Mock Draft: Picks 25-32

This is the end of the summary of the mock draft we held on Monday. The draft is officially less than 48 hours from now, so this is all I will say about it. Here's wishing the best possible pick to hometown Darrius Heyward-Bey, and let's see some trades. Trades are exciting. 

25. Miami Dolphins

Herman: Evander Brown (DT, Missouri)

Radecki: Vontae Davis (CB, Illinois)

Kiper: Malcolm Jenkins (CB, Ohio State)

McShay: Kenny Britt (WR, Rutgers)

Wright: Everette Brown (DE, Florida State)

- Notes: Another one with all five of us disagreeing, which shows one of two things: either A) the Dolphins are for real from last year and they don't have many holes and can draft for best player available, or B) the Dolphins last year were complete flukes and have tons of holes. I'm going for B. 

26. Baltimore Ravens

Herman: Darrius Heyward-Bey (WR, Maryland)

Radecki: Eben Britton (OT, Arizona)

Kiper: Vontae Davis (CB, Illinois)

McShay: Rey Maualuga (ILB, USC)

Wright: Darrius Heyward-Bey

- Notes: All of these make sense. Heyward-Bey is the tall, fast receiver the Ravens need. Britton would add stability to the right tackle position that the Ravens desperately need. Ozzie Newsome has already hinted at taking a corner in the first round, and Davis is a great talent. If Maualuga is still there, he will be hard to pass up. 

27. Indianapolis Colts

Herman: Clay Matthews (OLB, USC)

Radecki: Peria Jerry (DT, Mississippi)

Kiper: Peria Jerry

McShay: Evander Hood

Wright: Peria Jerry

- Notes: Defense, and more specifically, defensive tackle, is the running theme here. Only I, who thinks that Clay Matthews is too much of a value to pass up here, doesn't have the Colts taking the best defensive tackle available. 

28. Buffalo Bills

Herman: Eben Britton

Radecki: Phil Loadholt (OT, Oklahoma)

Kiper: Eben Britton

McShay: Eben Britton

Wright: Phil Loadholt

- Notes: Sense another theme? Getting rid of Peters makes tackle a glaringly obvious need here. Tyler and Wright had Britton off the board by now, or else I'm sure he would have been the pick. 

29. New York Giants

Herman: Hakeem Nicks (WR, North Carolina)

Radecki: Hakeem Nicks

Kiper: Hakeem Nicks

McShay: Hakeem Nicks

Wright: Percy Harvin (WR, Florida)

- Notes: Another seemingly obvious pick. Nicks would fill the void that Plaxico Burress's jailing will leave, and Harvin will give the Giants a dynamic playmaker. 

30. Tennessee Titans

Herman: Alphonso Smith (CB, Wake Forest)

Radecki: Darius Butler (CB, Connecticut)

Kiper: Percy Harvin

McShay: Vontae Davis

Wright: Darius Butler

- Notes: Wider receiver and cornerback are the biggest needs for the Titans, and it's not even close. However, wide receiver has been a need for such a long time, it's hard to see them finally addressing that need now, so cornerback is the choice for most. 

31. Arizona Cardinals

Herman: Larry English (OLB, Northern Illinois)

Radecki: Knowshon Moreno (RB, Georgia)

Kiper: Larry English

McShay: Donald Brown (RB, Connecticut)

Wright: Chris "Beanie" Wells (RB, Ohio State)

- Notes: If Wells is still there at 31 for the Cardinals, they may seize up out of pure joy. More likely they will go for a runningback like Brown, or they may take the risk and go for Larry English, an underrated pass rush out of Northern Illinois.

32. Pittsburgh Steelers

Herman: Alex Mack (C, California)

Radecki: Alex Mack

Kiper: Eric Wood (C, Louisville)

McShay: Max Unger (C, Oregon)

Wright: Vontae Davis

- Notes: Center is the likely choice for Pittsburgh here, although is Davis is still on the board, Pitt definitely could take him to add a quality cornerback. 

And that's that. I'll be following this up on Sunday with the winner and percentages for everyone. Just so everyone knows up front, this is how scoring will work. One point for every player taken in the spot the drafter said he would be taken in. Once again, we're going to work off numbers here, not teams. That's how I'm getting rid of the trade aspect. I'm intrigued to see how this pans out. 

Late Night Ravens Stream of Consciousness, Part Two

Now, as far as the offense goes, even if they don't do a single thing this entire offseason besides resign Jason Brown, the offense will be better next year. Why? Second year in a system instead of the first. Second year quarterback instead of a first. Your primary two runningbacks not named McGahee will be in their second year running the ball instead of the first. The offensive line may actually be healthy, and even if they're not, they can't be more banged up than they were this year. 

