Quote
jemach
taking an OL in the top 10 of the draft...unless you "know" you have an Orlando Pace, Walter Jones, Jonathan Ogden, Joe Thomas, etc.
You say how can you know? Well...those guys were talked about in terms dominance...instantly ready...they did what they did for more than 1 year in college. Even before they were draft eligible/graduating...it was obvious. The conversation about them was different than others. It just was. So...it's a high high high high high bar for me.
Guys like Greg Robinson, Jason Smith, etc. were "athletic", had great upside. They needed development. If you aren't 100% certain the guy walks on the field and starts for you from day 1, it is an awful pick. I could live with a Baron...a failed pick but was selected in the 15-20 range. You're not happy but not devastated.
You have to hit on those top picks. No place to take a developmental player.
Had they switched the order and taken Donald at #2 and Robinson at #13, Robinson still would have been a bad pick. Now that I think of it, Joyner was better at #41. Maybe he was better than Tre Mason at #75 but not Maurice Alexander at #110...
Ah, they should have just drafted Khalil Mack at #2 and had one of the best drafts in history.