Tuesday, May 06, 2014

2014 NFL Draft: Mosley, Nix, Vereen, and Fiedorowicz

My overall problem with the upcoming draft is that I don't see an obvious player or two who could provide an immediate solution to the Green Bay Packers.

Kiper and McShay's recent three round mock draft isn't perfect, but it would be solid. The only position of need that isn't addressed is wide receiver, but they can still find a good prospect in the latter rounds.

1st round, Alabama's ILB C.J. Mosley. My initial preference is Ohio State's Ryan Shazier, but Mosley is rated by most sites as the No. 1 inside linebacker, and he would be a solid addition to a position that was poorly manned last season by A.J. Hawk and Brad Jones. He'd improve one of their weakest positions from last season.

2nd round, Notre Dame's NT Louis Nix. Basically, he's another B.J. Raji, which might not be a bad thing. They could use more size because they haven't re-signed either Ryan Pickett or Johnny Jolly, and Nix could be Plan B if they decide not to re-sign Raji in 2015. They could look for someone like Tennessee's Daniel McCullers later in the draft too, if they just need another big body to play against the run, but there's nothing wrong with adding Nix, who's generally viewed as the top nose tackle in this year's draft.

They're not slam dunk selections, but Mosley and Nix are arguably the best inside linebacker and nose tackle available in the draft, and those are two positions of need for the Packers. Neither one would be a reach.

3rd round, Minnesota S Brock Vereen. He looks like this draft's version of Micah Hyde, so fans who are content with seeing Hyde as the new free safety might like what they see in Vereen. They need depth at the safety position one way or another.

3rd round, Iowa's TE C.J. Fiedorowicz. He's one of four tight ends (Amaro, Seferian-Jenkins, Niklas are the others) with similar size (6-6 to 6-7, 262 to 270 pounds) and similar draft grades (2nd or 3rd rounds). He's probably the lesser of the four players, but he's a big target with soft hands who's good at fighting off a block. He's not the only option, but with the unknown status of Jermichael Finley, they really need a player like Fiedorowicz.

All in all, this would be a solid first three rounds. Two players who are the best at their positions and two other players who would fill a need. There's no wide receiver among the group, but the main concern is depth at receiver. This would be a good draft.

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