Brandon Carr is one of, if not the best #2 cornerbacks in the league in Kansas City next to Brandon Flowers. Last season, he allowed a 49.4% completion percentage, 6.5 YPA, 3 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions, good for a QB rating allowed that ranked 5^th best amongst cornerbacks who played more than 75% of their team’s snaps.

However, the Cowboys are paying him to be a #1 cornerback, giving him 5 years, 50.1 million. He’ll replace Terence Newman and while he’s definitely an upgrade over him, he’s still a projection to the #1 cornerback spot so the Cowboys are taking a risk signing him to a huge deal. Johnathan Joseph made the transition well last offseason, but that doesn’t mean Carr will necessarily do the same. I think the Cowboys slightly overpaid giving him more money than Johnathan Joseph and Cortland Finnegan. It’s not like they didn’t have the need though.

Grade: B

Free agency priorities

Wide Receiver

Greg Little has a lot of upside, but he’s raw and didn’t play last season. Other than him, they literally have nothing at wide receiver unless Mohamed Massaquoi can bounce back from a terrible sophmore season. I think they try to add a veteran in free agency.

Offensive Tackle

The right tackle position was a huge hole of theirs last season. I like Jason Pinkston, who they drafted late, but not as a rookie.

Offensive Guard

The right guard position was as big of a hole as right tackle for them last year. They need to keep Colt McCoy upright and they didn’t draft a single player at the position (though late rounder Jason Pinkston can also play guard). Pork Chop Womack is a mediocre player, but resigning him might be their best option at this point.

Safety

They drafted Eric Hagg late with the intention of having him play alongside TJ Ward for the future. However, in the short term, resigning Abram Elam or a similar veteran might be their best move.

Draft Needs 

Wide Receiver

Mohamed Massaquoi led all Browns wide receivers with 483 receiving yards. Their top wide receivers by yardage were as follows, Massaquoi (483), Chansi Stuckey (348), Brian Robiskie (310), Josh Cribbs (292), Sam Aiken (7). There’s a little bit of talent there, but they need to get Colt McCoy a true #1 receiver. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if they double dipped at this position early if the draft were to fall the right way.

Drafted Greg Little (#59) 

Defensive End

The Browns are making the move to a 4-3, but they don’t have any 4-3 ends. Great. Besides, they only managed 29 sacks last year anyway.

Drafted Jabaal Sheard (#37) 

Defensive Tackle

Shaun Rogers isn’t a good fit for a 4-3 and with his large salary, he’ll probably be cut this offseason. They’ll need someone inside next to Ahtyba Rubin.

Drafted Phil Taylor (#21) 

Outside Linebacker

Who are their outside linebackers in a 4-3? Chris Gucong? Scott Fujita? Eric Barton and David Bowens if they resign D’Qwell Jackson? Eh, nothing too special there. You can get by with that mix, but there’s no stand out players. Also, only Gucong is under 30.

Resigned D’Qwell Jackson 

Guard

Joe Thomas and Alex Mack are both among the best in their respective positions, left tackle and center. Other than they, they need help on the offensive line, including at guard where they could potentially get 2 upgrades this offseason and at the very least need depth and competition. 

Offensive Tackle

See above. Right tackle John St. Clair isn’t very good.

Drafted Jason Pinkston (#150) 

Middle Linebacker

This is a bigger need if D’Qwell Jackson doesn’t resign. If he leaves, they’re left with David Bowens and Eric Barton inside. Nothing too special, and one or two of them might have to play outside anyway. Both are over 30 as well. 

Cornerback

Sheldon Brown turns 32 in March, which is right about when cornerback start heading south in terms of their abilities. They need to look at potential replacements. The Browns ranked 27th in terms of YPA allowed against the pass, which is skewed by a tough schedule, but still an area in need of improvement. Joe Haden is a definite keeper, but they need one opposite him.

Drafted Buster Skrine (#137) 

Safety

TJ Ward had a good rookie year, but Abram Elam could be upgraded.

Drafted Eric Hagg (#248) 

The Cardinals felt going into the season that the combination of former first round pick Matt Leinart, 2007 Pro Bowler Derek Anderson, and two promising rookies John Skelton and Max Hall would be enough to fill the void of retired future Hall of Famer Kurt Warner at quarterback and that this team would still be able to finish atop the NFC West. Well, they were wrong.

Matt Leinart struggled in the preseason and threw a hissy fit when benched for Derek Anderson. The development of rookies Max Hall and John Skelton in the preseason allowed Arizona to cut Matt Leinart. Leinart was such a hot commodity on the open market that he signed with Houston to be the 3^rd string quarterback behind Matt Schaub and the guy who ran out the back of his own end zone for the 0-16 Lions in 2008.

Anderson started the year at quarterback, but struggled and was benched for Max Hall. Hall led the team to one impressive victory over the Saints, but struggled in the rest of his games and was benched for Derek Anderson. Anderson was fairly mediocre for a few games, before an awful two game stretch from weeks 12-13 where he went 23 for 55 for 189 yards and 2 picks, blew up in a post-game tirade when asked why he was laughing on the sideline in a blowout, and lost consecutive home games to division rivals 27-6 and 19-6. This season just proved that Anderson is a one year wonder and nothing more.

