Draft report cards: Can't spell Seahawks without an 'A' April 23, 2001 By Len Pasquarelli SportsLine.com Senior Writer In the NFL, as with any learning endeavor, coaches and personnel directors often are products of the environment in which they apprenticed. Obviously, Seattle Seahawks general manager, coach and omnipotent football grand poohbah Mike Holmgren was paying close attention during those years spent with draft gurus Bill Walsh and Ron Wolf. After a couple so-so draft performances, Holmgren captured the SportsLine.com lottery crown over the weekend, gaining the lone "A" grade in our annual report card. Holmgren maneuvered to get 12 selections, tying for the league high, and then parlayed those choices into what should be a terrific draft class.     Of course, you've got to be lucky and you've got to be good. And sometimes, like when Seattle swapped down two spots in the first round and still landed wideout Koren Robinson, you've got to make your own luck. It didn't hurt, though, when top-rated guard Steve Hutchinson, a player in whom the Seahawks had no interest, slid right to them with the 17th overall pick. At that point, Hutchinson was simply too good a steal to ignore. As usual, our report cards include mostly "C" grades, 16 of them in fact. But then, isn't that what the Bell Curve is all about? As in anything, most undertakings are going to result in an average outcome, as was the case with this year's draft. Here's a look at the grades: Arizona Cardinals: C- OT Leonard Davis (Texas) will be a perennial Pro Bowl player in a few years but he'll likely play out of position at guard as a rookie. How can a team with no defensive tackles, and ranked 30th against the run in 2000, pass over Gerard Warren? Their best choices came in the second round, where they got DE Kyle Vanden Bosch (Nebraska) and late-riser CB Michael Stone (Memphis). Arizona had the final choice in the draft, the "Mr. Irrelevant" selection. Alas, that term pretty much sums up the Cardinals' entire draft. Atlanta Falcons: B- Kudos to owner Taylor Smith for realizing this moribund franchise needed an electrifying player like QB Michael Vick (Virginia Tech) to bring the fans out of hibernation, and to Dan Reeves and his front office staff for consummating the mega-trade. TE Alge Crumpler (North Carolina) had a first-round grade on most teams' boards and the Falcons got him in the second stanza, but what is Reeves' fixation with the tight end position? WR Vinny Sutherland (Purdue) will replace Tim Dwight as the punt returner. Totally inexplicable was a deal that sent next year's fourth-round pick to Denver for a trio of No. 7 selections this year. Atlanta called all over the league trying to find a trade partner for that swap, but why? This staff has never been very good at locating guys in the late rounds. Baltimore Ravens: C The defending Super Bowl champions got a bonus when TE Todd Heap (Arizona State), a top 15 talent, fell right into their laps with the final choice in the first round. DB Gary Baxter (Baylor) can play safety or cornerback and was a nice get in Round 2. But after that, the team that some people claim has everything must have started believing it actually does. Most of the second day choices were taken a half-round to full round too high. Look for LB Edgerton Hartwell (Western Illinois) to become a fourth-round steal as an immediate special teams contributor. Buffalo Bills: B+ You don't think new general manager Tom Donahoe knows his way around a war room? He ended up collecting a dozen choices for a team that needed a quantity infusion of young blood, and his selections were typically solid throughout. Even after dealing down in the first round, he still got CB Nate Clements (Ohio State), arguably the best cover player in the draft. DE Aaron Schobel (TCU) nearly went to St. Louis in the first round, but Buffalo was able to get him in the second stanza. Donahoe is a master in the middle rounds and choices like LB Brandon Spoon (North Carolina, No. 4), OT Marques Sullivan (Illinois, No. 5) and FS Tony Driver (Notre Dame, No. 6) will eventually make this draft one to remember. Even in the seventh round, the Bills got an intriguing developmental type guy in DT Tyrone Robertson (Hinds Community College). Carolina Panthers: C+ They targeted LB Dan Morgan (Miami) a month ago and got him with the 11th overall choice. After that, it seemed they simply followed their board faithfully throughout, trying to fill needs with fundamentally sound selections. Two guys to watch are WR Stevonne Smith (Utah, No. 3) and Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke (Florida State, No. 4), who at age 29 is the oldest quarterback on the roster. Their quarterback depth chart is so suspect that Weinke could play way before anyone anticipated. As disappointed as Weinke was at not being selected on the first day of the draft, he couldn't have fallen into a better situation. Fifth-round S Jarrod Cooper (Kansas State) is a workout warrior who looks great in shorts but never seems to make a play when you watch video of him. Chicago Bears: C The two players they most coveted, RB LaDainian Tomlinson (TCU) and pass-rush DE Andre Carter (California), went off the board ahead of them. It was probably heartbreaking