What Should They Do? - Vikings

The Vikings are sort of stuck in an awkward position with the seventh pick. Their most glaring need is at WR but the trio of Ted Ginn, Dwayne Bowe, Robert Meachem, and Dwayne Jarrett offer little in the way of distinguishing which player is better than the other three. The best player on the board is Brady Quinn, but they drafted a QB in the 2nd round last year who is just this season getting the opportunity to play. The best move would be to trade down to a later slot with a team that might desperately want Brady Quinn like the Dolphins, Jacksonville, Kansas City, or Baltimore. If a move like that does not happen, the team would be forced to select a WR with this pick. The most complete WR is Dwayne Bowe who has a great mixture of size, strength, speed, and route running. He is a consistently hard worker and a good blocker in the running game.

In the second round the team should look to add depth on the offensive line at guard. The best available guard at this spot in the draft is Arron Sears of Tennessee. Sears might end up starting opposite Steve Hutchinson by the time the season is over and will additionally be able to backup Bryant McKinnie at the LT position. Sears should team with Hutchinson to form a devastating run blocking duo that will be the envy of the league as early as next season.

With their third round pick, the Vikings should again look to the WR position. The candidates who could still be available at this spot are Jason Hill, Craig Davis, Steve Smith, and Courtney Taylor. The pick should be Steve Smith, who may be a first rounder if he had played for another team and was not so overshadowed by Dwayne Jarrett as the focal point of the offense. Smith is fast, has adequate size, runs crisp routes and has great hands. He will be a great fit opposite Bowe.

What Should They Do? - Redskins

With the Redskins in the unenviable position of having only one pick in day one, the logical thing for them to do would be to trade down two to three times in the first round in order to drop into the early twenties and select the best player available, acquiring much needed picks in the process. However if they had to stay put, they would be unable to fill the teams biggest need at DE or WR with the 6th pick as no player of that value is still available at this slot. The next area of need would be to draft a FS for the purposes of moving Sean Taylor to his more natural positon of SS, where his gambling style will have less effect. LaRon Landry is far and away the best FS in this draft, with 4.3 speed, great size, and even better instincts on the field. Landry will instantly solidify the secondary, assuming that Shawn Springs can stay healthy as well. It will be intersting to see which Landry becomes the toast of the area as LaRon's brother Dawan is the starting FS for the Baltimore Ravens.

What Should They Do? - Cardinals

The Cardinals selection is the most obvious at this point in the draft. With their many years of offensive line woes the Cards should select Joe Thomas, LT, from Wisconsin. Thomas will step in from day one and start at either the LT or RT positions depending on where they want him with Matt Leinart being a left hander. Thomas' great run blocking skills will also be shown when Edge James finds a little more daylight this year than he did last season.

With their 2nd rounder the team should focus on acquiring a DE to provide a serious pass rush opposite a healthy Bertrand Berry. Players who could be available at this point are Charles Johnson, Anthony Spencer, and Quentin Moses. The player who has the size and speed to succeed in the NFL is Charles Johnson, who will hold up against the run a lot better than the other two, who may be better utilized as situational pass rushers.

With their 3rd round pick the team needs to add a run stuffing DT to the defensive line, where Darnell Dockett and Kendrick Clancy are better suited to play the three-technique defensive tackle. The best DT available at this spot is Marcus Thomas, who was the most talented defensive player at Florida but was kicked off the team for marijuana use. Thomas has top 15 talent to go with his 315lb frame. He will provide a huge pass rush as well as run stuffing from his spot and the behavioral risk is offset by depth at the position and getting him in the third round.

What Should They Do? - Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Bucs like many teams drafting this high have a lot of holes. The Bucs are no exception with glaring holes on the defensive line, wide receiver, and at the safety position. Prospects are available to fill all of these positions this high in the draft, but the team should look to the positions of scarcity. In this particular draft it is DE where only a few elite prospects exist. Gaines Adams of Clemson should be the Bucs selection. He will provide an immediate boost in the 3rd down pass rush opposite Simeon Rice and will probably be able to take over as the starter at the other DE by next season. Expect Adams to be around 10 sacks and in the top 3 for Defensive Rookie of the Year by the time the season is over.

