2009 NFL Draft Day 1 Recap: The Best Of Times, The First Of Times

Ok, Draft Day 1 is in the Lions-fan-head-covering bag, so let’s get down to it. Starting Monday, we’re going to take a look at how each team did with a little glance back at what Walter Football, Mel Kiper, Todd McShay, and The Sporting News thought they may do. But today, we’re going to give an overview of how the draft went and what fantasy football fans can look forward to from it:

• The Lions are the Lions are the Lions. Even when they’re good, it’s bad. Matt Stafford may give them their first legitimate franchise QB in … decades? Centuries? But, with the meteoric rise of QB Mark Sanchez in recent days, one must question whether they even got the best player at his position, let alone the best player available, at pick #1. Very, very Lions. Very nearly Millen. If nothing else, the trade value of a Sanchez pick would have been a viable commodity in a draft where trades occurred with surprising frequency. Since the Lions greatest need isn’t one great player but several viable players, as MJD so eloquently put it, failing to trade out of that pick may seriously slow their ascent to that lofty goal of winning a game. Some time this calendar year. Seriously, fellas. That said, picking Pettigrew took some cajones – he serves the dual purposes of adding another good blocker and adding another significant passing option for whatever QB is taking snaps for them come September, and should have legitimate fantasy impact, particularly in reception leagues that require a TE. As for Delmas, good player, but that ain’t nothin’ but classic cornbread (read the comments). Eat up.
• Al Davis, you crazy little necromancer, you! When is this guy gonna stop drafting “athletes” and start drafting football players? Were they looking at Michael Johnson before the draft because they thought he was great in the Olympics? WR Darrius Heyward-Bey is by no means a bad football player, but Michael Crabtree is better. Jeremy Maclin is better. And WRs don’t win you championships (or do much in fantasy as rookies). They can bring you close, but until you can stop giving up 159.7 rushing yards per game(!), you aren’t going to win many games. Unless DHB can stop the run like GHB can stop Frank Solich, it’s gonna be another long year in Oaktown. Of course, I guess JaMarcus needs somebody to throw to when Mike Williams is covered … in nachos … watching the games on TV … from his mother’s basement.
• The rich get richer because they see the big picture. On the upside, the Browns and Patriots recognized something salient about this draft that other teams seemed to ignore: unless you had very specific needs, it didn’t much matter where you drafted. This year’s pool of talent at many positions is wide, deep, and roughly uniform. Is OL Andre Smith (picked #6 overall) really gonna be that much better than OL Michael Oher (#23)? I don’t know. Is DE Tyson Jackson(#3) going to have that much more impact than DE Clay Matthews (#26)? I doubt it. So, why not trade down and get more picks? That’s the kind of strategy that can give a team like the Browns options and hope and can put a team like The Patriots back in the Super Bowl – multiple times. Both of those teams showed a lot of savvy, and they’re going to have some happy fans for years to come because of it … well, the Patriots will.

Look for our complete, team-by-team draft wrap-up on Monday

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