Kiper previews NFL Draft

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Kiper previews NFL Draft
By Matt Florjancic, ClevelandBrowns.com Staff Writer

Posted Apr 6, 2011
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In his latest mock draft, ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has the Browns taking Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones with the No. 6 overall pick on April 28th.

Jones gained 1,133 yards and scored seven touchdowns on 78 receptions in 2010. He totaled 2,653 yards and 15 touchdowns on 179 career catches. Jones, known for his physical style of play, holds Alabama’s records for receptions and receiving yards in a single season.

Though Kiper has the Browns taking Jones at No. 6, he knows the team could be facing a decision of taking a wide receiver or continuing to boost its secondary by selecting cornerback Patrick Peterson.

“Julio Jones definitely will be there,” Kiper said on a conference call Wednesday morning. “With the receivers, it’s probably 60-40, 65-35 with (A.J.) Green over Jones, but the gap has closed in the last three, four, five weeks, really since the Combine. Everybody’s not Green over Jones like you thought it would be.

“What if Cincinnati took Julio Jones and surprised everybody? Then, A.J. Green is in the mix at six,” he added. “Do you take A.J. Green or Patrick Peterson? One of those two receivers will be there at six. That’s almost a certainty and you have to decide on Peterson. If you took Jones or Green, you could get a cornerback at another point in this draft that can help you. If you want to think second round corner, you could get Brandon Harris of Miami, Curtis Brown from Texas.”

In his last conference call with the media, Kiper’s colleague, Todd McShay, had the Browns taking Clemson defensive lineman Da’Quan Bowers. McShay is ESPN Scouts, Inc.’s director of college scouting.

“It’s going to be interesting from the Browns’ standpoint because they have a team need at wide receiver, a huge need at wide receiver and a big need at defensive end and defensive tackle,” said Kiper. “The thing is,Lunettes Carrera CARLA, the defensive line is very deep and the wide receiver, while there is no third receiver going until pick No. 47, from 47 to 97, which is the end of the third round, there’s a lot of receivers that are going to come off the board.

“There’s almost a dozen receivers that are going to be in that next tier,” he continued. “They’re all good players. It may be better for Cleveland to take the wide receiver first and defensive end second.”

A “CORNERSTONE” AT NO. 1

The highest-rated player on Kiper’s “Big Board” is Peterson, the former Louisiana State University cornerback. If he gets taken at No. 1, Peterson would be the first corner ever to be the top pick in the draft.

Though it would be breaking from a long-standing tradition, selecting Peterson would not be without merit. He registered 42 tackles and four interceptions this past season, in addition to having 1,350 combined yards and two touchdowns between punt and kick returns. In his three years with the Tigers, Peterson accounted for seven interceptions.

“It’s never happened before, first or second,” Kiper said. “It would be ground-breaking. Of the cornerbacks that have gone high, 21 of 25 corners that went in the top ten overall since 1970 did really, really well. Four didn’t, so that’s a great percentage there. In the top five overall, it was seven out of eight that you hit on. I’m talking home runs.”

RUSHING THE PASSER

Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller finished his senior season with 68 total tackles and 11 sacks en route to leading the Aggies to wins over Oklahoma (November 6), Nebraska (November 20) and at Texas (November 25). In those three wins over the final four weeks of the regular season, Miller registered three multi-sack games.

He led the nation in sacks with 17 as a junior in 2009 and fought his way through an ankle injury in the early part of 2010.

“The kid is a dynamic player off the edge. That’s going to be, basically, what he’s used to doing,” Kiper said. “When you watch tape of him, and I watched a ton of tape on Von Miller when he was not 100 percent, I watched it when he was 100 percent, there are times when he can be handled, but they all can at different times. If you run right at him, you’ll have some success, but he’s not getting paid to handle the run; he’s getting paid to get after the quarterback and rush the passer.”

DISRUPTING THE POCKET

Bowers, another tough pass rusher, collected 16 sacks and had five multi-sack games in 2010. However, since the Combine, he has faced multiple questions and examinations stemming from a knee injury.

“He’d have been the first or second pick overall if he didn’t have the knee concern,” said Kiper. “He was a great player this year. What he did this year different from last year, and I talked about this back in August when I did the previews and all of the analysis for the kids coming in, I said, ‘He didn’t finish. Last year, when you watched the kid, he would be close, but he wouldn’t get the sack. He’d have hurries, tackles-for-loss, but he wouldn’t get sacks. To be the first or second pick, he needs to finish.’

“For a guy like Bowers, he had a chance, took advantage of it and had a great year,” he added. “He’s now dropping a little bit because of the knee concerns. He had a great year; he did everything on the field that he could do, everything and more to be the first or second pick.”