SBD's 4th and Final Mock Draft!

I've stopped the waffling, as someone put it in another thread. This is my locked in mock of what I see happening this weekend...

1. Cordarelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee
I've put it elsewhere a lot but I'm not crazy about Jarvis Jones, and I don't see him being the pick. For one I doubt he gets past the Jets twice, and the Saints. Two; he'd old. Three; He's not what we typically look for in our OLB's which are big guys who are strong at the point of attack. Four; We never take OLB's in the first round.

We desperately need some play-makers on offense. If Sanders walks after this season, Brown will be the only proven, young guy we have at WR. Patterson is raw, but he has the ability to make an impact early. He's an interesting guy in that he has video game-like agility in the open field (which we really need a return man now too with Rainey gone), but is also a big guy at 6'2." He doesn't play as big as you'd like but maybe that can be coached. I've seen him compared to Demarius Thomas, but I think his game is more like Santonio Holmes. I believe all the supposed interest in Tyler Bray was a smokescreen to get a good look at Patterson.

2. Damontre Moore, OLB, Texas A&M
I know, I know... He's a first round pick. I don't see it. I think his character issues are going to scare off some teams in round 1 and he could be in for a free fall, where we'll scoop him up in round 2 and hope our locker room can straighten him out. Sound familiar? Wasn't Mike Adams being mocked to us in round 1 in tons of mocks last year?

Moore needs work, and needs to get more mature, but I love his motor. If he gets his head right he could be a regular pro bowl selection. I actually didn't want to go OLB all that high, but I think Moore could be a faller that's too good to pass up.

3. Shamarko Thomas, S, Syracuse
I'd be surprised if one of our first three isn't a safety. I could see Vacarro in the first if he's there, but if not I think there's a run of them at the end of round 1 (Elam, Cyprien, Reid, Swearington) so we best wait until the third. Thomas fits our scheme well, but won't fit in any defense, so he falls to us here. He can lay some lumber and play sideline to sideline. I would LOVE to see Troy take this kid under his wing.

4. Leveon Bell, RB, Michigan State
This is a pick I'm not crazy about but I see it happening. The coaches have shown a lot of interest in Bell, and 5 years ago I'd have said he's the perfect Steeler. He's a great between the tackles runner, but I think we have two of those on the roster already. I'd rather see Christine Michael with our zone blocking scheme.

5. Will Davis, CB, Utah State
Will Davis came in for a visit and reminds me a lot of Cortez Allen when we took him. He's an athletic guy that creates turnovers for a small school. I'm not sure Davis lasts this long, but if he does I think we pull the trigger.

6. Mike Mauti, ILB, Penn State
This might be a little early for Mauti (maybe not, who knows), but I think the Steelers want to be sure they grab him. They've shown interest in him, he's close by, and he's the type of guy we really need. With Hines, Aaron Smith, James Farrior, Casey Hampton, and soon Foote... gone we need team leaders. Mauti is that guy. He's recovering well from a knee injury... but physical gifts aren't what make him special anyway.

6. Oday Aboushi, OT, Virginia
Aboushi had a good season, and a bad "draft season." He got pushed around at the senior bowl by bull rushers, and had bad numbers at the combine. He needs to get stronger for sure, but he could be an asset in pass protection and moving around in our new scheme.

7. Ryan Griffin, QB, Tulane
I'm having a hard time buying all the Tyler Bray talk. Bray will go in the 3rd round, and for one; we'd be nuts to waste a 3rd round pick on a backup, and two; Bray is a punk... If we take him we learned nothing from Rainey and Ta'Amu last season. Griffin is a smart kid, and would probably compete with Charlie Batch in camp for the 3rd spot if we bring him back.








And with that, my long offseason of draft speculation is done. Can't wait for this weekend! Love to hear thoughts/discuss as always.