FIRST ROUND

Alright let's get it started a little early. Draft starts in about 10, and last night the Lion's reached a deal with Matthew Stafford, so right now the Rams are on the clock. Also be sure to check out our grades of the Packer's draft.

Pick 1: Lions - Matthew Stafford (3:00)
- Quite a bit of boos when they called Stafford's name. Not as bad as when Donovan McNabb's name was called.
Pick 2: Rams - Jason Smith (3:16)
- No real surprise, everyone saw it coming. Decent crowd reaction.
Pick 3: Chiefs - Tyson Jackson (3:26)
- Predicted in Mel Kiper's latest mock. A surprise because he was projected as a mid-first rounder. Probably not the best value at the 3rd spot.
Pick 4: Seahawks - Aaron Curry (3:33)
- Good pick! Regarded as the best linebacker and player in the draft. Clearly a high character guy that should become one of the better players to come out of the 2009 draft. (Here come the Browns, let's see what they do, should be interesting.)

Jets trade for Browns pick. (Cleveland picks at 17 and get Jets 2nd rounder and three other players.)

5: Jets - Mark Sanchez (3:42)
- Wow!!! Good pick by the Jets. they need a face for the franchise, they just drafted one. Wow!!! Best crowd reaction so far.
Pick 6: Bengals - Andre Smith (3:51)
- Good player, good run blocker. Outland Tropy winner. Stock recovered considering how bad the draft process went for him. Good pick.
Pick 7: Raiders - Darrius Heyward-Bey (3:57)
- Shocker. Terrible value for the spot. Good height, weight, and speed but has trouble catching the ball sometimes. Had games where he didn't catch the ball. Two to three better wider reciever prospects available. (Packer fans watch out for the possibility of the Packers selecting Michael Crabtree.)

I must say an exciting draft so far. A few things have not gone as "scripted."

Pick 8: Jacksonville - Eugene Monroe (4:07)
- A little surprised they didn't go Crabtree since they don't have any real receivers. Still, they needed a tackle.

Could the Packer's go with Crabtree. Thompson sticks to his board and at this point, he has to be the highest rated player on the board. Crabtree may not have a huge 40 but Thompson has drafted receivers that have ran high 4.5, so Packers are not worried about 40 as much as others are.

Pick 9: Packers - B.J. Raji (4:15)
- Great pick!!! Have a nose tackle that can eat up blockers. Love it, for now can rotate with Ryan Pickett at the nose. Good choice. Grab a good rush linebacker in the 2nd round. Packer fans this was a needed pick, may not be flashy but trust me, this is a good pick.
Pick 10: 49er's - Michael Crabtree (4:22)
- The best player on most team's boards is finally off the board. Great value. Now whoever their quarterback is, he has a potentially great target in Crabtree.

I always feel uncomfortable watching players sit around for so long. It is nice to see them get picked. With regards to Crabtree starting to wonder about his character as far as pre-madonna type. Hope not.

Thinking Orakpo could be Maybin though. We'll see. They need a DE opposite Aaron Schobel.

Pick 11: Bills - Aaron Maybin
- Good value. Surprise they didn't go with Orakpo, his injury issues must have scared some teams off. Good pick though. Gives them a good pass rush. Won't be good against the ground game right now. Needs to put on productive playing weight to become a complete player.
Pick 12: Broncos -Knowshon Moreno (4:32)
- This franchise is taking a turn for the worse. They miss out on Tyson Jackson and B.J. Raji guys they needed. They lose a franchise quarterback. McDaniels is running this franchise into the ground within a matter of months. McDaniels seems to be too arrogant for having done so little as a head coach.
Pick 13: Redskins - Brian Orakpo (4:34)
- Good pick. A lot of scouts think he is better as a DE in the 4-3. Great value for the spot. Might be the best value so far. Good pick. They now have a very good defensive line with Carter,
Griffin, Haynesworth, Orakpo.

Could this next pick be Beanie Wells. Might want to replace Duece McCallister.

Good draft so far. Very entertaining. Just can't get the Broncos personnel moves over the last few months out of my head. They are switching to the 3-4 where they have few personnel that fit that scheme and then they go offense. They should've went outside linebacker. However, I will say the players that were available at that spot where gone, which was surprising to most.

Pick 14: Saints - Malcolm Jenkins (4:41)
- Great football player. Projected as a safety, give him a try at cornerback. Does not have top end speed but will be a solid player. He will be a great leader in a few years once he is more of a veteran.
Pick 15: Texans - Brian Cushing (4:46)
- Good football player. Plays hard and looks to deliver big hits. He has had injury problems in the past. First USC linebacker to come off the board.

Maybe Maualuga? Would be Junior Seau type, imagine him paired with Merriman, might be the one of the harder hitting linebacker corps in the league. Could look at a running back possibly. Don't forget Maclin is still on the board. They can go a lot of ways. Don't think Harvin will be an option this early, has had character issues.

Pick 16: Chargers - Larry English (4:52)
- Is a surprise pick so far. Will play outside linebacker in a 3-4. Surprised maybe, thought he would be later in the first round or early second. Too bad for the Packers.

Does ESPN have a camera in the home of ever possible first round pick? Sure seem likes it. Interesting how they use it as a tool to almost know the pick before it is officially announced.

Quarterback. Could Josh Freeman come off the board.

Browns move down two spots and get a sixth round pick.

Pick 17: Bucs (trade with Browns, trade with Jets) - Josh Freeman (5:02)
- Great arm. Needs to sit and be developed. Start him in his second or third year while Leftwhich plays. Probably a reach, but if you want a guy - go get him.

Still liking this draft so far. Lots of trades and very unpredictable, although some people saw Freeman going to the Bucs.

Pick 18: Broncos (trade with Bears) - Robert Ayers (5:07)
- Good value. Will play outside linebacker in the 3-4. Good recovery pick for the Broncos. Long way to go.

Browns, for the third time, trade down in the first round. Do they ever want to pick in the first round?

Pick 19: Eagles (trade with Browns, trade with Bucs) - Jeremy Maclin (5:14)
- Good pick for the Eagles, could have went with Chris "Beanie" Wells. Will pair nicely with Desean Jackson. Could have used another back. Westbrook is getting older and has had a lot of injury problems. Still great value at that spot.

Were the Eagles worried about the Lions picking a wide reciever? Or maybe they were worried about the Vikings coming up and taking Maclin.

Pick 20: Lions - Brandon Pettigrew (5:20)
-Complete tight-end. Not a burner at the TE position but a good all-around player. I like what Detroit is doing. They might going to the offensive or defensive line. Good job Detroit.
Pick 21: Browns (trade with Eagles) - Alex Mack (5:25)
- Decent pick, might have been a little early. But decent. Nice job at collecting picks. Is Braylon Edwards going to be traded soon? - maybe to the Giants.
Pick 22: Vikings - Percy Harvin (5:29)
- Great player, I wonder about his character. Will be good on special teams, might take some time to develop as a receiver.
Pick 23: Ravens (trade with Patriots) - Michael Oher (5:37)
- Good pick. Difficult upbringing, had to be mentally tough. Scouts wonder if he tries hard all of the time. Still has a lot of ability.

Oher teared up after getting picked. Good for him. Happy to see this kid get picked.

Pick 24: Falcons - Peria Jerry (5:42)
-Good pick. good pass-rusher as a tackle. Falcons line has gotten better of the past few years. Will be a good 4-3 tackle.

Should be interesting pick. Wonder how Parcells will continue to build the Dolphins. Might go Hakeem Nicks. Big, physical wide receiver out of North Carolina, seems like a Parcells-type of guy, tough and productive.

I think the green room is fairly cleaned out, might be a player left. Not sure who though.

Pick 25: Dolphins - Vontae Davis (5:48)
- Good player with great physical ability. Not a technician and scouts wonder about his character. Great upside and great value at this point.

Parcells should get the most out of Davis. Good situation for him.

Patriots picked up 5th rounder in their earlier trade with the Ravens.

Surprised that Beanie Wells is still on the board. Could he go to the Patriots who have had trouble, as far as injuries are concerned, at the running back position? If Wells makes it past the Patriots, look for him to go to the Cardinals.

Pick 26: Packers (Pakers trade with Patriots, trade with Ravens) - Clay Matthews (5:56)
- I'm loving it. Great pick. Great athlete the 3-4 is slowly taking shape. He will play the right side opposite Aaron Kampman. Good move by Ted Thompson. Packers are at the top for best draft so far. Good pick, great value, and great character. Surprised the Patriots didn't go after him. Seemed like a Patriot kind of guy.

This is a Packer site, so don't mistake my praise as just being a fan but I think the Packers are taking great steps so far. Look for them to go after Jarron Gilbert a big 6-6 280 pound DE. He would be a great addition and help round out the front seven.

Pick 27: Colts - Donald Brown (6:00)
- A well rounded player. Good addition with Joseph Addai considering how much he has gotten injured lately. Though they might look for wide receiver or go after Everrette Brown a small speed rusher. Still, good value and I can't argue with Polian's first round picks.

Fantastic all-around draft. Lot of excitement and a lot of trades. Fun to watch. Bills on the clock, might go tackle with Ebben Britton, Maualuga could be a possibility at linebacker.

Pick 28: Bills - Eric Wood (6:05)
- Good four year starter. Snuck into the first round over the past few weeks. Good player good value.

