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Sawin' Wood

Sawin' Wood: NFL Draft running blog...

By Ryan Wood
April 26, 2008 | 20 comments

7:57 p.m. Former KU offensive tackle Anthony Collins did not get picked in the first two rounds, meaning he'll have to wait until tomorrow to see where he's headed.

It was a big second round for the Big 12 (Jordy Nelson, Limas Sweed, Terrence Wheatley, Curtis Lofton, Jordon Dizon, Malcolm Kelly, and Martellus Bennett), which makes it even more impressive that Aqib Talib was the lone Big 12 player to go in the first round.

Enjoy tomorrow's five-round marathon. It starts at 9 a.m., so don't party too hard tonight.




7:30 p.m. I thought Limas Sweed, a second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers, went way too low. He was Vince Young's home-run target on the national championship team at Texas (Theo Baines remembers).

He has a solid career ahead of him.




5:54 p.m. Kansas State's Jordy Nelson is picked 36th overall to the Green Bay Packers. Of course, they show the Nelson-burning-Talib play again. Never saw that coming, but it did show Nelson's potential jets.

I'm excited to see how Jordy's career plays out.




5:48 p.m. The waiting game is starting to get intense, I imagine, for former Jayhawk Anthony Collins. This is the very early side of his projections, but today's draft ends after two rounds. He very well could be getting his hopes up today then have to wait another 14 hours to find out where he's going.

Sucks to be him, until he gets picked. Then it will be very good to be him.




5:24 p.m. Talib just got done speaking to the Tampa Bay media, and I got an ear in on the action. The most interesting part, of course, was Talib's first public comments regarding the now-notorious marijuana allegations.

Talib didn't dispute it.

"I went through a little stage in college," Talib said. "All that stuff happened 2 1/2 years ago. I learned a lot from it. I'm a grown man now and I've moved forward from that incident. It's all behind me."




5:08 p.m. I am about to hear from Talib regarding his selection, so I'll pass on any important nuggets.

Be back in a little while.




4:39 p.m.: One more tidbit for the local readers: Tampa Bay plays at Kansas City on Nov. 2.




4:35 p.m. Last year's No. 20 overall pick was Texas cornerback Aaron Ross, who was picked up by the New York Giants.

Ross signed a 5-year, $13 million contract in late July and got $8 million in guaranteed money.

Be very, very happy for Aqib. He's now a rich man.




4:24 p.m.: I just realized that Talib was picked by Tampa Bay at 4:20 p.m.

Just sayin'




4:20 p.m.: Aqib Talib just became a millionare, selected No. 20 overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.




3:54 p.m.: Cornerback number two is gone, and once again it isn't Talib. Arizona selects Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie with the 16th pick.

A lot of mock drafts said Talib would go between 18-20. It's starting to sound right. We'll see.




3:46 p.m.: Kansas City trades up to No. 15, and that immediately ended the suspense. You knew they were taking Albert, which indeed is what went down.

So far, the Chiefs have done an excellent job in this draft. Excellent. An A+, but they have about a gazillion picks left to screw it up.




3:38 p.m.: Two high-profile offensive linemen left on the board, two picks before the Chiefs go at No. 17. How cruel would it be to see Virginia's Branden Albert and Pittsburgh's Jeff Otah both gobbled up?




3:33 p.m. Talib's character concerns were discussed by the ESPN panel after McKelvin's selection.

I will say this: The apologists are arguing that a lot of people smoke weed in college. Yes, but what does it mean to fail three drug tests? Did Talib flat-out not care about testing positive, if this indeed is how it played out?

And shouldn't that at least be a concern that's thrown around when these teams are getting ready to invest millions in these players?

I think Talib will and should go in the first round. But I understand the red flag.




3:19 p.m.: The first cornerback is off the board: The Buffalo Bills select Troy's Leodis McKelvin at No. 11.

That leaves Talib, Rodgers-Cromartie and Jenkins. I think all three will go before the first round is done. Teams like Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Kansas City and maybe even Dallas could use a shutdown corner.




3:05 p.m.: ESPN is killing all the suspense. Keith Rivers is heading to Cincinnati, but we know because of sneak peek in the Rivers' family room. Roger Goodell got scooped, sources tell ESPN.




