Path to the Draft: 4/5 - 4/9

Notes from last week's NFL Network Path to the Draft installments:

Well, 70% of them. The network switched to a one-hour show on Monday but didn't notify my TiVo until Thursday. Fortunately, that was the day Stacey Dales hosted in a low-cut dress.

* Bradford/Clausen talk. The panel notes that the Rams are attending Colt McCoy's and Jimmy Clausen's workouts, but that it's mostly just doing their homework in the very unlikely event they get knocked with a trade offer. Bradford has many advantages over Clausen, they say: bigger, stronger, better arm, can throw from many different angles and can make more different types of throws. Mayock calls Clausen a top-ten talent after his pro day. Tremendously live, but not elite arm. Phenomenal accuracy. Plenty of zip on the ball and threw deep outs with accuracy and strength. Nice touch and accuracy on deep throws with little problem. Can step into his throws more these days because his toe's getting better. Lombardi called his workout better than Mark Sanchez's last year. Clausen didn't do any on-the-run throwing, but his workout emphasized deep throws, and he had better velocity on his throws than Bradford. Clausen, though, has experience in a pro-style offense and actually had to call line protections at the LOS. Bradford didn't. Clausen also called audibles, played more under center, and had 5 4th-quarter comebacks to Bradford's 1. Also better durability and a much better TD-INT ratio.

So they actually make a pretty good case that the Clausen will be a better QB than Bradford. Or at least he'll hit the ground more quickly. But the Rams HAVE to take Bradford.

Golden Tate performed well at today's workout. Raw route runner, but very explosive, with tremendously strong hands and great ball skills. Best quality is running after the catch, and he's also a dangerous punt returner. "Good enough" hands but will drop some balls. Unique playmaker who plays bigger than his size and is too fast to overthrow deep. Has good enough feet to make better cuts than he does. All the makings of a #1 WR at the pro level.

* OLB talk. First rounders: Sergio Kindle and Sean Weatherspoon. Second: Navarro Bowman, Darryl Washington and maybe Koa Misi. Kindle makes the most plays in the opposing backfield. More and more scouts like him more than Brian Orakpo last year. Michael Lombardi scouts Jerry Hughes as a 3-4 OLB. Explosive, can rush passer, play in space and set the edge against the run. Washington's a 4-3 OLB whose best skill is pass coverage. Will need coaching help to learn to better shed blockers, but he's the perfect WILL for a Tampa-2. Weatherspoon can play MIKE and WILL. Impresses as a take-charge player. Rickey Sapp of Clemson projects to a 3-4 OLB. He's not powerful enough to play 4-3 DE. Should be little chance of him joining the Rams, then. Navarro Bowman's a good run-and-chase, play-in-space LB who took over the Penn State defense, but he also got suspended there and you have to be satisfied he's not a knucklehead. And his interviews haven't really gone well. Charlie Casserly calls Bowman a late first-round, early second-round pick. Well, who the hell isn't? If I declared for the draft right now, this show would call me a late 1-early 2.

* CB talk. Brooks still thinks Joe Haden is a top ten pick. Lombardi likes McCourty because of his great balance. Charlie Casserly says some teams have Kyle Wilson as the #1 corner, seeing at the Senior Bowl that he looked good in off-coverage. Charles Davis thinks Brandon Ghee's impressive Combine numbers will move him up boards, though he doesn't have tape to match because he played a lot with injuries. Combine should show his potential. Kareem Jackson is mentioned on this show FOR THE FIRST TIME. Late first round prospect doesn't have elite speed, but has great instincts, knows how to read offenses, knows how to tackle, knows how to play the position. Casserly argues that his speed isn't even an issue because he ran 4.41 at pro day. Nice press corner, quick and sudden with great change of direction. Can mirror receiver and run with him deep. Very instinctive, great balance, great understanding of routes and anticipation of where ball's going. Pro-ready because Nick Saban is a great coach of defensive backs. Only question is that he hasn't played a lot of zone coverage.

* OL talk. Casserly's the first one this network daring enough to call Mike Iupati a little overrated. He stands up straight too much and gets away with a lot of holding. Says he's more a late-first rounder than middle-1st. Brooks adds he's more ideal for running teams than passing teams. Maurkice Pouncey is quick, has a nasty streak and good fundamentals. He can handle people lined up right on his nose and is smart enough to handle all the line calls. Immediately after Brooks calls him a top-20 player, Casserly calls him a SECOND-round talent getting pushed up because of team needs.

* Safety talk. Eric Berry has the most ability, the best skillset and is the biggest hitter. Earl Thomas is CB-sized with the physical ability of a safety. Berry just does everything a little better. Both are close to CB-quality in coverage skills. Taylor Mays is a late-first pick at best. Isn't comfortable in space. Casserly thinks he should be a LB. Charles Davis compares him to Darnell Bing. (WOW) Poor instincts, not an inspiring cover back, makes up for shortcomings with athleticism.

* Team needs. I missed a couple of teams and have to pick back up with Denver at 11. Their beat writer strongly believes they're going to trade down, and that Brandon Marshall won't be a Bronco next season. They don't have a center on the roster and they're really hoping to get Pouncey. The panel idiotically recommends they draft Dez Bryant to replace Marshall if they unload him. Lombardi makes the highest projections to date for Brandon Marshall and Dan Williams.

