NFL Draft 2005 - How's your team doing?

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I'm a Cowboys fan and I've been very pleased with our draft so far: Defense, defense, defense.



I'm a believer in the old saying: "Offense sells tickets, defense wins championships."



Pass-rushing OLB in Demarcus Ware

Run-stuffing DE in Marcus Spears

Solid LB in Kevin Burnett

Reliable RB in Marion Barber

Amazing DE in Chris Canty, if he hadn't been injured he would have been the top DE in the draft. A steal in the 4th round.



Good draft so far for America's Team.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    kishankishan Posts: 732member
    I am thrilled with the way the Purple's draft has thus far worked out. The dealing of Randy Moss in the offseason was an unfortunate but necessary move. Although I think they could have done better in terms of compensation from Oakland, a single high first round pick plus a decent linebacker gave the Vikes a chance to make something very positive from what initially looked like a very negative deal for the Purple.



    Troy Williamson vs. Mike Williams at the #7 spot will be this preseason's talking point in Minnesota. I for one think that they would not have gone wrong with either player. I come down on the side of Troy Williamson. Speed correlates with explosiveness and while no one can replace Randy Moss, a burner won't hurt the Vikes who even without Moss last season showed an ability to move the ball on the ground and in the air. Williamson will fit well in a situation where he does not have to replace Moss, just play complement to Burleson.



    Erasmus James at DE fills a key need for the Purple on their D-Line. They have picked D-linemen with thier first round picks for three consecutive years now. With the development of Kevin Williams last season, the hopeful contiuing development of Keneche Udeze and now the addition of James, I am very optimistic that the Purple will finally be able to mount some consistent pressure on QB's with only their front four. Run stopping should improve also.



    The Vikes addressed a lot of other issues through free agency in the offseason, so I am not too concerned about what they do in the later rounds. Still the selection of Marcus Johnson in the second round fills a potential roster hole that the aging David Dixon may leave next season. If Mike Tice likes his ability, you can be sure that he will be a good offensive lineman.



    I know that football season is still months away, but I'm ready to put meat to fire, beer to mug and ass to recliner! The summer is such a wasteland for sport. Skol Vikes!
  • Reply 2 of 10
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    So now that it's all fleshed out here is the Moss deal:



    Oakland gets:

    Randy Moss



    Minnesota gets:

    Napoleon Harris

    Troy Williamson

    Adrian Ward





    I can't say how good that is because I don't know how much of a team cancer Moss was. But in all honesty it doesn't look good on the face of it.

    Not that it matters a whole lot, though, Culpepper is the heart of that offense, not Moss and I bet Williamson will be really good and I'm sure the addition of Harris will be good on D (I don't think Ward will do anything).

    Ciatrick Fason is fantastic value in the 4th round. He's a 2nd-round talent IMO. He'll be a great change-of-pace back to rest whoever the starter is or maybe develop into the starter himself.



    The Vikes continue to be very dangerous. Maybe the departure of Moss will bring less distractions.



    Purple is one of my favorite colors.
  • Reply 3 of 10
    kishankishan Posts: 732member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by groverat

    So now that it's all fleshed out here is the Moss deal:



    Oakland gets:

    Randy Moss



    Minnesota gets:

    Napoleon Harris

    Troy Williamson

    Adrian Ward





    I can't say how good that is because I don't know how much of a team cancer Moss was. But in all honesty it doesn't look good on the face of it.

    Not that it matters a whole lot, though, Culpepper is the heart of that offense, not Moss and I bet Williamson will be really good and I'm sure the addition of Harris will be good on D (I don't think Ward will do anything).

    Ciatrick Fason is fantastic value in the 4th round. He's a 2nd-round talent IMO. He'll be a great change-of-pace back to rest whoever the starter is or maybe develop into the starter himself.



    The Vikes continue to be very dangerous. Maybe the departure of Moss will bring less distractions.



    Purple is one of my favorite colors.






    Well of course you love purple... that dumb (from the standpoint of the Vikings) Herschell Walker trade make the Cowbows the team they were in the 90's! Regarding the Moss vs. what the Vikes gained question, I think Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune sums it up nicely:



    Quote:

    The Vikings have somehow ditched football's most talented player -- Randy Moss -- yet upgraded their roster to the point where they should be considered the second-best theoretical team in the NFC, behind the Philadelphia Eagles.



    Now it's up to the creator of the Randy Ratio and the Scalping Syndicate to -- how do they put it in the National Football League? -- not mess up.



    In the past four months, the Vikings have added five probable starters through free agency and trades, assumed that two former starters will return from injuries, and drafted three players who should start during the 2005 season.



    The total list of additions and rehabilitations is impressive: Fred Smoot, Pat Williams, Darren Sharper, Sam Cowart, Napoleon Harris, Travis Taylor, Brad Johnson, Troy Williamson, Erasmus James, Marcus Johnson, Jim Kleinsasser and Mike Rosenthal.



    The list of hurtful personnel losses remains at one: Randy Moss.



    The addition of 12 quality players should mean more than the subtraction of nine dynamic letters.



    Today the Vikings are a deeper, faster, more experienced team than they were four months ago. They are profoundly stronger on defense and remain talented on offense.



