Let’s take a look at some of the situations I’m talking about.

Oct 13, 2012; Shreveport, LA, USA; Texas A

Christine Michael

Risk: Well publicized ”attitude problems” that caused his college coach to limit his playing time.

Reward: If he can keep his head on straight and deal with being Marshawn Lynch’s backup for the next year or two, Michael has the potential to become a franchise running back who has been compared to Adrian Peterson.

Jordan Hill

Risk: Poor run defender who was driven backwards by college guards.

Reward: Elite pass rusher who has been compared to Cincinnati’s Geno Atkins. The question is whether his poor run defense will allow him to get on the field often enough to make an impact.

Chris Harper

Risk: Unpolished prospect with speed concerns and has a lot to learn about route running.

Reward: As I pointed out yesterday, Harper is extremely strong and knows how to use that strength to fight off defenders and make the catch. He still has a long way to go, but his college game tape is reminiscent of a young Terrell Owens.

Jesse Williams

Risk: Major concerns regarding the health of his knees.

Reward: If Williams’ knees hold up, the Seahawks will have gotten an elite defensive tackle that can dominate in a way that no Seahawk defensive tackle has since Cortez Kennedy.

Tharold Simon

Risk: Lacks speed, needs a complete overhaul of his technique.

Reward: Big, physical corner with great length. If he’s coachable and can fix his technique problems, Simon has the potential to be every bit as good as Brandon Browner.

Luke Willson

Risk: Rarely played in college. Extremely raw and unpolished.

Reward: With his tremendous physical talents, Willson has all-pro potential similar to that of Vernon Davis. After four years of college ball, Willson remains a long-term project and a question as to whether or not he will ever live up to his potential.

Michael Bowie

Risk: Violated some undisclosed rule that was severe enough for him to be kicked off the Oklahoma State team before his final year of college.

Reward: Before his incident, Bowie looked like a potential franchise left tackle similar to Russell Okung.

All of these players have the potential to become elite players. They were also available when the Seahawks drafted them because they come with considerable risk.

This is a game that Schneider has played, and won, before. Other teams questioned if Kam Chancellor was a fluid enough athlete to play safety. Richard Sherman was too big. Russell Wilson was too small. Even Bobby Wagner dropped to the Seahawks because he was seen as a “project.”

It is unlikely that all of these players will work out the way that Schneider envisions. The risk associated with  these particular players is real and Schneider is hoping at least a few will pan out.

Ultimately, that’s probably okay. The Seahawks don’t need to nail every pick. If a few of these players reach their potential, this will be remembered as an amazing draft for Schneider and the Seahawks. 

Apr 26, 2013; New York, NY, USA; NFL former player Deion Sanders announces the number sixty overall pick to the Atlanta Falcons during the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports

With the draft now firmly behind us, I thought it would be fun to take a look and see how the media members “graded” the Seahawk’s draft.

These grades are clearly meaningless, but they’re amusing. It’s especially fun certain media member glad the Seahawks draft as an “F,” even when it turns out to be undisputedly the best in NFL. Those are good times.

It seems that most members of the media have learned not to doubt John Schneider’s ability to evaluate and draft talent. Even though there were some choice words used on-air last week, the grades below show individuals who don’t want to end up looking foolish again.

The ever-annoying Mel Kiper from ESPN awarded the Seahawks a trio of grades for their draft.

Filling needs: B+

Value B-

Overall B

The text for this is behind their pay-wall, so I unfortunately can’t quote anything from his explanation without risking hearing from ESPN’s lawyers.

Chris Burke from Sports Illustrated gave the Seahawks a B-

Seattle used its Round 1 pick to acquire Percy Harvin, so it had to wait until pick 62 to get working. Actually, the Seahawks’ best decisions came at 137 (DT Jesse Williams) and 138 (CB Tharold Simon). The Seahawks had a roster built to roll the dice a bit in the draft, and that’s just what they did with their first three picks.

Bucky Brooks at NFL.com gave the Seahawks a B-

TheSeahawks took a second-round flier on one of the most talented runners in the draft, Christine Michael. The Texas A&M product is not only explosive on the perimeter, but he is also a rugged between-the-tackles runner with the toughness and physicality to spell Marshawn Lynch.

