Breaking Down and Grading the Drafts of the NFC East Teams

Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys did very well in this year's draft. They were able to get a 1st round pick next year by trading down with the Browns. Despite trading down they were still able to trade up and draft the same player they wanted at their original pick, Anthony Spencer. Spencer is a very good defensive end out of Purdue, and he will greatly help an overrated Dallas defense. Spencer has great explosive pass rushing ability but, can also stop the run, he will be a perfect complement to Demarcus Ware as the other outside linebacker in the Dallas 3-4 scheme. Expert draftician Mel Kiper Jr.has even predicted Spencer to be the defensive rookie of the year. I won't go as far as Mel and give him the ROY yet, but Spencer will be a solid contributor this year and will eventually become a premier defensive end in the years to come.

Tackle James Marten was an excellent pick in the third round. He is tall (6'7"), athletic, and plays with a mean streak. He could step in and start for Dallas this season. The other tackle drafted by Dallas, Doug Free in the fourth round, was a steal and also could see significant playing time this year. Cornerback Courtney Anderson in the seventh round was a great pick, as he has the talent to become a good cornerback in the NFL. Dallas addressed there kicking needs with Nick Folk out of Arizona in the sixth round, but I would rather see them draft Mason Crosby there or Andrew Wellock instead. However Dallas earns a high grade by being able to maneuver into an additional first round pick next year, while still being able to draft the player they wanted. They addressed their needs in the offensive line and stole Free and Anderson in the later rounds. My Grade: A-

Washington Redskins: The Redskins had the sixth pick in this year's draft and they made the most of it, drafting safety LaRon Landry out of LSU. Landry has blazing speed (4.35 forty) and he can cover the fastest receivers in the NFL. He is a big enough he can come into the box and stop the run. Landry is also a big hitter who takes the quickest path to a ball carrier, as well as not being afraid to deliver punishing hits over the middle. With Landry and Sean Taylor at safety for the Redskins, I would not be a receiver going over the middle against Washington. The Redskins did not have any picks in the second, third, or fourth rounds. In the fifth the Redskins drafted outside linebacker Dallas Sartz out of USC. Sartz is big and fast and anyone who starts for USC has to be talented. Sartz has been called in over achiever in scouting reports but I think Sartz has the skills, size, and work ethic to be able to become a very good starter in the NFL, or at worst a very good special teams player.

The Redskins made a great pick in the sixth round with middle linebacker HB Blades. Blades has a good football pedigree, his uncle was Bennie Blades. Although HB is short in height (5"10) he is quick enough to plug holes and never misses a tackle. He will be a very good special teams player and a future starter. With their other sixth round pick Washington drafted another player with a good football pedigree Jordan Palmer. Palmer's older brother is Carson, quarterback for the Bengals. Jordan Palmer only has moderate arm strength, but good size. There is some questions about his durability and he is not very mobile. However, with development he will become a decent number two quarterback. The Redskins final pick was tight end Tyler Ecker. Ecker played for the University of Michigan and was very productive. He has good size and speed, but there are questions about his blocking and strength. He should turn out to be a roster filler at tight end to provide depth. The Redskins made good picks with the pick they had. My Grade: B

New York Football Giants: The Giants started off poorly, but got better as the draft went on. With their first pick the Giants selected cornerback Aaron Ross out of Texas. Ross is a well developed player who possesses excellent skills. However, he does lack ideal speed for a cornerback. Also, I would have like the Giants to fill their hole at left tackle and protect Eli Mannings blind side. Tackle Joe Staley out of Central Michigan was still available and would have made a smarter pick in this situation. I like the Giants second round pick in Steve Smith. Smith was projected to be a late first round pick, but he fell all the way to the middle of the second round. Smith is a polished receiver who will finally establish a reliable number two option in NEw York behind Plaxico Burress. Defensive tackle Jay Alford was a bit of reach in the third round, as he lacks size and was projected to be a second day pick. Linebacker Zak Deossie out of Brown was a good pick in the fourth. Deossie is a smart player who gives 100% every down.

He will be an excellent special teams player and may eventually contribute as a starter. Tight End Kevin Boss out of Western Oregon has the size and the speed to become a quality number two tight end, if he adds bulk and learns how to block better he will be a steal int he fifth round. Safety Michael Johnson was a great pick in the seventh round he compares very closely to Gerald Alexander, who the Lions foolishly drafted in the second round this year. He has good size and speed and may develop into a reliable starting safety over time. The Giants dropped the ball by not addressing their needs at tackle until the sixth round, where they drafted Adam Koets who can't be relied to adequately protect Eli Manning's blind side as a rookie. Because of this My Grade is a C+.

Philadelphia Eagles: I now can understand why Philly fans can get angry enough to boo Santa Claus, because of drafts like this one. The Eagles traded out of their first round pick, so their first pick ended up being in the early second round. With that pick Philly went ahead and drafted Kevin Kolb out of Houston. Kolb is not a bad player, the problem with the pick is value. Kolb would have been on the board for the Eagles' later second round pick, as would arguably better quarterbacks like Trent Edwards, Kolb rated out as 3rd to fourth round prospect. The Eagles' needs would be much better served drafting a player like cornerback Chris Houston or linebacker David Harris. If the Eagles were dead set on drafting a quarterback in that slot then they should have taken much higher rated quarterback such as John Beck or Drew Stanton. The one good thing that can be said about the Kolb pick is McNabb cannot play forever, so they needed a new quarterback to groom. Also, Kolb is a very good fit in the west coast offense, so its not all bad Eagles fans, just mostly bad. The Eagles used their other second round pick on defensive end Victor Abiamiri who is a physical specimen.

He is built and shows natural pro bowl caliber pass rushing ability. However, Abiamiri has good but not great speed which may hold him back from showing the success he had in college into the NFL. Still, Abiamiri was a pretty good pick for the Eagles in the second. Running back Tony Hunt was a bit of a reach in the third round, as he plays slower than his forty yard dash time (4.55) would indicate. Hunt does possess good size and shows the ability to break tackles, he will be a good complement to Brian Westbrook in the backfield. Still, I would rather see the Eagles draft a wide receiver in the first three rounds, as their starting receivers are Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown right now. Donovan McNabb needs more help than that. The Eagles selected cornerback C.J. Gaddis out of Clemson in the fifth round. Gaddis had good workout numbers as well as possessing good size.

Gaddis decided to leave school a year early and would have been much better off staying at Clemson one more year. Gaddis is a developmental player who could help out the Eagles in a few years. The rest of the Eagles picks, DB Rashad Barksdale, TE Brett Celek, and FB Nate Iloa are all roster fillers who add depth, but aren't spectacular. For their puzzling decision to take Kolb with the 36th pick and failing to address their issues at wide receiver I give the Eagles a D+. The Eagles draft was one of the poorest this year.