and already have a franchise RB in Petersen.  They've been looking at Kalil the whole time.  The only reason I'm thinking they made the trade is because they knew Minnesota was going to shop their spot.  If they had traded it to TB, then another team in dire need of a RB would have jumped in front of the Browns for Richardson.

Almost out of the predicted picks.  1, 2, 3 are almost all certain picks and not catching you off guard (Edgerrin James in 1999 notwithstanding).  This year, though, I'll say the first four picks are pretty obvious.  While the Vikings are next and need just about friggin everything but a running back, they've been looking at Kalil a lot.  He's probably the best offensive lineman in the draft.  ESPN says they'll draft a OT.  This makes sense since they were tied with most sacks allowed last year.  They have a decent quarterback when he's not on his back and a stud running back (who is still rehabbing an injury).  They also need a corner (and are in a division with KILLER wide receivers), a safety (see previous aside), and a wide receiver.

#4 Minnesota took Matt Kalil, the OT that ESPN predicted.  SI also predicted Kalil, but said that they should have taken Morris Claiborne.  I would agree with that, but I'm defensive biased and Claiborne is a great college corner who is fun to watch.  He won't have to wait long for a phone call.

Jags have the next pick (seriously these trades up and down are messing up my magazines here).  Note to self, blog about the strategy of trading up and down for draft picks.  There is a strategy here that rivals most complex board games.

Jacksonville has this pick after trading with Tampa Bay.  To move up two slots Jacksonville gave up a 4th and 7th round pick.

#5 Jacksonville took Justin Blackmon out of Oklahoma State.  Can't say I blame them.  They were a one dimensional offense last year behind Maurice Jones-Drew.  Jones-Drew is a beast, but when a defense can ignore your quarterback and put 8 men in the box, your team isn't going to win many games (and they didn't).  I like this pick.  And apparently I agree with Jon Gruden on that.  He's a great WR.

Dallas has traded up to get pick #6.  Seriously, the only draft pick that was in the original order was the Colts at #1.  Every other one has been a swap to move up or down. Dallas gave up a second round pick to move up to the Rams spot at 6 (where they originally traded down from #2).  The Rams have made off like bandits out of this draft.  Which is good because they need pretty much a new team.  The Cowboys are gunning for someone.  It makes me wonder why these teams take so long to announce their picks.

#6 Dallas takes Morris Claiborne.  I'm glad my favorite team isn't in the NFC East now.  The Cowboys have some deadly corners now.  They paid a ransom to Brandon Carr, one of the Chiefs high notes last year, at one corner and just took the best corner in the draft to line up on the other side.  They'll face RGIII twice a year, but they'll also see Vick and Eli Manning twice a year.  Although apparently Claiborne is going to be like another Deion Sanders.  Great at interceptions, but a liability on rush defense and not a great tackler.  He also doesn't really jam receivers at the line.  A strictly cover corner....but a damn fine cover corner.

With all these trades and waiting for the announcements, how do they get the players' names on the right jerseys so quickly?

Tampa Bay on the clock at #7, originally 5.  I'm guessing they're going to take a safety.  Yup, they just took Mark Barron of Alabama.  That's two Tide players drafted in the top ten.  Surprised? Not really, they're the national champs.  Barron is a hybrid, playing safety, but also showing the ability to move up to linebacker.  He also gave LSU fits in the championship game with some lock down defense.

Why didn't Kansas City trade up or down? Maybe they will by the time #11 rolls around.  It might not make sense for the Chiefs to move around since a lot of the players they were looking at aren't predicted to go much earlier than 11.

Miami on the clock at #8, the second pick not to move around.  It is predicted they'll take Tammehill, Texas A&M's QB.  If they do, he'll be the first QB drafted in the first round by Miami since a guy named Marino.  Gregg Easterbrook's latest Tuesday Morning Quarterback was analyzing playoff teams from last season.  He found that almost all of them were led by a first round drafted quarterback.

Miami just took Tannehill  I'm not sure about this.  He was rumored to be looked at by Kansas City, but I wasn't sure then.  He doesn't seem like a top echelon quarterback.  He only played 19 games at QB.  I don't think he has the experience to face the NFL's defensive backs.  Granted, Miami needed a quarterback badly. And Kiper has Tannehill as the third best QB in the draft.  I don't think he is the savior of Miami.  The Dolphins are struggling to draw fans back in and, unlike during Marino's first year, they aren't the only sports franchise in town.  Between then and now the NBA expanded with the Heat and MLB just moved the Marlins to town.  I don't think he's going to start right away and will sit a year.  This is a draft pick that probably should have been traded down.  They probably could have taken Tannehill in the teens or twenties and gotten a bunch of other draft picks for the #8 slot.

