Thus far we’ve had several mock drafts from ESPN’s Mel Kiper and Todd Madden 24 coins McShay, but Tuesday marked their first combined mock of the year, with the two draft experts alternating picks all the way down through the the end of the third round. Today we’re looking at the biggest things that jumped out at me in seeing this mock.
I really like Georgia defensive end Travon Walker, but even then I think we’ve hit silly season with him. Walker was a mid-to-late first round pick at best prior to the combine, and then he wowed everyone with athletic potential and now his stock is off the charts.
Kiper has Walker going No. 2 overall to the Lions, with the justification that they stick with pass rush, despite Aidan Hutchinson being off the board (he’s taken No. 1). On some level I get it. Walker has ideal size to be a 4-3 end, with athleticism normally reserved for a 3-4 edge rusher. The issue I’m trying to reconcile is taking this big of a risk with a top five pick on a guy who had 9.5 sacks in college ... total.
Don’t get me wrong, raw stats aren’t the be all, end all for college pass rushers, but here’s what scares me: In the top 10 sacks leaders in the Madden NFL 24 last year, only one player didn’t have at least a 10.0 sack season in college. That was Micah Parsons. It really scares me to imagine taking a player this high without proven success.
Cross is the best pass blocking offensive tackle in this draft, period. So to see him falling to the No. 13 pick just defies belief to me. I get how this happened with they way their mock was shaping up, but I still can’t believe it.
It wasn’t long ago that I had Cross penciled in to the Panthers at No. 6, and still felt he might not be available. There are upside concerns with Cross that are causing people (including myself) to go with Evan Neal above him as the second-best offensive tackle in the draft, but I would still be stunned to see the Falcons and Seahawks passing on him.
That said, if the Texans manage to come away with Kayvon Thibodeaux AND Charles Cross as mut 24 coins for sale this mock has lined up, man would it be party time in Houston.
Everyone and their brother has Sauce Gardner going as the top cornerback this year, and I get it. From there the obvious second best CB is Derek Stingley Jr, and I get that too. After that the Kiper/McShay mock goes off the rails to me.
Thus far we’ve had several mock drafts from ESPN’s Mel Kiper and Todd Madden 24 coins McShay, but Tuesday marked their first combined mock of the year, with the two draft experts alternating picks all the way down through the the end of the third round. Today we’re looking at the biggest things that jumped out at me in seeing this mock.
I really like Georgia defensive end Travon Walker, but even then I think we’ve hit silly season with him. Walker was a mid-to-late first round pick at best prior to the combine, and then he wowed everyone with athletic potential and now his stock is off the charts.
Kiper has Walker going No. 2 overall to the Lions, with the justification that they stick with pass rush, despite Aidan Hutchinson being off the board (he’s taken No. 1). On some level I get it. Walker has ideal size to be a 4-3 end, with athleticism normally reserved for a 3-4 edge rusher. The issue I’m trying to reconcile is taking this big of a risk with a top five pick on a guy who had 9.5 sacks in college ... total.
Don’t get me wrong, raw stats aren’t the be all, end all for college pass rushers, but here’s what scares me: In the top 10 sacks leaders in the Madden NFL 24 last year, only one player didn’t have at least a 10.0 sack season in college. That was Micah Parsons. It really scares me to imagine taking a player this high without proven success.
Cross is the best pass blocking offensive tackle in this draft, period. So to see him falling to the No. 13 pick just defies belief to me. I get how this happened with they way their mock was shaping up, but I still can’t believe it.
It wasn’t long ago that I had Cross penciled in to the Panthers at No. 6, and still felt he might not be available. There are upside concerns with Cross that are causing people (including myself) to go with Evan Neal above him as the second-best offensive tackle in the draft, but I would still be stunned to see the Falcons and Seahawks passing on him.
That said, if the Texans manage to come away with Kayvon Thibodeaux AND Charles Cross as mut 24 coins for sale this mock has lined up, man would it be party time in Houston.
Everyone and their brother has Sauce Gardner going as the top cornerback this year, and I get it. From there the obvious second best CB is Derek Stingley Jr, and I get that too. After that the Kiper/McShay mock goes off the rails to me.