That being said, no matter what or how, the Ravens will upgrade at the wide receiver position this offseason. I don't care how they do it. Well, I do, but let's just say I don't for this sake right now. They could do it in free agency, or they may do it with a first round draft pick, or they may do it with a second round draft pick, or they could trade for one. Either way, they will get a wide receiver, and that will make them that much better.

How much better? Enough so that it will compensate for how far the defense will fall. The offense was ranked 18th this past year. If you put a great receiver on this team and Flacco progresses as he should, the offense may even crack the top 10 next year. A top 10 offense + a top 10 defense = success. 

Almost done. To elaborate more on the wide receiver position, I'm glad reports are now that TJ Houshmandzadeh is not going to be a Raven next year, because he's exactly the kind of wide receiver they don't need. He talks a lot, and he's a possession guy. Derrick Mason fills that role wonderfully. I see some mock drafts with the Ravens taking a Percy Harvin, the small speedster from Florida. He's also exactly the kind of guy the Ravens don't need. Mark Clayton fills that role wonderfully. Who do the Ravens need? They need Darrius Heyward-Bey, who can run by most corners in the NFL, or they need Anquan Boldin, who will out-physical all corners in the NFL to get by them, and has the same effect. How are they going to get either one of those guys? Well, Heyward-Bey will be simple to get. Odds are he will be there when the Ravens look to draft at pick 27. There's a slight chance a team like the Dolphins will take him a pick or two beforehand, but odds are against it. Now, there's no chance at all he's still around for them in the second round, so if they want him, they're going to have to pick him with the first round.

I'm not sure this is the most prudent option, though, and I'm looking at Anquan Boldin (pictured, left) when I say this. Is Anquan Boldin worth a first round draft pick in the NFL? I'm not sure. Teams really value their first round picks; it takes an awful lot to give up one. I think the Cardinals, however, in looking to trade Boldin, will look for a first rounder. I think the Ravens will play with this offer, but Ozzie Newsome recognizes value, and I don't think he would do it. That's why (and of course this could change in the two and a half months before the draft) I see the Ravens taking a cornerback in the first round, maybe Alphonso Smith out of Wake Forest. That would leave the Cards seeking a second rounder for Boldin, and they will certainly get their fair share of offers for that. 

Listen to the situation that unfolds itself now. What are the Ravens needs for this offseason? 1) Wide receiver. 2) Cornerback. 4) Anything else. There's that much of a separation. I'm of the opinion that, if the situation plays out like I imagined there, the Ravens would trade their second and third round picks with a team like Detroit who has a very high second round pick, then trade that pick to the Cardinals for Boldin. It makes perfect sense. Why take an unsure thing with a second round pick in the draft when you can get a sure thing with it instead at the position you need? Just a thought there. 

I recognize that this entire post was speculative, and a lot has to go right to make me look like a guy who knows anything at all here. Look at these previous two posts, though, and if you have a problem with anything I've proposed, I would like to hear it. I recognize it's just as likely that Anquan Boldin is a Cardinal next year as everything I've talked about going my way, but it's just a string of thoughts that make sense to me. Hopefully they make sense to the Ravens. 

Posts to look for in the coming days:

1. How A-Rod kicked a recovering baseball world in the face. 

2. The overblown Ray lewis interview. 

3. The ACC vs. the Big East in college basketball.

4. Where Maryland stands after the GT game. 

(Photo Credits: USA today)

Some More Super Bowl Thoughts

Didn't mean to come out so harsh on both the game and Harrison fronts. My point wasn't to say that this Super Bowl was not one of the greatest of all-time, only to say that it's impossible for me to agree with anyone who says outright that this was the greatest one ever. Also, upon further review, Harrison's touchdown was spectacular. If you want to call that play the best all-time in a Super Bowl because of what it did for the game, and the obvious length of it, I'm okay with that. I still don't think it was as cool as Tyree's last year, though. Now, onto some other musings of mine from last night.

Santonio Holmes absolutely deserved the MVP award. I like that this award isn't like the MVP award of the season, where it almost always ends up in the hands of a quarterback. In the past 10 years, only five Super Bowl MVPs have been quarterbacks (Warner, both Mannings, and two for Brady), while in the same time span, the ratio of quarterbacks to non-quarterbacks winning the season MVP award is 8:3 (Peyton and Steve McNair split it one year).

