1. Antonio Cromartie/CB-Florida State The Chargers haven't taken a high corner for a while, so it was probably time to snag one. Cromartie is a gamble on
greatness, as he's barely managed to see the field while at Florida State. However, his combine workouts have had scouts comparing him to another former
Seminole--Deion Sanders. Blessed with size, athleticism, great hands and blazing speed, Cromartie has the tools to become a shutdown corner. But you're
basically hoping that a guy who really hasn't played since high school can not only get back into the swing of things at a level that's beyond what he's ever played
against. Not to mention the health factor. Personally, I think I would have gone with a less risky option, but Smith must have fallen in love with this guy to take
such a chance. And I suppose the fact that the Bolts are pretty well loaded throughout the roster made using this pick to roll the dice acceptable. I'll give it a B.
2. Marcus McNeill/OT-Auburn Apparently the Bolts were considering grabbing McNeill with their first pick. So I like the pick quite a bit, especially considering the
fact that they held to slot and let him slide into their lap versus burning a bunch of future picks trying to move up. McNeill has been a very solid player for Auburn for
several years and carried a late first round grade on most boards. The issue with McNeill is his health--he has some sort of compressed spinal chord thing to be
wary of. But at this point in the draft, this pick is risky but with a high ceiling. Solid choice and I give it a B+.
3. Charlie Whitehurst/QB-Clemson I don't expect Whitehurst is going to blow anyone away but he's definitely shown the ability to become a very solid back-up type
who takes a couple starts every couple of years. I like my backup QB's to be a little more proven and would have preferred that the Bolts turned toward grabbing a
safety or another WR but it's never a bad idea to roll the dice on a promising QB. I'll give this pick a C+
5. Tim Dobbins/LB-Iowa Dobbins was a bit inconsistent after coming to Iowa from the JC ranks. He's got a lot of the tools you're looking for in a linebacker in
terms of size, speed and nastiness--but he looks like a first rounder in some games and free agent in others. With Donnie Edwards moving on soon, the
Chargers could use another stud Inside Linebacker, so this is a solid choice. Grade of C+.
6A. Jeromey Clary/OT-Kansas State The Bolts continue their trend of loading up on O-Linemen as we approach the later rounds of the draft. Adding Clary to the
mix just gives them another level of depth to ensure that we have some young guys feeding into the pipeline. Good pick and worth a C+.
6B. Kurt Smith/K-Virginia Don't get this at all. You're not going to keep an extra kicker just to do kickoffs and you're certainly not going to get rid of the promising
Nick Kaeding. So what's the point? A wasted selection and worth a rare F for AJ Smith.
7A. Chase Page/DT-North Carolina Without a ton of quality depth at DT, adding a young guy to the mix couldn't hurt. But he's a borderline free agent type and could
have a tough time making the team. I think at this point I might have packaged the two #7's for a future #6 and just headed out for beers. Grade of C.
7B. Jimmy Martin/C-Virginia Tech Another late round O-lineman and another Center after the Bolts selected Scott Whateverhisnameis with their final pick last
year. But I couldn't find any scouting info on this guy anywhere. And it's not as if he played for some obscure college in Mississippi. Might as well just cut him
now. Grade D.
Final Analysis
This is an unusual AJ Smith draft in the sense that it carries a number of high risk-high reward players. Cromartie and McNeill both have high potential if they can
stay healthy. And Whitehurst and Dobbins might surprise. Beyond that it was depth with a completely wasted kicker pick sandwiched in between. I have to give
AJ the benefit of the doubt and assume this draft will out-perform my initial reaction but I'm still going to grade this draft a little lower than some of the past few
monster drafts and give this one a C+.
greatness, as he's barely managed to see the field while at Florida State. However, his combine workouts have had scouts comparing him to another former
Seminole--Deion Sanders. Blessed with size, athleticism, great hands and blazing speed, Cromartie has the tools to become a shutdown corner. But you're
basically hoping that a guy who really hasn't played since high school can not only get back into the swing of things at a level that's beyond what he's ever played
against. Not to mention the health factor. Personally, I think I would have gone with a less risky option, but Smith must have fallen in love with this guy to take
such a chance. And I suppose the fact that the Bolts are pretty well loaded throughout the roster made using this pick to roll the dice acceptable. I'll give it a B.
2. Marcus McNeill/OT-Auburn Apparently the Bolts were considering grabbing McNeill with their first pick. So I like the pick quite a bit, especially considering the
fact that they held to slot and let him slide into their lap versus burning a bunch of future picks trying to move up. McNeill has been a very solid player for Auburn for
several years and carried a late first round grade on most boards. The issue with McNeill is his health--he has some sort of compressed spinal chord thing to be
wary of. But at this point in the draft, this pick is risky but with a high ceiling. Solid choice and I give it a B+.
3. Charlie Whitehurst/QB-Clemson I don't expect Whitehurst is going to blow anyone away but he's definitely shown the ability to become a very solid back-up type
who takes a couple starts every couple of years. I like my backup QB's to be a little more proven and would have preferred that the Bolts turned toward grabbing a
safety or another WR but it's never a bad idea to roll the dice on a promising QB. I'll give this pick a C+
5. Tim Dobbins/LB-Iowa Dobbins was a bit inconsistent after coming to Iowa from the JC ranks. He's got a lot of the tools you're looking for in a linebacker in
terms of size, speed and nastiness--but he looks like a first rounder in some games and free agent in others. With Donnie Edwards moving on soon, the
Chargers could use another stud Inside Linebacker, so this is a solid choice. Grade of C+.
6A. Jeromey Clary/OT-Kansas State The Bolts continue their trend of loading up on O-Linemen as we approach the later rounds of the draft. Adding Clary to the
mix just gives them another level of depth to ensure that we have some young guys feeding into the pipeline. Good pick and worth a C+.
6B. Kurt Smith/K-Virginia Don't get this at all. You're not going to keep an extra kicker just to do kickoffs and you're certainly not going to get rid of the promising
Nick Kaeding. So what's the point? A wasted selection and worth a rare F for AJ Smith.
7A. Chase Page/DT-North Carolina Without a ton of quality depth at DT, adding a young guy to the mix couldn't hurt. But he's a borderline free agent type and could
have a tough time making the team. I think at this point I might have packaged the two #7's for a future #6 and just headed out for beers. Grade of C.
7B. Jimmy Martin/C-Virginia Tech Another late round O-lineman and another Center after the Bolts selected Scott Whateverhisnameis with their final pick last
year. But I couldn't find any scouting info on this guy anywhere. And it's not as if he played for some obscure college in Mississippi. Might as well just cut him
now. Grade D.
Final Analysis
This is an unusual AJ Smith draft in the sense that it carries a number of high risk-high reward players. Cromartie and McNeill both have high potential if they can
stay healthy. And Whitehurst and Dobbins might surprise. Beyond that it was depth with a completely wasted kicker pick sandwiched in between. I have to give
AJ the benefit of the doubt and assume this draft will out-perform my initial reaction but I'm still going to grade this draft a little lower than some of the past few
monster drafts and give this one a C+.
| Jacko's Original 2006 Draft Analysis |