Listen closely, here comes the Giants. Can't wait to see the fan reaction depending on what their pick is. Might go with Kenny Britt at wide receiver or Beanie Wells even. Must say I am surprised how long Wells has stayed on the board have teams forgotten about him. 12 picks away from the Packers.

Pick 29: Giants - Hakeem Nicks (6:10)
- Good pick by the Giants. Good crowd reaction behind Sanchez. Big, physical receiver. He does not have top end speed. Might be too strong to say but is probably a poor man's Michael Crabtree. Like the pick. I think they should have made a big push for Braylon Edwards. Still good value pick. For the Packer fans, think James Jones.

Just thinking about the possibility of the Vikings picking up Plaxico Burress. I know they drafted Harvin but they always seem wide receiver desperate. Let's see. (It depends on how the legal situation of Burress pans out.)

I'm seeing Wells on the phone, could he go to the Titans. Two running backs in two years.

Pick 30: Titans - Kenny Britt (6:19)
- Good pick, good value. Finally go after a wide receiver in the first round. Big, physical receiver. Like the pick not sure the Titans had any other options at that particular spot.
Pick 31: Cardinals - Chris "Beanie" Wells (6:28)
-Great pick, great value. Not sure this could have worked out any better for the Cardinals. I thought wells would be long gone. This likely means the end of Edgerrin James in Arizona. Wells is what the Cards need. I am concerned about his ability to stay healthy in a league that is more physical than college.
Pick 32: Steelers - Evander "Ziggy" Hood (6:34)
-Surprised, but good pick good size. Will play DE in the Pittsburgh. Can't argue with their picks.

Well the Packers are done for today, they traded their second and third round picks. I had fun and hope you enjoyed following along.

Bye

DRAFT UPDATE

Be sure to check in throughout the draft on April 25, 26 as we will update pick by pick throughout the first round.

PACKER'S SCHEDULE

Here is the Packer's 2009 schedule, tell me what you think.


Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals
@ St. Louis Rams
@ Minnesota Vikings
Bye
Detroit Lions
@ Cleveland Browns
Minnesota Vikings
@ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dallas Cowboys
San Francisco 49ers
@ Detroit Lions
Baltimore Ravens
@ Chicago Bears
@ Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
@ Arizona Cardinals

DRAFT PROVIDES SOME ANSWERS

Green Bay Press Gazette looks at how the draft may provides some answers to the holes on defense. (More...)

IT WAS INEVITABLE

It's easy to forget baseball is a business. Most of us even say, professional baseball players are men playing a boys game. It maybe true.

But don't forget that owners are profiting from Major League Baseball, and don't forget about the players profiting from their success too. Everyone involved with making the baseball world turn is a business man. From the umps, to the players, to the owners, everyone is in baseball to make a buck.

So the strike of 1994 shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, it was inevitable.

The theory of revenue sharing created problems among all sides. Revenue sharing is currently used in baseball, and it is the idea that large teams exceeding a set payroll-dollar amount would be forced to pay a portion of their revenue to a pool, which usually consists of four to six teams. There the money is equally divided.

When it came to this idea, owners could not collectively agree themselves. Teams with large payrolls were reluctant to lose money, and teams with small payrolls were obviously in favor of receiving money.

Factor in that players were against revenue sharing because they felt it threatened the increase in player salaries. With revenue sharing, it was thought spending would go down.

On the other side, there might be the notion that a salary cap may have been the answer. Teams could have, for the most part, a set idea of how much money would be available to them and it would keep salaries from continually rising. The players could also receive contracts with guaranteed money.

The problem is both sides were split on this issue as well.

First, the players knew a salary cap would keep contracts low, with teams having a set amount of money available for player salaries.

Thanks to Marvin Miller's earlier years of "Baseball is a Business 101" players were adamantly opposed to the idea of limiting their opportunities to make money. The salary cap would undoubtedly limit an increase in player salaries.

And why would the players opt for non-guaranteed contracts. Sure these contracts may have forms of guaranteed money but every dollar in their current baseball contract was already guaranteed.

To the players, a salary cap would have been a step in the wrong direction.

Aside from proposed ideas, owners and players just didn't get along when it came to the business of baseball.

Here is a quick history lesson. The owners took advantage of the players in baseball's early years. In the 60's things started to change. Curt Flood wanted to become a free agent, Marvin Miller became head of the players' union, and the players wised-up. Free agency started along with salary arbitration, and since then players have had a choke-hold on the bargaining table.

These shifts of power led to a common dislike for one another, which kept the chess board of bargaining at a constant stalemate.

The only way this would have been avoided is if both sides could have employed the services of Doc Brown and his Delorian -- to get back to the future.