2011 NFL Draft
Doc's Sports, your NFL handicapping and information leader for more than three decades, presents its 2011 NFL Draft page. If you can't get enough information about the 2011 NFL Draft, the you will want to bookmark this page and come back often up until the NFL Draft starts on April 22 in New York City.
Check out Doc's 2010 NFL Draft Articles
NFL Draft Grades: First Round
by Robert Ferringo - 4/29/2011
The first round of the 2011 NFL Draft is in the books. Since it takes at least three years to properly grade an NFL Draft it is tough (see: impossible) to make snap judgments and accurate NFL draft grades on how teams handled their first round selections. However, since we live in a now-isn't-fast-enough society and since I'm a Populist (sometimes) I will give the masses what they want.
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NFL Draft Prop Odds and Predictions
by Darin Zank - 4/28/2011
As if the NFL draft isn't enough fun, as fans get a look at the future of their teams, several online sportsbooks are offering bettors chances to get down on some sporting interest. Bodog in particular is offering a page full of proposition bets on this year's NFL Draft, which starts with the first round Thursday night (8 p.m. EST, ESPN). Here's a quick look at some of the NFL Draft prop odds on that page, and some betting predictions.
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NFL Draft Projections: Best Players By Position
by Trevor Whenham - 4/26/2011
As we draw near the NFL Draft this week, here's my attempt to select the best player at each position in the draft -- or at least the one that I think has the most potential to shine: Here are my NFL Draft projections for the best players at each position and these are the guys I would draft if I were an NFL executive.
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NFL Draft Predictions: Players That Can Contribute Immediately
by Trevor Whenham - 4/26/2011
Different teams have different priorities in the NFL Draft. Some teams are desperate for a player that can make them better right away, while others have the luxury of picking the most talented player even if it will require time and patience before the investment pays off. For the teams that are looking for an immediate impact, here my NFL Draft predictions for the five likely first round picks that are most immediately ready to contribute as soon as the season starts (whenever that is):
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NFL Draft Predictions: SEC First-Round Picks Props
by Alan Matthews - 4/25/2011
Is there really any doubt that the Southeastern Conference is the premiere conference in college football? It's certainly not an argument when you look at the overall quality of teams. After all, an SEC team has won the past five National Championships, and Alabama and LSU will both be among the favorites this coming season.
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NFL Draft Projections: Players That Are Dropping
by Trevor Whenham - 4/25/2011
One of the more intriguing aspects of the NFL Draft in my eyes is the players who go into freefall between the end of the season and draft day. They were good enough over their three or four years on the field to be considered as an elite draft pick, yet once they are done playing they manage to fall badly in the eyes of scouts and the media.
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NFL Draft: Carolina Panthers First Pick Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 4/25/2011
The Carolina Panthers are in the position this year that few teams likely truly want to be in. Having the top pick in the NFL Draft means that you are a bad team with a lot of needs, and you are going to have to make a very high- profile, incredibly expensive pick that is far from certain to pay off. The Panthers especially need to succeed this year because they aren't the most popular team in the league and could use something to prove to their fans that they still care and are still competent. Here's a look at the options the team has indicated they are considering and the issues and opportunities each presents along with my first pick predictions for the NFL Draft:
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2011 NFL Draft Predictions: the Quarterbacks
by Alan Matthews - 4/22/2011
Water is wet. The sky is blue. And quarterbacks are the story of every NFL Draft. Yes, there is nothing different about the 2011 NFL Draft, which begins next Thursday with a prime-time first round. As usual, the quarterbacks are the story of the first round. True, left tackles and cornerbacks have become elite positions in the NFL, but you simply can't win without a good quarterback in this pass-heavy era of pro football.
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2011 NFL Draft Prospects: Top 40 Players in Draft
by Aaron Smith - 4/22/2011
The NFL Draft is fast approaching. No one knows whether the teams will actually be on the field in September, but there is still a lot of excitement surrounding the draft. This particular draft strikes me as heavy on defensive talent. Unfortunately for a lot of teams, there isn't much depth at the quarterback position. Let's take a look at my top 40 NFL Draft prospects for 2011.
