2017 NFL Expansion Draft Preview - tubaSimulator's Dynasty

tubaSimulator's Dynasty Blog

2017 NFL Expansion Draft Preview

Posted on October 11, 2017 at 08:08 PM.

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With the confetti in Houston cleaned up, the NFL media heads 200 miles west to the Alamodome in San Antonio where recently appointed head coach Chuck Pagano and owner/GM Stanley Seraffian is ready to select the fist ever San Antonio Express players. The list of players available from each NFL team was published about a week ago and tonight we'll finally get a first look at the Express roster.

While we wait for the San Antonio Express to make their first pick, we go live to the Expansion Draft Studio and let Fred and Mike tell you who the Express should go for tonight.

OFFENSE

The Quarter Backs
Mike Thompson: "Alright, folks. Here's the deal. 155 players on the list and the Express have to either select a minimum of 30 players or a minimum of 38% of the 2017 NFL salary cap in contracts. So, let's start with the QB's. Who do you like, Fred?"

Fred Hurley: �Well, to me there�s only one option: Tony Romo. He�s played his entire NFL career here in Texas, he has a lot of fans in San Antonio and the rest of Texas and you get a solid QB who can win games right away for you. To me, Romo makes perfect sense, both as someone who can win football games and someone who can sell jerseys and season tickets!�

MT: �Sure, he can win games right now, but it�s an expansion team. They�re not gonna be good for a few years and Romo is 37. I think they have to go younger and still get someone with decent NFL experience. To me, I like Robert Griffin III. I think he's is highly underrated. No, he hasn't been very good in recent years, but we saw what he could do in Washington and in the right system I think he can deliver. And he went to Baylor! I�m sure he still has fans here as well, although probably not as many as Romo, I�ll grant you that.�

FH: "I think you might have RGIII rated too high in your mind there buddy. Sure, he had a couple of good seasons but he has completely disappeared. I'm not sure Pagano is even considering RGIII.

"Anyway, Chicago has listed Jay Cutler � tells you something about how highly they think of him and the contract they game him, huh? $15M cap hit and an underwhelming 2016 season. There's no way he's even on Chuck Pagano's draft board, right?"

MT: "It would surprise me if he is."

The Running Backs
MT: �Two guys I like here; Javorius Allen from Baltimore and Charcandrick West from the Chiefs. They both have good speed, both are elusive, both �got the moves�, you know, juking, spinning. West only got 51 carries this season running behind Spencer Ware and Jamaal Charles, but in San Antonio I think he can be the number 1 guy. Allen only got 24 carries and he�s a little bit underrated in my opinion. Could be a very good pickup by the Express.�

FH: �I like your picks, Mike, but I�m gonna go with a veteran. James Starks, 7 year veteran, 31 years old who didn�t get a lot of carries last season, but he brings a lot of experience from Green Bay. He�s not the fastest running back in the league, but he is a complete running back. He�s elusive, he can run over people and having played with Aaron Rodgers he can run routes, he can catch the ball and he can protect a QB on passing plays. I think any QB would be happy to have a guy like James Starks by their side.�

The Wide Receivers
FH: �A few good options here but the one that stands out for me is Travis Benjamin from the San Diego Chargers. Some might be surprised he�s even on the list but after his injury early in the season, he struggled a lot in San Diego and fell down the depth chart. He only caught 27 balls for 300 yards and the Chargers, despite a bad season overall, had 4 receivers with more yards than Benjamin. I think the Chargers saw a receiver with injury issues and a big salary and then they saw 4 cheaper options on their depth chart. However, we know how good this kid can be. Only last year, the 2015 season I mean, he had 68 receptions for 944 yards and 5 touchdowns. If he joins San Antonio I certainly hope he plays injury free and that they can get that kind of production out of him again.�

MT: �I totally agree! He�s top of my list as well and seems like the obvious choice. Yes, there are some concerns about his production after the injury but the Express are gonna have a ton of cap space and should take the chance on Benjamin. They might get a good #1 receiver right out of the gate.

