At this point, though I am greatly disappointed by it, I am pretty much assuming that the Flesh Zeppelin will not be returning to the Bengals. I think he is gambling some team with playoff aspirations will lose their starter at ORT to a season ending injury and then they will play his asking price. It says a lot to me that money is the only thing he cares about - frankly, in many ways we are better off without such a player. Every player should have some care about money, no doubt, but it should never be the ONLY concern, imho So anyway, he is gone for purposes of the following mock. First up, I am going to list three possible picks at each pick number through round 4, as I would be happy with any of the three at that spot, and it is virtually impossible to figure out who will slide to our pick However, as each pick fills a need, that need should not be addressed again until round 5 or later. Second, although the team clearly needs to bolster the offense more than the defense, I just see the needs we have (RB and OL) not quite falling right in the bottom third of the first round, and in turn there is a ton of talent on defense here. So the first round pick at least will probably go to defense Third, I am firmly in the camp that says Jones or Sanu will emerge as a WR2, so I will not be drafting one early Finally, in many mocks, our 1st round pick addresses the Flesh Zeppelin's absence. The two most common picks in these cases are either DJ Fluker or Menelik Watson. I don't like either player as a FZ replacement. Fluker is all power and no movement, and he will be a liability in pass protection. He really should be a guard. Watson is an athletic freak, yessir, no problems there, but he is 4 years older than the typical senior recruit, and he has only played the position for a year. I'd consider Watson with a later round pick, maybe 4-5, but some team will draft him much earlier on potential. Not us, I hope. so on with the show...... Round 1 A Arthur Jones LB Kansas State http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1619684 I love this guy as demonstrated in Mock 1. One of only 12 players at the combine to receive a grade above 90. I think there is a good chance Chicago takes him just ahead of us, but they could go OL instead. B Jonathan Cooper OG North Carolina http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1695617 I love this guy too, and I have seen him in the top 10 in some drafts and in the lower 20's in others. I think he gets devalued as a Guard and slides. Extremely powerful with long arms, 4 year starter. I think he takes over immediately for Boling who was solid but unspectacular. C Kenny Vaccaro SS Texas http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664330 Projected to go as early as 12th in some mocks I have seen, but could fall due to perceived lack of foot speed and devaluing of the safety position. I have not been high on him but have come around due an article in Football Outsiders (http://www.footballoutsiders.com/futures/2012/futures-texas-fs-kenny-vacarro) that I think you should all read that shows he has successfully covered both Keenan Allen and Tavon Austin. The fact that Zimmer brought him in for a personal look-see also speaks volumes to me. I believe he has the versatility to play free or strong, or cover a slot receiver, running back, or TE; and this only improves his value more Round 2A A RB Eddie Lacy http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664330 All the tape I have watched shows me a guy who is big, reasonably fast, fairly elusive, and very hard for the first tackler to bring down. He looks natural as a receiver as well. He also has about half the treadwear on him (350-ish carries in college career) as most of the other top-tier RBs in this draft class, who averaged around 600 carries apiece. Along then same lines, when you look at his stats, keep in mind he was playing only about half time. This is a bellcow RB, and I believe he will be available with our "Carson" pick in round 2. I am not worried about his injury status. from http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/shutdown-50-alabama-rb-eddie-lacy-154751676--nfl.html : Perfect build for a power back -- outstanding musculature with a big lower body and consistent leg drive. Impressive "foot frequency," especially in short spaces -- keeps his feet tapping and moving while waiting for lanes and gaps. Goes from stop to start in a hurry and moves through the hole with speed and authority. Very quick laterally to move from gap to gap, and keeps his eyes downfield to exploit openings as they happen. Will occasionally explode outside from between the guards with his lateral quickness. Looks to bounce quickly when things aren't open inside. Excellent vision; will slash away from defenders to holes some backs wouldn't see. Cut-and-go style makes him an ideal zone runner. Very powerful player who will blow through bounce tackles and rip past back-seven defenders. Will bull and spin out of trouble for additional gains. Consistently falls and vaults forward at the tackle to gain extra yardage. As aggressive as he is, shows patience at the line; he won't generally outrun his blocks. Strong blocker who will square up at the point of attack and sustain protections. Effective weapon on quick screens and swing passes. Has a decent juke move to evade in the open field. Outstanding sense of balance allows him to regain his footing when avoiding tackles, and he runs through trash very well B Alec Ogletree MLB Georgia http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737114/alec-ogletree Yeah, I hear ya. A very talented Georgia linebacker with drug and alcohol problems, been there done that already. Something tells me this guy isn't quite the headcase Odell was, and if he didn't have these warts, he'd be gone by pick 20 at the latest. Oh, and I want a MLB because I want to keep 55 at weakside, where he has been pretty damned effective. B Kevin Minter ILB LSU http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664390/kevin-minter I like the production and non-stop motor on this guy. As sure a tackler as there is in this draft. He did not test particularly well, but I think he is one