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NFL Draft Projections: Late-Round Steals
by Trevor Whenham - 4/22/2011
I am a diehard Michigan fan, so I obviously have a soft spot for Tom Brady and the mythology of what he turned into after being a sixth-round pick. You can call this article 'The Search for the Next Brady,' because here are my NFL Draft projections for nine guys who are likely to go in the last three rounds of this year's drafts who have a chance to perform at well above the level of their pick:
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2011 NFL Draft Prospects: Small School Players
by Aaron Smith - 4/19/2011
Over the course of the past few years, more team executives have come to realize how important it is to look for hidden talents in the small school ranks. Each year there are several small school players who make a large impact in the NFL. These are the types of players that you heard nothing about during their college careers, but you are bound to hear from some of them once they get into the NFL. It will always be the top few draft picks that receive the majority of the attention, but those who follow the NFL Draft closely know that the middle and late rounds are extremely important. This list of 10 small college NFL Draft prospects should help introduce you to some players that are likely to be major contributors in the next few years.
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NFL Draft Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 4/14/2011
The NFL Draft is not quite here yet, but thanks to the labor mess everything else about the NFL is depressing so the draft is the only thing worth thinking about. Here are eight NFL Draft predictions that I feel pretty good about heading into the 2011 NFL Draft on April 28 in New York:
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NFL Draft Predictions: Second- and Third-Round Steals
by Trevor Whenham - 4/13/2011
We spend a lot of time -- both here and everywhere else -- looking at the players that are likely to go in the first round of the NFL Draft. That's where all the hype is. If you watch a lot of football, though, then you know that the second and third rounds of the draft are almost as good at producing viable NFL talent as the first round is. Here are my NFL Draft predictions for eight guys likely to go in the second and third rounds who have the potential to make a big splash:
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NFL Draft Projections: Top Defensive Players
by Aaron Smith - 4/13/2011
The old adage "Offense sells tickets, but defense wins championships," often rings true in the NFL. It's always great to have both, but most coaches will tell you that they would rather have a great defense than a great offense. This year's NFL Draft class has a plethora of talent on the defensive side of the ball. There are plenty of players who are ready to step in and make an impact right away. Of course, that is if the NFL actually plays anytime soon.
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2011 NFL Mock Draft
by Robert Ferringo - 4/12/2011
After watching Green Bay carry off the Lombardi Trophy this February I thought that this offseason was going to follow the same predictable pattern as the previous dozen. And when it came to the Packers I figured that their three-, four- and five-wide offensive sets would become all the rage throughout the league. I figured there would be a run on speedy wideouts in free agency and in the draft. And I assumed that everyone would spend the offseason trying to replicate the big-play assaults of the last two Super Bowl champions, Green Bay and New Orleans.
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NFL Draft: Offensive Skill Players a Hot Commodity
by Dave Schwab - 4/6/2011
Anyone who seriously follows professional football understands that championship teams are built around a strong offensive and defensive line. Yet, when it comes to the NFL Draft, much of the focus revolves around the top prospects in the offensive skill positions.
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NFL Draft: Combine Standouts and Disappointments
by Trevor Whenham - 3/4/2011
Christian Ponder, QB, Florida State - I am not a fan of Ponder at all -- he's just too fragile for me. Despite that, though, I have to admit that he was very impressive in the QB drills. He threw well, showed off a strong, accurate arm, and will get himself picked before having to wait too long.
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Ranking the Quarterbacks at the NFL Draft Combine
by Trevor Whenham - 3/4/2011
It's a very interesting time in the NFL right now -- and I'm not talking about the labor situation. There are a whole lot of teams that need quarterback help, a shortage of inspiring options in the league right now, and a draft class that has some potential but doesn't have a clear slam-dunk guy amongst it. The needs will likely force teams to take risks on guys who wouldn't go nearly as high in a strong QB draft class. That means that teams are even more likely than normal to be disappointed by a high QB draft pick.
