Brandon

I thought I'd go ahead and post one mock draft before tomorrow before I go on record with my likely very inaccurate final prediction tomorrow morning. One trade, though this mock draft originally included a second trade, also with Philadelphia. I've also included comments on the day 1 picks. I'll probably give explanations for all the picks in my final prediction tomorrow. ---Buffalo Trades RB Travis Henry and a 2006 3rd round draft choice to Philadelphia for the Eagles 35th overall pick. 2.35) OT Adam Terry, Syracuse The Bills have a lot of options with this pick and its been a very tough pick for me to predict (I also think it could be TE Alex Smith or WR/TE Matt Jones), but I think they'll play it relatively safe here and select an OL. Terry isn't quite an elite LT prospect, but he's a good one and given the Bills weakness at the position, he could easily be the starter by the end of the season. 2.55) DE Justin Tuck, Notre Dame Donahoe has a well established history of drafting highly talented players with injury questions and Justin Tuck would be yet another one. Tuck needs to add some weight, but otherwise is a very good prospect in this draft and could develop into the pass rushing terror that the team has been missing for the last few years. He should make an immediate impact as a pass rush specialist in long yardage situations. 3.86) C Jason Brown, North Carolina Jason Brown isn't really considered an elite prospect in this draft due to his less than ideal movement ability, but if he lives up to his reputation as possibly the strongest player in the draft, he'll fit right in on a team that will feature the run in 2005. Its also notable that he has allowed only two sacks in three years as a starting C, both as a sophomore. 4.122) WR Mark Bradley, Oklahoma 5.156) CB Dustin Fox, Ohio State 6.197) K Tyler Jones, Boise State 7.236) CB Travis Daniels, LSU

The Eagles have the following picks: R1: 31 R2: 35, 63 R3: 77, 94 R4: 132 R5: 146, 167, 172 R6: 211 R7: 245, 247, 252

I agree, and you also have to consider that all of these scenarios of stockpiling draft picks involve a trade of Henry and/or Clements. Trading them will result in a fairly significant cap savings which will probably be enough to sign their picks and have some room left over.

I certainly wouldn't go that far. It appears that the Redskins are definitely interested in acquiring a top veteran CB in some sort of deal with their 9th overall pick. Given that the last four paragraphs of the article discuss the possibility of the Redskins being interested in trading for Clements, and is coming from a Washington newspaper, I'd say that the rumor has more life than ever.

Well, he could be telling the truth, or he could be trying to talk down the value of a R1 pick before he tries to trade for one. At least we only have to wait a few more days to find out.

He's too inconsistent and too mistake-prone as a passer to really be a player I'd want serving as a QB in any respect. Besides, if the Bills do draft him, he's going to need all the work he can possibly get at WR or TE and doesn't need the distraction of being a gimmick QB.

I've been against trading Nate Clements, but I'm starting to come around to the idea IF they can find a solid veteran CB to replace him with. If they could do that, such a trade would give them the opportunity to draft two or three potential upgrades offensively which are desperately needed and still have a pick left over to find a good CB prospect in R2 or 3. In other words, if they can turn a trade of Nate Clements into two or possibly three good players at LT, C, CB or TE, yeah, that's something that I'd have to consider if I were Donahoe.

I think you're right. As I stated in an earlier post, I doubt that Donahoe is going to waste Ralph Wilson's money by bringing in guys that they have no chance to draft unless the team is considering a major move up the board.

Common sense would tend to indicate that you are correct, but we are talking about the Redskins here and common sense is not something they are known for having an abundance of. Look at their past four drafts. In three of them (2001, 2003 and 2004) they had a total of 12 draft picks, including only 7 the last two years.

I would say that all of this trade talk was crazy, but some of the comments from the Bills have left me wondering. I also don't think that they wasted Ralph's money bringing Jamaal Brown in for a visit for nothing. The Bills are usually somewhat predictable in R1, especially if you can read the tea leaves without any personal biases towards or against certain players, but this year, without a R1 pick, that doesn't seem to be the case. At this point, I would not be totally shocked if Tipster's idea proves closer to fact than fiction. The scenario itself is somewhat believable. If Ronde Barber has had a falling out with the Bucs, they might just be willing to let him go in exchange for Henry. Interestingly enough, the Bucs-Bills trade possibility for Henry has been rumored to be player-for-player. The Clements trade has been rumored for a week or two and though I'm against it, I would be a lot more forgiving of such a trade if Donahoe could secure a starting CB BEFORE making that trade. #9 for Brown is a bit steep, but if these trades were to occur, Donahoe could trade back to around 20 and draft Brown or Khalif Barnes, while also securing an additional 2nd or 3rd round pick. Needless to say, this would be an ideal situation for the Buffalo Bills. Unfortunately, I doubt it will happen. The whole thing hinges upon trading Henry for a decent starting CB, and if that doesn't happen, the trade of Clements can't happen, either, and the whole scenario falls apart.