of those guys who is simply a better football player than an athlete. I do however suspect he will be a 2 down MLB rather than a 3 down MLB. Taking him over Ogletree at this point as I have decided Ogletree is too huge a risk on severe character issues, despite outstanding raw physical ability C Matt Elam SS Florida http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737092 I figured in the last mock he'd last til 3 due to his size.....well, I've reconsidered after additional research, and I honestly think we'd have to be very, very lucky for him to slip this far, but if we failed to get Vaccaro in r1, and he was still here, he'd have to be the pick. I really like the speed and attitude this player brings. Round 2B A Barrett Jones OC Alabama http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1632207/barrett-jones I freakin *love* this guy, and he only drops this far due to a lis franc injury that he was tough enough to play through at the National Championship game. I don't care if we have to PUP or shelve him for 2013, just get him in Stripes B David Amerson CB NC State http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737246/david-amerson A tall cornerback with legit 4.3 speed who has THIRTEEN interceptions in 2011. Yeah, he wasn't as effective in 2012, so he gets picked lower. This is the guy who we need to cover Torrey Smith. Yeah, we have plenty of corners, but also a lot of age at the position even considering Kirkpatrick. C Khaseem Greene LB Rutgers http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1724998/khaseem-greene D Giovanni Bernard RB Wisconsin http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737248/giovani-bernard He'd go higher if not for a history of injury. Good speed and hands Round 3 A Terron Armstead OT Arkansas Pine Bluff http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1767688/terron-armstead Athletic freak who chose this small school because the coach there was the only one who would allow him to participate in track events as well as be on the football team. I think he falls this far due to being raw and playing against inferior competition. We draft him now and groom him to take over eventually for Whitworth, who remains a good player but is fading. B Darius Slay CB Mississippi State http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1665311/darius-slay 6 foot and 4.3 speed - another attempt get us a guy who can cover Torrey Smith C Christine Michael RB Texas A&M http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664173/christine-michael Terrible name, great rb. Very good size/speed ratio, and enormously strong (27 reps) Injury history and attitude concerns are flags. D Shamarko Thomas S Syracuse http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1682114 Experienced at both corner and SS, with 4.3 speed. He is short at 5'9" but sturdily built, good instincts, top tackler at Syracuse in 2012. Stronger than most linebackers - 28 reps. Extremely motivated to succeed - head of his family since the death of both his parents in recent years Round 4 A Brennan Williams ORT North Carolina http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664351/brennan-williams Here's my Flesh Zeppelin replacement. 1st round talent with an injured shoulder currently. Can heal while Collins plays for now. B Zaviar Gooden OLB Missouri http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1679504/zaviar-gooden Fastest linebacker in the draft. Replacement for Migraine Boy and/or Skuta. Probably more Skuta, since he actually got on the field C Josh Evans FS Florida http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1708343/josh-evans Coverage safety with a chance to start, played all 4 years as Florida. According to this article on Florida's pro day (http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Pro-Day-Review-March-16th.html) Evans ran a 4.48 40 and tested out better than Elam D Le'Veon Bell RB Michigan State http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1762561/leveon-bell This is a big powerful runner, decent but not great speed, with good blocking and pass catching talents. Leading rusher in the Big Ten, for what its worth Round 5 A Marcus Lattimore RB South Carolina http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737120/marcus-lattimore This is a luxury pick. I doubt anyone picked at this point or below can help us in 2013, but this guy could be PUP'ed or IR'ed for the whole year in 2013 and should come back fully ready to go in 2014, and could at that point not only start, but potentially star. B Chris Faulk OT LSU http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664212/chris-faulk Very light feet and long arms make this guy a prototypical OT, who has played both right and left while at LSU against top notch competition since his freshman year. This is my final attempt at replacing the Flesh Zeppelin C Steadman Bailey WR West Virginia http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1664860/stedman-bailey Not as fast or as heralded as his teammate Tavon Austin, but more productive with a much better YPC. Potentially competes for the WR2 sport. Rounds 6 and 7 In rounds 6 and 7, I would expect them to try to pick up athletic specimens who have the chance to contribute immediately on special teams but could be groomed for a need position in time Probably need (in no particular order) 1) a "power" DE, similar to Jumpy Jr, who isn't getting any younger or cheaper. I hear they've brought in a kid from Princeton for a look-see who appears to fit that mold. I'd prefer to see Still getting these "power de" reps, but the team seems to have other plans 2) they'll need at least 2 running backs, so if they've only taken one to this point, pick another 3) I can't believe this Quinn guy is the best third TE out there. Seriously. So pick up a two-way TE in these two rounds. 4) Finally, our kicker could use some competition, particularly given how fragile he has been, and in any case kicker is one of those spots that there are usually really good players still available in late rounds. Would like to see http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1620544/caleb-sturgis chosen in round 6 to meet this need.
