The Eagles seemingly came out of nowhere to sign Nnamdi Asomugha as they eye a trip to the Super Bowl.
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Jacksonville Jaguars
Picks:
1st Round: Marcedes Lewis, TE, UCLA (28)
2nd Round: Maurice Drew, RB, UCLA (60)
3rd Round: Clint Ingram, OLB, Oklahoma (80)
4th Round: none
5th Round: Brent Hawkins, DE, Illinois State (160)
6th Round: none
7th Round: James Wyche, DE, Syracuse (213); Dee Webb, CB, Florida State (236)
I wonder whether Jacksonville foresaw the ?surprise? retirement of go-to receiver Jimmy Smith. If so, then Marcedes Lewis in the first round makes a lot more sense than it did before Smith?s departure. Matt Jones and Ernest Wilford are nice pieces but they don?t make up a receiving core on their own. Even if Reggie Williams continued to improve in order to justify his first round pedigree, Byron Leftwich would still need more bodies to throw the ball to. Lewis is just that. While he isn?t a specimen athletically, and he could use a little work in the weight room, the UCLA tight end is a big target with the type of hands reserved for only the best receivers.
Another shrewd decision came in the second round when the Jaguars took smallish running back ? and Lewis? UCLA teammate ? Maurice Drew. Fred Taylor has never been a sure thing at running back. Drew isn?t a full-time running back, but he gives the offense a lot more options. His shifty moves make him a nice spot running back and receiver out of the backfield. Don?t undervalue the contributions he will make to the Jaguars? return game either.
Clint Ingram was a decent pickup in the third round. He?s an athlete and Jacksonville is going to need all the help it can get replacing Akin Ayodele, the underrated linebacker who signed with Dallas.
Missing their fourth and sixth round picks, you might have expected the Jaguars? second day to be a flop, but it wasn?t. Brent Hawkins and James Wyche were rather average selections, this is something I can?t deny, but you also can?t knock Jacksonville for giving a little attention to the defensive end spot.
With their last pick they got a guy who could be the best value pick in the entire draft in cornerback Dee Webb. Webb graded out as a mid-to-late second round pick with most people, including myself. Just this pick alone saves the grade for the second day because how often do you find a cornerback at the end of the seventh round who looks to become a good starter in the NFL? It?s just unusual and at the same time lucky.
I liked Jacksonville?s strategy of paying close attention to the offense with the first two picks but also addressing defensive holes. If there has been one weakness on the Jacksonville unit it?s the ability of the offensive arsenal surrounding Byron Leftwich.
If I could have done one thing differently for Jacksonville, I would have made a pick addressing the offensive line somewhere along the way. Other than that one omission, Jack Del Rio?s group had a solid day. I don?t think any one move was spectacular ? well actually the Webb pick was ? but I don?t fault the Jaguars for that given where they were picking from. While the two defensive ends might not amount to a great deal, I think all the other players from this draft are keepers.