The only other logical choice for the award was Roethlisberger. Woodley had a huge game, and Harrison obviously got his, but I don't think you can give it to anyone on a defense that was lit up in the second half the way the Steelers' was. I give it to Holmes because of his great ability to get yards after the catch. It happened at least three times that Holmes took a pass from the line of scrimmage and turned it in to real positive yardage. By the way, I didn't believe it at first, but the touchdown to win the game was absolutely brilliant.

With that being said, the unit that played the worst during the game was the Cardinals secondary, which is particularly shocking to me because of how highly I regarded them coming into the game. They were really playing brilliantly in the first few playoff games (remember what they did to Jake Delhomme?). It's hard to criticize any secondary playing against Ben Roethlisberger because of how long you will often be forced to cover your man, as Ben extends plays like few others. There were some blown coverages, though, that were really inexcusable. Everyone was salivating over what a great play Rodgers-Cromartie made in the first quarter to save a touchdown, but if the ball wasn't five yards underthrown, we would be talking about what blown coverage he had. Beside that, there were the three men surrounding the ball for the final touchdown catch, with none of them even getting to Holmes in time for the push out. Two interceptions were dropped, and to pick on Rodgers-Cromartie again, it looked like he was a high school freshman playing against a senior when he was lined up with Holmes one-on-one on the outside. He really had a terrible game.

A Great, Great Super Bowl

... But not the best ever. Not the best that I've seen. Maybe not even top three. Rams-Titans, Patriots-Panthers, Patriots-Giants are all definitely right up there with this one. All were great football games. All came down to the last two minutes. All had their own subplots. 

Ranking Super Bowl games is actually quite worthless and infuriating, so I'm not going to go into a top 10 list of the greatest super bowls ever played, considering the first one I ever watched was the Packers and the Patriots in 1997, and I've only ever seen one played before then (old footage of the 1985 Bears' stomping of the Patriots). I will, however, share my thoughts from this game, probably in a couple of posts. 

There is absolutely no place or reason for the words "Move over, David Tyree" to come out of anyone's mouth when talking about Harrison's touchdown. SI.com's Don Banks was the first to drop what has already become my most hated phrase of all time in his column right after the game. David Tyree's catch (pictured, below) was the single greatest display of athletic ability I have ever seen. To make that play, in that situation, while being hammered by one of the league's strongest hitters is still mind-boggling to me. What makes the David Tyree play so great, though, besides Eli's ridiculous effort to get out of the pocket himself, was the fact that before the catch, Tyree had four catches for 35 yards ... DURING THE ENTIRE REGULAR SEASON. 

Now, I'm not here to slam Harrison, because if you pull off the longest play in Super Bowl history, you're something special. The image of him jumping that route, breaking tackles, and tip-toeing down the sideline for the score will forever be in football, and it truly was remarkable. Let's remind ourselves, though, that Harrison was the defensive player of the year this year. It doesn't take anything away from the play, but it made the idea of it happening plausible at the very least. 

Oh, and by the way, speaking of Harrison, in the post-game celebrations, let us not forget about the most despicable play of the game. Everyone completely forgot about it, because the very next play we saw Larry Fitzgerald scampering 50+ yards down the middle of the field for the go-ahead touchdown for Arizona. The reason the Cardinals were that far, though, was the 15 yard personal foul on Harrison. What for? Only punching a guy who tried to block him repeatedly in the back, and then, even though, the play was completely away from him, absolutely leveling the guy as he tried to stand up. Madden may have exaggerated when he said he should have been thrown out, but if he had, I don't think anyone would have argued too much. 

On a happier note for Pittsburgh fans, Ben Roethlisberger is truly a one-of-a-kind quarterback. He doesn't have the arm strength of Brady or the scary accuracy of Manning, but it is time that all doubters - including myself - concede the fact that Big Ben (pictured above, hugging MVP Santonio Holmes) has established himself in their class as the third best quarterback of our generation (I consider Brett Favre to be of the Aikman-Young generation. He kind of fits in between somewhere). I still put him third because of his obvious discrepancy in terms of numbers, and I don't think even the most die-hard of all Steelers fans will argue that point. He is above other peers, though, because of his uncanny ability to turn it on when the game is late. I, along with 60% of America, was screaming at the top of my lungs

 about how three Cardinals could be standing right next to Holmes, but not one can make a play on the ball, but the fact remains the same that Big Ben found Holmes there and the ball was delivered perfectly. Ben was impressive in the first and fourth quarters. In the second and third, he looked only mediocre, as he is prone to do during games, lulling you into a false sense about the kind of quarterback he really is. I've seen him do it twice against the Ravens already this season, though, and now on the biggest stage of all - the Super Bowl. He is as clutch as they come. 