    They will miss Moss' playmaking, but his removal means Tice will finally get a chance to coach the team as one unit instead of serving as Moss' day-care provider.



    Moss won games for Tice. Moss also impeded Tice's progress as a coach.



    When Moss angered key teammates, Tice lost credibility coddling him. When Moss walked off the field at Washington and Tice didn't hammer him, owner Red McCombs was forced to choose between coach and star.



    Admittedly, Souhan has a reputation for being something of a "homer", unable to citicize the team too sharply. Still, if one looks at the loss of Moss in the context of the overall makeover that the Vikings made this offseason, I think it was the right thing to do, regardless of what the direct compensation from Oakland was. Anyways, the analysis quoted above makes the assumption that those injured players (Kleinsasser and Rosenthal) come back to play at full strength. Based on the injuries they suffered and the amount of time they had to heal, I think it is a safe assumption, but only watching them on the field will prove or disprove it. Fingers crossed!



    Concerning Fason, I think there may be another strategy that the Vikes are pursuing. Right now their running back stable includes Michael Bennett, Ontario Smith, Mewelde Moore, Moe Williams and Ciatrick Fason. I wonder if they might package two of these guys together, or one with with a 1st or 2nd round pick next year, and try their hand at a trade. The Vikes could still use a good linebacker or kicker certainly.



    August can't get here soon enough. God I am excited for football season...
  • Reply 4 of 10
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    That guy's logic is specious at best, only the three players I mentioned (Harris, Williamson, Ward) were actually related to the Moss trade. So all the other guys to be happy about could be coupled with Randy Moss.



    But it's not all about talent level, because homer boy is right about one thing:

    They will miss Moss' playmaking, but his removal means Tice will finally get a chance to coach the team as one unit instead of serving as Moss' day-care provider.



    You better pray to the Purple Gods that Williamson doesn't turn out to be a headcase.



    On a selfish note, losing Moss makes me lose a little interest in the Vikes. That's not really anything Vikes fans should concern themselves with, but the guy is one of the two most exciting WR in the league.



    But excitement isn't what it's all about; just as the Patriots.
  • Reply 5 of 10
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    I feel sorry for Kyle Orton, a really good QB, playing second fiddle to Jeff George in Chicago who has an...interesting at best reputation in Purdue sports history.



    Kyle Orton is 2 times the player that Jeff George is...



    need proof, look at the Purdue record books: how many does George have and how many does Orton have?
  • Reply 6 of 10
    splinemodelsplinemodel Posts: 7,311member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by groverat

    Good draft so far for America's Team.



    What we have here is a sad attempt to rekindle the 90's. It would seem that the Patriots are currently holding the "America's Team" honors. As much as I hate the fact that some AFC team has a dynasty, it's true. I liked the Patriots better when they had the old logo, and were at the dead bottom of the league.



    Of course, the only championship team we have in DC these days is our other football team, the United, and while a lot of people care a lot about that, most of us are foreigners.
  • Reply 7 of 10
    thttht Posts: 5,421member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by groverat

    That guy's logic is specious at best, only the three players I mentioned (Harris, Williamson, Ward) were actually related to the Moss trade. So all the other guys to be happy about could be coupled with Randy Moss.



    The Purple has had a lot of problems outside of Moss, like being 30+ million $ under the cap last year. Ie, the owner didn't want to spend money on good players, plus the fact that he had the team for sale for a long long time now. Once the team is sold to an owner who cares, maybe the Vikings organization, from ownership, management, coaching to players, could finally move in one direction. It maybe that turning over the coaching staff (Tice et al) is required before that happens.



    The fate of the Vikings still rests on the arm of Culpepper though. If he shows up like he did against the Eagles in January, it's going to be a frustrating season. If he can make the winning drive, which he is rarely able to do, then it will be a happy season. Can't wait.



    Quote:

    On a selfish note, losing Moss makes me lose a little interest in the Vikes. That's not really anything Vikes fans should concern themselves with, but the guy is one of the two most exciting WR in the league.



    I'm a Moss fan too, and will be plenty interested to see his effect on the Raiders next season.
  • Reply 8 of 10
    ipodandimacipodandimac Posts: 3,273member
    Orton + Bears
  • Reply 9 of 10
    pfflampfflam Posts: 5,053member
    Vikings owner is a loser . . . I hope that sale that's inthe works works . . . .



    but the team that matters, AKA: the Stealers, did very well in this draft. Heath Miller at TE and a mean Defensive CB, which they much needed . . .they also got Fred Gibson who should, if all the Stealer's fans are correct, replace Plaxico easily enough without all the negative energy that Plax had . .

    Some other good players too . . . I think that the new Pacific Islander trend for the Stealers is gonna pan-out: Shaun Nua is gonna rock as will Kemeon-whatever-the-spelling-his-name is . . . it was a good draft for them: every player has that old-school Stealers toughness attitude too . . .
  • Reply 10 of 10
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ipodandimac

    Orton + Bears



    Orton is good, but with the rest of the team as pathic as they are - ThePackers will stomp 'da bears...GO PACKERS!!!!
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