You cannot figure out what the Washington Redskins will do in the 2011 NFL Draft until you know what the nine teams ahead of them in the draft will do. That bit of intelligence is as closely guarded a secret as anything on the military’s Top Secret list.
Of course, you can believe everything a coach says pre-Draft. /Sarcasm/ Translation: if a team leaks anything, treat it as disinformation.
NFL teams are scouting other team’s needs as well as their own for two reasons. First, to project whether players at the top of their draft board will be snapped up by teams ahead of them. Second, to determine whether a team behind them could be a target for my team’s trade down offer.
In the Bloguin 2011 NFL Mock Draft, two pass rushers and two quarterbacks who undoubtedly interest the real Redskins were off the board after nine draft picks. Pass rushers Von Miller and Robert Quinn would help Washington’s defense. Quarterbacks Cam Newton and Blaine Gabbert would sell tickets to a skeptical fan base.
Hog Heaven selected wide receiver Julio Jones with the 10th pick of mock draft. Interest in Jones smoked out the Houston Texans’ mock interest in the same player, at least as expressed by my Bloguin colleague Patrick the Star, the talent behind the Texans Tribune.
My friend Patrick (Never met him. Exchanged email.) scouted the ten teams ahead of the Texans on their likely draft strategies. It is a good piece of work emulating what real teams are doing. I recommend it. Go take a look. We’ll be here when you get back
Texas Tribune – Top Ten In-Depth Team Needs (Teams 1 – 5)
Texas Tribune – Top Ten In-Depth Team Needs (Teams 6-10)
Were I representing the real Redskins rather than the mock team, you can be sure I would be feeling out the Texans about swapping Draft positions to give them a shot at Jones and get me multiple picks.
Something like that is going on right now in the front office or every team, real and otherwise. They are rare deals. More teams want to move down than to move up. Those deals can happen. Read the next story on Redskins Hog Heaven to see how.
Related Story – What Bill Belichick Can Teach The Redskins About Draft Strategy
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