Top 5 Storylines of the NFL Draft

Draft Day is here. And of course, the media outlets (more specifically, ESPN) are creaming in their pants to create "interesting storylines" to give the fans. I don't play that. So I devised 5 intriguing topics that will be big focal points come Thursday night.


1. Tebow-mania: How can this not be a storyline? Tebow is one of the most decorated college football players to ever play the sport. He's an incredibly curious prospect in the eyes of scouts, earning draft projections from the first round to round 3. All it takes is one team to simply say, "We want a high character guy who's extremely marketable. We'll take him." Inviting him to the first round of the draft may not be a great idea; if he isn't taken after pick #32, it would be more awkward than seeing your one-night stand in class the next day.

2. The QB conundrum: It goes like this... Only 3 out of the Top 10 teams (Rams, Browns, Bills) are really looking for a quarterback. The Rams will almost definitely take Sam Bradford at #1. The Browns at pick #7 supposedly "aren't interested" in Jimmy Clausen, which would make Jimbo available at #9 for the Bills. Meanwhile, Colt McCoy (who is being severely undervalued in my opinion) won't be taken until the second round, perhaps by Cleveland; his arm is a good fit in Cleveland's West Coast offense. And there's that Tebow guy as well.

3. Teams in trouble: The Steelers, fresh off the Rape-lisberger debacle (see what I did there?), are reportedly shopping Big Ben for high first-round draft picks. The Seahawks and 49ers, both NFC West teams trying to knock off the Cardinals, both have two first-rounders and will try to make a statement with their picks (C.J. Spiller and Trent Williams are two guys that could be drafted by either team, actually.) And of course, my favorite team, the Panthers, don't have a first round pick for the second straight year; I wish they pull a good draft out of their asses.

4. Trench warfare: As any football mind will tell you, games are controlled and won "in the trenches." Offensive lines and defensive lines are crucial for every team's success, and this year's draft class has many options on both sides of the ball. As many as SIX linemen could be drafted in the Top 10 alone, not including other potential impact players such as Maurkice Pouncey and Dan Williams who may hear their name called in Round 1.

5. New time for draft time: The new format of the draft (Round 1 on Thursday, 2 and 3 on Friday, and 4 through 7 on Saturday) raised some eyebrows among fans. I mean, it's good to see the first round during primetime, but I think I'm gonna miss sitting around and wasting a good spring Saturday watching the elite players get picked. At least making a drinking game (and subsequently drinking) for an event that starts at 7 PM is slightly more socially acceptable than an event starting at noon.