(Photo Credits: allposters.com for Tyree; Getty Images for Roethlisberger)

Super Bowl XLIII

My prediction is pretty simple. It coincides with my first two AFC predictions in which I picked the Steelers to win. Luckily, I was right, twice.

This time, however, it is the Super Bowl, and the Steelers will be going against probably the best passing offense they've seen all year.

Still, the Steelers have shut down just about everyone this year. The Cardinals may seem to be unstoppable on the offensive side of the ball, but if there is one team that can run with them, it's the Steelers.

I think the Steelers will win. I think they will solidify themselves as the best franchise in the NFL and get that ever-elusive sixth Super Bowl ring. Let me tell you why.

First, this is the best defense the Cardinals have faced this season. The Steelers are aggressive, tenacious, hard-hitting, and flat-out mean. There are no holes in the defense. The defensive line is well above average and has two pro-bowl caliber players. The two outside linebackers include the defensive player of the year in James Harrison and first-year starter Lamarr Woodley, who, by the way, has 17.5 sacks through 18 games. More than Harrison. On the inside, James Farrior is a pro-bowler, Larry Foote is more than solid, and Lawrence Timmons is just as fast as a lot of running backs in the NFL (he caught Darren Sproles from behind, for reference). In the secondary, Ike Taylor is one of the better corners in the league and William Gay, Bryant McFadden, and DeShea Townsend all rotate in as the #2 corner and contribute significantly. Behind them, Ryan Clark had over 100 tackles in the regular season and hits just as hard as any safety in the league, just ask Wes Welker and Willis McGahee. Oh, and next to him is Troy Polamalu, the best safety in the NFL. If the Cardinals want to beat the Steelers, they are going to have to get the ball out of Kurt Warner's hands quickly, find some balance in the playcalling, and make some exceptional plays (not impossible, obviously, as Larry Fitzgerald has proved). The Steelers defense is not perfect, and it has been beaten, but it takes some extraordinary plays to do so.

The Cardinals beat a good defense in the Philadelphia Eagles. The Steelers are similar in a lot of ways. The difference is, the Eagles blitz - a lot. The Steelers don't blitz as much. It may look like they do, because linebackers generate the pressure, but in reality, Dick Labeau relys on 3-4 guys to get to the quaterback. The chess match between Cardinals offensive coordinator Todd Haley and Labeau will be very, very interesting to watch. I think Labeau wins it. After all, he should be the first coordinator to be in the Hall-of-Fame.

Secondly, Ben Roethlisberger has been phenomenal during the playoffs. Kurt Warner has been better - and has proven to be clutch in the Super Bowl - but there are a couple points I want to make about Ben. First, he hasn't turned the ball over. This plagued him throughout the year and he has been much, much smarter about where he passes the ball. In the San Diego game, he made smart decisions and stayed in a rhythm. In the Baltimore game, he was locked in, and his numbers would've looked better if a) Limas Sweed doesn't drop a perfect touchdown pass, and b) Hines Ward stays in the game. Ward is clearly Ben's favorite target and he will play on Sunday; even if he is not 100%, I think he is a factor. The Super Bowl XL MVP has to get involved, because the team needs his big plays. My second point is that the Ben of Super Bowl XL was not good - he admits he was nervous and it seems that this time, he is much more relaxed. I don't see him repeating his 9-21 performance. The big question, in my mind, is: If Warner gets hurt early and often, will he become turnover-prone? He is similar to Ben in that he is vulnerable to turnovers. So far, the playcalling has been good and he has been able to find receivers open quickly.

And Third, while the Cardinals have been outstanding all postseason long, they have less experience in the big game, and will not be at home. The Cardinals have played much better at home all season long, and this game will most certainly not be a home game. Reports from Tampa indicate Super Bowl XLIII may end up like Detroit did in 2006: infested with Steelers-fans. Matt Hasselbeck said that in XL, he was forced to go to a silent count in the first quarter because of the crowd noise. Kurt Warner will obviously adjust, but if it is basically a Steelers home game, the Cardinals could be in trouble.

Score prediction: Steelers 28, Cardinals 20. This game will not be a blowout. The Cardinals offense is too good and the Steelers' offense isn't really capable of blowing out teams. I think the Cardinals will put up some points, but I think the Steelers offense can put up some of their own as well.

