NFL draft was foregone conclusions, then mayhem
The Browns traded up one spot to be sure to get Alabama running back Trent Richardson.
Those who competed mightily in last season's "Suck for Luck" campaign were rewarded Thursday in the NFL draft. The Colts officially took Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the No. 1 pick and then the Redskins selected Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III at No. 2.
The rest of the night was a dizzying sequence of trades followed by teams stocking up on players who will try to take the smiles off of the faces of Luck and Griffin.
After the first five picks were used on offensive players, 12 of the next 14 picks targeted defensive players. All told, seven defensive linemen and five linebackers were drafted in the first round.
Teams appeared to be in a rush all night. Even with eight trades and commissioner Roger Goodell's long hugs with players, picks were fired off every six minutes. Guess you don't need a full 10 minutes when you know whom you want.
The Browns moved up one spot, from fourth to third, to make sure no one traded up and blocked their drafting of Alabama running back Trent Richardson. Minnesota received picks in the fourth, fifth and seventh rounds and still was in position to get franchise left tackle Matt Kalil from USC.
Richardson was the first running back taken in the top 10 since the Raiders drafted Darren McFadden fourth overall in 2008.
Dallas traded its No. 14 choice and a second-rounder to the Rams and grabbed ball-hawking LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne with No. 6. Claiborne had six interceptions, won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back, averaged 25 yards per kickoff return and as of 8:30 p.m. EDT Thursday had zero contact with Dallas.
The Chiefs picked 345-pound boom-or-bust defensive tackle Dontari Poe at No. 11, but that couldn't match the splash of Seattle's pick at No. 15.
After the Eagles traded up to get defensive tackle Fletcher Cox at No. 12 and the Rams had taken LSU defensive tackle Michael Brockers 14th, the Seahawks got their pass-rusher. Problem is, most experts had Irvin going in the second or even, just last week, the third round.
He had 40 sacks in three seasons at West Virginia, but doesn't really do anything else besides go after the quarterback. There's also the fact he was arrested five years ago for breaking into a drug dealer's house and again last month for destroying a sandwich-shop sign.
The Seahawks were reaching back, but the Patriots - the winners of the first round - were reaching forward. New England traded its No. 27 pick and a third-rounder for the Bengals' No. 21 spot and took Syracuse defensive end Chandler Jones. The Pats then dealt the No. 31 choice and a fourth-rounder to Denver for Alabama linebacker Dont'a Hightower.
Besides the Seahawks, the losers appear to be the Dolphins.
They used the No. 8 pick on quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who was playing receiver at Texas A&M just two years ago. He went 1-4 against Top 25 teams last season, but then again, wins sometimes get forgotten in all the working out, measuring, interviewing and drafting.
Raiders on Friday
Picks: No. 95 (3rd)
Outlook: The Raiders have only one pick, and Reggie McKenzie's first as Raiders GM could be a defensive tackle such as Alabama's Josh Chapman or Michigan's Mike Martin. ... He said he would pick the best player available throughout the draft, but in the best-case scenario, Oakland gets a defensive lineman, pass-rushing linebacker, tight end, cornerback and running back.
This article appeared on page B - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