Carolina is up.  With Cam Newton (last years #1 overall) they've got some great offense.

Carolina just took Kuechly...Damn, there goes KC's best pick.  He's the first linebacker to be drafted.  He's toted as a throwback to the ideal middle linebacker.  They just compared him to Brian Urlacher.  That's going to really help Carolina's middling defense.  On a good note, only the Bills stand between the Chiefs and the rest of the draft board.  The Chiefs are also looking for a gigantic defense lineman and ESPN's predicted Carolina pick, Quinton Coples, is now still there.  I'm starting to think that the teams take so long to make selections that they're almost surely to make in order to give ESPN time to babble at me.

The Bills just took Stephon Gilmore out of South Carolina.  Another cornerback picked in the draft.  I don't know much about this guy.  He wasn't on anyone's draft board for Buffalo.  Everyone thought they'd need a wide receiver or defensive line.

I do like that Gruden just said that KC is set when everyone is healthy.  I DON'T like that he likes Cassel.  KC just took Dontari Poe, their big beefy nose tackle out of Memphis.

I don't like this pick at #11 of the first round.  Poe is too much of a risk.  If he's good, he's going to be great, but if not, then this is a bust.  There weren't really a lot of other teams looking at him and Kansas City could have followed the pattern of the evening and traded this pick away for a boatload of later rounds.  I think if they were going to keep this pick, they should have gone for one of the offensive linemen still on the board or one of the good linebackers.  Poe probably would have been a better pick with the second round selection.

Those are my thoughts on the first 11 picks (and mostly the Kansas City Chiefs).  It is the end of the semester and I have projects to do otherwise I'd probably keep going with the draft.

Although, I'll be curious for Friday's second round (Rams have 3 picks thanks to first round trades.  Hopefully that pays off).

The Unity of Music and Baseball

Think about music and baseball.  Whether it’s the traditional organ at the ball park or the modern lead up music for the batters, there is always music at the ballpark.  As a fan of the former Page 2 section of ESPN.com and the weird lists that they would put out, I’ve decided to make my own list of great baseball music.  Some of it is music for situations (“Caught Stealin’ by Jane’s Addiction when a catcher guns out a base runner stealing second); some of it is just classic baseball songs (“Centerfield”); some of it is just songs that are associated with players (Ken Griffey, Jr.’s lead up song for his whole career was “Down with OPP” by Naughty by Nature).

Without further ado, my best baseball songs in whatever order I think of them:

1.       Enter Sandman  As I wrote about in an earlier post “Sports’ Spine-Tingling Moments,” when Mariano Rivera comes in to close out the ninth in Yankee Stadium, he runs across the outfield to Metallica’s hit.  As soon as the opening riff starts, the entire stadium goes ape shit.  606 times, he’s gotten the save.  75 times, he’s gotten the W.  I will see Mariano pitch at least one more time (when the Yanks visit Seattle this summer), but it looks doubtful I’ll ever see him come out of the bullpen to Enter Sandman again. (Just added, in Mariano’s Sunday Conversation on ESPN he admitted that if it had been up to him, he never would have chosen this song.  He doesn’t “listen to that type of music.”

2.      Centerfield  When listening to this song and thinking about little league it’s just a great song about wanting to get into the game.  Put me in coach, I’m ready to play, today.  Look at me, I could be, centerfield.  But when you really look at baseball, this is a gutsy request.  Centerfield is the fastest position on the team.  Where the shortstop is the leader of the infield and nothing can happen without the pitcher/catcher battery, the centerfielder has the most area to cover.  Little league might not get as many hits out to the deep field (outside of the serious programs in the Little League World Series every year).  The “kid” who wants to get in and play, especially centerfield, is a gutsy little guy.

