Unbiased Reviews by Real People
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Unbiased Reviews by Real People
ARIZONA CARDINALS-garymīs 2006 Draft ReviewJun 16, 2006 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line The Cards luck onto Leinart. Life is good.
ARIZONA CARDINALS RD1 #10 Matt Leinart QB USC RD2 341 Deuce Lutui G USC RD3 #72 Leonard Pope TE Georgia RD4 #107 Gabe Watson DT Michigan RD5 #142 brandon Johnson OLD Louisville RD6 #177 Jonathan Lewis DT Virginia Tech RD7 #218 Todd Watkins WR BYU FREE AGENTS Greg Lee WR Pittsburgh Damarius Bilbo WR Georgia Tech Chris Harrell S Penn State Darrell Hunter CB Miami(Ohio) Jay McCareins CB Princeton I admire Denny Green for his nose for talent and ability to attract and keep good players. Now if he could learn how to manage a game. He is believer in taking the best player available when possible and does it well. QB Matt Leinart will no longer be surrounded by an offense loaded with stars, but he has more often than not proved the ability to step up in the clutch. I think a year behind Kurt Warner would be ideal, though he is as close to being pro-ready as anyone. I prefer Vince Young, but Leinart is a great grab at #10 overall. RD2 T Deuce Lutui will move inside to RG and probably continue to protect lefty Leinartīs blind side from day 1. A big power blocker who will battle Wayne Gandy and Milford Brown for the starting job. Went a bit earlier than I expected but is a good fit with Leinart. Nice move. 3rd RD TE Leonard Pope is a guy who was rated a late 1st rounder by 7 of 8 sites. I expected the same but felt he was a 4th round value. ProFootballWeekly had the 6'7", 25# junior slated at a more realistic 70th overall. He went #72. Kudos to PFW. Over-rated. Lacks important intangables. A questionable choice considering the Cards already have Adam Bergan and Eric Edwards, then traded their 4th round pick for TE Brandon Manumaleuna. I donīt get it. Bad pick. 4th RD NT Gabe Watson was a steal. Great size and power to replace Russell Davis. The key is to get him motivated, building his stamina and controlling his weight. At worst he is a 3rd RD value. 5th RD OLB Brandon Johnson is a project who can improve if he can be motivated to work harder and get stronger. Should contribute to special teams and a cover linebacker. Solid 5th RD value. 6th RD DT Jon Lewis is quick and productive. Can be a good fit next to a monster like Gabe Watson. 4th pick in a row that lacks maturity and/or motivation. I like his upside. 7th RD WR Todd Watkins is a speed demon who can stretch the field and catch up to the long ball. Though he has football bloodlines, he has a track mentality. Looks like a sprinter. Isnīt much on routes and hears footsteps in traffic. A good value pick in the last round. He could serve a purpose. As per usual, Denny Green attracted a fine group of undrafted free agents. WR Demarious Bilbo was a QB until '03. Has upside as a WR. Junior WR Greg Lee is the top undrafted receiver on my list. I had him 12th overall at his position. A former teammate at Pitt with Cards Larry Fitzgerald. Lee led the Big East in receiving yardage as a sophomore and junior. Is noted for his amazing catches. Lacks great speed but is a smart runner. His biggest problem is his huge ego and lack of maturity. Not a team guy. If this draft worked as a wake-up call, Lee could turn out to be a gem. S Chris Harrell missed '04 after a hairline fracture to his neck. Started every game last year, but the neck injury is a big liability. Lacks speed and cover skills but has some tools to contribute. Robert Griffith is getting long in the tooth at strong safety. CB Jay McCareins (brother of Jets WR Justin) had 18 career picks at Princeton. A big play guy. A big plus is that he could be the return specialist the Cards have been looking for. A sleeper. Conclusion: The Cards drafted and signed a ton of talent. The potential is outstanding. Leinart will go a long way towards making this draft a success. Alas, along with the talent comes a ton of immaturity, laziness and egotism. Green likes to roll the dice with questionable characters. Sometimes he hits on a sleeper. I think this draft has been generally a bit over-rated. They are bring in so much receiving talent to a club already loaded in that department. They failed to pick up a quality safety or return specialist. Regardless, adding Leinart and Edgerin James to the offense makes the Cards a more dangerous team. An interesting A-.  |
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