Mock Draft Time: Second Round

If you didn’t catch the first round of Haze’s Mock Draft, go check out the analysis of the picks first.  Here were the results of the first round:

1. Curveballs for Jesus – LaDainian Tomlinson
2. Sean McCall – Adrian Peterson
3. Football Burrito – Joseph Addai
4. Pancake Blocks – Steven Jackson
5. West Coast Nonsense – Brian Westbrook
6. Bruno Boys – Tom Brady
7. The Hazean – Marion Barber
8. Football Jabber – Frank Gore
9. Fantasy Football Fools – Clinton Portis
10. Fantasy Football Geek Blog – Marshawn Lynch
11. Fantasy Football Goat – Larry Johnson
12. Fantasy Football Librarian – Randy Moss

The second round has officially been posted at The Hazean. Being a serpentine/snaking draft, my pick fell all the way to 24, which means I also get the first pick in the Third Round. Go check out who the experts selected with picks 13-24. My second and third round picks were Drew Brees and Jamal Lewis, and below is my analysis.

Drew Brees:

It’s back around to me, and I am going to take an elite quarterback before they are gone.  I like four QBs in this spot: Carson Palmer, Tony Romo, Drew Brees, and Derek Anderson.

Carson would be great, but who knows what the Chad Johnson situation is going to bring in 2008.  If he would just play football, life would be a great deal easier for the Bengals.  Although Housh is a top-notch talent, I am going to pass on Palmer.

Romo is simply outstanding, although the only team in the NFL I hate more than Dallas is the Patriots.  I can’t stand the Cowgirls, but they have a great receiving crew.  T.O. is probably going to have another great year, which spells success for Romo on the field and in fantasy land.  I just don’t see Romo throwing 36 touchdowns again like last year.

Next, Derek Anderson: I like what this guy did in 2007, and I honestly think he potentially has the best receiving corps in the game.  He is going to throw a lot of touchdowns this year to Braylon Edwards, Kellen Winslow, and Donte Stallworth.  He is just unproven in my eyes, and as much as I want to take him here, I can’t do it (in my original draft for this pick, he was the guy I went with).

That only leaves one: Drew Brees.

Brees was my boy last year after he got over his slump in the beginning.  He has put up huge numbers with over 4000 yards in the last two years with the Saints.  His touchdowns were relatively static at 28.  Going into week 6 last year, Brees only had one touchdown and around 900 yards passing … not to mention NINE FREAKING PICKS.  What that means is in the last 12 games, he averaged about 300 yards and over two touchdowns, with less than one pick per game.

I don’t think he will struggle like he did at the beginning of last year, and some of his receivers have another year of NFL experience under their belt.  So, two years running, I take Brees in the second round of Haze’s mock.

Jamal Lewis:

I almost want to take TJ Houshmandzadeh or Steve Smith here to shore up the receiver spot, but I don’t want to end up starting Ahman Green in my second running back spot.  The “best available” according to the cheat sheets that are out there is Ronnie Brown.  The guy scares me, and I can tell you why in one word: INJURY.  It’s also almost worth taking a chance on McFadden, but who knows what he is going to do in Oakland.  I kind of want to take him because of how Lynch did last year with my Bills, but let’s face it: the Bills weren’t that great last year, and the Raider’s make them look like world beaters.  He will get all the carries he can handle, but it’s going to be a massacre for a while.  This may mean very few yards per carry and a trip to the injured list.  I am not ready to take that risk on a rookie.  The only other back I really like is Jamal Lewis.  He had a great year last year, plus he holds a special place in my heart as the all-time leading rusher of my Tennessee Vols (at least until the end of this year).  The Browns are explosive on offense, and that field is going to be wide open for everyone, as they don’t have an offensive weapon that isn’t damn good at what they do.  I will take his nearly 1600 all-purpose yards from last year along with his 11 touchdowns straight to the bank.

So here’s the squad so far:
LaDainian Tomlinson
Drew Brees
Jamal Lewis

That’s a lot of firepower on Sunday, friends.  Some weeks, I might make it to 100 points before I even start counting anyone else!