Well, I was half-right...

The Browns did take Kamerion Wimbley with their first pick, and Ngata was off the board, but the reason he was off the board was because we traded our #12 pick with Baltimore, and THEY took him. We only got a 6th round pick from the deal which seems a bit light, but with that pick, we took a nose-tackle from Stanford. It became clear that the Browns never had any intention of taking Ngata. Whatever.

I don't know what to think about Wimbley as our first pick. If he comes as advertised, he should make a nice transition to outside 'backer in our 3-4 defense and bring some pressure from the outside. The combination of Wimbley and McGinnest should solidify our pass rush greatly, assuming Wimbley does what he's supposed to do and doesn't flip a motorcycle or anything stupid like that (see: Winslow, Kellen).

Overall, I think the Browns did well. Most publications I read gave them a solid B+ or A- grade (or, in the case of USA Today, 3 out of 4 stars).

The Good:

• Trading Jeff Faine to the Saints (whose previous Pro Bowl center we just stole in free agency) to move up and take D'Qwell Jackson in round 2. He was only the ACC Defensive Player of the year, beating out 3 NC State and 4 FSU defensive players taken in the first round ahead of him. He's a bit smallish for inside 'backer in a 3-4, but his football instincts are supposed to be tremendous, he's very versatile, and he's a tackling machine. The Browns don't always tackle well, so anyone that can improve that is an upgrade. I could forsee him unseating both Matt Stewart and Chaun Thompson to play inside next to Andra Davis. Good pick.


• James Hamilton - this guy was picked in the fifth round, and is a running back from Washington State. He's small, but is shifty, versatile, and only ran for 1900 freakin' yards last season. He'll be a very good change-of-pace back to Reuben Droughns and on third downs.


• Lawrence Vickers - fullback from Colorado, widely regarded as one of the best fullbacks in the draft. He can do it all: run, block, and catch. Our current fullback, while a good blocker, can't run or catch all that well. Vickers fits better into the scheme our offense plays, and should be immensely valuable on thrid-and-short situations and goal-line situations. And all of this for a sixth round pick. Stealing.


• Overall, the Browns primarily drafted based on need: three linebackers, a backup offensive guard, a nose tackle, a change-of-pace running back, a versatile fullback, and a possible second wide receiver. They also drafted a safety and a cornerback whose talent translates well to a nickel back, which as we saw last year when Baxter, Bodden, and McCutcheon all battled injuries, is a valuable commodity. The Browns got much deeper on Saturday, and added people who could potentially start for them in a few years with almost every pick. That's the mark of a winning draft.

The Bad:

• Trading the rights to Ngata away to a hated division rival, and only getting a sixth round pick in return. Now, granted, it's apparent that Savage never really wanted to take Ngata, but you can still milk the other team for more than that. The draft chart says that switch should merit a fourth round pick. Getting at least a fifth would have been nice.


• I'm still not 100% sold on Wimbley. He only cracked the starting lineup as a senior. He's supposed to be an athletic marvel, but you'd like to see more dominance from a guy taken 13th overall who's supposed to completely revamp your pass rush. You're also projecting him from defensive end in college to an outside linebacker in the pros, which is always risky. He's being compared to the next Peter Boulware and/or Willie McGinnest, but he could just as easily be the next Kenard Lang at outside linebacker.


• Another safety? Justin Hamilton from Va Tech. He switched positions three times in college (RB -> WR -> RB -> S) and only played safety one year. He did, however, call the signals for the #1 defense in the country last year. However, being that we already have a potential logjam at safety, this pick left me scratching my head. Special teamer, perhaps.

Overall, though, I can't complain too much.

Since I last wrote, the Tribe has gone 2-3. Until they get their pitching back settled, it's going to be a bumpy spring. Sabathia did come back yesterday and pitched well. They just need to get the bullpen in order.


In other news, Melissa and I "foster cared" for a black lab puppy this past weekend:

Simply beautiful animal, but much, much too big and hyper for our small house and our current dog. We gave in and named him ("Grady") and he did play fetch with me, which is probably the one thing I've always wanted in a dog. I threw his toy, and he brought it back every single time. I loved that.

It was hard to see him go, but he went to the no-kill shelter. He needs to go to a home with kids that can play with him more than we can, and probably to a home without an older dog who: a) doens't want to play as much, and b) already has staked his claim as top dog bad-ass of the house.

Godspeed, Grady.