USA Today writer Nate Davis made the mistake of doubting Schneider enough to give this class a C-

Not that he cares what we think, but it appears Scheider is gambling on second-round RB Christine Michael and fifth-round CB Tharold Simon. Both are talented, neither is necessarily reliable off the field, nor do they fill needs

On the other hand Pete Prisco from CBS sports liked Seattle’s draft, and still have them a B.

Without the first-round pick, the Seahawks still did a nice job of adding quality players. They also added some players with some character concerns, which doesn’t seem to bother this team.

Jesse Reed at Bleacher Report Gave the Seahawks a B

I took a wild guess on the draft order based on my estimation of roster talent. I doesn’t really matter what order I pick, no one will be happy except for the team picking 32nd. I did end up with 3 NFC West teams in the playoffs, so you can guess what division I expect to dominate this year.

There are a couple of interesting things that happened as I was putting this together. First, there was a run on QB early in the draft. This year was a bad year for QBs, but next year is shaping up to make up for it. The other thing was a major lack of offensive lineman. There were just so many taken this year that there will be a lot less teams with major O-line needs in my opinion. 

As for the Seahawks, picking 32nd means that a lot of the top talent was gone off the board. Knowing that the team will be searching for salary cap relief in order to get Sherman and Thomas re-signed, I went with DE Stephon Tuitt out of Notre Dame. Tuitt is a massive 5-tech DE who will be able to take Red Bryant’s spot on the line.

Jan 02, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (5) before the snap against the Florida Gators during the second half of the Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. defeated Florida 33-23. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports

Every Mock Draft from this site is featured on Walter Football, DC Sports Report, and the Mock Draft Database.

1. Oakland Raiders
Teddy Bridgewater
QB, Louisville

2. New York Jets
Taylor Lewen
OT, Michigan

3. Jacksonville Jaguars
Tajh Boyd
QB, Clemson

4. Kansas City Chiefs
Aaron Murray
QB, Georgia

5. Buffalo Bills
Jadeveon Clowney
DE, South Carolina

6. Miami Dolphins
Jake Matthews
OT, Texas A&M

7. Philadelphia Eagles
A.J. McCarron
QB, Alabama

8. Cleveland Browns
Daniel McCullers
DT, Tennessee

9. Arizona Cardinals
David Fales
QB, San Jose State

10. San Diego Chargers
Jacob Pedersen
TE, Wisconsin

11. Tennessee Titans
Derek Carr
QB, Fresno State

12. Dallas Cowboys
Marqise Lee
WR, USC

13. Detroit Lions
Aaron Colvin
CB, Oklahoma

14. Minnesota Vikings
Calvin Barnett
DT, Oklahoma State

15. Indianapolis Colts
C.J. Mosley
OLB, Alabama

16. New Orleans Saints
Kyle Van Noy
OLB, BYU

17. Chicago Bears
Deandre Coleman
DT, Cal

18. Pittsburgh Steelers
Silas Redd
RB, USC

19. New York Giants
Trent Murphy
OLB, Stanford

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Max Bullough
ILB, Michigan State

21. Washington Redskins
Darqueze Dennard
CB, Michigan State

22. Carolina Panthers
Jackson Jeffcoat
DE, Texas

23. Houston Texans
Brandon Coleman
WR, Rutgers

24. Atlanta Falcons
Morgan Breslin
DE, USC

25. San Francisco 49ers
Louis Nix
DT, Notre Dame

26. Baltimore Ravens
Anthony Johnson
DT, LSU

27. St. Louis Rams
Craig Loston
S, LSU

28. Cincinnati Bengals
Anthony Barr
OLB, UCLA

29. Green Bay Packers
Asa Watson
TE, North Carolina State

30. New England Patriots
Cyril Richardson
OG, Baylor

31. Denver Broncos
Jason Verrett
CB, TCU

32. Seattle Seahawks
Stephon Tuitt
DE/DT, Notre Dame

Nov 17, 2012; College Station, TX, USA; Texas A

Eleven draft picks in the book, there are a lot of options available to be your favorite new Seahawk, or maybe even your new favorite Seahawk period. While the ladder honor might take a while for these guys to earn from the 12′s, there’s no doubt everybody is extra excited about a least one of the new kids and we’re here to ask, which one is it?

