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The SEC in Round 1 of the NFL Draft this year?

Posted on | January 22, 2011 | No Comments

Pat Peterson's foot. The Foot of a Top 3 Pick.

The SEC in Round 1 of the NFL Draft this year?

One of the more interesting storylines of 2011? How will the SEC reload their talent base. Because quite frankly, this April is going to see a ridiculous amount of talent from the SEC becoming first round picks. A cursory glance of the mock drafts from page one of the google are showing that there is a real legitimate shot that there will be 11 SEC players with a strong chance of being drafted in Round One.

Ten fun things I learned from trying to do an SEC Draft average?

  1. There is no consensus #1 pick. The Panthers are in such a shape, that the best player available to them they’re going to take. It may be Nick Fairley, it may be A.J. Green, but the odds are strong that the SEC gets the #1 pick.
  2. If you disregard the outlier? Pat Peterson isn’t going to be falling outside of the top 3. The 49ers may need a cornerback, but barring a bad 40 time? Peterson will not be it.
  3. There’s a legitimate chance that the SEC could get four picks in the first five. The Cardinals are in such a shape that they could use assistance on the defensive line (Marcell Dareus) or a quarterback (Cam Newton or Ryan Mallett).
  4. Oddly enough? There is a 25 to 30% chance that Ryan Mallett would be the quarterback to fall out of the first round. I’ll look at this further.
  5. The expectations of Cam Newton is somewhere between the Titans at #8 and the Dolphins at #15. Washington and Minnesota both could use help at QB as well.
  6. The safest wager seems to be right now that Julio Jones will be the 14th pick in the draft. Rams need a WR with big skills. And common sense math equals Julio Jones.
  7. If the Dolphins at 15, sound like they’re going to pass on Mark Ingram? His could be the slide of the first round. The Packers and the Patriots could use a runner, or a second runner. But the Patriots and the Packers have other glaring needs. Ingram may not be a guaranteed #1.
  8. If you want to know the one guy who could easily outperform his mock draft projection? Mississippi State’s Derek Sherrod. Not a spectacular class at offensive tackle this year, but Sherrod wouldn’t necessarily fall out of the first round even if it was.
  9. There have been many instances of two brothers playing on the same offensive line. Stacy and Shawn Andrews, for example. But how often has there been a team that drafted two offensive linemen who were brothers in the first round of consecutive seasons? The Steelers would definitely take Mike to play guard next to Maurkice. Most definitely.
  10. And the thing about Justin Houston? The 4-3 DE/3-4 OLB is the deepest position in the draft, and he doesn’t have a great 40 time. He’s listed as a 4.78 40 time. While the Chiefs at 21 is the upside play, do not lock him down as someone to be drafted in the first round.

At this point? These is your likely 11 candidates for the 1st round pick. I’ll talk sleepers and why Mallett could be fail at a future point.

Related posts:

  1. SEC Draft Breakdown: Cam Newton (QB-Auburn)
  2. SEC Power Poll* Week 14
  3. SEC Prediction Pick Briefs Week 11 (Featuring Auburn vs. Georgia)
  4. SEC Power Poll* Week 12
  5. SEC Power Poll (Week 9)*
Category: Alabama Football, Arkansas Football, Auburn Football, Georgia Football, LSU Football, Mississippi State Football, SEC Football
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