Saturday, May 17, 2014

Never Fear, Underdogs are Here

Unscripted NFL Power Rankings
2014 Post-Draft

Back to football! I know you've missed it as much as I have. At this point it is incredibly tough to truly predict how good any team is or will be by Week 1. The Top 4 are pretty much agreed upon by everyone, but aside from that, predictions are kind of a crapshoot. So now's the time to take some credibility risks and bump up some underdog teams. I say the Texans (Clowney AND Watt? Seriously?) and Falcons will have comeback seasons and the Lions will finally start matching the incredible talent on their roster with actual play on the field. The Colts have the easiest schedule in the league, so they get a bump, while the Panthers have fallen as they lost receiver after receiver. They're not in my Top 15, but the Buccaneers are a team to watch out for also. And finally, I'm giving a shout-out to the Ravens. I'm always lower on them than everyone else, so this time instead of telling them to prove me wrong, I'm rating them high and telling them to prove me right. So how did everything play out after Free Agency and the Draft? Let's get to it; hike!

Nipping at #10's heels:
Cardinals (#15), Bengals (#14), Texans (#13), Lions (#12), Panthers (#11)


10. Atlanta Falcons
Last Time: --
Best Draft Move: "Offensive tackle Jake Matthews with the No. 6 pick. The Falcons had to resist the temptation to move up and really focus on getting an NFL-ready pass protector with the ability to clear holes in the run game. Matthews was no question the most technically sound of the top three tackles, and the son of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews should be solid for years to come. Matthews will start off at right tackle, but expect him to be the team's left tackle of the future. He should provide immediate results for quarterback Matt Ryan, who was the league's most pressured quarterback last season" (Vaughn McClure).

9. Baltimore Ravens
Last Time: --
Best Draft Move: "Sticking with their board. The Ravens' middle of their defense was significantly upgraded because the team took the best player available instead of addressing a more pressing need at offensive tackle and safety. The result: the Ravens landed a top-10 prospect (Alabama inside linebacker C.J. Mosley) at No. 17 overall and a first-round talent (Florida State defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan) in the middle of the second round. Mosley and Jernigan are two of the best in this draft in shedding blocks and stopping the run. The Ravens could've taken Alabama safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the first round and Virginia offensive tackle Morgan Moses in the second if they were trying to fill holes. But the Ravens haven't finished in the top 10 in defense since 2011, and Mosley and Jernigan are impact players who can get this defense back to its traditionally strong level" (Jamison Hensley).

8. Philadelphia Eagles
Last Time: 6th
Best Draft Move: "Trading up 12 spots to select Vanderbilt wide receiver Jordan Matthews in the second round at No. 42 was brilliant. The Eagles were in need of a major upgrade at wide receiver, and they picked up a player who has speed and size. Matthews has the ability to catch the difficult pass across the middle, and he can run a deep route with ease. Without DeSean Jackson and Jason Avant, this was a position the Eagles had to monitor. Matthews left Vanderbilt as the SEC’s career leader in receptions (262) and yards (3,759). Look for him to make an immediate impact in the NFL. Matthews is joining a team that needs help at wide receiver. It’s the perfect fit" (Andy Jasner).

7. Green Bay Packers
Last Time: 10th
Best Draft Move: "Even though much of the pre-draft focus was on improving the defense -- something general manager Ted Thompson did by taking Alabama's Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the first round (No. 21 overall) -- he did not ignore the other side of the ball. He wisely added depth to the receiving core with the highly productive Davante Adams of Fresno State in the second round (No. 53) and later local product Jared Abbrederis of Wisconsin in the fifth round (No. 176), and the small-school Jeff Janis from Saginaw Valley State in the seventh (No. 236). He then took a shot with developmental tight end Richard Rodgers of Cal in the third round (No. 98) and brought in competition for the starting center job with Corey Linsley of Ohio State in the fifth round (No. 161)" (Rob Demovsky).

6. New Orleans Saints
Last Time: 9th
Best Draft Move: "Trading up for dynamic receiver Brandin Cooks with the 20th pick in Round 1. Normally, I preach fans shouldn't expect too much from any draft pick in year one, but Cooks sure looks like he could make a huge impact right away for a Saints offense that suddenly needed some more juice after parting ways with veterans Darren Sproles and Lance Moore. Cooks' combination of college production (128 catches for 1,730 yards last season at Oregon State) and dynamic speed (4.33 seconds in the 40-yard dash) makes the 5-foot-10, 189-pounder another matchup nightmare for coach Sean Payton to play with. Cooks could also take over the Saints' punt-return role -- another area in which they need some help. But Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said that's more of a bonus than the reason Cooks got drafted. 'Obviously, we were aware of his skill [as a returner],' Loomis said. 'But he also had 120-some catches. We're pretty happy with him as a receiver'" (Mike Triplett).

