From The 5th Down Report Archives: 2007 - Draft Review Edition
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THE 5TH DOWN
REPORT
    Game Plan:

* Kickoff
* Touchdown
* Extra Point
* Overtime
* Fumble
* Interception
* 2 Min. Warning
* Coin Toss
* Sudden Death
* Hall of Fame
* Blitz
* On the Sidelines

** DRAFT REVIEW EDITION **
♦ New site design
♦ Draft review, team grades
♦ Who did the best, who did the worst?
♦ Critique of draft media coverage
♦ Where will Keyshawn end up?
♦ NHL/NBA playoff picks

~ Kickoff ~

Welcome.

You have arrived at the most authentic site about professional football. This site is all encompassing in its no nonsense, to-the-point, "real" analysis of the teams, players, coaches, officials, broadcasters, and of the league itself.

This site is not a fantasy site, nor a stat site, nor a betting site, nor is it a site that recaps what we as fans have seen and heard over and over, ad nauseam, watching the highlights and listening to the radio all week.

Our views on this site will be astute, concise, and maybe you'll find them insightful.

You will notice that this site is quite simple in its design. This is so, not because of a lack of imagination or web design talent, but rather because of a disdain for the clutter found on a lot of other sites. This site focuses on content rather than graphics. There are a few flashing lights and animations for those who feel they are a requirement on a web site.

So after you've read it and reread it, let us know your opinion about anything we've said here or anything else you'd like to express regarding the great game of football. Contact us at: blitz@5thdownreport.net. Thank you and enjoy.

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~ Touchdown ~

Around the League

AFC East
Bills Draft Grade: C
Dolphins Draft Grade: C (WR at #1?)
Jets Draft Grade: B (Still need DT)
Patriots Draft Grade: A (2 DBs, 2 LBs, 3 OLs, 1 DL, 1 RB, plus Randy Moss. Looks like these guys know what they're doing)
AFC South
Colts Draft Grade: A (First 2 picks on O, then 6 out of next 7 on D)
Jaguars Draft Grade: B (Leaned towards D)
Texans Draft Grade: C (Leaned towards D, got OL help late)
Titans Draft Grade: C (Probably should have taken a CB instead of a S. Got WR, RB, and OL help for Vince Young)
AFC North
Bengals Draft Grade: D (Why a RB second and no LB help?)
Browns Draft Grade: A (Franchise OT and hopefully a decent QB. Plenty of D help)
Ravens Draft Grade: B
Steelers Draft Grade: C (LBs with first 2 picks, but why a TE and a P, 3 and 4?)
AFC West
Broncos Draft Grade: B (Needed DL help and got with 3 of 4 picks)
Chargers Draft Grade: B
Chiefs Draft Grade: C (Got a WR and some DL help)
Raiders Draft Grade: A (If QB Russell is as good as advertised, and with TE Miller, O should be drastically improved. Also got DB and DL help to bolster an already pretty good D)
NFC East
Cowboys Draft Grade: C
Eagles Draft Grade: D (A QB at #1?)
Giants Draft Grade: B (Pretty complete draft - CB, WR, LB, and some OL help)
Redskins Draft Grade: D (Got a good S, but no DL help)
NFC South
Buccaneers Draft Grade: B (Heavy on D)
Falcons Draft Grade: C
Panthers Draft Grade: B (Good draft, could have used some OL help though)
Saints Draft Grade: B (Got 2 CBs, OL help, and another WR (hopefully he'll turn out as well as some of the others they drafted). But why a RB?)
NFC North
Bears Draft Grade: C (Got a good target for Grossman in TE Olsen)
Lions Draft Grade: C (We'll see. Folks, you don't build a Super Bowl team around a WR)
Packers Draft Grade: C (2 WRs, a RB, and an OT in the first 6 picks. Will it be enough to compensate for an inadequate Favre?)
Vikings Draft Grade: B (If RB Peterson is healthy (collarbone). Got 3 WRs)
NFC West
Cardinals Draft Grade: B (Got a franchise OT and some D help)
49ers Draft Grade: A (Heavy on D, but also got an OT and a WR second and third)
Rams Draft Grade: C
Seahawks Draft Grade: C (Probably should have went with more DBs)