Here are the choices:

Round 2 

• Christine Michael (T A&M)

Round 3

• DT Jordan Mills (Penn State)

Round 4

• WR Chris Harper (K-State)

Round 5

Round 6

• HB/FB Spencer Ware (LSU)

Round 7

• OG Ryan Seymore (Vandy)
•  S/LB Ty Powell (Harding)
• DL – OG Jared Smith (New Hampshire)
• OL Michael Bowie (Northeastern St)

For me it’s a tie between Michael and Simon. I love what Michael gives the Hawks in terms of size and speed and you can see the attitude he gives them from the picture above. If he can stay away from the temptation to try and bounce things outside, he’s the perfect compliment to Marshawn and Robert Turbin and gives Seattle the third running back that is so necessary in the NFL, especially with the Seahawks’ style.

After playing with A&M in NCAA 12 and 13 in an online dynasty, I have also grown partial to the Aggie players and Michael was always a soft spot as the best overall running back I played with in the game. This is a bit of an artificial reason, but I also got to see Michael play quite a bit in real life due to my new-found A&M infatuation and he has the explosion to make me really excited about his pick-up. Also, I always like when Carroll surprises us with that early pick that we didn’t see coming but cannot find fault with in Seattle’s scheme. Thomas and Irvin were both personal favorites for that reason as well.

Meanwhile, Simon is big and physical at corner and gives Seattle a chance at grooming a young stud to take over Browner’s spot when the Seahawks can no longer afford his contract (which I believe is up in 2014 but Keith would probably know better than me). The reason it’s so big to me is that this will allow the littlest drop-off in terms of production, as opposed to replacing Browner the year of his contract with a rookie who has to make the transition and step in on day one. Also, it allows the Seahawks to keep their imposing figure with the size of Simon. Playing at LSU, Simon faced a bunch of big-time receivers and having played on a premier defense has the swagger and proven skills to help Seattle’s secondary. Just a terrific pick in my opinion, and how can you not be partial to a guy with a sweet name like Tharold?

Another noteworthy item to me is that Seattle stayed away from the Pac-12 conference early on in the draft. While I love the Pac and think there is a ton of talent that runs through there (obviously based on Seattle’s roster), I love the fact that they went with no less than FIVE from the SEC, one from the Big-12 and one from the Big Ten this year. Also, those players were all on mentally tough teams that have had multiple years of continuous winning success.

You can add Harvin (Florida) to the list from the trade for 3 of our picks, Bailey (Arkansas) and Aghayare (LSU)  from UFDA as three more SEC players and Ray Polk (Colorado [UFDA]) as the only Pac-12 representative in this year’s class. Speaking of UFDA I love the other additions of John Lotulelei and Akeem Davis to the mix of dark-horses to make the roster.

But back to the question of the hour to the 12′s … Who is your favorite drafted player for the Seahawks in 2013? (Respond in the comments section below)

What we’re talking about here is the players I would have picked for the Seahawks if I had been the GM. I made these selections at the same time the Seahawks did. No extra days to think things over. No hindsight based on players who were available 3 rounds later. It’s about picking the players as the draft unfolds.

Can you see why I think that shadow drafts are fun? Oh, but that’s not even the best part. The best part is looking back at the shadow draft a year or 2 later, and realizing jsut how bad the draft would have turned out.

Lets just say that I like to think of shadow drafts as my yearly reminder that I’m not an NFL GM, and that no team would ever be dumb enough to hire me as one. My drafts generally end up being pretty bad. 

I posted my shadow draft last year as well. Even after just 1 year it’s obvious just how much of a failure my draft would have been. I’m guessing that’ll be the case again this time around.

Don’t be afraid to laugh at my expense here. That is actually the point of posting this online.

Here’s the list. I’d missed a couple originally, so a massive thanks to NEPatriotsdraft.com for have by far the best UDFA tracker on the web.

1. 

