Biggest Surprises, Letdowns, And “Huh?” Moments Of The First Round

Since the new rookie wage scale was introduced, the NFL Draft has turned from “mock-friendly” to a flea-market of trades and deals. The St. Louis Rams have fully embraced that change, trading down twice in the 2012 Draft and then trading out of both the 16th and 22nd spot yesterday. Less money for player and more ease in trades sets up the Draft for a number of  “WTF” moments. Here are a handful from yesterday:

Miami Dolphins Take Dion Jordan 3rd Overall

When the announcement was leaked that the Miami Dolphins had traded up to take the Oakland Raiders spot at 3rd overall, the entire world saw “Lane Johnson” written all over the pick. When the commissioner announced Dion Jordan, everyone took a brief pause, including John Gruden…

The Entire Bills And Rams Trade Scenario

Throughout the day yesterday, the Buffalo Bills were blowing smoke that they might take Tavon Austin with the 8th overall pick. There were also rumblings that the New York Jets, who also held two 1st rounders, would bite on the WVU star if he fell to 9th in the draft. However, Snead and Co. decided to do a re-take of the Julio Jones trade in Atlanta, skyrocketing up the board from 16th to 8th and nabbing Austin before anyone else got a shot at him. However, the Austin pick was not the most intriguing of the two! With the 16th pick, the Bills chose to take the first, and only, quarterback in the 1st round… E.J. Manuel. The expression on Geno Smith’s face said it all.

The 19th and 20th Picks

“Short-armed,” lacks ideal size,” and “doesn’t respond well to sudden moves” are not attributes you want to describe your brand new offensive tackle, but that did not stop the New York  Giants from taking Justin Pugh with their 1st round pick yesterday. He is a versatile player, but would have likely been available in the mid- to late-2nd round. However, it only took one pick for everything to forget about the Giants and whip their attention to the Chicago Bears. Kyle Long, the brother of Chris Long on the St. Louis Rams, was projected as a 2nd rounder, with the potential to swing up into the late-1st. Apparently the Bears were not willing to wait, biting on the “high-ceiling” prospect before anyone else could even think about him…

Sharrif Floyd

You would be hard-pressed to find a mock where Floyd was not taken within the Top 15 in the 2013 NFL Draft, and yet, he was forced to sit “Aaron Rodgers-style” as his name dropped further and further down the draft board. The Minnesota Vikings stole the show on Thursday night, beginning by grabbing one of the top rated players in the draft at 23rd overall…

The Cowboys Being… Well, The Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys surprisingly went against their typical Jerry Jones-like style and traded back in the draft with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1st round. The ‘Boys are a team filled with holes, especially throughout the offensive line, but, more pressingly, on the defensive side of the football. With the 30th pick, the team was in prime position to take either Manti Te’o or their pick of Matt Elam or Jonathan Cyprien. Instead, they pick Travis Frederick… To be fair, Frederick was the top prospect at center on the majority of boards. However, he was also graded as a late-2nd to mid-3rd round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft…