Baltimore Ravens vs Minnesota Vikings - 1st Round Picks

Who would win between the All Baltimore Ravens 1st round draft picks and the All Minnesota Vikings 1st round draft picks?  Vote on the right hand side!

*Note: These are only Ravens players drafted by Baltimore from 1996 on, and not players from the Browns prior.

*2nd Round Picks

Minnesota Vikings - All 1st Round Offense

San Diego Chargers - Off-Season

1st Round Pick - Mike Williams
WR
Clemson

STRENGTHS: Williams is an instinctive player and shows tremendous awareness.  His footwork, combined with his sure hands enable him to be a threat in the passing game.  His ability to get off the LOS smoothly and his great footwork allow for him to get just enough separation when going over the middle.  He does a great job on back shoulder throws, using his feet to stop on a dime and his great hands to make the catch.  He does a great job of using his size to his advantage.

WEAKNESSES: While Williams does a great job of getting off the LOS smoothly, he does not have the explosiveness to create much separation on a defender playing man.  In the Auburn game he fumbled the football as he did not do a well enough job covering it when defenders swarmed him and therefore knocked the ball loose.  While he has good hands, several times he dropped the football as he was looking ahead before he caught the ball.

FULL SCOUTING REPORT

Atlanta Falcons Off-season Report

As of 6/18/17

BEST RE-SIGN

RYAN SCHRAEDER

BEST FA SIGNING:

DONTARI POE

18 TACKLES, 1.5 SACKS, 1 FORCED FUMBLE - 2016 KC CHIEFS

1ST ROUND PICK:

Arizona Cardinals Off-Season Report

As of 6/16/17

BIGGEST RE-SIGN:

Chandler Jones

38 tackles, 11 sacks, 4 forced fumbles

BEST FREE AGENT SIGNING:

Antoine Bethea

95 tackles, 1 INT

1st Round: Haason Reddick
34 OLB
Temple

Strengths: 
Reddick is an extremely athletic edge rusher.  His quickness coming off the edge forcing the OL to get off the LOS quickly.  While his size does not allow for him to compete strength wise with an OL on a consistent basis, his quickness enables him to come off the edge successfully.  He shows excellent footwork, sliding his feet nicely, enabling him to break to the ball carrier when lined up at the LOS, as well as enabling him to slide is feet at the 2nd level in pass coverage.  His quickness also enables him to pick up a RB coming out of the backfield and showed fluid hips to maintain coverage.  Shows quick hands to disengage with his block.

Weaknesses: 
While Reddick has the ability to come off the line quickly, he struggles to do so consistently, preventing him from getting a 1st step on the OL.  Reddick does not possess the size to get through a block on a consistent basis as he showed he can be overpowered at the POA.  Reddick has a tendency to try and wrap up the ball carrier high rather than squaring him up, forcing him to miss tackles.  Would like to see Reddick work on more pass rush moves moving forward.

2nd Round: Budda Baker
Safety
Washington

Strengths:

Baker shows he is a very athletic, physical player.  He uses his quickness and fluid hips to get into pass coverage and maintain pass coverage by being able to recover with success.  he has a solid closing burst, enabling him to get to the QB with success on a blitz or close on a ball carrier quickly in the open field.  He shows very good cover skills, both m2m and zone, keeps his eyes on the QB.

Weaknesses:

Baker lacks overall strength, however, he makes up for it with his physicality.  Going forward would like to see him become stronger to make himself that much better, especially in shedding blocks.  While he has the explosive ability, there are times where he does not utilize it as he has the ability to. 

Fans Voice: Los Angeles Rams

Reviewing the Rams Draft Class

By: Joshua Forrest

The Rams had 8 picks in the 2017 NFL Draft, and while none of them were made in the 1st round, the organization still made sure to add the best players available. Drafting the right player is a tricky process; it takes hours upon hours of reviewing game film, analyzing combine/pro day workouts, and interviewing the players themselves. In this article, we are going to review the Rams Best Pick, their Most Interesting Pick, my personal Favorite Pick and UDFA.

Best Pick: Gerald Everett, TE, South Alabama, 2nd Round

The role of the tight end has been aggressively changing from simple in-line blocker to athletic x-factor. Antonio Gates, Delanie Walker, Greg Olsen, and Gronk himself are just a few players who have forced defensive coordinators to change the way they cover tight ends in the NFL. Gerald Everett could be the next match-up nightmare - the 2nd round pick from South Alabama consistently found ways to embarrass defenders at the college level. At 6’3 239 lbs, his unique blend of size and speed will allow him to become one of Goff’s favorite targets.

Most Interesting Pick: Sam Rogers, Fullback, Virginia Tech, 6th Round

The Rams picking Sam Rogers is a bit of a head scratcher. While he has enjoyed an excellent career at VT showing off his skills as a runner, receiver, and blocker, this was not a position of need for LA; especially when they already have a capable fullback in Cory Harkey. While the pick is a bit strange, head coach Sean McVay is an offensive genius; we could see Sam Rogers being utilized in a Mike Tolbert/John Kuhn type role. However, if Rogers does not find a niche on the team, this will be a wasted pick.

Favorite Pick: John Johnson, Safety, Boston College, 3rd Round

While his name is a bit plain, Johnson’s playing style is anything but. At 6’0, 208, Johnson is a jack of all trades defender; he can line up in the slot, play centerfield, or even come down and defend against the run. While the Rams have Maurice Alexander, Cody Davis, and Lamarcus Joyner returning to the back end of the secondary, Johnson’s versatility will allow him to find his way on the field sooner rather than later.

