Let's talk draft

#14 in college becomes #29 in the pros.

I love the NFL Draft ... and I have for many years. This should be a surprise, considering that the Chiefs haven't been a particularly good drafting team since the early 1990s. While I realize that many people don't understand my love of this event - I'm sure that they likewise understand that there are things very important to them that mean very little to me. The NFL Draft is two things: 1. optimism for one's team springing eternal and 2. an island of pro football in the vast wasteland that is the offseason.

This year saw the premiere of the first "3 day Primetime" NFL draft, and sadly I missed much of it due to work on Thursday night and Saturday during the day. However, when I could follow it, I did - and what follows are my thoughts on the Chiefs' direction this year.

General Thoughts:
- This is no doubt obvious to anyone who's read anything about the Chiefs 2010 draft: perceived character was put at a premium. They chose team captains, team leaders, and Academic All-Americans. Their picks were coaches' favorites with no history of disciplinary problems.

- They chose players from big time conferences and big time programs, guys who played at the very highest levels of college football. Of 7 picks, 4 players were from the SEC and 2 hailed from the Big 10. Only their final pick, Cameron Sheffield, was from a non-BCS school (Troy - which has a pretty impressive list of alums in the league)

- The Chiefs focused on players who showed versatility - the ability to play more than one position competently. They also focused on speed and big play-making ability, especially with their first 3 picks.

Picks:
1st Round - Eric Berry, Safety (can play both Free and Strong) Tennessee
My first preference for this pick was for the Chiefs to trade down and accumulate more selections in a very deep draft. My second choice was for the Chiefs to select Eric Berry. Berry was the consensus best safety in this draft, a position of great need for the franchise. Some experts questioned whether a safety was worth the 5th overall choice, while others believed that Berry was the best talent in the draft, regardless of position. One certainty was that Chiefs fans loved the pick. DMN's Rick Gosselin - considered by many to be the best football writier out there - who predicted Berry will be the Defensive rookie of the year. Berry is a ball-hawk with great coverage skills - so great that some scouts felt he'd be a better corner than a safety. From the physical side, his vertical, 40 times, hands, and ability to change direction are all excellent for a safety (at the combine had the 2nd highest vertical amongst all players, regardless of position). From the mental standpoint, his field vision and excellent instincts have drawn comparisons to perennial All-Pro Ed Reed. From an attitude perspective, he was a multi-year team captain, played his final year of college under an NFL coordinator, and in interviews is as deferential and humble as they come. His first purchase with his signing bonus? A Ferrari? Nope. A Bentley? Nope. A Chevy Camaro. Ding ding. The knocks appaear to be his his size (5'11" to 6'0", 211lbs) - considered by some to be insufficient - and his ability to wrap up and form tackle against the run game.

After a couple of days of consideration, I love the Berry pick. Passing numbers in the NFL are higher than they've ever been, and coverage skills are at a premium. The Chiefs' division rivals are full of big receivers (and tight ends) and multiple receiver sets and a player of Berry's ability upgrades the secondary instantaneously. I'll defer to Gosselin on this one: "Berry may be the surest bet for greatness at the top of this draft board."

2nd Round A - Dexter McCluster, WR/RB, Ole Miss
This pick surprised me. A lot. I thought for sure the Chiefs would go OL, LB, or DT here. Instead they opted for a 5'8" 170lb dynamo from Ole Miss. McCluster played running back (technically) in college, but was an all purpose threat - both running the ball and catching it he was a threat to score from anywhere on the field. When asked in his first press conference what position he would play, he answered: "offensive weapon." The Chiefs obviously loved the kid to take him with a defacto first round pick. He's quick and shifty as befits his size, but he also possesses a straight line speed unusual for his stature. He has great hands as a receiver and the Chiefs plan to use him as a wideout primarily - he'll likely be the first target on third down and the recipient of many dozen screen passes. It's not surprising that he's drawing a lot of comparisons to Patriot mainstay Wes Welker. He'll get a few carries in the run game, be they from the tailback position, the wildcat, or end-arounds.

The scuttlebutt among analysts was that the Chiefs reached for a guy who would have been available in the 3rd round. About that: the Philadelphia Eagles had the pick right after the Chiefs and were shocked that KC took McCluster - they wanted him. He definitely adds a dangerous playmaker to the Chiefs offense, but I wonder about a team with so many needs taking a guy this high when he doesn't project to play every down. But if he starts right away as a quality slot receiver, my mind can easily change.

