Draft Preview

(2007 Texans #1 pick Mario Williams)

It seems like football just ended, right? It was only about two and a half months ago when the New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots in one of the greatest Super Bowls ever. But, the first part of next season starts today with the 2008 NFL Draft. If your a football fan, you usually watched the first round or two, like myself, because it's impossible to sit there for eleven hours watching the draft. Last year's draft had a first round which stretched six hours and eight minutes. That's why the NFL changed a few things to shorten the draft.

The time a team had for their first pick used to be fifteen minutes, but this year they will have ten minutes. The second round went from ten minutes to seven minutes. The time of the draft was also changed from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday will only be the first two rounds of the draft, giving Sunday to the third-seventh rounds. This was a great move by the NFL because the draft was definitely way too long...I don't think you could find something more boring to do on a Saturday afternoon. The first round is usually very good, with all the big name players going to their new teams. But, after that, it just gets plain exhausting. Now let's get into the top players in the draft.

The Miami Dolphins already made their first overall pick, by signing Jake Long to a five-year, $57.75 million deal. Long was the top offensive lineman in college, where he played at Michigan. Nice safe pick. They say the safest first round pick is a lineman, but I just don't get that. With a play-maker like Darren McFadden, or a future star quarterback in Matt Ryan, why would you waste your first pick on a lineman? But I guess you need to build a team safely, by choosing a guy who you know can protect your quarterback and block for your runner.

I think Darren McFadden of Arkansas is going to be the best player out of this draft, a 6'2 runner with speed and power. It looks like the Raiders might take him, although the Jets have been trying to trade up or land McFadden at the sixth overall pick. Other than the top few picks, there are a few guys to look out for. Felix Jones was the back-up behind McFadden at Arkansas, and I can see him going late in the first round to the Cowboys. But, there's a quarterback who I would look out for. Joe Flacco. Quarterback from Delaware. At an incredible 6'7, Flacco is one of the most talented quarterbacks I've seen in a while. I wouldn't be surprised to see him slip to the early to middle of the second round.

3 p.m. today, NFL Draft. Whether your an NFL fan wanting to see who your team gets, or a college football fan wanting to see where these players go, the draft can be interesting for a little bit. But don't watch it for too long, you might waste your day.