Of Oakland’s first round selection of WR Darrius Heyward-Bey (Maryland) and second-round pick, S Michael Mitchell (Ohio), the San Francisco Chronicle‘s David White scoffs, “the Raiders either dislocated their shoulder with two draft-day reaches Saturday, or they know something no one else in the NFL does.” In the eyes of the San Jose Mercury-News‘ far more cynical (and some might say truthful) Tim Kawakami, the Raiders’ questionable decisions are evidence that head coach Tom Cable “got this job because he™s the guy who™s willing to let Al Davis make loopy picks like this and pretend that Cable had anything to do with them.”
With the 7th overall pick, and with the Raiders looking at the possibility of taking a supremely productive and tougher WR in Michael Crabtree or a fast and productive WR in Jeremy Maclin or a top OT in Eugene Monroe or a huge DT in B.J. Raji or TRADE DOWN¦
Al reached humongously for fast non-productive WR Darrius Heyward-Bey out of Maryland. (There is not a great history of non-productive fast guys going to the NFL and then producing TDs, but Al keeps trying!)
* Then in the 2nd round, Al traded out of the No. 40 spot (to New England), went back 7 spots, then selected S Mike Mitchell out of Ohio University, a total speed-physical guy who was not listed by several draft analysts. Not in the top 10, not in the top 100¦ NOT LISTED.
I™m sorry, but this guy does not seem like the second coming of Ed Reed to me. More like the second coming of some guy Al could™ve drafted in the fifth or sixth round, but was too stubborn to want to do that.
If Cable had any juice in this organization, he would™ve pushed hard for Monroe or Crabtree or Maclin“all picks that would™ve shown that Al wasn™t going to let his obsession for stop-watch speed warp his judgement yet again.
(Fabian Washington! Derrick Gibson! Napoleon Kaufman! Jessie Hester! James Jett!)