3.      Take Me out to the Ball Game  My students in Japan were learning this one.  You can’t CAN’T have a seventh inning stretch without this ode to peanuts and Crackerjack at the ballpark.  For those of you old enough to remember Harry Carey singing it (badly) during Cubbies games, it takes on a whole other legendary status.  The song is simple and fun, and really just silly.  You can stand up and sing it while your team is getting creamed, or you can stand up and sing it while you’re up big.  It is just that great.  Can you possibly stand up and sing it without swaying with total strangers in the same section?  No, no you cannot.

4.      Star-Spangled Banner  There are kids out there who think the last words to the first verse of our national anthem are “play ball!”  The Star-Spangled Banner and baseball are linked in the definition of American.  The poor song has had its ups and downs.  I heard David Hasslehoff sing it in Dodger Stadium.  I heard Rosanne Barr sing it (thankfully on TV so I could mute it).  Good, bad, or ugly, this song is forever linked to MLB ball. 

5.      Down with OPP  Like Enter Sandman, this isn’t a purely baseball song.  This was Ken Griffey, Jr.’s lead up song for his entire career.  With so many players changing with popular music or changing with streaks or slumps, Griffey had this always play.  Now, I might also be a bit biased because every time I hear it, I’m reminded of hanging out in high school with my best friend, Nate.

6.      All the Way  Vedder’s pen to being a Cubbies fan.  Written on the eve of the 100^th year of the Cubs Curse, Vedder captures our hero worship of our favorite players.  The magic of walking into our sacred stadiums.  The hope that the Cubs will one day finally return to glory after a century.

7.      Cheap Seats  Alabama goes to the minor leagues and sings about being a fan in the stands.  There is a celebration of the ballpark experience.  Yelling at the umps, sitting way out in the outfield and not having enough people to do a decent wave…kind of like late season Seattle lately.  Here’s hoping again this season.

Honorable mention: Empire State of Mind, Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio, Talkin’ Baseball, For Boston (Drop Kick Murphys version even though it has been mostly used for BC football), New York, New York (Yankees play Sinatra after a W, Liza Minnelli after an L), Here come the Mets, Say Hey.

Why it’s not on the list: God Bless America.  This song has been crammed into baseball.  In the days after 9/11, we were driven to feel like patriotism had to permeate every damn aspect of American life or “the terrorists win.”  The Yankees, Dodgers, Mariners, and Braves (arguably the four corners of baseball) play it every game; others during major patriotic holidays and post-season games.  This song is not baseball.  It was proposed to replace “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” but has since been coupled with it, rather than one or the other.  To me, this forcing in is akin to the outspoken religious leaders smacking you upside the head with their religious views.  We know that this is America’s pastime; we don’t need to have the American patriotic songs every time we turn around.

In the grand scheme of things, music affects just about everything.  Put the wrong score with a movie and it changes the mood.  Put an awesome score with a movie that sucks and it can at least help carry one aspect.

Hearing certain songs in sports, especially baseball, takes us back to ballpark memories.  We can hear our favorite players’ songs.  The traditional songs also remind us of the kids’ game.  The beauty of watching grown men play this game, the hope at the beginning of every season, and the joy we feel as our team takes the field.  Baseball songs and baseball music helps to immortalize these feelings.

The Debate of Which Sport has the Best Athletes

In a recent family debate (of which I was only party to over text messaging) the Sports Fiancee and the Sports Soon-To-Be-Brother-In-Law got into it on whether the NFL or MLB has better athletes.  Now I get to weigh in from the relative safety of my own blog.  I worry neither about the venom from the SSTBBIL nor do I worry about the Sports Fiancee making me sleep on the Sports Couch.  Depending on how you look at the argument and whether you are a glass half empty or glass half full type of person, they are both right and both wrong.

There are MLB players who are better athletes than some NFL players.  There are some NFL players who are better athletes than some MLB players.  With so much diversity in position, stature, body size, heritage, specialty, and skill sets, there is no way to lump all football players or all baseball players into one category.  There is also no standard of comparison.  You couldn't say, oh, Pujols is not a good athlete because he couldn't pick up a blitz like Marshall Faulk used to.  On the other side of the same coin, you couldn't say oh, Peyton Manning isn't a good athlete because he couldn't hit a split finger fastball.  There have been few notable exceptions in players who actually could do both (Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders).  One would argue that neither of them could tackle well, Bo being a running back and Deion being a skinny corner who relied on not letting his receiver catch the ball instead of tackling him.  Michael Jordan was arguably the greatest NBA player ever.  Was he less of an athlete because he couldn't hit a curve ball in the minor leagues?  I'd say no.

