Knowshon Moreno, Donovan McNabb, Mike Shanahan and David Garrard enter pivotal seasons where they will be scrutinized if they do not perform at a high level.
The Eagles seemingly came out of nowhere to sign Nnamdi Asomugha as they eye a trip to the Super Bowl.
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Miami Dolphins
Picks:
1st Round: Jason Allen, CB/S, Tennessee (16)
2nd Round: none
3rd Round: Derek Hagan, WR, Arizona State (82)
4th Round: Joe Toledo, OT, Washington (114)
5th Round: none
6th Round: none
7th Round: Frederick Evans, DT, Southwest Texas State (212); Rodrique Wright, DT, Texas (226); Devin Aromashodu, WR Auburn (233)
The thing about Nick Saban is that I?m a huge fan of the guy. I think he?s done wonders for that Miami organization in no time at all and I badly want to put trust in those draft picks he made.
To be honest, I don?t like the Jason Allen pick, if only because of how high it came. I feel that sixteenth is around where Allen would be taken if the danger of injury wasn?t there, and Miami is taking him there with the risk involved. I would have liked the Dolphins to trade down, but it?s always hard to fault a team for taking ?their guy? and the safety named Jason Allen was, without a doubt, their guy.
Getting Daunte Culpepper in the second round could turn out to be a smooth move. I don?t like the way Culpepper approaches the game, and he may not ever be 100% healthy again, but he?s a bona fide starter and that was a desperate need. Acquiring a player who has proven he can play at a high caliber is a nice move. It was also obvious that weapons Chris Chambers and Randy McMichael would be no more than an adequate group of targets for Culpepper.
I liked the way Miami responded by taking the two wide receivers in the draft. Derek Hagan isn?t an elite athlete but he?s polished and makes the plays. I like him and think he?s underrated going into the NFL.
Devin Aromashodu plummeted on draft day and was a great value pick at the end of the seventh round. He is the opposite of Hagan, a flashy, big play type with all the right qualities physically. I think we can expect Hagan to succeed, and Aromashodu?s size and speed will give him a very good chance as well.
Everyone always talks about offensive tackle Joe Toledo?s upside and he?s definitely attractive as a developmental player. The size and mobility are all there but he?s still got a lot to learn.
The last big move of the day was selecting defensive tackle Rodrique Wright in the seventh round. He was someone people saw as a second rounder so you can?t complain about this pick. Wright played a big part on the Texas national title team?s defense and he?s got that tremendous upside that allows him to dominate in spurts. Questions about his work ethic and consistency caused the drop, but Wright is one guy who?s got the potential to quiet those thirty-one teams that passed on him.
The only place Miami had a lot of picks this year was in the seventh round, and they did a spot on job at capitalizing on every pick even with those seventh rounders.
It?s not exactly a given that the Dolphins improved around the board in this draft, but the moves they made don?t hurt. Culpepper is there now, and so are two more nice receivers. Allen and Wright should add something to that defense that needs all the youth it can get. I didn?t like everything Saban and company did, but I didn?t dislike anything either.