Jagwires at 10: No insider; Brooks and Lombardi handle analysis. They can't wait on Tebow to develop, they need speed on defense and pass rush. Brooks says McClain would give them a defensive leader and a thumper. Derrick Morgan and Pierre-Paul also mentioned. They signed Aaron Kampman but still need rush off the edge.

* Philadelphia freedom. After trading Donovan McNabb, the Eagles now have 5 of the top 87 picks. Mike Mayock believes they need to target CB, DE and OL, but by pick 24, Jason Pierre-Paul, Brandon Graham, Derrick Morgan and Kyle Wilson will all be gone. That would leave them Everson Griffen (NO! I want him at #33) or Devin McCourty. O-line would be the better value for them, so they should take Mike Iupati or Maurkice Pouncey.

Proving Mike Mayock doesn't even watch his own damn show. There are at least a half-dozen teams ahead of Philadelphia that are after Iupati and Pouncey.

* Michael Lombardi, draft insider. Lombardi shares information we all already knew about Anthony Davis having off-field issues and poor work-ethic and sliding down the board. Tomorrow: Lombardi suggests the Rams might draft Sam Bradford. Lombardi considers Brian Bulaga the #2 OT. Another bland revelation from Lombardi later that Charles Brown has first round talent. Does this guy get paid for revealing this "news"? Tomorrow: Lombardi boldly projects that Russell Okung may go in the top 20.

* Sleepers. Bucky Brooks says the biggest sleeper in the whole draft may be USC CB Kevin Thomas. Ran in the 4.4s pro day, has outstanding footwork, instincts and awareness. Has the stuff to start in the NFL. Tennessee QB Jonathan Crompton is moving up draft boards because he's a rare QB with pro-style offense experience. Mayock calls John Skelton "Flacco Lite" for the dozenth time and thinks he could be drafted before Tony Pike. Northwestern OLB/DE Corey Wootton is a rising prospect. Was coming off ACL surgery in 2009 and didn't have a great year but is getting his burst back. UCLA DT Brian Price ought to be drafted anywhere from 35th to 25th. Jarrett Brown is a more legitimate pro QB than his WVU predecessor Pat White was last year. Will be a very solid pro with good coaching. Mike Kafka is a smooth, accurate thrower who has good mobility and can throw on the run. Smart and can read defenses. Will have to metamorphosize from the shotgun, but could be a great later-round value. (Other than the arm, this sounds exactly like Sam Bradford.)

* Bargain hunting. The panel nominated players who would be bargains in certain rounds.
2nd: Rodger Saffold (named by Casserly, a rare moment when he's right about anything), Lamar Houston, Jahvid Best, Brandon Spikes. Lombardi actually says something interesting by calling Illini o-lineman Jon Asamoah a sleeper here. Physical and can knock people off the ball. He then destroys rare momentum by idiotically calling Jerry Hughes a sleeper. A FIRST ROUND PROJECTION IS A SLEEPER? Lombardi's sleeper pick tomorrow: C.J. Spiller. Scott Kennedy called Best the best pure RB in the draft, better than Spiller, IF he stays healthy.
3rd: Dexter McCluster, Javier Arenas. Casserly suggests Ed Dickson of Oregon, saying he catches the ball well. Which Combine did he watch?
4th: Nate Byham.
6-7: Virginia Tech safety Cody Grimm, special teams ace with 106 tackles and 7 forced fumbles. Too small, too slow, but somehow makes a lot of plays.

* Assorted wisdom. Russell Okung models himself after, not Walter Jones, not Orlando Pace, not Anthony Munoz, but... Conrad Dobler. That's pretty hard not to like.

Harder to like: Lombardi's claim that teams actually pay attention to media mock drafts as a gauge of what range of picks players "ought" to be selected in. Claims the 49ers used to predicate their draft claims off of Will McDonough's mock drafts.

Yeah, right.

Then he claims having the year off HELPED Sam Bradford, who he called the BEST player in the draft. The time off let him build up his body, get stronger, and he can take the physical pounding now.

Sure. He "got" the year off because he couldn't take the physical pounding, but whatever.

Then again, Lombardi says Clausen is the ideal WCO QB. So why shouldn't the Rams draft him? They run the WCO, after all.

* More mock draft fun. Lombardi mocks Bradford to the Rams, then of course, Ndamukong Suh to Detroit. Spiller to Seattle, Clausen to Cleveland, Dan Williams to Buffalo.

He mocks Berry to KC, but Brooks argues they need o-line worse, while Davis idiotically clings to the idea of the Chiefs going with Clausen. His reason is the Charlie Weis connection. He also adds that Seattle spent two hours with Clausen after his workout. Hmm.

As for Clausen going to Cleveland, Brooks says they'd have no business passing on Earl Thomas there. Earl Thomas in the top 10? Didn't he run in the 4.6s?

I'll close with Davis saying Suh makes "perfect sense" for the Lions at #2. This show is apparently never going to explain why it makes so much sense to draft Suh at #2 and never did at #1.