   Sep 22, 2012; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks offensive guard Alvin Bailey (67) during the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Rutgers defeated Arkansas 35-26. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

   Jordan Roussos, OT, Bowling Green

2. Matt Austin, WR Utah State
3. Craig Wilkins, LB, Old Dominion
4. Ramon Buchanan, OLB, Miami
5. Kenneth Boatright, DE, Southern Illinois
6. Arceto Clark, WR Mississippi State
7. Jajuan Harley, SS Tennessee State
8. O’Hara Fluellen, CB Lincoln
9. Ray Polk, S, Colorado
10. Austin Coleman, WR, St. Francis
11. Akeem Davis, LB/SS, Memphis
12. Chancey Aghayere, DE LSU
13. Chris Billingslea, DE Citadel
14. Austin Coleman, WR St Francis
15. Jake Bscherer, OT Minnesota-Duluth
16. Alvin Bailey, OL, Arkansas
17. John Lotulelei, LB, UNLV

Most of these names on this list mean nothing to me. I don’t have the time to scout 800+ players like some people do. If I get to to 300 it’s a good year. All these small school players are way off my radar.

The names on the list that interest me the most are Ray Polk and Alvin Bailey. Polk looks like be belongs at safety with the Seahawks. He’s also known for massive hits. You’ve got to love that. 

Bailey is a guy who was strongly on my radar. I had him with a 5th round grade, and started expecting his name with every time the Seahawks picked from the 6th round on. Bailey is made to be a zone blocking, road grading mauler. He’s not much of a pass blocker, but then again, neither are most of the offensive linemen on the Seahawks roster.

November 17, 2012; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Spencer Ware (11) carries the ball against the Ole Miss Rebels during the second half at Tiger Stadium. LSU defeated Ole Miss 41-35. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports

The Seattle Seahawks have selected Spencer Ware from LSU as their second running back of the 2013 NFL Draft. The pick was No. 26 in the 6th round, No. 194 overall and due to the trade up to get defensive tackle Jesse Williams from Alabama, the only 6th round pick for Seattle in this draft.

Spencer Ware is not your prototypical running back, so the first thought that comes to mind is that he’ll come in as cap relief in the fullback role, which Michael Robinson currently occupies as a highly paid fullback. It won’t be the popular thought amongst 12′s but Ware is 228 pounds and after watching plenty of LSU football in 2011 and 2012, has forever been called more of the “prototypical” fullback. Ran for 367 yards on 94 attempts and only 1 touchdown on a highly physical running football team and only ran a 4.62 40 at his pro day. Take that for what it’s worth but fullback seems the ideal fit.

There isn’t much on him around the web, but NFL.com has said he showed “exceptional hands” while catching the ball in all his workouts.

Jan 3, 2013; Glendale, AZ, USA; Kansas State Wildcats receiver Chris Harper (3) is defended by Oregon Ducks cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu (14) in the 2013 Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

With their third pick in the draft (round 4, #123 overall) the Seattle Seahawks have selected wide receiver Chris Harper out of Kansas State.

Last night in the press conference, both Pete Carroll and John Schneider talked about filling out the roster with guys that build competition to any and every position. Harper fulfills that goal for the receiver position. He is a converted quarterback who transferred from Oregon for “personal reasons” and change positions for the Wildcats.

He is 6’1″, 229 pounds and described as a highly physical receiver, but is admittedly still learning the position fully. All of that adds up to him having a high ceiling and being yet another player that Pete Carroll likes, due to his unique abilities. Also, apparently Carroll recruited Harper at least somewhat during his junior year in high school, adding another draft pick to that trend over the past couple of years as well.

CBSSports.com has this analysis on Harper:

Highly physical receiver with better field speed than 40-yard dash indicates. Uses size well to shield defenders from the ball.

Harper is a coordinated athlete with above average body control and focus, tracking the ball beautifully. Not overly explosive. More of a one-speed player, but has improved each game as a route runner

NFL.com’s draft profile of Harper (video)

Harper said on his teleconference with the Seattle press that he models his game after Anquan Boldin and some of the bigger wide receivers in the NFL.

Oct 13, 2012; Shreveport, LA, USA; Texas A

Day 3 of the draft is underway! Very excited to see who the Seahawks add to the roster today. Lets do this!

Jan 1, 2013; Pasadena, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal tight end Zach Ertz (86) catches a pass over Wisconsin Badgers defensive back Dezmen Southward (12) in the first half during the 2013 Rose Bowl game at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

On Friday night the 2nd night of the NFL Draft some of the big name specialty players finally started coming off the board after a predominantly trench player 1st round. There was only 1 Quarterback taken in the 1st round and zero Running backs.