In the 2nd round, the Bucs hold two picks, a high one and a low one acquired from Indianapolis in the Anthony McFarland trade. With the higher pick the team should look to fill the hole at DT left by McFarland and select Jonathan Harrell, DT, from Tennessee. Harrell has massive size and could play north of 325lbs. He also has remarkable toughness after playing an entire game with a torn biceps tendon. He could step in immediately and start opposite Chris Hovan. With the later pick, the team should address their need at S by selecting the versatile Eric Weddle from Utah. Weddle can play either safety spot and corner, has great speed and instincts, which are required of safeties in the Cover 2 scheme more than the corners. Weddle could start at SS right away or allow Will Allen to be moved there, while also providing an effective backup to Ronde Barber and Brian Kelly at the cornerback position.

With their 3rd round pick the Bucs should select Daymeion Hughes, CB, from California. Hughes is an elite talent that dropped due to him running in the 4.5s in individual workouts. Anyone watching him on film notices that he stands out more than any other player in the game, making tackles, intercepting balls, and shutting down wide receivers. His tackling abilities and coverage instincts make him an ideal fit in a Cover 2 scheme. He should be starting opposite Ronde Barber by next season.

What Should They Do? - Browns

With a team full of holes, the first thing that the Browns should try and do is trade down twice. First into the bottom half of the top 10 and then into the mid teens where they would be able to select either a LT like Joe Staley or Levi Brown, or a CB like Chris Houston, Darrell Revis, or Leon Hall. However since that is not likely with many teams looking to trade down this year, the Browns should select the best player available in the first round which falls to JaMarcus Russell. Russell may be hit or miss but his physical skills, arm strength, accuracy, and on field performance are undeniable. His size should also allow him to absorb some of the punishment that seems to plague Browns signal callers during the season. The safe choice would be Joe Thomas, but if Calvin Johnson is gone and no trade down available, the Browns should go with Russell.

In the 2nd round the Browns should take LT Joe Staley or CB Chris Houston if either of them are available. I'm betting that Houston would be more likely to still be there. Houston is freakishly fast and strong for a CB and has an impressive resume of shutting down Dwayne Jarrett, Dwayne Bowe, Earl Bennett, Dallas Baker, and every other WR he faced except for Sidney Rice. He also should a great affinity to coming up and supporting in the run game.

With their 3rd round pick the team should look at OGs to provide depth behind the always questionable Ryan Tucker. At this point the best available guard should be Josh Beekman of Boston College. Though a little short at 6'1", Beekman has shown a great ability to get out and maul players while pulling. He will provide great depth and possibly start opposite Eric Steinbach as early as next season.

What should they do? - Lions

The Lions hold the 2nd pick in the draft. The team's biggest needs are at the DE, CB, OL, and QB positions. A lot of problems exist for the Lions in drafting from this spot without trading down. For instance there is not a DE that is considered a top 3 pick and it would not make sense to draft one here unless they trade down 3-5 picks to do so. There is not a CB prospect who is a top 10 pick and this draft is very deep at corner with many first round talents available in the 2nd or even the 3rd round. At OL most of the Lions problems are in the interior line positions with Jeff Backus and the recently acquired George Foster above average OTs on the outside. Saying that, there are not any players that are even in the top 15 that are interior lineman. At QB, the Lions believe that they can develop a non-1st round player, utilizing the abilities of Mike Martz to do so, with his impressive track record with Trent Green, Kurt Warner, and Mark Bulger.

There is nothing logical for the Lions to do but to trade down 3-5 picks to a team that really wants one of the QBs or Joe Thomas. Arizona, Minnesota, and Miami are possibilities. The trade down would allow them to pick up 2-3 extra draft picks. But regardless of whether the trade happens or not, the Lions would likely select a DE with the top two candidates being Jamal Anderson of Arkansas or Gaines Adams of Clemson. Anderson is the larger player at 6'6", 280lbs, with Adams measuring at 6'4", 260lbs. They are both great players with Anderson playing the run slightly better and Adams rushing the passer better. It is basically a coin flip as to which player the team would select at this point.