to watch the 49ers trade up one spot ahead of them to grab Carter. They recovered by taking WR David Terrell (Michigan), but the one area of depth on this team is wide receiver, so they didn't exactly fill a need there. Grabbing OG Mike Gandy (Notre Dame) in the third round and situational defensive end Karon Riley (Minnesota) in the fourth were nice picks. Riley won't make up for not getting Carter, but he's a player with edge-rush quickness. They absolutely wasted a seventh-round pick on WR John Capel (Florida), the Olympic sprinter and would-be return man who tested positive for a banned substance at the combine workouts. Cincinnati Bengals: C- Personal convictions aside, we can live with the choice of DE Justin Smith (Missouri) with the fourth overall selection because they needed an end. They'll find out soon enough, however, that he is not a double-digit sack guy, but is a player with a huge motor. Second-round WR Chad Johnson (Oregon State) has some big-time character issues and had only one solid college season. TE Sean Brewer (San Jose State), a third-rounder, was taken at least one round too high. The pick that tantalizes us is Johnson's former Oregon State teammate, WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the seventh round. He's not a burner but this big, possession receiver will make the team. Cleveland Browns: C+ They smoke-screened everyone with their first choice but taking Warren was a terrific decision. Relative to the rest of their shoddy defense, the front four was one with which the Browns could have gotten by in 2001. But rookie coach Butch Davis will need a couple seasons to get this team into playoff contention, and the former Florida Gators mauler will be a cornerstone, a guy who could develop into a Warren Sapp-type dominator. After that, the Browns weren't imaginative and Davis grabbed two suspect guys he once coached at Miami in RB James Jackson (No. 3) and WR Andre King (No. 7). A physical specimen who runs too stiff, Jackson was taken maybe two rounds too high. One great second day choice was DB Anthony Henry (South Florida), one of the fastest-rising players in recent weeks and a defender who can play cornerback or safety. Dallas Cowboys: D Where have you gone, Jimmy Johnson, as "Big D" turns its lonely eyes to you. Owner Jerry Jones claimed to have revamped the team's scouting process but, as long as he still has ultimate voice on draft matters, the Cowboys might never get it right. The best choice overall might be OG Matt Lehr (Virginia Tech), and he was selected in the fifth round. Sure, it's tough to maneuver when you don't have a first-round pick, but no one forced Jones to give it away for WR Joey Galloway last year. The top pick, QB Quincy Carter (Georgia), was a huge reach in the second round. No other team had Carter, a marvelously talented athlete with suspect decision-making abilities, any higher than the third round. Denver Broncos: C+ So let's see, they drafted a corner in the first round last year (Deltha O'Neal), paid handsomely to snatch unrestricted free agent cover man Denard Walker (Tennessee) this spring, and still figured they had better take CB Willie Middlebrooks (Minnesota) on Sunday. The bad news is they seem to never hit it right on corners. The good news is that Middlebrooks, a big, physical corner who seems to be over his injury problems, might be an enlightened selection. If he is well physically, he could steal the spot of projected starter O'Neal, who was a big-time reach in 2000. Snapper Ben Hamilton (Minnesota) was a decent fourth-round pick. Although Nick Harris (California, No. 4) was the top-rated punter in this draft, he has a slow getaway. Detroit Lions: B- OT Jeff Backus (Michigan) was a player new general manager Matt Millen targeted weeks ago, the kind of tough guy around whom this team needs to rebuild, a hard worker who in time will be the foundation for the offensive line. C Dominic Raiola (Nebraska, No. 2) was the top-rated snapper on almost every team's board but, given his very limited exposure to the passing game while playing for the run-oriented Cornhuskers, he might struggle in the West Coast scheme that rookie coach Marty Mornhinweg is installing. The Lions made the best gamble of the entire draft, taking DT Shaun Rogers (Texas) late in the second round. If his ankle responds to treatment, he'll be a real interior masher. And even if he needs a "redshirt" season in 2001, the Lions should have a middle monster for years to come. Green Bay Packers: C+ In his final draft, general manager Ron Wolf did a good job of keeping quiet about the interest in first-round DE Jamal Reynolds (Florida State), but he should provide outside pass rush and could be an immediate starter. WR Robert Ferguson (Texas A&M, No. 2) could be the big, physical wideout the team has sorely needed, but the guy is greener than Kermit the Frog and a bit of a projection. LB Torrance Marshall (Oklahoma, No. 3) tested positive for marijuana at the combine so he is a risk right out of the box, if for no other reason than poor judgment. A guy to watch is OG Bill Ferrario (Wisconsin, No. 4). The Packers seem to have terrific luck taking offensive line prospects from the Badgers and Ferrario is a very solid player. Indianapolis