2011 NFL Draft: The Best and Worst Picks
Posted 9:23 pm
2011 NFL Draft, A.J. Green, Anthony Castonzo, Bruce Carter, Cecil Shorts, Drake Nevis, Jake Locker, Jarvis Jenkins, Jerrel Jernigan, Jimmy Smith, Jonathan Baldwin, Kealoha Pilares, Kendall Hunter, Marcus Gilchrist, Randall Cobb, Ryan Williams
Photo courtesy of Al Tielemans/Sports Illustrated
FinestPreps has promised to deliver you top notch coverage of the 2011 NFL Draft!
Today our very own NFL Draft expert Brian Vornberg checks in with his analysis of what he thinks were some of the best and worst picks of the 2011 NFL Draft!
Who does Brian think will be the star that will shine on the next level?
Who does he think will be a bust in the National Football League?
Check below for his review of the 2011 NFL Draft!
BEST PICKS
Jimmy Smith – Baltimore Ravens
Round 1, pick #27 out of Colorado
Clearly, as most would admit, I’m expressing this point of view with a great deal of both optimism and caution. As much talent as Smith has, he has equally as much off the field issues that could become major problems if they turn habitual. Smith’s size, movement and athleticism warrant top 10 consideration, but his issues off the field are obvious. The Ravens organization is one that should help to mature Smith quickly and maintain his focus on football. In this case, they have made one of the best picks of the entire draft.
AJ Green – Cincinnati Bengals
Round 1, pick #4 out of Georgia
The AFC North has once again done a great job here of getting the best available talent that is available to them. Maybe that’s why it is one of the better divisions in professional football. Green immediately upgrades the Bengals’ wide receiving corps and is a true standout in a draft class that is light on overall receiver talent. Not since Calvin Johnson in 2007 has their felt like such a safe pick at the wide receiver position than A.J. Green this year. Even if Green doesn’t turn out to be a superstar as some have predicted, he will almost surely produce on some level in the NFL.
Anthony Castonzo – Indianapolis Colts
Round 1, pick #22 out of Boston College
The Colts just know how to pick the best players for their team, don’t they? INCREDIBLE. This guy has great size at 6’7″ and 311 lbs and can play immediately and help keep Mr. Manning clean. Castonzo is a soft-spoken, tough as nails leader both on and off the field and leads by example. He does nothing great, but everything well. He’s just the type of player that the Indianapolis Colts covet and with his experience (he started every single game of his college career) and technically sound blocking he will thrive in Indy.
Bruce Carter – Dallas Cowboys
Round 2, pick #8 (40th overall) out of North Carolina
Carter may just be the most athletic linebacker in this entire class. He will run in the 4.5-range consistently and has tremendous strength and overall agility. At North Carolina, most of Carter’s damage was done using his incredible sideline-to-sideline range against the run, but he is so athletic that he can also drop into coverage and help out in that area as well. A torn ACL injury derailed his season prematurely, but look for Carter to be back to full strength by midseason and competing for a starting linebacker spot on the ‘Boys squad.
Jerrel Jernigan – New York Giants
Round 3, pick #19 (83rd overall) out of Troy
Jerrel Jernigan may lack some of the size that other NFL wide receivers have, but he certainly doesn’t lack the pop off of the line or breakaway speed of those same players. Standing at just under 5’9″ Jernigan tends to get lost in a crowd, but is revealed once he is heading down the sideline for a breakaway touchdown. He is a very shifty player who can make defenders miss out of the slot and is also valuable as a capable return man. His collegiate program, Troy University also has a great history of recent players producing and contributing at the professional level, including Leodis McKelvin, DeMarcus Ware, and Osi Umenyiora. The Giants had a great overall draft and really got a steal with this pick in particular.
Other good picks worth mentioning – RB Ryan Williams (RD 2 – 38th overall to the Cardinals), DT Stephen Paea (RD 2 – 53rd overall to the Bears), WR Randall Cobb (RD 1 – 32nd overall to the Packers), DB Marcus Gilchrist (RD 2 – 50th overall to the Chargers), DT Drake Nevis (RD 3 – 87th overall to the Colts), LB Nate Irving (RD 3 – 67th overall to the Broncos), RB Kendall Hunter (RD 4 – 115th overall to the 49ers), WR Cecil Shorts (RD 4 – 114th overall to the Jaguars)
Worst Picks:
Jonathan Baldwin – Kansas City Chiefs
Round 1, pick #26 out of Pittsburgh
Baldwin was very consistent at Pittsburgh. Consistently lackadaisical. To be fair, a lot of Baldwin’s lack of production (especially last season) was, in part, due to quarterback Tino Sunseri either not throwing the ball his way or simply not being able to. Baldwin seemed to rely, especially later in his collegiate career, largely on his God-given talents rather than his conditioning, effort and hard work. For this reason, it seems like a huge stretch to be taking him in the first round at all.
Jake Locker – Tennessee Titans
Round 1, pick #8 out of Washington
All of the physical tools that are necessary for the game of football are there for Locker, including arm strength, excellent mobility and even his unparalleled intangibles. However, just like with Baldwin, Locker lacks consistency in his game in a major way. There are times when he literally seems to not understand where he is on the field in relation to the players around him which is mind-blowing at times for a guy of his intelligence level. The single-most important trait for an NFL quarterback is throwing accuracy (see Tom Brady) and Locker has huge issues here as his game against Nebraska really exposed. Locker is very tough, both mentally and physically so hopefully he can prove me wrong with this one.
Jarvis Jenkins – Washington Redskins
Round 2, pick #9 (41st overall) out of Clemson
Jenkins has great character and was actually a pretty darn good player in the middle of the defensive line at Clemson. However, there were a lot of better defensive tackles that were rated a lot higher still left on the board when the Redskins chose Jenkins here, including Stephen Paea, Marvin Austin and Drake Nevis. It seems as though the Redskins were focused more on their scheme here than the actual player.
Kealoha Pilares – Carolina Panthers
Round 5, pick #1 (132nd overall) out of Hawaii
This pick isn’t a huge stretch since it’s in the fifth round, but even then it is still a bit of a reach. There were plenty of talented and capable receivers towards the bottom of the draft and the Panthers decided to go with Pilares, who lacks both size and speed for the position at the next level (he is just under 5’10” and ran just a 4.63 at the NFL scouting combine). Pilares is also coming off of a knee injury and will likely not be at full strength to begin the regular season. Pilares is tough and a hard worker, but when you’re trying to find weapons to help out your young tandem of QBs you simply must do better than this. Maybe it is to be expected of the Panthers staff, however. Their entire draft seems to be full of question marks this year.
Brian Vornberg is a contributing writer for FinestPreps.com. He can be reached by e-mail at
brianvornberg75@gmail.com. All comments and feedback are welcome.
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2011 NFL Draft, A.J. Green, Anthony Castonzo, Bruce Carter, Cecil Shorts, Drake Nevis, Jake Locker, Jarvis Jenkins, Jerrel Jernigan, Jimmy Smith, Jonathan Baldwin, Kealoha Pilares, Kendall Hunter, Marcus Gilchrist, Randall Cobb, Ryan Williams
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