Anderson was then benched for Skelton. Skelton had 3 decent games against crappy defenses and led the team to 2 wins before struggling in the finale and being benched for Richard Bartel (fresh off the practice squad) to deliver a fitting end to the Cardinals’ 2010 season, a 38-7 loss in San Francisco. The Cardinals ended the season 5-11.

Unfortunately, the solution might not be as easy as finding a simply new quarterback. The defense gave up close to a touchdown more in 2010 than they did in 2009 (6.8 more points per game). They ranked 29^th in fewest total yards allowed, 25^th against the pass in terms of YPA, and 20^th against the run in terms of YPC. Their 33 sacks were down 10 sacks from 2009.

Fortunately for the Cardinals, they seem to have the right man at head coach. Ken Whisenhunt, fresh off of back-to-back division titles and a Super Bowl appearance, did a great job of coaching this team. How they won 5 games with the lack of talent they had at the quarterback position and on defense is beyond me. Hopefully this team doesn’t do something stupid and blame the man at the helm because they have a keeper in Whisenhunt as coach. 

Taylor is going to be 31 in the middle of next season, but he doesn’t have a lot of wear and tear on his body with only 1028 career carries (the equivalent of roughly 3.5 years). However, Taylor is nothing but an average running back right now. He and Matt Forte will make a good running back combination and Taylor should also give the Forte that he lacked last year, which could lead to a rebound year for Forte (like drafting Donald Brown did for Joseph Addai in Indy this year). That being said, 4 years is still a long time for a back for 30, so I don’t love this move.

Grade: B+

Guard

Georgia

6-5 310

Draft board overall prospect rank: #87

Draft board overall guard rank: #8

Overall rating: 70 (mid 3rd)

40 time: 5.37 (projected)

3/27/11: There was a time when I really liked Clint Boling. I actually had him as my top rated offensive tackle (this is not a good offensive tackle class) heading into the season. As I started watching him more, it became clear, this guy struggled way too much with speed rushers to be a tackle in the NFL. He wasn’t athletic enough to play tackle and would have to move inside. Measurements at the Senior Bowl confirmed this. He had too short of arms to play outside.

Fortunately for him, he has so much experience at other positions that moving inside wouldn’t be that hard. He’s played tackle for the past 2 years, but he also has experience at guard and has even played some center, not a lot, but some. Guard seems like it’s going to be his position going forward, and he’s done well as a guard this offseason, especially at the Senior Bowl.

He is impressing in workouts and proving what there was never any doubt about, this kid has a good grasp of the fundamentals. He’s a good technician. He’s smart and versatile. He’s problem is, he’s just not that athletic. He’s rising on my board of late and that seems to be the general consensus. He could go in the 2^nd round and is most likely coming off the board in the 3^rd round.

NFL Comparison: Eric Steinbach

Cormac Eklof is an avid New England Patriots fan and creator of ‘Boston Irish’, primarily a Red Sox and Patriots blog.

He has compiled a 129-46 record pitching for the Dublin Hurricanes in the Irish baseball league and has pitched for the Irish National baseball team since 1996. He played three years in the Irish American football league as Quarterback for the DCU Saints, where they never called late hits on the Quarterback. He does not like hard tackling Middle Linebackers.

       Email: cormac.arthur.eklof@gmail.com

       Twitter: http://twitter.com/BostonIrishBlog

       Boston Irish: http://irishbaseballseason.blogspot.com/

It looks very unlikely that Goldson would return to San Francisco in 2011, but his starting opportunities had dwindled to none so he can no choice but to come back to San Francisco on a cheap one year deal, 2 million, and compete for the starting free safety job, one he’ll probably win. He’s familiar with the team and the personnel and is more talented than Reggie Smith and Madieu Williams. 2 million dollars is cheap for a starting safety.

Grade: A

Tulloch must have taken a pay cut to stay in Detroit and play for Jim Schwartz in a wide nine scheme again because 25 million over 5 years with only 11.2 million guaranteed is a steal for a player who ranked 7^th among middle linebackers on ProFootballFocus’ in Detroit’s scheme last season. The Lions did well to bring back 21 of 22 starters from a playoff team (only losing Eric Wright, who was overpaid by Tampa Bay). They’ll need another cornerback through the draft, an upgrade at safety, and some youth on the offensive line, but they’re in good shape for another trip to the playoffs in 2012.

Grade: A

11. Oklahoma City Thunder- C Cole Aldrich

This pick was acquired in a trade with New Orleans and I’ll grade the trade for both teams after I grade all the picks, but for now I’m just going to grade this pick straight up, as if the Thunder used the 11^th pick on Aldrich. Aldrich is a player that I don’t think will be anything special at the next level. He can do some things well, block shots, grab rebounds, hit the jumper, but he’s not a true power big man and there isn’t really one thing he specializes in. He’s exactly what the Thunder need however, a defensive big man that doesn’t need the ball and he’s probably better than any center they have on the team, but he wasn’t worth the 11^th pick.

