It is safe to assume that as long as the Oakland Raiders do not trade their First Round Pick, either #3 or 4 overall, they will be able to choose from 1 or 2 of the Top Four Projected Impact Players in this draft.
They are fortunate that this is a draft that has FOUR players that "SHOULD" make an impact in the NFL THIS year.
Darren McFadden would have the opportunity to run behind a line that should be even better in 2008 than it was in 2007.
With one full Cable-ized year under their belts and everyone in their same positions they should open up even more holes for McFadden than they were able to open when they ranked 11th in the NFL in APC and 6th in Total Rushing Yardage.
Chris Long and Glen Dorsey look to be defensive line anchors in a league with some of the dominant defensive line players off our time, including Chris's father Howie Long.
Having the ties to Howie makes Chris my #1 pick. His father played for the Raiders his entire NFL career and it would be incredible for his son to do the same.
There is a rumor of a rift between Howie Long and Al Davis because Howie wanted to stay in LA and pursue his TV career instead of accompanying the Raiders North for one season before he retired.
Al figured this would be a great way to bridge the gap for fans who felt abandoned by the Raiders.
Howie would have been the ONLY player on the new Oakland team that played in Oakland before the move.
By drafting Chris Long the Raiders would come full circle in a way. They weren't able to get Howie back to Oakland, but his son would be taking his place and leading this young defense for years to come.
The "Other" Long is Jake Long and he would team with Robert Gallery to dominate the left side of the O-Line. Jake is thick, quick and can give a lick!!!
Yesterday I mentioned that the first round pick will effect the rest of the draft. I think that I was wrong about this draft because with so few picks you really have to make sure that all of the needs are met and you really can't go with best available talent.
Last year's draft produced two anchors (Russell, Miller), Three potential anchors (Richardson, Henderson, Bush) and three backups with starting potential (Bowie, O'Neal, Higgins).
That is Eight players on the current roster!!! This year the Raiders have 5 PICKS...Period.
Other than Russell and Miller, there are only six anchors on this team (Nnamdi, Burgess, Howard, Morrison, Lechler and Sea-Bass).
This means that there are two anchors on offense, four on defense and we don't need to draft a kicker.
At 4-12 last year it is going to take multiple players on both sides of the ball in order for the Raiders to return to the playoffs in the next couple of years.
I think that the best place to start is on the defensive side of the ball by adding sure tacklers .
Here is how I'd like to see the Draft go.
1st Dorsey, Long, McFadden, Long
2nd Erin Henderson
4th Jamie Silva
6th Marcus Monk
7th Dexter Jackson
This would be the "Shore up the run defense and take the best available receiver in the 6th and 7th" 2 - 7 Draft Picks.
Erin Henderson is exactly the type of LB we need in the four three. He is a gap shooting, sure tackling, run stopping linebacker..
Jamie Silva tackles everything that moves. He will be a good strong safety. At 5-11 and 210, He plays with a chip on his shoulder and runs INTO contact.
He and Henderson would be instant help for the TERRIBLE run defense.
Monk and Jackson are the best receivers that I've seen ranked that low (Monk-6 and Jackson -UDFA). I'd take either of them in the 6th IF they are there.
Dexter Jackson has blinding speed and works well underneath for such a small guy. He has BIG playmaking ability which is in short supply among the Raider receiver corps.
Marcus Monk is 6 foot 6 and may be the most fallen of any of the players in this draft. IF he is available in the 6th, as some suppose, he is an absolute steal.
Check Out This YouTube Action of Dexter Jackson
IF the 2nd - 7th rounds went this way I'd be extatic. Of course, the free agency signing period will be HUGE in deciding which way the Raiders Go and and we'll look at that next.
Cheers!!! Go RRRAAIIDDDEERRSS!!!!