With Free Agency pretty much wrapped up, the NFL Draft is quickly approaching once again. As we have done in the past, we’re going to take a quick look at the other teams in the league and preview their team needs and how they will likely approach the Draft. Today we take a look at the NFC West.
For reference, we compiled the draft picks each team currently has. Compensatory picks are listed in parentheses.
The Kevin Kolb experiment enters its second year with mixed results. At times, Kolb looked solid last year, but injuries and inconsistent play opened the door for John Skelton, who made the most of his opportunities, going 5-2 as a starter. Pittsburgh West continued their reputation, adding CB William Gay in free agency. Gay will likely be an immediate starter opposite last year’s first round pick Patrick Peterson. Even after the hiring of Ken Whisenhunt, the Cardinals have never got their running game off the ground and still rank in the bottom third in rush offense. Drafting offensive linemen would help that tremendously. With only 1 pick in the top 80 (they traded away their 2nd rounder as part of the Kevin Kolb deal), look for the Cardinals to be a candidate to trade down to add more picks.
The Seahawks did what they needed to do in Free Agency, namely resigning DT Red Bryant and signing a counterpart in DT Jason Jones from Tennessee. They also made a splash by landing QB Matt Flynn with a very team-friendly 3-year deal. With the D-line and QB situation taken care of, they will likely look at the next two levels of their defense – specifically Linebackers and Cornerbacks in the draft. Seattle could use some help up front as well, and they could be a prime candidate to draft Stanford Guard David DeCastro. Under Pete Carroll, the Hawks have been movers and shakers on draft day, so don’t be surprised if they trade down out of the #12 spot.
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