In my opinion the selection should Jamal Anderson. Though Adams has the better track record of success, he will never be a guy that could get up to 290lbs and provide the versatility of Jamal Anderson. Anderson had a breakout season this past year, notching 14 sacks while playing in college football's best conference. Anderson has long arms and a quick burst from the line, though he will need to develop his pass rush moves in the pros. He should step in immediately and do well given the double teaming of Shaun Walker in the middle.

In the 2nd round the Lions should focus on the OG position with Justin Blalock of Texas and Ben Grubbs of Auburn possibly available. Either of these players could step in immediately and start, greatly enhancing the effectiveness of the running game. If both of these players is gone, the focus should shift to CB or QB with CB Marcus McCauley of Fresno State, QB Drew Stanton of Michigan State, CB Eric Wright of UNLV, or CB Daymeion Hughes of California (assuming the team is serious about acquiring a CB that can tackle). Any of these players would fit the bill quite well.

In the 3rd round, the Lions should look at the CB position again with the focus resting on Daymeion Hughes of California, Fred Bennett of South Carolina, or Johnathan Wade of Tennessee. The selection of two quality CBs in this draft would greatly upgrade the Lions secondary, especially after the trade of Dre Bly to the Broncos. There is a chance that the Lions could be starting two rookies by the end of the season.

What should they do? - Raiders

Oakland holds the first pick in the draft. Numerous early reports have them taking Jamarcus Russell from LSU with this pick. Russell may be an intriguing talent with the best arm for a QB in a decade, but he should not be the pick they make. When picking first overall in the draft it is more imperative than ever that the team select as guaranteed an impact player as possible. Whiffing with this high a selection can have a poisonous impact on team morale. Ask the Browns and Bungles about this.

The Raiders have a need at many positions. The serious needs are on the offensive side where WR, QB, and OL are a tremendous priority. But among these WR is the most glaring. Though the team has "name" players like Randy Moss and Jerry Porter, they do not have quality at the position as these two are more concerned about earning their way out of town than earning their paychecks. QB has an intriguing prospect in Andrew Walter, who has himself an incredibly strong arm, has started 10 games with essentially dismal results. But remember that he did this behind a woeful O-line throwing to WRs who admittedly were not really trying to catch the ball. Walter should be given more time to prove himself before drafting a guy like Russell who is a very similar player. A veteran QB that knows that he is only there to mentor Walter should be brought in to do so. A guy that is too old to be taken seriously as a starting candidate, like a Vinny Testaverde, could really help Walter figure out the QB position even if a horrendous QB coach is in place. The awful O-line should be addressed later in the draft since there is not a player who is a surefire #1 pick available.

The Raiders pick should be Calvin Johnson. He automatically gives the team a tremendous mismatch on the outside ever time he is on the field. He leaves the other WRs in single coverage automatically. Even if he is doubled, when Walter is in trouble he can likely have a pretty nice safety valve in just throwing it high to Johnson who is well noted for his ability to catch the ball in traffic. Additionally Johnson is an aggressive blocker who should help free up Lamont Jordan or Dominic Rhodes on the outside. Johnson could also be moved all over the field, put on the outside, the slot, and even at TE to really confuse other teams and get him really mismatched on a LB. Johnson is the only guy the Raiders should even be considering with this pick. Russell is not much more than a heavier, blacker version of Andrew Walter, who still has not failed to the point of going in another direction.

With their second round pick the Raiders should look at the OL and possibly the QB position. At OL, Justin Blalock of Texas and Joe Staley of Central Michigan could still be available at this point. Blalock would be an immediate infusion of talent at the OG position and really help the running game get going. Staley could step in and be the LT of the future, moving Robert Gallery to the RT slot, where his short arms are less likely to be exposed by pass rushers. If these guards are taken the team is better off trying to move down into the middle of the round, picking up a few more picks, and picking OG Arron Sears of Tennessee. If that is not available to them, they should stand pat and pick QB Drew Stanton of Michigan State. Stanton has a strong arm, toughness, and a tremendous upgrade in mobility over any QB on their roster.

With their 3rd round pick the Raiders should look again at upgrading the OG position. If Arron Sears is still available then he should be the pick. If he is gone, they could trade down to the middle of the round and grab a guy like OG Manuel Ramirez or Texas Tech or OG Josh Beekman of Boston College.