[Doug5984]

Free Agency Has begun, and we all now get a look at the draft class- here is my mock draft for this year:

# 1 Arizona
Alan Spearman, RB, Northern Arizona. 6-2, 225
Arizona already has a young solid QB so taking Hoffman # 1 would not be a need pick. However, they also have one of the best young RBs in the league in Arnie Sonntag. I really see Arizona either trading out of this spot or picking Spearman with the intention of trading Sonntag. Spearman is the big, fast, every-down back that any team in the league would love to have.

# 2 Memphis
Don Terrell, RB, Oregon. 5-7, 210
Memphis has a lot of needs- their biggest need right now is probably RB where they only have 1 player under contract. Terrell would step in and be the starter from day 1, he would help take pressure off of Urrutia. Hopefully for Memphis Terrell would be the piece to the puzzle they are missing to get back to their winning ways.

# 3 Cleveland
Blaine Hoffman, QB, North Dakota State. 6-3, 227
Cleveland is in trouble with the salary cap, and will most likely try to trade out of this spot. If they are stuck here I see them taking the QB, they drafted Norm Rayburn in the first round a few years back and he never panned out but Hoffman looks like a “can’t miss” prospect.

# 4 Long Beach
Clarence Lincoln, QB, Iowa. 6-3, 231
Rodney Darr is not the long term answer at QB in Long Beach, and with this being a weak draft I could see Long Beach taking the “project” QB here. Lincoln is the least ready for the CFL of all the top QBs, but with a year or two to develop his skills he could be a very solid QB in the league.

# 5 Atlantic City
Colin Sawyer, QB, Miami. 6-6, 226
Atlantic City needs a QB, Sawyer is the top QB left in the draft and also has the ability to start from day 1 if needed to. He is a big QB that can also run. In college he had some problems with throwing to many INTs, but hopefully he can fix that in the CFL.

# 6 Cleveland
Cary Delgado, DE, Missouri. 5-11, 269
With 2 picks in the top 6 Cleveland really needs to do something soon to address the salary cap situation. With their second pick look for Cleveland to address the defensive side of the ball with Delgado being their pick. Delgado is undersized for the CFL; but he has a great motor and is the best defensive player in the draft. He is not the best edge rusher but he is a great run defender.

# 7 Albany
Claude Montague, DE, Ohio State. 6-5, 287
Albany is in a position to take the best available player here- with the other 2 really good players being at TE & Safety it is likely they will go with the DE. Both of their DE’s have contracts expiring after this season so Montague could see limit playing time this year before being promoted to full time starter or he could start from day 1.

# 8 Anchorage
Maurice Griffin, DE, East Carolina. 6-2, 259
Anchorage could go either DE or DT here. Griffin and the DT Hardy are both rated very closely this will simply be which position they feel is more important. Getting a DE who is great against the run is probably what Anchorage will do here. Griffin will be able to step in day 1 and start opposite Simonton to give Anchorage a nice set of DEs.

# 9 Chicago
Derrick Ardrey, CB, Rutgers. 6-0, 209
Chicago needs another CB; and Ardrey is the best play on the board at a position of need so this pick makes the most sense. Ardrey is a big CB who is great in coverage but does not make a lot of INTs. He would most likely be a nickel back in his first season and then move up to the starting spot in a year.

# 10 San Antonio
Casey Duran, FS, Washington State. 5-11, 200
San Antonio could either go DT, or FS here- Duran is one of the best players in the draft and San Antonio would be happy to see a cant miss player like Duran fall to them at # 10. Duran would start from day 1 and would be an immediate impact on this defense.

# 11 Tulsa
Donnell Hardy, DT, Stanford. 6-1, 291
Hardy looks like a clone of Jessie Sherman, last year’s # 18 pick to Tulsa- they still need a DT, so maybe they try once again to fill that need. It is rumored that Tulsa will be switching back to the 4-3 defense so Hardy would have the opportunity to start next to Sherman. However, the team may be skeptical of picking another DT high in the draft.

# 12 Boston
Devin Hopper, CB, Utah State. 5-9, 180
Boston could use some help at the RCB spot and that is where Hopper played in college. Hopper is undersized but is very fast, and very strong. This pick makes the most sense- Boston is a run heavy team so I don’t see them using a pick this high on a QB that wont start for a year or two, then wont pass very much when he does get the chance to start.

# 13 Baltimore
Robbie Umphenour, FS, Tulane. 6-0, 208
Baltimore has a need at the FS spot, and Uphenour is the best player on the board so this pick makes sense. Uphenour is a smart and athletic FS from Tulane- he is a great coverage corner with good size. He would start from day 1 and would be an immediate impact player on Baltimore’s D.

# 14 Las Vegas
Anthony Jennings, RB, Georgia Tech. 5-10, 198
Las Vegas currently has only 1 RB on their roster- Cary Sonntag, last years fourth round pick. RB is a huge need for them and Jennings is the best player there. He would be a starter from day 1 and would help give Las Vegas a more balanced offense around Lenny Olsen.

# 15 Tampa Bay
Wes McGregor, TE, Florida. 6-3, 236
McGregor is one of the best players in the draft, and has simply fallen this far because TE is not a need position for most teams. He will be be a stud TE in the league for many years to come. Tampa Bay is in cap trouble so this is a pick that will be able to start early and not cost too much against the cap.

# 16 New Orleans
Donovan Burcky, QB, Central Connecticut. 6-0, 203
Burcky is a QB that will need atleast a year to develop but New Orleans has an aging Randolph Kranz who will be able to mentor Burcky for a year before he is handed the starting job.

# 17 Hartford
Rondell Isola, DT, UCLA. 6-1, 277
With DT Rodger Clark coming off of ACL Knee Surgery Hartford needs to start thinking about a replacement player. Isola is undersized and might make a better DE in the CFL, but Hartford needs a DT and would most likely give him a shot there.

# 18 Boston
Luke Manning, DE, Nebraska. 6-4, 274
It seems its about time to give up on Kirk Anelli and find a new DE in this draft- Luke Manning is a good sized strong and quick run stopping DE from Nebraska. He would most likely split time with Anelli this year before taking the full time starting job next season.

# 19 Hartford
Chuck Kuhlmann, SE, Louisville. 5-10, 192
Kuhlmann should be the first WR taken- and it might be a reach at 19. He is not as fast as you would like in a WR but he is solid, and can also return punts. He would be another good weapon on Hartford’s offense.

# 20 San Antonio
Earl Mills, CB, Southern University. 5-9, 190
Mills is a solid CB with good speed, he would compete for the starting job in his rookie year and should be a solid CB in the CFL for years to come.

# 21 Huntington Beach
Luther Horner, RB, Vanderbilt. 5-9, 202
Horner is another undersized RB, and would be a reach here- but Huntington Beach needs a RB very badly and Horner is the best available.

# 22 Sacramento
Les Disney, WR, Maryland. 6-4, 206
Disney is a big receiver, he is solid all around and a pretty fast player- his one draw back is he was never known to go over the middle in college. He might take some time to develop but could be a solid # 3 receiver in Sacramento.

# 23 Fargo
Burt Goodwin, RB, Buffalo. 6-1, 229
Fargo had a lot of success last season throwing the ball, if they want to be more balanced this pick would make a lot of sense. Might be a little reach for him here, but it gives them the RB they need. If they are happy throwing most the time they could go defense with this pick.

# 24 Seattle
Ted Sinclair, CB, Temple. 5-11, 192
This is a dangerous pick- Sinclair looks like he could be a bust, but Seattle really needs a CB. If he plays like he is capable he would be a great pickup for Seattle this late in the first.

# 25 Shreveport
Gilbert Penman, DT, Southern Methodist. 6-2, 274
Shreveport does not have a lot of holes to fill so that allows them to take the player they think will help them the most. Penman is an undersized DT but he is an excellent pash rusher- he could be a pass rush specialist in his first season and then work his way into the starting lineup in the future.

# 26 Boise
Blaine Stovall, FB, Mississippi. 6-1, 277
Boise really needs a FB, and while it might be a reach to pick one this high in the draft Stovall should be a great player- and would be an immediate upgrade at the position.

# 27 Chicago
Lance Crane, DE, Arizona. 6-3, 264
Chicago is another team in cap trouble right now- they will most likely look to fill a starter’s role at # 27. Crane could be that man. Crane is a great pass rusher who could either be a flop or a great player for them.

# 28 El Paso
Perry Stropka, WR, Oregon. 6-0, 206
El Paso has no real needs so they will look to pick the best player who can have an impact next year. That is a WR- Stropka would be a # 3 / # 4 reciever- but he would be another weapon for the young QB Dustin Hayes.

# 29 Tucson
Wayne Garner, MLB, Northwestern. 5-11, 243
Tucson is another team with very few holes to fill- they will simply look for the best player available and that happens to be a MLB Garner. Garner would be picked much higher but there are so many talented MLBs in the league he could fall all the way to the end of the first round.

# 30 Durham
Claude Hamblin, DE, Duke. 6-3, 254
Hamblin is another risky player he could turn out to be really good, or turn out to be nothing more than a backup. Durham has very few holes so they will also look to fill a roster spot with the best player on the board, and Hamblin is a player who could start in a season if they need him too.

# 31 Detroit
Rusty Scott, CB, Wake Forest. 5-11, 193
Detroit got hit with a major injury to their starting RB in the championship game- they will be hoping one falls to them here; or they might try to trade this pick for a RB- If they are stuck picking here and there are no RBs on the board a CB makes the most sense.

# 32 Honolulu
Kirk Hardy, FS, West New Mexico. 5-10, 201
Honolulu let their FS Paul Dover test the open market; if he chooses to sign elsewhere and Hardy falls to them Honolulu would be very happy with this pick. Finding a starter this late in the draft is always great. Also, going to a team that has won back to back championships is a nice bonus for Hardy.

Making a mock draft this early is always hard because of trades and FA signings, this is just for fun- but please feel free to say how horrible it is; and bring it up after the draft to show me how wrong I am. Also, the # 6 pick now belongs to Anchorage…I missed that trade when making the mock, and it was to late to go back and try to fix it.