Chapter 966: Young Year in the Draft
On April 25, in Nashville, the 2019 draft officially started.
After experiencing the ups and downs in 2017 and the quarterback explosion in 2018, 2019 is generally considered to be a serious down year——
Overall downturn.
From offense to defense, young players with talent and potential are generally not enough. Scouts and professionals have said that there have been serious gaps this year and the results of the draft may not be satisfactory.
Not only the NFL, but the NCAA is also aware of this.
It is precisely because of this that this year's college students who "do not meet the draft standards" have applied for the early draft, including juniors and even redshirt sophomores. Everyone realizes that this year is a small year, which also means that they The hope of entering the first round increased greatly, and applications were submitted one by one.
The number of players reached a record high, with 119 players drafted in advance.
Is this a good thing?
uncertain.
But this is the reality before us, and the teams can only accept it.
More importantly, the trend of young rookies taking on more and more main responsibilities since 2016 has further reared its head after the Kansas Chiefs relied on their young team to successfully defend their title, and team managers are still rubbing their hands.
Who knows, maybe one or two diamonds will appear this year?
Such as Levi. Such as Mahomes. Such as Jackson.
It is enough to find just one of these "potential stocks that are not promising but will shine". one.
This year, from the analysis of paper strength, this is a big year for the forwards. Both the offensive and defensive fronts are far ahead in terms of quantity and quality.
However, after the rookie training camp, the scouts collectively sighed——
There are no good seeds.
Whether it is physical test results, tactical awareness, or even team interviews, all are below expectations, and the "big year" is very, very far away.
Despite this, after the busy first day of the draft came to an end, the forwards still relied on their numerical advantage to become the focus of the topic on the first day.
Eleven defensive linemen. Five offensive linemen.
Fully sixteen forward players were selected in the first round. In other words, fully half of the thirty-two teams put their precious first-round picks on the forwards.
reason?
Can't blame the Kansas City Chiefs, but more or less, the Kansas City Chiefs still play an important role.
In the final analysis, it is because the league is holding high the banner of passing offense, and the intensity of the frontline confrontation between the offense and defense continues to increase. The offensive team needs to increase pocket protection, and the defensive team needs to increase pass rush pressure.
In the midst of this, Levi's emergence reawakened the importance of ground offense. Compared with the defensive second line, the pressure on the defensive front line such as defensive forwards and linebackers has skyrocketed.
Simply put, if you want to contain the Kansas Chiefs' combination of Mahomes and Levi and increase the impact of the defensive front, it is imperative.
By the way, there are four linebackers in the first round, and all of them happened before the 12th pick. The importance of ground defense is returning to the coaches' playbook——
Linebackers, like defensive fronts, occupy an important position in ground defense, and the threat of running backs seems to have reached a new high in five seasons.
Although the overall talent and ability of the players are lower than expected, the defensive frontline players who have seen a little bit are still snatched up by the team at the first time, and the competition is still fierce. Levi: Please feel free to shoot me!
Are there any star players among these players?
The answer is yes.
However, in the off-season, star rookies stand out.
In previous years, even the top three draft picks would be subject to a series of trades; however, this year has been quiet, with players holding high-ranking draft picks all refusing to trade, and it was not until the tenth pick that the first draft pick was traded. It's really rare.
It can also be seen from the side that the teams attach great importance to rookies. These teams all followed their own draft strategies and snatched up all the already scarce star rookies.
With the second pick, the San Francisco 49ers selected Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa, instantly grabbing countless attention.
There is no doubt about Bosa's talent and ability, but last season, Bosa underwent a core muscle surgery at the beginning of the season, missed two full months of the game, and subsequently announced his withdrawal from Ohio State University, skipping the entire junior season and participating in Draft, which raises many questions.
The San Francisco 49ers do need to add defensive front, but is it worth it to select Bosa with the second overall pick?
With the third pick, the New York Jets selected University of Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen-Williams, which also caused a lot of discussion.
Although Williams came from the University of Alabama Crimson Tide Storm, he and Levi never played together. In 2016, Williams did not play as a freshman. Instead, he put on a red shirt and witnessed Levi's miracle in the sparring group.
In the following two seasons, Williams showed great potential on the court. However, after all, it was only two years. He directly skipped the rest of his college career to participate in the draft, and stated in front of the media that he "hoped to follow in Levi's footsteps."
Similarly, the New York Jets have random moves in the draft every year and choose Williams with the third overall pick, right?
A second pick, a third pick, and all the final selections were young people who "do not meet the standards for this year's draft," which once again verified Xiaonian's statement.
In this wave of heated discussions, there is only one player who really stands under the spotlight——
University of Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray, the 2018 Heisman Trophy winner, is undoubtedly the center of attention, and he is also the absolute star who dominates this small year.
Everyone speculates that the Arizona Cardinals, who hold the No. 1 pick, will choose him. After all, he is a quarterback, and he is also the most talented and complete player among all rookies this year. There is no reason not to choose him.
Perhaps the only doubt is that the Arizona Cardinals used the tenth pick in the first round of last year's draft to select UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, and this was also a pick that was traded up. It comes at a price; could they be drafting a quarterback for the second year in a row?
What kind of stupid self-slapping thing is this?
However!
The Arizona Cardinals did it anyway and selected Kyler Murray with the first overall pick!
applause! cheer! Praise!
Stupid is indeed stupid; but decisive is also decisive.
The Arizona Cardinals realize that they may become a laughing stock by selecting a quarterback in the first round for two consecutive years, but they also realize that they cannot pass up Murray.
After all, Rosen was overwhelmed with the heavy responsibility last season. With him as the starting quarterback, the team had three wins and 13 losses in the season, and was reduced to the position of deputy squad leader.
Therefore, wearing the clown's mask, the Arizona Cardinals still chose Murray.
Moreover, at the end of the first day of the draft, Rosen was traded to the Miami Dolphins in a single move, in exchange for a series of draft picks, including a Miami Dolphins second-round pick this year.
Not only did he reduce the damage from last year's draft mistakes, but he also turned around and started preparing for a fresh start this year.
Act vigorously and decisively.
The Arizona Cardinals also showed their decisiveness, and they made the right decision when the ball came up.
(End of chapter)