1) I like it when Wonder gets to reply to another draft analysis that is contrary to his own thinking. We see how they think and perhaps collectively we can get better insight into whether one of them is missing something.
Wonder likes, not loves Nicks. He is not excited about Sintim and certainly does not like him IN THE SECOND ROUND. In walks a KC Joyner critique of Nicks and Sintim that is very positive. What are we missing?
Wonder: "Nicks will be playing against a LOT of press coverage which makes these numbers irrelevant..however, he should be able to learn to use his big body to shield and catch..like Keyshawn somewhat...and the CB's are a LOT faster and better.
"As for Sintim...I really don't agree with Joyner...I think he's actually pretty good against the run..but not FAST enough to be an OLB/pass rusher in the NFL."
2) Separately we asked Wonder about Sintim in light of his comments about not having the speed to be a SAM in coverage, but being able to rush the QB.. why not just make him a MLB? Answer: "Yes...I think it's his ONLY chance for Jints." The Giants are pretty smart about player development. They will figure out what they need to do to get this player on the field.
3) "Wonder"
At 2:11AM (Between Day 1 and Day 2 of the draft) he emails: "as for tomorrow, ....would LOVE Turner for Jets...also, I like Murphy for Jets..BUT the real Home Run for Jets is SHONN GREENE..I would even trade my 6th and 3rd to get the 1st pick tomorrow and RUN to the podium (if not, maybe A.Brown)...I must admit, IF he's gone, Jets MIGHT go for Michael Johnson..it's a BIG gamble..but if he "fills out" w/o losing his speed, he would be a stud DE."
At 2:27AM he emails another time: "my god...I've lost my mind...I forgot about Gilbert...for Jets..IF Greene not available...I would take either him or M. Johnson depending on how the Jets evaluated them..."
Well, at 10AM the third round opened up. The Jets trade up to the #1 pick of Day 2 and take ..SHONN GREENE. Note also that Gilbert went 4th and Michael Johnson went 6th. So the three people he keyed on were selected in the first six spots of Day 2. The Jets needed to pay their 3rd, 4th and 7th to move up, which is more accurate than just a 3 and 6. Nonetheless he was right on target for what the Jets 'should' do. People are already saying that Rex Ryan is aggressive- so is Wonder, and it should not surprise that he is in synch with the coach. The only thing that remains now is to see how Greene does in the pros.
Btw, note how Wonder was keyed on Andre Brown if Greene was gone by the time they picked at 76. The Bmen got him a round (and a half!) later at 129. This was a good day for New York teams getting running backs.
4) Speaking about "and a half," let's remember that Reese has been drafting from the back of the line for two years now. Considering we have filled in the blanks (Edwards asking too much, Maclin trade to move up 9 spots) it is not as if he is asleep at the switch. On the contrary, he is playing poker with much weaker position and is still doing a good job of getting a lot of good people in.
5) Speaking about Maclin, as much as the Ultimatenyg mantra was against taking a WR in the first round, as much as the last minute thoughts before the draft asked that the Giants did not trade up even higher for a WR (I was worried about them doing that for H-Bey), if Reese would have grabbed Maclin you would have to be COMPLETELY ON BOARD with that move. Maclin was a lot of value at that spot. I will go further and say that the Eagles got a very good player. Ralph Vacchiano may be correct to point out that the Giants will not necessarily see him hurt them initially at WR, but I think he overlooks the more important impact... I am particularly concerned about his special teams contributions he will make. I do not watch a lot of college football, but the one game I did catch was scary-- it was very obvious that you had to do everything in your power to keep the ball away from this guy on specials. The opposition did that well, until one play in the second half, and boom the game was over, he broke open a close one with one touch of the ball. All I can think about is the line from Deacon Jones, a must-see video.
6) Speaking about the Eagles, we will have a recap of all 32 teams' drafts next week.
Friday, May 1, 2009
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3 comments:
why doesnt wonder blog on here too, and why does it seem that most of his predictions come after the fact?
Wonder did blog on here briefly. He is not very good with the blog interface, had permissioning problems, it was a mess. Plus he has been very busy with work, so I have basically been chatting w him on email, and when the draft got close we would converse on the phone so that I could get his downloads.
As for "predictions coming after the fact," I offered up during the Sunday comments section that you could email me (shortly after Shonn Greene went) and I would forward his email. He wants his privacy, I will redact his name. As for other predictions, everything is here as a matter of record.
Some good calls off the top of my head: Cutler trade/value, Canty values, Dallas in deep trouble in early Oct
Some bad calls off the top of my head: AZ 0.0 chance (along w rest of America giving them no shot), Giants inside track for SB, Dallas #1 team for Super Bowl preseason.
Draft calls (millions to pick apart down the road):
Nicks vs Britt
Monroe and Smith
Bullish on Beatty, Barden and Brown, not as much on Sintim and Beckum.
Tyrell Johnson over Kenny Phillips.
He liked the picks of Terrell Thomas, (Oniel Cousins over) Mario Manningham and Bryan Kehl.
Too many to put down.
I've been stopping by this blog on and off for over a year now and have personally borne witness to a number of Wonder's predictions - all posted here before the fact. The man clearly has strong opinions and is not shy about going on the record with them.
Although he's obviously knowledgeable on the subject of the draft, his overall track record doesn't appear to be all that much better than a lot of other guys I know who closely follow college ball and have strong opinions of their own. Sometimes they correctly identify a nice player that many teams miss and who slides to the fourth or fifth round. And other times their "can't miss" players bust - and bust badly.
If I recall correctly, Wonder hated the Phillips pick last year and was pushing hard for the Giants to take Quentin Groves. While it's too early in either man's career to say with any certainty how things will turn out, I think most competent football people would much rather have KP than QG righ now.
Don't get me wrong; this is in no way meant to be disrespectful of Wonder. I don't follow college ball at all so I always enjoy reading the opinions of those who do. I'm just not ready to anoint him - or any other ESPN "expert" or amateur draftnik of my acquaintance - as a keener judge of NFL talent than Jerry Reese or Marc Ross.
This is neither blind homerism nor hero worship on my part. Rather, it's just a simple case of "the proof is in the pudding." In his short tenure as Giants GM, Jerry Reese has consistently demonstrated the ability to select college athletes who, at worst, turn out to be serviceable NFL players. In fact, I don't think the Giants have even cut ties with ANY of Reese's draft picks yet(with QB Woodson still hanging around on the practice squad)That's pretty remarkable when you stop and think about it - especially on a roster as deep as the Giants.
So, yeah, I'll continue to give Reese the benefit of the doubt. I mean, it's not like we're rooting for a perennial 4-12 team here who keeps getting high draft picks and blowing them. If, in a few year's time, we see some of JR's high draft picks bust or the Giants' record start to erode, I'll start giving the opinions of guys like Wonder greater weight relative to those of Reese.
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