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Miami Dolphins - A- (Hamas Jenkins)
1. OLB Vernon Gholston
2. OT Carl Nicks
2. OLB Cliff Avril
3. S Thomas DeCoud
4. ILB Jonathan Goff
6. TE Kellen Davis
7. RB Jalen Parmele
This looks primarily like a typical Bill Parcells Draft. Whether you agree with Hamas Jenkins or disagree with him, he did a mostly great job posing as the Hall of Fame coach-turned-GM of this awful franchise. The Dolphins addressed one need above the others, and that's at the heart of their sorry defense: linebackers. Gholston and Avril are two characters who can get to the QB and get there fast.
Goff was a great value pick to replace Thomas in the middle, with Nicks being one of the prime candidates this year to turn into a primetime LT. Kellen Davis was a strong pick to provide a solid safety net for emerging QB John Beck. Hamas also took a couple gambles as well -- like it or not, DeCoud was a reach, and Parmele would have most likely been available in UDFA. All in all, this was a strong start for a rebuilding process.
Minnesota Vikings - B+ (Zeke Ziggle/Hamas Jenkins)
1. DE Philip Merling
2. TE John Carlson
3. QB Andre Woodson
3. DT Marcus Harrison
4. DB Tyvon Branch
5. OG Kerry Brown
6. DE Brian Johnston
6. OT King Dunlap
7. WR Arman Shields
A lot of this Draft is for naught; it does seem the Vikings will surrender at least two of these picks for Jared Allen. With this quality of Drafting you can sort of see why the Chiefs might want to take advantage of that. Philip Merling and Derrick Harvey were available in the 1st, and both would be solid picks. Marcus Harrison sitting around in the third would be fine value to add depth to their DL. The Vikings' first day, including the pure-value acquisition of Andre Woodson, a potential franchise QB, was very impressive.
In their second day, they opt for projects (Kerry Brown, Brian Johnston) and even they admitted they were emphasizing pure measurables at one point, opting for workout warriors such as Tyvon Branch and Arman Shields, two players whose on-the-field abilities I did not warrant as good value. The Vikes' second day seems almost too cute, but if it works out they deserve credit for it. Their first day was solid enough for them to try it out.
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