Four Downs with Stock & Doc
by Ben Stockwell and Paul Hopkins
17/4/2008
 
With just over a week to go until the 2008 NFL draft, the guys consider the latest movers and shakers in advance of the big weekend in New York City.
 
Miami are making a mistake if they are seriously considering selecting Jake Long with the first overall pick.
 
STOCK– FACT ! – He is nothing more than a solid left tackle the in the NFL, he doesn't have the upside to be the elite calibre of tackle that you give #1 overall money to. That is unless they can get him to sign for a meagre contract which may be the only reasoning to sign J. Long. Further to this, being that he is a better RT and merely an average LT, he doesn't offer them anything they don't already have, Vernon Carey was fairly solid at left tackle this year and with the money that a #1 overall pick would cost, Long would need to be a significant upgrade on Carey for it to be worth the money, he simply isn't that big an upgrade, it's not a good pick.
 
DOC – FACT ! – It is a Long they should get, but Chris Long not Jake Long should be the first name called out. Jake Long is a safe bet for a team in the top 10 of the draft because he does carry minimal risk with his selection. But he isn't the best player in this draft and he certainly isn't the player that Miami need most. Of course, and I suspect this is the main reason this has come out, this is mutually beneficial for the player (and his agent) and the Dolphins. It demonstrates to other parties vying for Miami's interest that they are willing to look elsewhere, and to other teams interested in Jake, that they maybe need to consider moving up. Works for both parties. And that, to me is what it has to be. I'll be staggered if he is the number one pick.
 
Aqib Talib's 'character issues' and his skipping of a workout in Dallas are being overblown, and will not affect his draft stock.
 
STOCK – FACT ! – Well, fact on the latter part, I'd need more information on the former to know for sure how his draft stock is being affected. The rumours are that he has tested positive “multiple times” for marijuana tests in college either administered by the NCAA or Kansas University. Well two is multiple times but in reality not a greater problem than just trying the stuff once, unless it's recurring problem (surely he would've been suspended if it were) then it's really a non-factor, Gaines Adams and Calvin Johnson were totally unaffected by similar problems last year. As for skipping the workout, all this talk in my opinion is coming from Dallas and it's all about the Cowboys losing face because he's passed up on them to workout with another team on the same day. Well quite frankly all I can say is boo-freaking-hoo, you aren't NFL royalty Dallas, you aren't above any other team. What if Talib had already agreed to workout with the other team before he was invited to Dallas? Surely this is a positive character trait that he is sticking to prior agreements rather than passing them up to workout with a bigger name team? I don't see the problem personally.
 
DOC – FICTION ! – There's no smoke without fire. Or perhaps more accurately there's no smoke without Aqib Talib it seems. I don't doubt that every year people like digging up and hyping up circumstances about certain players, but Talib seems to have question marks over his head. I'll wipe out that Dallas example as it's a load of fuss about nothing, and a case in point of people stirring up nothing into something. But you're right, people do draft trouble makers. They get blinded by their talent or believe they can change them and go with their heart over their head. Look at a certain Adam Jones. He went with the 6th overall pick. Ricky Williams – look at what he was drafted for, and look at the trail of fumes he's left in his wake. People will always take a chance on great talent. Now Talib isn't on a level with those two but he's still a fine prospect at an integral position. There'll be rumours and mutterings, and I wouldn't personally want him but it won't change where he goes.
 
Malcolm Kelly is right to criticise the Oklahoma Sooners for possibly costing him places in the draft.
 
STOCK – FICTION ! – He's right to point out that his 40 times has been run on a different surface to many of the other top prospects at wide receiver but to blame Oklahoma University for costing him draft money when they have given him the opportunity to play and a free education (well, probably a degree in “Communications” as most seem to get) is a smack in the face. Certainly the surface and the time do not help him, but there is no-one to blame, if he is so put out I'm sure he can find somewhere with a faster track and re-time, he'd only need a couple of NFL scouts there to ratify the time and if teams are still interested in him then I'm sure they'd give him the time of day.
 
DOC – FICTION ! – Boo hoo, so things aren't how you want it to be. “So let's see, how do I convince franchises that they should want to draft me? I know, I'll bitch and moan and turn on the people who have made me who I am and supported me all the way. Yes, that's sure to work.” What an idiot. In one session he's shown he lacks the speed people need and that he isn't afraid to shirk responsibility and pass the buck. It's not enough to give him the stigma of being a trouble maker or locker room cancer, but he certainly hasn't done himself any favours whatsoever. He's just drawn more negative attention to himself.
 
For a guard, Branden Albert's stock in this year's draft is rising far too high.
 
STOCK – FACT ! – He is an outstanding prospect, in my opinion one of the top five prospects in this year's draft (along with Dorsey, Ellis, Harvey and Chris Long), but a guard is simply not worth a pick this high (being touted for a top 10 pick) or the contract that such a pick commands. He is going to be an excellent guard but plenty of guards can be had with lower picks at lower contracts to mark out the lesser impact that guards have on the team. Now then at the tail end of round one I would most certainly agree that taking the top guard prospect is better than reaching for the fourth of fifth best tackle prospect, but this high at such a massive relative contract, even a massive fan of Albert's (as I am) simply cannot justify him going so high.
 
DOC – FICTION ! – If he was just going to be a guard then I'd be inclined to agree. But I sense a lot of teams may look at him, and see a future left tackle before them. Plus big money is what guards are getting these days. Look at Leonard Davis last year; look at Alan Faneca this year as just two cases. Teams will pay them what they think they are worth, and the role of the guard is now becoming just as important as that of tackle in monetary terms. Albert is a huge guy with a great upside so if he rises up it's because people think he's worth the expense and they're going to get a mainstay of their offensive line for the next decade. There can be no price too high for that.