5. Indianapolis Colts
Last Time: 8th
Best Draft Move: "The Colts started to prepare for life after receiver Reggie Wayne when they selected Donte Moncrief out of Mississippi in the third round. He's an all-around receiver who isn't afraid to throw a block if necessary. Moncrief left school early and is still a raw player, but he's not expected to come right in and contribute. It's all about the future with him. The Colts are set at the top three receiver spots with Wayne, T.Y. Hilton and Hakeem Nicks. But Wayne and Nicks will be free agents in 2015. Wayne is closer to retirement than playing another five or six years. There are not many receivers better in the league whom Moncrief can learn from than Wayne" (Mike Wells).

4. New England Patriots
Last Time: 4th
Best Draft Move: "Reinvesting in the offensive line. The Patriots hadn't drafted an offensive lineman in 2012 or 2013, but they triple-dipped with fourth-round center Bryan Stork (Florida State), fourth-round tackle Cameron Fleming (Stanford) and sixth-round right guard Jon Halapio (Florida). Time will tell if the picks were the right ones, but from a general standpoint, the Patriots needed to pay attention to the line both from an infusing-the-pipeline standpoint and also with salary cap integrity in mind. What stands out is the size of Stork (6-3 7/8, 315), Fleming (6-4 7/8, 323) and Halapio (6-3 1/2, 323). The Patriots added an element of offensive toughness in this draft, while also planning for the future. This is a big year for the team's offensive line as it transitions from former coach Dante Scarnecchia to Dave DeGuglielmo" (Mike Reiss).

3. San Francisco 49ers
Last Time: 5th
Best Draft Move: "Ohio State running back Carlos Hyde, who was widely considered the best overall running back available. The devaluation of running backs has become an NFL trend. It has happened in the last couple of free-agency periods and in the last couple of drafts. However, the 49ers are still a run-first offense. Frank Gore is turning 31 next week and is entering the final year of his contract. Marcus Lattimore, who was taken in the fourth round last year, is still a question mark as he recovers from a devastating 2012 knee injury suffered while at South Carolina. Hyde can help immediately. He is tough and is a perfect fit for this offense. He'll be an instant contributor" (Bill Williamson).

2. Denver Broncos
Last Time: 2nd
Best Draft Move: "It cost three draft picks for the Broncos to move up seven slots to Indiana wide receiver Cody Latimer, and given the most commonly used draft charts, the Broncos surrendered too much value to do it, especially if the fourth-round pick in the 2015 draft is not at the bottom of the round. But if Latimer develops as you would expect a big, fast, physical wide receiver to develop in the Broncos offense, it won’t matter all that much. If Latimer rolls up his sleeves and gets to work, he should find a way into the team’s rotation as a rookie and develop into a starter" (Jeff Legwold).

1. Seattle Seahawks
Last Time: 1st
Best Draft Move: "Moving down three times to acquire three extra picks, going from six picks at the start of the draft to nine in the final two days. The Seahawks ended up with two second-round picks, three fourth-round selections, one in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh. The best pick for Seattle could be UCLA DE Cassius Marsh, a versatile athlete with a family pedigree in the NFL. His dad, Curtis Marsh Sr., was an NFL receiver and his brother, Curt. Jr. is a defensive back for the Bengals. Seahawks West Coast area scout Tyler Ramsey loves Marsh’s motor: 'He plays with his hair on fire,' Ramsey said. 'He’s all over the field, a lot like Mike Bennett'" (Terry Blount).

1 comment:

  1. No way the Texas sniff the playoffs with Ryan Fitzpatrick--even in a crappy division and conference. The Panthers are a team ready to take a huge step back as well. That front seven will not continue to make up for the fact that their offense is trotting out perhaps the worst wide receiving corps I've ever seen on an NFL team.

    Atlanta should bounce back, but they are a bit too "stars and scrubs" for me to trust in the top 10. Matty Ice showed last year what a folly paying top five money to a non-elite qb is; you would never see a healthy Brady/Manning/Brees/Rodgers lead their team to a top 5 pick, no matter what the rest of the roster looked like.

    Not a huge Ravens fan either. Basically, copy and paste what I said about Matt Ryan for Joe Flacco. The Ravens are a better organization, but that contract will continue to haunt them.

    I am an Eagles fan, but I don't know if we are worthy of that high. However, in Chip we trust. As much as I like Andrew Luck, the poor moves of the Colts FO and their absurdly high winning percentage in close games has to finally regress them toward them mean this year, right?

    Either way, nice work on the rankings. We should catch some games this year. It would be great to watch with other people who appreciate football this much!

    -Justin

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