2nd Round B - Javier Arenas, Cornerback, Alabama
In taking Arenas, the Chiefs selected their third straight skill-position player from the Southeastern Conference. Arenas starred on national champion Alabama and was a team captain under Nick Saban, a coach greatly respected in the pro ranks. In coverage he was overshadowed by teammate Kareem Jackson but was solid in against the pass with good instincts, great strength and strong tackling ability. He was without question the best blitzing corner in this draft. What's more, he was a fantastic special teams player who fell only 19 yards short of the NCAA record for most kick/punt return yards in a career. He has very good hands and is a difficult to catch when he has the ball.

One of the biggest knocks on Arenas is his size - at just under 5'9" he doesn't have the build or leaping ability to cover the league's big receivers, and surprisingly (due to his kick return ability) he does not have tremendous straight line speed and can be beaten deep. These limitations will likely mean that on defense he plays only as a nickleback. However, his quickness, acceleration, and above-average strength could mean that he'll excel as a starter in a zone defense. Arenas is a player of limited upside, what you see is what you get and this scared many teams away. Yet the Chiefs felt a strong return man was a "must" in this draft, and they chose the best one out there. I only hope he's a better third cornerback option than any other comers, justifying this as a second round pick when other "needs" were still out there.

3rd Round A - John Asomoah, Guard, Illinois
In terms of draft position and position on the field, this is probably my favorite pick in this draft. The Chiefs need offensive line help and many had Asomoah pegged as an early second round talent. He's a heady player (academic all-american) but has the size to be a road grader in the run game and the mobility to pull out on stretch plays. He has a reputation as a nasty, fiery player who's great to have in the locker room and feared by opponents. Barring injuries, I think he'll have time to learn the pro game behind the Guard-Center-Guard combination of Brian Waters-Casey Wiegman-Ryan Lilja and then be an opening day starter at guard in 2011 when (I presume) the aging Waters will be moved to Center.

In terms of talent I think Asomoah is a steal. In terms of need, however, the pick is a bit puzzling. Offensive tackle was more of a need than guard after the offseason signing of Lilja and I don't foresee John getting on the field much this year. But the Chiefs obviously had him very high on their board and think that Branden Albert and Ryan O'Callaghan can get by at the two tackle spots.

3rd Round B - Tony Moeaki, Tight End, Iowa
Last year the Chiefs' tight end position was a revolving door of mediocrity. Sean Ryan, Jack O'Connell, Brad Cottam, and Leonard Pope all failed to impress a fanbase used to Tony G's hall of fame performances year in and year out. In fact, that the Chiefs had 4 tight ends on the roster should be pretty telling as to the quality of each of them. The Chiefs really wanted a tight end, and it seems they really wanted Moeaki. Fearing he wouldn't be there by the time they chose early in the 4th, the traded back into the 3rd round to take him, giving up a 5th rounder in the process (I wouldn't say they "gave up" their 4th rounder in the draft, I see Moeaki as their 4th rounder) Tony has the ability to be an every down TE - perhaps with upside to be the next pro bowl Tony at TE for the Chiefs - as he's both a strong blocker and an excellent receiver with soft hands and above average speed for the position. If he can stay healthy he's the best TE prospect in this draft. But that is a big if. He has had a litany of injuries during his time at Iowa, greatly reducing his on-field performance and preventing him from living up to his blue-chip status coming out of high school in Chicago. Only in his senior season did he catch more than 15 balls (30 for 387 yards) and even in this, his best season, he missed three full games with injury. Moeaki is truly a boom or bust pick with his health being the great, GREAT, wildcard.

In a pre-draft interview, I distinctly remember Scott Pioli saying he wasn't a big risk-taker. Perhaps he meant it or perhaps it was gamesmanship - this draft would indicate the latter. In a world in which the "safe" picks are offensive and defensive lineman, Pioli:

1. took a safety in the top 5 when a top offensive tackle prospect was still available.
2. Drafted an undersized WR with a high second round pick when many top DT's and more traditional WR's (a position of definite need) were still available
3. Drafted a punt returner with his 2nd second round pick while quality DT's and WR's were still available.
4. Gave up a 5th round pick in order to draft a tight end with an almost comical injury history.

I'm not saying this is a bad thing. They know their team much better than I do and their positions of most need better than I do. But I am saying that they didn't play it safe. There's no question they desired speed (game, not 40 time speed) and playmakers - guys who could change the scoreboard and/or create turnovers. There's no question they wanted leaders, guys who weren't going to get in trouble. To get all intangible on you, they wanted players who loved the game of football and were willing to put the time in (I didn't mention 5th round pick safety Kendrick Lewis, who Mike Mayock described as an "overachiever type that will work his tail off to get better.")

In the 2010 draft the Chiefs selected players who are easy to like as people. I hope it will be easy to like them as football players.