He's only 27 years old and the franchise tag at the TE position is about $2.2M. So he's not old and shouldn't be particularly expensive. I'm guessing that he's simply not viewed as worthy of making top dollar at the position and the transition tag effectively ended any outside interest in him.

I've seen about three quarters of the games Matt Jones played in college. He is indeed a 'real playmaker' and is the best athlete I've ever seen for a guy his size. People mistakenly think he's just a workout warrior, but he's also been an excellent player on the field as well. Through the course of his four years at Arkansas, he made an awful lot of good SEC defenders look stupid. He's not going to be an NFL QB, and yes, it will take some time for him to fully transition to WR, but he's going to be an excellent player. If the Bills find a way to draft him, you won't be complaining long. As for the TE position and selecting Alex Smith, I still feel its a more realistic scenario than a move up into the late 1st round to select a WR. However, even if the Bills were to move up that high, I feel that they are more likely to select either Heath Miller (if available) or possibly Washington OT Khalif Barnes. I agree completely that there needs to be time for Losman to develop with the new WR, but with the team in its present state, I think they're better off trying to find a value pick at the WR position in the middle of the draft and hopefully hit a homerun that way. For that matter, the Bills could probably draft Vincent Jackson in R3, who may not be quite the athlete Jones is, but is still a pretty good prospect in his own right.

If they trade up, and assuming they are not targeting an OL, I think its more likely they'd try to position themselves for TE Alex Smith of Stanford than a WR (though I do fully expect them to pick a WR in the first four rounds). The TE position hasn't been mentioned much among the fans, but the Bills could certainly stand to add a quality recieving threat at the position, not to mention the need for depth with the serious injuries to their top two TEs a year ago. Interestingly enough, if they could acquire the 44th overall pick, they would indeed stand a fairly decent chance of having Smith fall to them at that spot.

I think you're right. I doubt Donahoe has much interest in trading Travis Henry for much less than he has invested in him, which is a late 2nd round pick. Accepting significantly less than a break-even trade would be almost an admission of defeat, and Donahoe doesn't strike me as the type who admits defeat often.

He might not be my ideal pick for the Bills, but I think Jason Brown would indeed be a solid selection for the Bills at 55. While he's projected a bit lower than that by most of the so-called experts, he'd probably be an excellent fit for a Bills offense that seems intent upon featuring the running game and Willis McGahee next season. Such a move would also put the Bills in a much better position to move Teague to LT. Teague's LT experience in Denver was not a positive one, but he's probably our best option at this point.

Unbelievable. I hope the teacher and school district are both sued for every last dime they have, and then some.

I have a pretty good idea how NFL trades work and I know that the Bills would have a tough time getting more than the 9th overall pick for Nate Clements. That still does not make the trade acceptable to me, as the Bills will be trading an excellent player in the prime of his career for a complete unknown in a draft with a questionable top 10. I'm sorry, but just because everyone else jumps off a bridge doesn't mean I'm going to.

I agree with you completely. I don't think it makes a bit of sense to trade one of the best CBs in the league for just the 9th pick in a weak draft. They'd have to offer me quite a bit more than that pick for Clements before I would make that trade.

Considering that Clements is better than any CB prospect in this draft, and possibly better than any player in this draft, I would want more than the #9 overall pick. I also want to say this: if this trade happens (and I doubt it will), I never want to see this team select a 1st round CB again. Ever. I'm sick of seeing this team waste 1st round picks on CBs that they have no intention of keeping past their initial contract.

I've been playing Silent Hunter 3 for the last week and a half almost non-stop. If you like WW2 submarine simulations, its a must-have.

To answer your question, no, I do not think he is good enough and I feel the Bills overpaid for him. Oh well, there's nothing that can be done about it now.

Peters was basically a 3rd OT at Arkansas, anyway, so I don't think this is a major stretch. He's clearly got the strength and athleticism for it and he's got a fair amount of experience as a blocker. In addition, the Bills have a good OL coach and have had a year to evaluate his ability at the position and if they think he can do it, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

They'd probably have to draft a C to compete with Tucker. There's really not much doubt in my mind at this point that the Bills are going to have at least one rookie starting up front.

I'd certainly feel a whole lot better about that left side if DeMulling signs. He doesn't solve all the Bills problems over there by any stretch, but at least they'd have one quality veteran over there. On the downside, its looking more and more like LT is either going to be Trey Teague or a rookie and I'm not sure which one I'd dread seeing at that position more. I know a rookie will struggle over there, but on the other hand, I remember Teague's LT days from Denver. Not good at all.

He's about the same caliber of player as Villarrial. He's not a great player, but he won't embarass himself or his team, either.