FanPost

Be Mark: Make a Mock

I have been playing around with Fanspeak this week while being on break from school and thought I would take a moment to imitate Mark. Since I'd rather not be Abe Simpson yelling at kids to get off my non-existent lawn (I jest). I thought I would do a write up of one of my Mock Drafts. This was done using Fanspeak: Lite with their board, their team needs, and on difficult. There are no trades which makes this much less realistic, but still interesting at the same time. One note that I had about this draft is that the value doesn't really seem to be as top heavy as it normally does. I think depending on what kind of picks you could get out of a trade down there is a lot of high value talent to be had in the 2nd/3rd round, if trading out of the 1st could net you a high 2nd and something else I would be all for it.

ROUND 1, PICK 30

Hurst

Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan

At 6' 2" and 282 lbs, Hurst is slightly "undersized" for a traditional NFL DT. That being said, size is not everything and we have seen smaller DTs be incredibly effective. I also think that giving Hurst a year or two with an NFL weight training program he may very well bulk up a bit. Even if we get Richardson, I would still be happy with this move because I think we would be getting a guy who could potentially anchor one of the interior line spots for the next decade.

ROUND 2, PICK 30

Daniels

James Daniels, C/OG, Iowa

Daniels with this pick is a no-brainer. If this draft wasn't so unbelievably deep in O-line picks I think most years he would probably be a 1st rounder or early second rounder. Aside from being a high quality starter at Iowa and blocking well for one of my late round picks, Arkum Wadley, He's got great size and good speed where it counts, a 7.29 3-cone and a 4.40 20-yard shuttle with long arms. This move would give us lots of potential along the OL, whether that be trying Daniels out at Guard, or kicking Elflein out to one of the guard positions while he plays center.

ROUND 3, PICK 30

Jackson

Donte Jackson, CB, LSU

This was a really tough pick. Ragnow was still on the board and I would be lying if I didn't say I wasn't tempted to pull the trigger on him instead. This is really the only pick that I made in this draft that I have any kind of reservations about and it's because Ragnow was still on the board. I think if you take him it opens up a lot of possibilities. That being said, I think that with the possibility that we may not wind up bringing Waynes back coupled with the fact that Newman isn't getting any younger Jackson is a more than solid pick up at 3-30. Brings legit 4.3 speed to the table, decent height (5'11'') but is definitely going to need to hit the weight room at 175 lbs. He's probably not a day one starter by any means, especially given what we know about Zimmer's desire to bring DBs along very slowly, but he's got the physical gifts and I think he could be whispered into something great.

ROUND 5, PICK 30

Fumagalli

Troy Fumagalli, TE, Wisconsin

While I hate the Badgers and everything they stand for because the Badgers suck, Fumagalli is probably an underrated TE prospect. He's kind like Kyle Rudolph in a weird way; he can run routes well and he's got good hands but he's not going to blow you away, he's also a decent pass/run blocker but again not going to blow you away. All and all this was a good pick and it will help to bolster our TE core and potentially soften the blow of the team moving on from Rudy in the near future.

ROUND 6, PICK 30

Senat

Deadrin Senat, DT, USF

I think the reason Senat is likely still here in the 6th is due to size concerns. He's a bit undersized to play NFL NT but he is probably at the very least worth taking a flyer on. He is a fundamentally good NT with the ability to eat up blocks and also get penetration and hurt QBs. I think he's a great depth signing and could help to keep the DL fresh and firing on all cylinders all year long and help soften the blow if god is cruel and takes Linval Jospeh away from us.

ROUND 6, PICK 39

Igwebuike

Godwin Igwebuike, S, Northwestern

He has always been a solid defender for Northwestern and he put up great numbers at the combine which make me doubt that he will go this late; 4.44 40-yard, 6.56 3-cone, 4.12 20-yard shuttle, 10.81 60-yard shuttle. They guy is an athlete plain and simple, he's already fairly polished but could stand to gain some weight. I'm fairly certain that if anyone can term him into a solid safety its going to be Zimmer. Probably one of the better picks if I am being honest. Think of him as a poor mans Honey Badger.

ROUND 6, PICK 44

Demby

Jamil Demby, OT, Maine

Demby was a 4-year starter at Maine and has the flexibility to play guard or tackle at 6'5" 335lbs. He's a great O-line prospect with a fair amount of proven success. It is definitely worth bringing him on and trying to further develop him, he is definitely a project.

ROUND 7, PICK 7

Wadley

Akrum Wadley, RB, Iowa

On the most basic level, Wadley is a good runner with good hands that can easily slot in and fill the gap left by McKinnon. He is not going to be an every down kind of back but we don't need that as we've got Murray and Cook already. He looks to be a change of pace back, but has potential to be a good change of pace back and there's nothing wrong with that jack.

In summary, while I think being able to make trades and do some more maneuvering around would have made this more realistic I think the benefit of running a draft like this using only the picks we have shows that we really can address so questions about depth or fill holes and needs pretty effectively. Like I said I think the best value in this draft is not in the first but is in that 2-4 round range. I would be happy trading out of the first if by doing so we could accumulate more picks in that 2-4 range. I am curious how people think I did trying to play mark.

This FanPost was created by a registered user of The Daily Norseman, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the site. However, since this is a community, that view is no less important.