NFL draft: some surprises on day 1

The 2012 NFL Draft got underway and, as predicted, Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck was the first pick selected by the Indianapolis Colts and Baylor Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin. III, was second by the Washington Redskins.

The big surprise of Round 1 was the eight trades made, the most among the top ten picks in the history of the NFL Draft. Cleveland traded picks with Minnesota and included fourth-, fifth- and seventh-round picks to take Alabama running back Trent Richardson with the third draft pick.

Jacksonville moved up to No. 5 to take Oklahoma State’s WR Justin Blackmon while Tampa Bay dropped to No. 7 and took Alabama SS Mark Barron. The Buccaneers also got the Jaguars fourth-round pick.

The Miami Dolphins, who couldn’t get Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Matt Flynn, got the guy they wanted, Ryan Tannehill, the 6-4 quarterback from Texas A&M. Tannehill will meet with his Aggie head coach, Mike Sherman, who took over as offensive coordinator for the Dolphins earlier this year.

Dontari Poe, a Memphis defensive tackle who weighed in at 346 pounds for the Combine, was rewarded for his outstanding performance in the NFL Combine, which included a 4.8 40-yard run, as he was selected No. 11 by the Kansas City Chiefs.

National champion Alabama had four players selected in the first round. Richardson and Barron along with CB Dre Kirkpatrick, chosen 17th by the Bengals, and OLB Dont’a Hightower, chosen by the AFC champions New England Patriots. Hightower projects as a hybrid OLB / DE in head coach Bill Belichek’s 3-4 defense, while Kirkpatrick strengthens Cincinnati’s defense by giving them the much-needed cornerback with great coverage.

Players projected to go in the first round were selected in the first round. There weren’t many surprise picks other than Boise State OLB pick Shea McLellin selected 19th by Chicago and Seattle pick of West Virginia OLB Bruce Irvin with 15th pick in Round 1.

The league moved to the heart of the draft where teams build their rosters, rounds 2-7. A handful of players who were on the edge of first-round talent remained available when the NFL draft moved to Day 2. Alabama DE Courtney Upshaw , whom many first-round teams were not selected until the Baltimore Ravens called their number with the third pick in the second round.

Many clubs had great values ​​in the second round, including the Colts, who added Stanford’s teammate from No. 1 pick Andrew Luck, TE Coby Fleener. Fleener is a 6-foot-6, 247-pound specimen, possesses 4.5 speed on the 40-yard dash and also posted a 37-inch vertical jump. While your college stats may be lacking, remember that you played in what was essentially a three-tight end, run-first, open-mouthed offense.

One of the most talked about selections of the second round was the St. Louis Rams selection of CB Janoris Jenkins of North Alabama. Jenkins has had a history of problems including being fired from the University of Florida football team after being arrested for the third time. Two of those arrests were drug-related charges.

The Rams, however, see Jenkins’ advantage, tremendous talent, 4.46 speed, and he has played in the SEC against major competition. More importantly, though, the Rams had two second-round picks and could afford to bet on a player with some character issues. Time will tell, but the Rams believe they have their corner of coverage.

One of the surprises of the later rounds came in the fourth when the Washington Redskins, who took Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III with the second draft pick, selected QB Kirk Cousins ​​of Michigan State. The Redskins and head coach Mike Shanahan now have two rookie quarterbacks on the roster and two quarterbacks who are dynamically different. Cousins ​​played pro-style offense at MSU and has a big head on his shoulders. RG III is a tremendous athlete who played an extended offense and, like Cousins, is a quality individual. It will be interesting to see how the quarterback situation plays out in Washington.

And then the choice everyone is waiting for … the final one. As is tradition, the final draft pick is known as Mr. Irrelevant and is rewarded with a trip in June to Newport Beach, CA, where they will be honored with a parade and then invited on a trip to Disneyland. This year, the draft began with the Indianapolis Colts selecting a quarterback (Andrew Luck) and it ended exactly the way. With the 253rd pick in the NFL draft, the Colts took Chandler Harnish, a double-threat quarterback from Northern Illinois, who happened to be a four-year starter, MAC’s Offensive Player of the Year, and finished the season. passed as No. 5 in the country in total yards with 4,595.