Grade: B

12. Memphis Grizzlies- SG Xavier Henry

Not a bad pick. Henry provides a talented scorer off the bench that the Grizzlies lacked last year and he can play the wing for the Grizzlies should Rudy Gay leave as a free agent, but was he the 12^th best player in this draft? I don’t know about that. He’s a good scorer in flashes, but he’s inconsistent and pretty one dimensional. He’s also not going to be a starter for them any time soon unless Gay leaves so you’re using the 12^th pick on a bench player, which may or may not be a smart idea, but ideally you want starters in the top 12-14 picks.

Grade: B

13. Toronto Raptors- PF Ed Davis

Great pick. For the 2^nd year in a row the Raptors have drafted a very high upside player in hopes of being able to have a face of the franchise type player after Bosh leaves, which it looks like he will. Davis is raw, but still young, so that’s fine and I had him as one of the ten best players in this draft class so the value is good. He actually fills a need even if Bosh leaves because they were looking for more muscle inside.

Grade: A

14. Houston Rockets- PF Patrick Patterson

The Houston Rockets team is full of players like Patterson and that’s why they were competitive last year without Yao Ming. This was a weak draft class so while Patterson won’t be a star in this league, I think he would have been well worth a top ten pick. In this new era of power forwards where it’s less about size and strength and more about rebounding and hustle, Patterson will fit in just fine. He can also hit an outside shot. He gives them more options inside with Luis Scola, Chuck Hayes, and possibly Yao Ming and I think Patterson will be a starter for this team somewhere sometime next year, whether it be as a 4, a power 3, or an undersized 5, or a mix of all 3.

Grade: A

15. Milwaukee Bucks- C Larry Sanders

This happens every year. A team takes a big man, who is very raw, on potential alone and nothing happens. Sanders has a 7-7 wingspan, but he is challenged offensively and has only been playing basketball for 6 years. That’s raw. He also has a very skinny frame and will need to bulk up. I don’t think he’ll be worth this pick in a few years, but he does fill a bit of a need as a shot blocker if he, offensively, can work his way into the rotation.

Grade: C

16. Portland Trailblazers- SF Luke Babbitt

Trailblazers got him in a trade, but still, I’m going to judge this pick for what it is. Small forward was the Blazers biggest need area and Babbitt was one of the best available. What more do you want from a team?

Grade: A

17. Washington Wizards- PF Kevin Sheraphin

I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t know very much about this kid at all. I know he was projected to be a late first round pick and that he can come over to play now if he wants, but based on how few Europeans have panned out in recent years and how weak of a European class this was, as said by experts, I’ll be skeptical.

Grade: B

18. Los Angeles Clippers- PG Eric Bledsoe

I don’t see why the Clippers had to trade what could possibly be a lottery pick in 2011 to get their backup point guard, but I’m not grading the trade, I’m grading the pick. Bledsoe is part of a weak point guard class and since they did need a backup point guard, they could have done a lot worse things than reaching for a guy who probably should have gone mid 20s. They don’t really have anything behind injury prone Baron Davis.

Grade: B

19. Boston Celtics- PG Avery Bradley

I wanted to see the Celtics take someone who can help right away, not an undersized shooting guard who is solid on defense and can put the ball in the hoop, but will have to convert to being a point guard at 6-2, something he is far from being right now. He won’t be able to play extensive minutes early and even if he matures into an extensive minutes type player, it’ll be at point guard, where they already have Rajon Rondo, and they should have him for a while.

Grade: C

20. San Antonio Spurs- SG James Anderson

Anderson struggles defensively, but he can be a solid sparkplug off the bench who can shoot the ball well from the outside. He struggles to create his own shot, but he’s exactly the type of players the Spurs needed off the bench, someone who can hit a shot, play a role, and play a role immediately.

Grade: A

There were questions about Winston’s ability to play left tackle, but the Chiefs are paying him right tackle type money to be their right tackle, where they have a huge need. Winston is one of the better right tackles in the league (11^th rated offensive tackle, 4^th rated right tackle by ProFootballFocus) so 4 years, 22 million is very reasonable for him, especially in a weak offensive tackle market that just give Jeff Backus 5 million per year.

With right tackle shored up, nose tackle is their biggest non-quarterback need. In fact, it’s their only big non-quarterback need after the Winston signing and the Hillis signing. That could signal that Dontari Poe will be the pick at 11, but it could also signal that they are planning a move up for Ryan Tannehill. The Chiefs pick at 11 and would only have to move up to 7 to leapfrog Miami for him. That would cost them their 2^nd round pick, but it might be worth it.

Matt Cassel is not a long term option and I don’t expect much from Brady Quinn. I really hope he was just signed to compete with Ricky Stanzi and Tyler Palko for the #3 quarterback job and the Chiefs are still planning to add a young quarterback  early in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Grade: A