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2013 NFL Mock Draft (pre-free agency) by James Fedewa
The NFL off season leaves most football fans with a lonely void of the GOT NO FOOTBALL BLUES. We miss our game, our team and wonder and speculate how we fans can improve our beloved team. With trade rumors, gossip, opinions and speculations flinging across fan-websites & news papers, with no real news reported (other than salary cap cuts and the Alex Smith unofficial trade), no real player interviews are worth watching. So fan cling to the next best thing: the NFL Scouting Combine followed by hundreds of MOCK DRAFTS. I’m an NFL fan, and my favorite team has its share(s) of number ONE overall picks (along with with the worst record in the league), so mock-drafts have been part of my football fan career. I’m a fixer and an idea-man, so I want to figure out the details of how to improve my favorite team (and all of their opponents). Routinely for the last 19 years, I annually guesstimate WHO is going where, what college phenom can help this team and how can you improve all teams. So if you’re dream job is a General Manage of an NFL Team (which is mine dream job), I MOCK DRAFT every teams need as if I’m the General Manager OF THE WORLD (well, not really). The NFL Franchise Tags have been set, so here’s my VERSION ONE of my 2013 NFL Mock Draft:
| 2013 NFL Mock Draft / pre free agency | ||
| No. | Team | Scenario 1 |
| 1 | Kansas City Chiefs | Sharrif Floyd, DT, Florida |
| 2 | Jacksonville Jaguars | Dion Jordan, DE, Oregon |
| 3 | Oakland Raiders | Geno Smith, QB, West Virginia |
| 4 | Philadelphia Eagles | Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M |
| 5 | Detroit Lions | Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama |
| 6 | Cleveland Browns | Barkevious Mingo, OLB, LSU |
| 7 | Arizona Cardinals | Matt Barkley, QB, USC |
| 8 | Buffalo Bills | Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee |
| 9 | New York Jets | Jarvis Jones, DE/OLB, Georgia |
| 10 | Tennessee Titans | Chance Warmack, OG, Alabama |
| 11 | San Diego Chargers | Eric Fisher, OT, Central Michigan |
| 12 | Miami Dolphins | Lane Johnson, OT, Oklahoma |
| 13 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida Sate |
| 14 | Carolina Panthers | Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri |
| 15 | New Orleans Saints | Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State |
| 16 | St. Louis Rams | Johnathan Cooper, OG, North Carolina |
| 17 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Damontre Moore, DE/OLB, Texas A&M |
| 18 | Dallas Cowboys | Ezekiel Ansah, DE, BYU |
| 19 | New York Giants | Alec Ogletree, LB, Georgia |
| 20 | Chicago Bears | D.J. Fluker, OT, Alabama |
| 21 | Cincinnati Bengals | Kenny Vaccaro, S, Texas |
| 22 | St. Louis Rams (from Redskins) | Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia |
| 23 | Minnesota Vikings | Keenan Allen, WR, CAL |
| 24 | Indianapolis Colts | Jesse Williams, DT, Alabama |
| 25 | Seattle Seahawks | Sylvester Williams, DT, North Carolina |
| 26 | Green Bay Packers | Matt Elam, SS, Florida |
| 27 | Houston Texans | Star Lotulelei, NT, Utah |
| 28 | Denver Broncos | Kawann Short, DT, Purdue |
| 29 | New England Patriots | Johnthan Banks, CB, Mississippi State |
| 30 | Atlanta Falcons | Datone Jones, DE, UCLA |
| 31 | San Francisco 49ers | Margus Hunt, DE, SMU |
| 32 | Baltimore Ravens | Kevin Minter, ILB, LSU |
| 2nd Round | ||
| Pick (overall) | Team | |
| 1 (33) | Jaguars | Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington |
| 2 (34) | San Francisco 49ers (from Chiefs) | DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Clemson |
| 3 (35) | Eagles | Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State |
| 4 (36) | Lions | Alex Okafor, DE, Texas |
| 5 (37) | Bengals (from Raiders) | Larry Warford, OG, Kentucky |
| 6 (38) | Cardinals | Terron Armstead, OT, Arkansas-Pine Bluff |
| 7 | Browns | (exercised pick in Supplemental Draft) |
| 8 (39) | Jets | Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame |
| 9 (40) | Titans | Logan Ryan, CB, Rutgers |
| 10 (41) | Bills | Mike Glennon, QB, NC State |
| 11 (42) | Dolphins | Zach Ertz, TE, Stanford |
| 12 (43) | Buccaneers | Cornellius Carradine, DE/OLB, Florida State |
| 13 (44) | Panthers | Jonathan Cyprien, S, Florida International |
| 14 | Saints | (forfeited) |
| 15 (45) | Chargers | Darius Slay, CB, Mississippi State |
| 16 (46) | Rams | Eddie Lacy, RB, Alabama |
| 17 (47) | Cowboys | Philip Thomas, S, Fresno State |
| 18 (48) | Steelers | Johnathan Hankins, DT, Ohio State |
| 19 (49) | Giants | John Jenkins, DT, Georgia |
| 20 (50) | Bears | Arthur Brown, LB, Kansas State |
| 21 (51) | Redskins | Jordan Poyer, CB, Oregon State |
| 22 (52) | Vikings | Sam Montgomery, OLB/DE, LSU |
| 23 (53) | Bengals | Manti Te’o, ILB, Notre Dame |
| 24 (54) | Dolphins (from Colts) | Corey Lemonier, DE/OLB, Auburn |
| 25 (55) | Packers | Barrett Jones, C, Alabama |
| 26 (56) | Seahawks | Robert Woods, WR, USC |
| 27 (57) | Texans | Justin Hunter, WR, Tenn |
| 28 (58) | Broncos | Khaseem Greene, OLB, Rutgers |
| 29 (59) | Patriots | Menelik Watson, OT, Florida State |
| 30 (60) | Falcons | Giovani Bernard, RB, North Carolina |
| 31 (61) | 49ers | Shamarko Thomas, SS, Syracuse |
| 32 (62) | Ravens | Travis Frederick, C, Wisconsin |
Guys to Get / Filling Chargers Holes in 2013
The Chargers have so many holes to fill, plus multiple free agents possibly leaving in 2013. Multiple offensive guards are free agents, multiple corner backs are free agents, multiple running backs are free agents… New General Manager Tom Telesco may keep a few San Diego free agents but they all were previous GM AJ Smith’s guys, and AJ (and Norv) are gone, fired, kaput…
So, if I could have ONE game changing Free Agent is San Diego for 2013, who would it be? Umm…. Hmmm…
I’m… not…. sure… I don’t really love ANY of them. Sure,there are some quality football players GM Teleco can nab, but most of these “impact” free agents are going to demand a TON of cash, and I don’t see anyone really worth $10 million a year (so, sorry Jake Long). Can San Diego get Vincent Jackson back? Ehhh… not concerned about that rich guy anymore, since WR Danario Alexander looked just like him (and Vincent Brown is coming back from injury).