The Tennessee Titans made the first trade of the 2nd round by moving up into the San Francisco 49ers spot and Drafting the Physical Wide Receiver Justin Hunter from Tennessee. The Eagles then

Drafted Tight End Zach Ertz from Stanford who could really develop into a nightmare for defenses to cover in Chips Kelly’s up tempo high speed offense.

After day one there was not a single Running Back taken, although by the end of the 2nd round 5 Running Backs had come off the board. The first to be taken was Giovani Bernard from North Carolina selected by the Cincinnati Bengals followed by Le’veon Bell selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Then came the selection of the all-time NCAA Touchdown record holder Montee Ball selected by the Denver Broncos. It wasn’t until the 61st pick that the number 1 rated Running Back came off the board when Eddie Lacy was drafted by the Green Bay Packers. With the last pick in the 2nd round of the Draft the Seattle Seahawks made their first pick when they picked the highly talented Christine Michael out of Texas A&M.

Another player that slid out of the 1st round was Notre Dame Linebacker Manti Te’o who was selected by the San Diego Chargers with the 38th pick in the Draft. The Chargers are hoping they selected the playmaker that they have been missing since Shawne Merriman left.

In the 2nd round the New York Jets finally selected what they hope will be their Quarterback of the future when they picked Geno Smith from West Virginia. Smith was predicted to be the first Quarterback selected but after EJ Manual was picked by the Buffalo Bills in the 1st round the slide continued until he was picked with the 39th pick in the Draft.

Also selected on day 2 was the Honey Badger Tyrann Mathieu from LSU who was selected by the Arizona Cardinals. Mathieu was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy in 2011 but after being in trouble with the law and team policies in the spring and summer of 2012 he didn’t even step foot on the football field in 2012.

Now that most of the big names are off of the table after an exciting 2nd and 3rd round of the NFL Draft it is time for teams to fill their rosters up and attempt to find the next Russell Wilson of the 2013 Draft. Matt Barkley is the one big name still on the board so we will have to wait until this afternoon to see who gets the once prized Quarterback from University of Southern California after his huge slide down the Draft boards.

October 6, 2012; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions defensive tackle Jordan Hill (47) looks on during the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Victory Bell Rings represents the Penn State Nittany Lions for FanSided and measured up the newest Seattle Seahawk before the draft even began. It seems like Hill was rated (149 by CBS Sports) quite a bit lower than he ended up going (87) but as Pete Carroll and John Schneider pointed out:

He was the best player on our board at a position we were looking to fill. He’s just a tremendously explosive player, we feel.

It’s no surprise that Hill is a ‘surprise’ to most at the time he was taken. Carroll and Schneider have made a habbit out of taking ‘their guy’ when the time comes and they aren’t afraid to do it early so that he is secure. VBR provided us a snippet of their thoughts on the Penn State 2012 defensive co-captian (for the full article click the link above):

Any team that drafts Hill is most likely getting a rotational player, but don’t write him off just yet. Hill was only a 2-star recruit out of high school and used his work ethic and on-the-field motor to earn his place on a NFL roster. There is no doubt in anyone who watched him over the past four years he could continue to prove the experts wrong at the next level. I’m looking forward to seeing Jordan Hill playing on Sunday for many years.

I hope the draft experts are looking forward to being proven wrong, yet again!

Go Hawks!

January 19, 2013; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; West running back Christine Michael of Texas A&M

The Seahawks have finally made their first pick in the 2013 draft. It just took until the final pick of the second round to get here. With that pick, Seattle took Christine (pronounced Chris-TIN) Michael, a running back from Texas A&M. Chances are you’re wondering who the hell that is. Allow me to enlighten you.

According to NFL.com, Michael’s strengths include a “low center of gravity” but with a “thickness throughout his frame to take and give out punishment.” He has more speed than one would think when he is able to break open as well. Overall, Michael is a bruiser that will be a nice compliment to Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin. Both Lynch and Turbin are hard to bring down, and Lynch will occasionally level a tackler, but Michael has the ability to straight damage some defenders. Michael is also a good blocker that is able to lead the ball into the second level.

According to CBS Sports, Michael started 2012 rated by some as the “top senior running back in the country.” Attitude issues, however, took him out of the starting role, and the spotlight, which is probably a big reason he was relatively unknown and is yet another “what the what” pick by Pete Carroll and John Schneider.