2:56 p.m.: Let the trading begin. New Orleans moves up to No. 7. New England down to No. 10. Jacksonville to No. 8. Baltimore to No. 26.

We're not done. Take all the knots out of your neck because it will get spinning here soon.




2:48 p.m.: "We are Under Armour! The fuuuuuuture is ourrrrrrrrrs!




2:44 p.m. Wow. Good work by the NFL. Six players in the green room, and they go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. The room is empty now.

No more Brady Quinn and Aaron Rodgers disasters as in year's past, where both waited and waited (and Quinn eventually was taken elsewhere).

New England is next. They need a lot of help. Only the exact opposite.




2:39 p.m.: The Jets are on the clock, easily the most entertaining part of every round.

I would imagine that the New York fans will have a very mixed reaction, only they will all be loud and obnoxious. God bless New York. The greatest city on Earth.




2:35 p.m.: Kansas City selects Dorsey. Great pick. I know he's not an offensive tackle or defensive end, but he's arguably the best talent in the draft. You had to grab him.

The Chiefs have to build a mansion from scratch, and this is a great start.




2:28 p.m.: The Chiefs are on the clock, and the million-dollar question now is this: Is Glenn Dorsey tempting enough, or will the Chiefs trade down?




2:23 p.m.: Mel Kiper has definitely changed his tune regarding Aqib Talib. First, he was to go No. 7 to New England. Then, No. 10 to New Orleans. Now he lists him as the No. 11 best available, with three picks already in the books.

I'm still interested to see what order the top four cornerbacks — Talib, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Mike Jenkins and Leodis McKelvin — get picked. It's anyone's guess.




2:19 p.m.: The Atlanta Falcons take Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan. Which, to me, means that Brodie Croyle will definitely be the Chiefs' QB next season.




2:12 p.m.: When's the last time the first two picks in the NFL Draft had the same last name?

I'm going to check that and get back to you.




2:03 p.m.: The first big surprise in the NFL Draft. Well, not really: Jake Long to the Miami Dolphins with the No. 1 pick.

This was brought up during the ESPN coverage related to Darren McFadden and the troubles that surround his inner circle: Does family factor into a decision?

Let's look at it a different way: How much does family factor in when picking a player like Virginia's Chris Long? He's the son of NFL great Howie Long, so we've seen his bloodlines succeed at the highest level. If the Rams were torn between Long and another player, would the success of Howie Long make a team a little more comfortable?

On a related level, does it make college coaches more confident in recruits, say Kerry Meier with his big brothers, or new recruit Deshaun Sands with his pops Tony?

I say yes. It won't be a dominating factor, but it's the cherry on top.




2:02 p.m.: I love the enthusiasm of the fans at Radio City Music Hall. They're nuts. Absolutely nuts. They're booing the Miami Dolphins without mercy.




12:26 p.m.: For once, Kansas University is invited to the party.

It's been 15 years since the first round has held any relevance for the Jayhawks, since Dana Stubblefield went 26th overall to the San Francisco 49ers and had a nice NFL career.

But Aqib Talib is changing things, and will go in the first round if his (alleged) failed exams don't get in his way. To fill you in, read Pro Football Weekly's article earlier this month about whispers of character concerns.

Did that article surprise me? Not one bit. Should it knock Talib out of the first round? I don't think so, if only because he certainly has matured since he first arrived at KU.

The point is, remember 3-4 years ago when KU fans were pumped about the prospects of Adrian Jones and David McMillan just getting picked? How Charles Gordon and Charlton Keith should get picked? A lot has changed with this program in a lot of different ways.

That said, I'm going to be a bit of a Debbie Downer and offer humbling predictions toward the draft prospects of KU's players. I've heard too much agent spin not work out, and I'm a little skeptical.

My predictions:

Aqib Talib: Late first round

Anthony Collins: Early third round

Derek Fine: Seventh round

James McClinton: Free agent

Marcus Henry: Free agent

Brandon McAnderson: Free agent

Scott Webb: Free agent

Kyle Tucker: Free agent

I know, it's not as promising as it could be. But overall, it's still a heck of a year for the Jayhawks and the NFL. (Think of last year. Not one even signed a free-agent offer, though Jon Cornish could have.)

I'll be checking in throughout the day. Come back and join the discussion.

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