Colts: C- With only two safeties on the roster, Indianapolis had to address that need and it did, grabbing three interior secondary players. By far the best is FS Idrees Bashir (Memphis), the second-round pick. Bashir has rare size-speed tools and some teams feel he can line up at cornerback. WR Reggie Wayne (Miami), the first-round choice, might be the most technically proficient of all the wideouts in this draft. He could be a great complement to Marvin Harrison, but the Colts said the same things about Jerome Pathon and E.G. Green and they've yet to be anything but hurt. Jacksonville Jaguars: C The consummate copycat coach, Tom Coughlin was hell-bent on getting a big, inside stuffer like DT Marcus Stroud (Georgia) on defense, but passing on OT Kenyatta Walker (Florida) could be a huge mistake in time. Hey, we like Stroud a lot but the Jags got too locked in on him and ignored a guy who was a top 10 pick on everyone's board and somehow slipped beyond that. On the other hand, the team recovered nicely by getting OT Maurice Williams (Michigan) in the second round. In two or three years, Williams could be a standout tackle, especially if he can get through his habit of playing with too much finesse. The pair of third-rounders, S James Boyd (Penn State) and LB Eric Westmoreland (Tennessee), aren't as good as advertised. The club did address special teams in the seventh round with a return man (Richmond Flowers of Tennessee-Chattanooga) and a deep-snapper (Randy Chevrier of McGill University in Montreal). Kansas City Chiefs: D The Chiefs didn't have a choice until the third round and, even then, they reached a bit. DE Eric Downing (Syracuse) and WR "Snoop" Minnis (Florida State) won't play much as rookies. About the only guy who might help is RB Derrick Blaylock (Stephen F. Austin), a fifth-round choice who could be the team's third-down back. Miami Dolphins: B- There's a chance, given the way he was falling, that first-round CB Jamar Fletcher (Wisconsin) would have been available in the second round, but the Dolphins couldn't gamble on that. In the second stanza, they landed WR Chris Chambers (Wisconsin), who some people over-graded as a first-round possibility but who still was a bargain where Miami stole him. For all his size, it looks on tape like Chambers can be easily jammed and doesn't like the middle of the field. OT Brandon Winey (LSU) was a sixth-round heist and, in the same stanza, Miami got an intriguing pass-rush project in DE Otis Leverette (Alabama-Birmingham). One disclaimer: We weren't sold at all on most of the middle-round choices. Minnesota Vikings: C Dennis Green got lucky when RB Michael Bennett (Wisconsin) slipped to late in the first round. Yeah, Bennett is raw, doesn't catch the ball well and is more long-distance sprinter than off-tackle grinder at this point in his career. But he has a compelling upside and people had some of those same knocks about retired RB Robert Smith when he entered the league. DE Willie Howard (Stanford) was a good get late in the second round but there were plenty of reaches, like CB Eric Kelly (Kentucky, No. 3), after that. New England Patriots: B- Bill Belichick needed quality and quantity and seemed to get both with his 10 choices. Each of the top eight picks figure to contribute as rookies. First-round DT Richard Seymour (Georgia) was an underachiever in college but still has splendid tools. A pair of guards, Matt Light (Purdue, No. 2) and Kenyatta Jones (South Florida, No. 4), will add toughness to the line and should start by 2002. CB Brock Williams (Notre Dame, No. 3) is a burner who can help in nickel packages and FS Hakim Akbar (Washington) should not have been around in the sixth round. New Orleans Saints: C- There's a ton of intrigue with the first-round selection of RB Deuce McAllister (Mississippi), since everyone feels coach Jim Haslett took him to send a message to Ricky Williams, which indeed was part of the rationale. But just as Ricky doesn't show up for offseason conditioning, the human hamstring pull that is McAllister doesn't show up for many games. A sage choice if McAllister stays healthy, but guys who get hurt in college get hurt in the NFL, too. And the whirlpool isn't big enough to accommodate both tailbacks. Actually, the picks we liked best here were WR Onome Ojo (Cal-Davis) in the fifth round and DT Ennis Davis (Southern Cal) in the seventh. Davis was a dog as a senior, but there's a guy with a starter's pedigree hiding in there somewhere, folks, and the fiery Haslett is the guy to find it. New York Giants: D+ General manager Ernie Accorsi made a great move up in the first round to snatch CB Will Allen (Syracuse), a terrific player who can start as a rookie. But for a stable organization like this one to take a flier on CB William Peterson (Western Illinois) in the third round is out of character. The guy is a superb talent, one who would have been a first-rounder if not for his off-field woes, but those troubles are aplenty. Getting QB Jesse Palmer (Florida) in the fourth round was a good deal but the club never addressed its obvious need for a tight end and took a kicker in the fifth, John Markham of Vanderbilt, who it could have signed as a free agent.

-- Mark (Karch222@aol.com), April 25, 2001