Hmmm....What are some of our former desired draft picks up to these days?

**LouisianaRaven** · 08-16-2012, 10:32 PM

Any QB before we drafted Flacco....

Dez Bryant: I remember when he kept slipping and New England was up next... I kept screaming, "We're getting Dez, championship!!!" Then, New England trades their pick to Dallas, one spot in front of us and the rest is history...

**wickedsolo** · 08-16-2012, 11:09 PM

I was never really high on the idea of Baltimore drafting Brandon Pettigrew. Yes, I knew that Heap wasn't getting any younger and they needed to groom someone behind him, but given that they had just drafted Flacco and had ZERO receivers, Kenny Britt was the guy I really wanted in round 1. Obviously, I'm glad (from a character stance) that he wasn't selected, but man...could you imagine if Flacco had a 6'3" 220lb receiver with Britt's downfield ability? Talk about a scary combination for opposing defenses...

I was never really big on Nicks, but I did think he was a good receiver prospect...I just wasn't sure (based on what I saw of him in college) how he'd do in Cam's offense. I think Kevin Gilbride's offense is a perfect fit for Hakeem Nicks. Hind sight is 20/20. The other Wr's in the 09 draft I really liked were Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline out of Ohio State. I also liked Johnny Knox, Jarrett Dillard, and Austin Collie. Robiskie is on the Jags right now and actually has put together a decent off-season for them. Hartline has been a solid #2 possession guy for the Dolphins, Knox (before getting hurt) was one of the up and coming guys in the league as a receiver and return specialist, and Collie would be a solid #2 on any team in the NFL (concussions aside). Jarrett Dillard is interesting to me. Here was a guy coming out of Rice who had 50 TD receptions (NCAA record I believe) and was a quintessential slot receiver with solid route running ability. He's 5'11" and about 190lbs with decent speed. He's no Devin Hester, but he can get behind a defense. The thing I was really intrigued with Dillard was a 43" vertical...which is on the same level as guys like Randy Moss in their prime. I read that when Dillard got to his highest point it was the equivalent of throwing the ball to a 6'8" guy or something ridiculous like that. He never got going in Jacksonville and now he's fighting for a spot in Detroit.

The other guy in that 2009 draft that I would have loved to see the Ravens take was Vontae Davis, the cornerback out of Illinois. He is Vernon Davis' younger brother. Great size/speed/cover combo (6' 205lbs). He can really cover any type of receiver and he has excellent ball skills. Not sure what the deal is with him down in Miami...he started off strong, but then last year got picked on a lot. Who knows...maybe a down year? I just thought he would have been a great fit for the Ravens and at the time Baltimore DESPERATELY needed better corners.

Regarding the TE position, the one guy in the 2009 draft that I thought would have been the more "optimal" TE selection was James Casey out of Rice. 6'3" 244lbs, excellent receiving skills, good speed, could jump out of a gym, and could line up as a traditional TE, an h-back, a FB, and split out wide. He literally lined up everywhere in college. He was drafted by Houston and has played TE and FB for them. Mainly because he's sat behind Owen Daniels and Joel Dreesen. Casey is in line to be the #2 TE down there this year. I still think in this offense with Flacco he would have really excelled.

**LukeDaniel** · 08-17-2012, 02:42 AM

A lot of us were talking about how much we wanted Titus Young in the 2nd round last year. Of course, he was off the board before we could draft him, but it's nice to see that he's performing at a level that makes Lion fans forget about Barry Sanders....what a moron. He's already leading Sanders in arrests 1-0 after his rookie year....

**wickedsolo** · 08-17-2012, 06:43 AM

Originally Posted by LukeDaniel

A lot of us were talking about how much we wanted Titus Young in the 2nd round last year. Of course, he was off the board before we could draft him, but it's nice to see that he's performing at a level that makes Lion fans forget about Barry Sanders....what a moron. He's already leading Sanders in arrests 1-0 after his rookie year....

I was definitely one of those who would have liked Titus Young. However, I was NOT one of the posters who wanted to spend a 1st round pick on him...there were a lot of those and I didn't understand that at all...