It is all about the different skill sets.  Yes, Michael Vick could throw a football 50 yards from his knees.  Is he more of an athlete than Randy Johnson who could hit 100+ mph with a fastball?  Yes, your fast wide receivers and corners can run ridiculous 40 yard dashes.  Now, time Curtis Granderson or an in-his-prime Ichiro on a dead sprint to first.  Home to first is 127 feet, just over 42 yards.  Does speed make the athlete?  Shaquille O'Neal didn't need speed.  NFL linemen aren't known for blazing foot speed, neither are MLB pitchers.  Does that make them less athletic?  Speed doesn't even translate into success.  Ask the Raiders of the 90s (four of the fastest receivers in the game for most of the decade, no championships).

There is simply no comparison between the different sports.  Baseball players play the longest season with the most games and least between game downtime.  Football players play a more brutally physical game.  Basketball players play the fastest paced game.  Soccer players play the longest timed game without breaks.  Sumo wrestlers have the most dedication.  Rugby players go the longest without a true offseason.  Every sport takes different skills.  Every position within each sport takes different skills.  Within the same sport or even same team, you have different skill sets that can't determine who is the better athlete.  Is Payton Manning less of an athlete because he has less running speed than Demaryius Thomas?  Is Derek Jeter a better athlete than A-Rod because Jeter has more rings?

Every professional American sport has the opposite argument as well.  There are examples strewn throughout the sports world of athletes reporting out of shape.  Charles Barkley once called Oliver Miller "UFO, Unidentified Fat Object." Nowadays, Sir Charles calling anyone fat would be a case of pot and kettle.  Of course, Chuck hasn't stepped foot on a basketball court as a professional since 2000.  Examples can be found off the hardwood: CC Sabathia is huge; pick any offensive lineman from the NFL; Dirk Nowitski of the world champion Dallas Mavericks reported overweight and out of shape in the post-lockout season.

Being able to throw a spiral is the mark of a quarterback.  It's not even the mark of a good quarterback.  I can throw a spiral (a topic that came up in the aforementioned family debate in the form of a $10 bet).  I played defensive line in high school.  Being able to pick off a batter on 1st or 2nd is a good skill for a pitcher. Mtich Williams was good at it.  Unfortunately, he had very little control, earning him the nickname "Wild Thing" before Charlie Sheen's Rick Vaughn character. Williams is most famous for his blown save in giving up the walk-off home run to Joe Carter in game 6 of the 1993 World Series

Football players have to do all the stuff they do and do it in pads.  (Catchers notwithstanding) baseball players don't.  On the other hand, rugby players make fun of football players for wearing pads.  There is no sure fire skill that translates across the different sports t measure who is the most athletic.  The only skill that does translate across the sports is athleticism itself.

The Beauty of Opening Day

MLB's Opening Day has come and gone.

The beauty of a new season is not only new hope, but also a chance to see new faces, and changed teams.  This season, for the first time in memory, the Yankees didn't make a huge acquisition.  They added an outfielder and a starting pitcher who promptly went on the DL.

Everyone is a contender right now.  No one is more than 4 games back with 158 games to go.  The AL East is being led by Baltimore.  The West? Seattle.  There are no overlying controversies to sully the new season (shut up, Ozzie).  Everyone has a shot at the playoffs and the World Series.  Ball parks are still full as people pack stands even during weekday day games (a form of hooky I fully endorse) and night games are enjoyed just as fully with dinner at the park.  I'll probably have to wait until May to get to see any game.  (It'll be the Mariners against whoever happens to be visiting at the time I'm in Seattle).

The newness of the season hasn't allowed us to become bored of the grind, when we stop paying attention to most of the teams in late July or August.  We tune back in if our team is still in the hunt in September or if there is a particularly close pennant race (although, it won't be as much fun this year with the stupid "extra wild" wild card).  But for now, we look forward to seeing the new faces.  We want to hear the crack of the bat again.  We want to smell the hot dogs, popcorn, and beer of a ball park.  With baseball finally here, we are reminded that summer is close.  That summer vacations are coming.  We are reminded of counting down the days and being young again.  Kids of all ages will go to the ball parks.  Kids of all ages will watch the new pitchers.  Kids of all ages will relish in the game during the birth of a new season.

And it doesn't get any better than that.