So, I don’t have ONE free agent WANT or NEED, but I do like three smaller free agent football players. Not franchise game changers (yet), but good football players…
I’d like San Diego to get:
ILB, Leroy Hill, SEA – Spikes is old, and he ended his Chargers career in bad fashion with a temper tantrum vs. Oakland. Hill is a quality linebacker, big hitter, and very intimidating. He reminds me of an ILB Foley. I really like him (AS A FOOTBALL PLAYER) but he just got in trouble with domestic abuse problems, but that shouldn’t matter. IMO, he’s a perfect fit with Donald Butler as an ILB’s the 3-4 defense. I’m rooting for Mouton, and I hope he excels, but that’s an AJ Smith guy too, and he just couldn’t get playing time from Pagano.
LG: Andy Levitre, BUF, He’s a sturdy Californian and blue collar worker, plus started every game in his 4 year carrer. He’s a boardeline pro bowler though, and may get a lot of CASH!!! Get this guy, keep Tyrone Green (but move T.Green to CENTER).
CB: Tracy Porter, DEN: If he can stay healthy, I like the way he plays. But he had some injuries last season but when he played he played well. SD rarely brings in quality free agent CB’s but Telesco may… Especially with Denver’s secondary coach now in SD. SD has two quality young corners that can start, but SD really needs a younger vet to help the kids, in case of injury. Marcus Gilchrist and Shareece Wright should excel (and start) in 2013, but Gilchrist plays very well as a nickel corner.
We all know that the O-Line is San Diego’s biggest problem. Keep Gaither (for 1 more year. He’s nervous and back injuries really do SUCK! – Plus Cheap LT’s are so hard to find) Draft a LT with the 1st round pick for insurance though. Keep Clary and Mike Harris,. Dump Hartwick & Vazquez (both cannot run block and have failed over the last 4 years combined)…
2012 NFL Training Camp (Race and Course)
…training camp!
We like to hear those two words. Its like our “football-seasoned” appetizer has just arrived at our table, as our main course is nearing (the regular season). Well, then you have preseason games, which really doesn’t have a positive flavor in our football fix (as a $60 ticket for a game that doesn’t count and doesn’t really taste that good). But still, preseason football is still football (just like bad buffalo wings & burnt fries still get eaten), we do like watching ALL four quarters on our big screen HDTV’s. Watching undrafted rookie free agents SHINE (at least for their quick moment) and watching the superstars socialize with each other and interview with standard cliche’ answers on the sidelines, “…one game at a time…”
Then there are the worries: The injuries You can only hope that your favorite players have shown up in decent shape so that training camp, drills & practices do not create any NEW injuries. JUST STAY HEALTHY and STAY AVAILABLE!!!! Little by little, these high performance machines are getting tinkered, pumped torked & flexed into game shape. Yet if you push their engine too far, car problems can occur and a gasket may blow or a block may get cracked. So we all hope the hamstrings stay healthy, knee injuries are just minor, groin/abdominal injuries are slight and ligaments & bones are normal.
And that’s just the body and the guts – or the tools, motor & parts from the neck down…
What about the HEAD, the BRAINS? Learning the playbook, adapting to new schemes, working well with your teammates, new coaches, new positions (and the good ole’ concussion).
It’s honestly amazing how complicated you may think this 2012 training camp really is & how much rides on it. But in actuality IT’S ONLY A GAME (a race or a course). A game that has changed our culture and dominates our interests. A game that keeps us connected to Twitter daily, fan-blogs and to football-related websites during the entire off-season ( just because we NEED TO KNOW whats happening with our team, the players, Mr. General Manager and every free agent still available).
This game isn’t a game at all anymore is it? It’s a routine. It’s a social outlet, a stalker-fetish, a daily read or should I say: a secondary life…
“…Wait, what’s that? Who got the latest DUI, who has a new non-profit organization, who shot them self, who went cliff diving, who wrecked their motorcycle, who had their 6th child, who remains unsigned, who’s suing him, who retired, he did what to his mother???”
So preseason is next, followed by our fantasy football drafts and THEN we will have our main course (the regular season), only to hope for a sweet desert in the end.
—James Fedewa
National Fanatic 