**Paintballguy** · 08-17-2012, 07:29 AM

Originally Posted by GOTA

Vontae Davis- Good player but he's a real headcase. Never thought Oher would drop and loved the pick

During an episode of hard knocks, the Miami coaches were riding his ass because he was dogging it in practice and getting torched. Also, he was complaining about how out of shape he was.

**wickedsolo** · 08-17-2012, 07:43 AM

The guys I wanted in the 2011 Draft:

Ryan Kerrigan - was really hoping he'd drop. He's the real deal. He can play the run well and he's a tenacious pass rusher.
Brooks Reed - Thought he was a poor man's Clay Matthews. He made the Texans forget about Mario Williams. Went a lot higher than I thought he would.
Greg Jones - Was a hell of a MLB at Michigan State. Played decently for the Giants, but was pretty rough starting off.

**JAB1985** · 08-17-2012, 08:35 AM

i dont really remember wanting too many players last year. I wanted Jimmy Smith and luckily he fell to us.

the only guy i can think of is Stephen Paea. 14 tackles 2 sacks. decent start in limited action.

2010, i wanted Gronk chris cook/kyle wilson and Novarro Bowman.

**leachisabeast** · 08-17-2012, 09:07 AM

Jab good call on Bowman, not many people really seemed to care about him before that draft, and he went as low as the third round. He is now a top 5 ILB in the league, and bet you any money a ton of teams would have picked him in the first round if they could go back in time.

In the 2011 draft, I wanted Aldon Smith, but knew he wasn't going to fall far, same for Ryan Kerrigan. I was also really interested in Mike Pouncey, who was pretty average in his rookie year, but looks like he could become one of the better centers in the league this year.

**Ravens44** · 08-17-2012, 10:12 AM

In 2009:
I wanted us to get Hakeem Nicks and Sean Smith.
In 2010:
I wanted Dez Bryant, but I didn't think he would be there, so I was thinking Gresham at TE
and take Demaryius Thomas in the 2nd and Jimmy Graham TE in the 3rd.
In 2011:
Jimmy Smith in the 2st, so I was really happy when we got him
And Jon Baldwin from Pittsburgh, WR in the 2nd because we needed a BIG receiver since our designed routes do not get our guys open.
I had Barksdale at OT from LSU and then Kelvin Sheppard also from LSU at ILB.
In 2012:
In the 1st, Hightower or Upshaw. I actually had Osemele in the 2nd or Alshon Jeffery from South Carolina.
In the 3rd, Mike Brewster C, from Ohio State.

Anyway, I actually met a guy at work who went to Ohio State and knew about Justin Boren.
He says Boren has two younger brother, who are both at Ohio State too and both are better than him.
One is a fullback and the other is an Olineman. He said we will all be hearing about both of them.

**Raveninwoodlawn** · 08-17-2012, 10:16 AM

2010, I REALLY wanted Thomas or Bryant.

I remember hoping that Thomas' inability to work out up to that draft would let him slip to us...I was pretty pissed when Denver took him.

My real anger though was when Dallas traded up to get Dez. I almost threw my remote through my TV when Dallas made that trade.

**leachisabeast** · 08-17-2012, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by Raveninwoodlawn

2010, I REALLY wanted Thomas or Bryant.

I remember hoping that Thomas' inability to work out up to that draft would let him slip to us...I was pretty pissed when Denver took him.

My real anger though was when Dallas traded up to get Dez. I almost threw my remote through my TV when Dallas made that trade.

I was pretty mad at the time too, can't really say the same now, because of recent events. Plus the fact that he really hasn't been all that productive in a pass first offense.

**Raveninwoodlawn** · 08-17-2012, 10:34 AM

Well...Dez's problem has been his conditioning.

When the game starts and he's motivated, I think he is an ubelievable talent.

Unfortunately, he is always either nicked up, or wears down.

If he learns to be a professional (the reason he slipped so far was because of his maturity level...talent wise, he should have been a top 5-10 pick without question in one of the deepest drafts we've had in the last decade), I think he will be one of the top WR's in the game.