Michael has had injury issues and missed the ends of both his sophomore and junior year. He broke his right leg in 2010 and the following season he tore his ACL. However, in 13 games he ran for 1,530 yards and 12 touchdowns. If he can check his attitude issues at the door and stay healthy, Michael should have an opportunity to contribute greatly in Seattle.

If Seattle starts utilizing a running back by committee approach it could be a very different dynamic on offense and make them harder to prepare for and defend. Diversity is a killer.

Another thing that I just thought of is whether or not Seattle might consider lining up Michael at full back and getting all three backs (Lynch, Turbin, and Michael) on the field at the same time. This could also give Seattle more flexibility when it comes to dealing with Michael Robinson’s contract.

This pick could also have fantasy implications as it might limit carries by Lynch.

No matter what, I think we should all get #inpcjswetrust trending because I expect a lot more unexpected picks out of Seattle for the rest of the draft.

There is lots to talk about: round 1, Seattle’s needs, Seattle’s picks, the state of the roster, etc. It’ll be fun.

We’ll be starting around 4:30 local time in Seattle.

Apr 25, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Xavier Rhodes (Florida State) is introduced as the number twenty-five overall pick to the Minnesota Vikings during the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

With the 1st pick in the 2013 NFL Draft the Kansas City Chiefs Select Andrew Luck. Not exactly, this year’s NFL Draft doesn’t have the flash or the instant star player’s in it like the 2012 Draft. The 2013 NFL Draft was full of meat and potato players, 6 of the 1st 11 players Drafted in the 1st round were Offensive Lineman.

The Kansas City Chiefs used almost every second of their 10 minutes on the clock and after months of film study and listening to possible trades they selected Offensive Tackle Eric Fisher out of Central Michigan, Fisher is slated to protect Alex Smith’s blindside. The Jacksonville Jaguars knowing that is would get to take whichever Offensive Tackle the Chiefs didn’t take, took Offensive Tackle Luke Joeckel from Texas A&M. Joeckel was thought by many to be the 1st pick although in the last few weeks his hold on the top Draft pick slot weakened.

The Miami Dolphins continued their aggressive off-season by trading their 1st and one of their 2nd Round picks with the Raiders for the right to the 3rd pick of the Draft which they used to select Dion Jordan Outside Linebacker from Oregon. Another notable trade was made by the St. Louis Rams who jumped in front of the New York Jets to snag speedy Wide Receiver Tavon Austin from West Virginia. Buffalo Bills who moved back in the draft after completing the trade with the Rams and made the biggest surprise pick of the Draft by selecting EJ Manual Quarterback from Florida State. Manual who has the size and speed to be a starting Quarterback, although he was projected as a 2nd or even a 3rd round pick, thus leaving Geno Smith the Quarterback from West Virginia still on the board when all of the 1st round selections were completed.

The San Francisco 49ers moved up from the 31st pick to the 18th pick after swapping with the Dallas Cowboys and also throwing in an additional 3rd round pick. The 49ers looked to fill the void at Safety left by Dashon Goldson when he left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Free Agency. That void was filled by selecting hard hitting Eric Reid out of LSU.

The Minnesota Vikings were able to Draft three players between the 23rd and the 29th picks. The Vikings selected Shariff Floyd Defensive Tackle from Florida selected 23rd, Xavier Rhodes Cornerback from Florida State selected 25 (pick received in the Percy Harvin Trade with Seattle Seahawks), and with the 29th pick from the New England Patriots they selected Cordarrelle Patterson Wide Receiver from Tennessee.

The 1st Round of the 2013 NFL Draft didn’t have the high profile names or the marketability of recent Drafts but it did give teams plenty of opportunities to fill needs both on the Offensive and Defensive Lines. Many teams ditched the best player available motto and went after players of need. With plenty of specialty players available in the 2nd Round of the 2013 Draft there could be almost just as much excitement on day Two and there was in round One.

Apr 25, 2013; New York, NY, USA; NFL commissioner Roger Goodell introduces offensive tackle Eric Fisher (Central Michigan) as the first overall pick of the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Round 1 of the NFL draft has begun. I’ll be updating this as we go. It’ll be fun!