Favorite UDFA: Aarion Penton, Cornerback, Missouri

A first team All-SEC defender as a senior, Penton did not have the fortune of getting his name called in April. The Rams scooped up the former Mizzou Tiger after the NFL Draft and it may work out in Penton’s favor. Even though the Rams have Trumaine Johnson and have added several other corners in free agency (Nickel Robey-Coleman and Kayvon Webster), if Penton plays well he can find himself on the team's 53 man roster by the end of the preseason.

Joshua Forrest Bio (Click Here)

A Bucking Bronco in 2017?

The Denver Broncos hired Vance Joseph as their 16th Head Coach in franchise history back in January.  The hiring came as a shock to me, not because I didn't think Joseph was qualified, but because the Broncos previous two hires were coaches with previous head coaching experience.  The Broncos missed the playoffs last season after making five consecutive appearances.  The defense is still playing at a very high level, finishing 4th in the NFL in both yards per game allowed and points per game allowed, with 316.1 and 18.6 respectively.  This was the main reason I felt as though the Broncos would go with a candidate that has had previous head coaching experience.  I also felt as though the Broncos would go with an offensive minded coach, as the offense was much of their issue last season.

2017 will be Joseph's 13th NFL season.  According to the Broncos team website, Joseph began his career with the 49ers in 2005 and spent much of his career as a defensive backs coach with the 49ers, Texans and Bengals before getting the opportunity as a defensive coordinator for the Dolphins last season.  Joseph was the DB coach in Houston from 2011-2013 and the DC during that same period was Wade Phillips.  In Cincinnati, he was an assistant under Marvin Lewis, another coach with a history of having solid defenses.  Vance Joseph has had the opportunity to learn under coaches with great defensive minds.

While the Dolphins were a playoff team last year, their defense did struggle, finishing 29th in yards per game and 18th in points per game at 382.6 and 23.8 respectively.  This may be a concern for Broncos fans and may be why Dolphins fans were surprised that he got a head coaching job after being the leader of a unit that struggled.  While he is likely to input his system in Denver, he will not be solely responsible for that unit.  A Head Coach needs to be the leader of the franchise and the entire roster.  He will need to focus primarily on team discipline, accountability and having his team prepared for Sunday's.  One of the moves that he has made that I really like is promoting Joe Woods from DB coach of the Broncos the last two seasons to Defensive Coordinator.  Woods is familiar with the personnel on the defense and is a great resource on what the players can be successful in doing and not so successful in doing.  He also brought in Mike McCoy as his offensive coordinator to help improve an offense that struggled in 2016.  I am very interested to see how the Broncos will rebound from a disappointing 2016 season.  Here is a list of previous Broncos head coaches who have made their debut as an NFL head coach.  This list only gives records of the coaches first full season as head coach.  Thank you to pro-football-reference.com for the stats.

Red Miller and Dan Reeves are the only two that had a great deal of success in their career with the Broncos.  Miller made it to one super bowl and Reeves got the Broncos to three.

As I mentioned earlier, the defense is still playing at a high level and I believe that will continue on in 2017.  This season will largely depend on the offense and whether they can get production at Quarterback.  While Trevor Siemian did not set the world on fire, I thought he did a solid job in his first year as a starter.  He will be competing for that spot with Paxton Lynch and Chad Kelly, who if healthy, will be their starter at some point in 2017.  With the Raiders and Chiefs still being strong in that division, I see the Broncos having a tough time getting into the playoffs again this season.  However, if they do get production out of the QB position, I think it'll be neck and neck with the Broncos and Chiefs for one of the wild card positions.  

A Young Ram

Sean McVay became the youngest Head Coach in NFL history when the LA Rams hired him in January.  I was surprised to say the least.  A 31 year old being the head coach of an NFL team, the leader of a group of men, and a guy that is going to be younger than some guys on that team.  McVay has eight years of NFL coaching experience.  One year as a coaching assistant with the Buccaneers, and seven as a coach on the Redskins staff. According to the Rams team website, their roster is fairly young and there are only four players that have 8+ years of NFL experience.  McVay has quickly moved up through the NFL ranks, finishing his playing career at Miami (Ohio) in 2007.  He has coached in the NFL all but one year since college, a one year stint with the Florida Tuskers of the UFL in 2009.  McVay was the Offensive Coordinator in Washington for the past three seasons, with the Redskins finishing 3rd in total offense this past season at 403.4 YPG, and 12th in PPG with 24.8.  The Rams were dead last in the NFL in YPG and PPG, averaging 262.7 and 14 respectively.  Can McVay turn this franchise around with a QB, who in my opinion is a bust in waiting, leading the way?

Here is the list of the youngest NFL head coaches, according to www.profootballhof.com, since 1990, and how they fared in their first season as HC:

I am looking forward to seeing how McVay does this season and beyond and I hope he succeeds.  It's always great to see someone reach their dream, and even greater to see someone as young as he be given that opportunity.  While he is obviously a talented coach, I do not see instant success in his first season as several of the other young coaches listed above have, and I do see him having a first season equivalent to Lane Kiffin's and Raheem Morris'.  As I said, the Rams have a young roster, which I think is great for a young coach.  Jared Goff is not Kirk Cousins, and therefore I see the offense struggling again this season,  but I hope the Rams organization gives him a chance to build and not be so quick to pull the plug if he isn't successful his first one or two seasons.  One of the things I truly believe in is giving a head coach at least four seasons, and I think it's even more important with a first time head coach, allowing him the opportunity to grow into that role and giving him the pieces that he needs to be successful.