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NFL Draft Analysis: Obscure Combine Performers
by Trevor Whenham - 3/3/2011
Every year at the Combine there are a few guys from reasonably obscure schools who put up eye-popping performances and get a lot more attention after the event than they did before. Sometimes those players turn into stars. More often they fade back into obscurity sooner or later. Regardless, they are a lot of fun to pay attention to. Here are five guys, according to my NFL Draft analysis, that are decidedly on the radar now after what they managed to do in Indianapolis:
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Wide Receivers in the 2011 NFL Draft
by Dave Schwab - 3/3/2011
Regardless of what happens over the next few weeks with the current NFL labor situation, the 2011 NFL draft this April 28-30 will be held as scheduled. This past week over 300 of the nation's top prospects completed a wide array of testing, probing, and prodding at the Scouting Combines in an effort to further access their value in this year's draft.
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2011 NFL Draft Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 3/2/2011
We're a month away from NFL Draft month. Unfortunately, it's not the only focus of the league this year because of stupid labor battles. Still, the Draft is incredibly exciting, and a worthy cause for a ridiculous amount of speculation and predicting. In that spirit, here are eight NFL draft predictions I will make about this year's draft. I know not all of them will turn out to be correct, but a couple certainly will, and that's all that matters:
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2011 Potential NFL Draft Busts
by Trevor Whenham - 3/2/2011
Every year in the NFL draft there are a few guys -- and sometimes more than a few -- that you have to call busts. They may or may not be total failures at their position, but they certainly don't deliver the punch that is expected by teams drafting them as highly as they were drafted. Identifying those players is far from an exact science, but here's my guess of eight likely first round picks that stand a good chance of not living up to expectations:
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Quarterbacks in the 2011 NFL Draft
by Darin Zank - 3/2/2011
When it comes to the NFL draft, no position is scrutinized more than the QB spot. And yet drafting quarterbacks is still, like the rest of the draft itself, a bit of a crapshoot. Some guys look like sure things coming out of school, and some live up to their lofty expectations, like Peyton Manning, Troy Aikman, John Elway, all No. 1 overall picks and all Super Bowl winners. But busts still abound. JaMarcus Russell, anyone? David Carr? Ryan Leaf? And we could go on.
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2011 NFL Draft Team-by-Team Needs
by Trevor Whenham - 2/28/2011
Cleveland Browns - This is really one of those teams that can pick the best available player because they aren't totally solid in many spots. The defensive front seven could all be upgraded. The left side of the offensive line is very good, but the right side could be better. The offensive can't be accused of being too explosive, either.
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2011 NFL Draft Prospects
by Trevor Whenham - 2/28/2011
I hate NFL mock drafts. Actually, that's only partly true. If the person who is writing the NFL mock draft has real insight into what teams are thinking and what could happen, then they are very interesting. If people are just guessing, though, then they are pretty much a total waste of time. I don't have any general managers or scouts on speed dial, so I'll spare you the agony of doing a mock draft of my own. What I can and will do, though, is pick out the 32 players who I think are worthy of being first round picks in a list of my top 2011 NFL draft prospects:
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Running Backs in the 2011 NFL Draft
by Darin Zank - 2/28/2011
More than most positions in the game of professional football, rookies can make immediate and substantial impacts at running back. Their fresh legs get them though holes and around the ends, and those young knees can make cuts that won't be possible in a few years. Their bodies haven't been abused by 3-4-5 seasons of taking on defenders often much larger than themselves. Just think about the impact James Starks, a sixth-round pick last year out Buffalo, made for Green Bay, and in just four games, during the Packers' recent Super Bowl run.
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NFL Draft: Players That Should Have Immediate Betting Impact
by Trevor Whenham - 2/11/2011
With the Super Bowl over we have officially entered NFL Draft season. Actually, this year we have entered lockout season, but that's too depressing to think about so I'll ignore that and concentrate on the draft. There is so much hype around the draft every year that it's ridiculous -- and it keeps growing. A lot of players don't have the impact that people expect them to right away -- people expect much more immediate gratification from the draft than is usually possible.
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2011 NFL Mock Draft
by Robert Ferringo - 2/9/2011
There is no offseason in the NFL. Not anymore. It is an athletic-industrial complex that does not sleep. So now that the actual games are over it simply means that we have moved into Mock Draft Season. And with the pending lockout (and I, personally, think there is only about a 30 percent chance that the 2011 season starts on time) the NFL Draft could be the last time that fans legitimately have a chance to cheer for some time.
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