MVP prediction: Troy Polamalu. For a defensive player to win this, he has to have the game of his life, and I think a Steelers defensive player will win it if the Steelers win (barring a huge day from either Ben or Willie Parker, which I think is unlikely). Polamalu was a force in the AFC Championship game and I expect more of the same. I think he has the potential for a repeat performance. I think James Harrison or Lamarr Woodley have a shot as well, but it will take a multiple-sack day and probably double-digit tackles (along with a forced fumble) to win it. If the Cardinals win, I think Larry Fitzgerald will get it. If Fitzgerald continues his dominance, the Cardinals will most likely win, and he should get it.

Arizona Cardinals: What I Thought I Knew

Now that my heart rate has recovered from a crazy divisional playoff weekend, it's time to do a little posting. This is going to be a 12-part posting about every team in the playoffs. For each team, I am going to do a little post about what I thought I knew, what I know now, and what I expect.

What I Thought I Knew Heading into the Playoffs: Cardinals

1. Larry Fitzgerald is a top 3 NFL wide receiver, and Anquan Boldin is top 5. Post-divisional round analysis: TRUE

We didn't get to see too much of Boldin, but we learned that if you throw a jump ball to Larry Fitzgerald (pictured, left), double coverage or not, he is going to come down with it. He just has that uncanny ability to time his jump perfectly every time, and he can jump higher than you can, plain and simple. Both the Falcons and the Panthers learned that the hard way. When Boldin is healthy, he can turn any 5 yard gain into a sixty yard touchdown because of his agility and power. 

2. The Cardinals can not stop the run, even if they know it's all that is coming. Post-divisional round analysis: UNDECIDED

I mean, you can tell why I thought that heading into the playoffs. They were the 16th ranked rush defense heading into the playoffs, but look at the running backs they played this year, and you will notice they've only played four in the top 10, the last one being Adrian Peterson, who went off for 165 yards against them. In the playoffs, though, it's been a different story. They held a very good Michael Turner to 42 yards on 18 carries, but both DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart got at least four yards a carry against them this past weekend. Arizona just jumped out to such a large early lead that they got away from the run. 

3. The Cardinals can not run the ball, and will have to rely on Kurt Warner for everything offensively. Post-divisional round analysis: FALSE

Once again, you can't really blame me for thinking this. This was, after all, the team that came IN DEAD LAST in rushing this year. It really seems to me, though, after the Carolina game, that they realized they might have something with this Hightower-James duo. Unlike many teams, who use the run to open up the pass, Arizona uses the pass to open up the run. When you have to double cover both receivers, that will happen to you. Neither Hightower or James (pictured, right) are going to get 100 yards on you most games, but both are becoming reliable options, especially on second down. 

(Photo Credits: AP)

And the Titans fall

There will be no 16-0 team this year. Earlier today, the NFL's last undefeated team fell as the Titans lost to the New York Jets 34-13.

I did not expect them to lose this week, mainly because they were at home. But the Jets flat out dominated this game. Kerry Collins threw the ball 39 times and the Titans defense (best in the league, at least points-wise) gave up 34 points and let the Jets go 7-13 on 3rd downs. The Jets had 192 yards rushing and the Titans had a mere 45.

The last couple games, the Titans looked beatable. I figured it would only be a matter of time until they lost, because a team like the Titans couldn't go undefeated. In today's NFL, with scouting the way it is, only a dominant team can go through the gauntlet and finish 16-0. The Patriots were that dominant team...well, until the Super Bowl.

The big question is: where do the Titans go from here? Most experts - including TnT Sports' very own Tony Herman - had the Titans at #1 because they hadn't lost. The Giants looked much more dominant in all facets of the game for most of the season (the Browns game was obviously a fluke, for both teams) and should now be #1 in most power rankings, assuming the win today, which is no sure thing. As I type, the Cardinals are up 12-10. That is definitely the biggest game of today, if only because it will prove to the country that the Cardinals are for real (it honestly feels wierd to say that the Cardinals are one of the NFL's "elite" this season).

Update: The Cardinals lost, but their offense played great against a good defense. They are legit.

Tonight's Winner: The University of Maryland

In the game between the 49ers and Cardinals tonight, if the 49ers hang on to pull this game out, the real winner will be Maryland.

I just saw Shaun Hill throw an 18-yard touchdown pass beautifully to Vernon Davis. Maryland quarterback (graduated 2002) to Maryland tight end (graduated 2006), which made me wonder: When's the last time a Maryland grad caught a touchdown pass from a fellow Maryland grad? More on that when I figure it out.