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~ Extra Point ~

Our draft picks [and where they went]:
QB: 1) Jeff Rowe (Nevada) [Bengals], 2) John Stocco (Wisconsin) [not drafted]
RB: 1) Adrian Peterson (Oklahoma) [Vikings], 2) Darius Walker (Notre Dame) [not drafted], 3) Garrett Wolfe (Northern Illinois) [Bears]
FB: 1) Jason Snelling (Virginia) [Falcons], 2) Brandon Snow (Penn State) [not drafted]
WR: 1) Dwayne Jarrett (USC) [Panthers], 2) Dallas Baker (Florida) [Steelers], 3) Joel Filani (Texas Tech) [Titans], 4) Craig Davis (LSU) [Chargers], 5) Aundrae Allison (East Carolina) [Vikings]
TE: 1) Jonny Harline (BYU) [not drafted], 2) Zach Miller (Arizona State) [Raiders]
OT: 1) Doug Free (Northern Illinois) [Cowboys], 2) Allen Barbre (Missouri Southern) [Packers]
OG: 1) Marshall Yanda (Iowa) [Ravens], 2) Tala Esera (Hawaii) [not drafted]
C: 1) Doug Datish (Ohio State) [Falcons], 2) Samson Satele (Hawaii) [Dolphins]
DE: 1) Quentin Moses (Georgia) [Raiders], 2) Anthony Spencer (Purdue) [Cowboys]
DT: 1) Jay Alford (Penn State) [Giants], 2) Brandon Mebane (California) [Seahawks]
ILB: 1) Patrick Willis (Mississippi) [49ers], 2) Thaddaeus Washington (Colorado) [not drafted]
OLB: 1) Paul Posluszny (Penn State) [Bills], 2) Stephen Nicholas (South Florida) [Falcons]
CB: 1) Dashon Goldson (Washington), [49ers] 2) Aaron Ross (Texas) [Giants]
S: 1) Sabby Piscitelli (Oregon State) [Bucs], 2) Aaron Rouse (Virginia Tech) [Packers], 3) Michael Johnson (Arizona) [Giants]
Sleeper Pick: LB Zak DeOssie (Brown) [Giants]

ESPN's coverage of the Draft (Chris Berman notwithstanding) was again better than the NFL Network's.

Do we really need to see Brady Quinn after every pick that wasn't him? He went #22. After the Raiders took JaMarcus Russell at #1, you could make a case that 8 teams or as little as 3 teams could have picked him, since many of the teams didn't need a QB. We saw that last year with Matt Leinart. Please, let's not start making these drafts about one guy. And while we're on the subject, don't ask the guy what he's going to do now as he is being passed over. Guess what, he's going to sit there and wait to be drafted some more (and maybe get some food).

We like Roger Goodell's new personal conduct policy. However, let's hope that it is one of fairness, consistency, and of good judgment (unlike the judgment of a lot of officials during a game). Let's hope that Goodell's policy will differentiate between real problems and problems that are media driven and not necessarily that serious. As far as Pacman goes, he will serve as the poster child for how not to act if he wants to play in the NFL. And if any players don't like the policy, they can always go load trucks at FedEx and act the fool all they want.

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~ Overtime ~

Nobody special this week.

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~ Fumble ~

RE: Some Local Media

We realize radio hosts and newspaper writers need things to say and to write. But let's be somewhat sensible, shall we? On the day of the draft in the Star-Ledger newspaper out of Newark, NJ, a mock draft was presented. They had the Jets taking TE Greg Olsen (Miami) in the first round. Why would the Jets take a TE with their #1 pick? It's not even plausible if you're familiar with the Jets.

Next, a local radio host on WFAN out of New York, during the draft and after hearing of Brady Quinn's slide (especially after the Dolphins passed on him) said that if he's still around the Jets should take him... what? Now keep in mind, these guys probably aren't talking about trading these players or anything other than them being on their team. By that logic, why didn't the Jets trade to get a QB and a TE 1 and 2? Come on guys, y'all got to do better than that.

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~ Interception ~

RE: NHL and NBA Playoffs

Sabres over Red Wings
Jazz over Cavaliers

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~ 2 Minute Warning ~

Key Games:

Hall of Fame Game - August 5, 2007 - Steelers vs. Saints

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~ Coin Toss ~

This Week's Picks:

2006 Final Results:

JB: (157-110)   Joe Namath Guarantee (14-3)
MD: (164-103)   Joe Namath Guarantee (13-4)

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~ Sudden Death ~

Any Questions?

Q: Where will Keyshawn Johnson end up?
A: Best bets: Philadelphia, Atlanta, or Green Bay.

Q: Is moving Mathias Kiwanuka from DE to LB the right move for the Giants?
A: Yes, Kiwanuka's a player and should be fine at LB.

Q: How will the Randy Moss experiment work in New England?
A: Great, their 4th Super Bowl title is on the horizon...

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~ Hall of Fame ~

To view our previous reports, please visit the Archives Section.

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~ Blitz ~

To contact us, please send an e-mail to: blitz@5thdownreport.net.

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~ On the Sidelines ~

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