"Let me mention two other options as well; first Jeff Janis from the Packers...

FH: "Oh yeah, that's a good choice."

MT: "...Finished the season with 529 yards on 40 receptions and has experience from a well-run offense. Second guy I wanna mention is Jarius Wright. Limited production last year in a run oriented offense, but he's fast, he can run routes, he can catch the ball. So, a few good options here on the receiver position, and a position they might wanna grab a couple of players."

The Offensive Linemen
MT: "Let's move onto the offensive linemen and the first impression I got when I saw the list was that there are a lot of teams who are trying to correct some mistakes."

FH: *Chuckles* "Yeah, there sure are a lot of average linemen with huge contracts on this list!"

MT: "I still think there are a few guys here Chuck Pagano should feel good about taking; You have a C like Jason Kelce from the Eagles. Little over $4M cap hit isn't bad for a solid Center in this league. Also want to mention Josh Kline, OG from the Titans. Hasn't been playing a lot this season as the Titans went with Chance Warmack, but he's a solid player at a low cap hit."

FH: "Well, most of the linemen on this list are backups but could still be decent starters in the NFL. However, there's a lack of Tackles on this list and the Express might need to find a starting LT in the draft. Two veterans, Ryan Clady and King Dunlap, are available, but they both have a big contract and haven't started a lot of games lately. From Denver they can get Russell Okung but again, he's an average starter at a big cap hit. Not worth it in my eyes."

MT: "No, I don't think so either and in fact I don't see a starting LT on this list. I think they have to get one from the draft unless someone shows up in free agency. The only other option is to find a good RT and move him over. There are some good RT's here like Jah Reid or Jermey Parnell, but I don't know if they're good enough to start at LT."

FH: "Me neither. They can certainly find some good interior linemen here, but if they want good starting Tackles, I think they have to look elsewhere."

DEFENSE

Defensive Line
FH: "We know Chuck Pagano is a 3-4 kind of guy but that requires a good Nose Tackle. I don't see one on this list."

MT: "A good NT is hard to come by and when you find him you're not giving him away for free! Beau Allen from Philadelphia I think is the only one but he hasn't played a lot of snaps this season and I'm not convinced he could hold down that position in a defensive front."

FH: "Agreed. The good news though is that there are a lot of good options at DE. Two names that would be top of my draft board are Brooks Reed from Atlanta and Cliff Avril from the Seahawks. Both now in their 30's and both were part of a rotation last season, but both delivered on the field in my opinion and have over 100 tackles and 14 sacks combined. That's good production that any team needs."

MT: "Solid players, but both coming from a 4-3 front. Might not be as effective in a 3-4 but at least Avril is a guy I would take no matter what. But there are a lot of good 3-4 options here as well and the Express have the salary cap to take on the contracts Atlanta and Seattle wants to get rid of in addition to a couple of other DE's. Let's also mention two guys Chuck Pagano is familiar with; Arthur Jones and Kendall Langford from Indy. Both played under Pagano and are familiar with his system and it could be an advantage for a new head coach to at least have a couple of familiar faces in the locker room."

Linebackers
MT: "There's a recent Super Bowl champion on this list and he happens to be a linebacker who could fit nicely in Pagano's 3-4; Arthur Moats played a very limited amount of snaps last year with Bud Dupree making the LOLB position his own, but I still think Moats has something to offer."

FH: "I've seen mentions of Arthur Moats but let's get straight to the guy everyone is talking about; Clay Matthews. When I first saw his name on the list I thought it was a typo cause whenever I think of the Green Bay defense, Clay Matthews is the first player I think of. Then I had to look into this a little bit more and soon it started to make more sense. Matthews was given a huge contract when he was on top of his game and could demand a huge contract but last season he was a backup in Green Bay. He played a limited number of snaps and from what I saw he didn't do much when he was given the chance. A star defender looked more like a very expensive problem for a team that recently fired their head coach and need the cap space to build a Super Bowl contender. Question is, should the Express grab him?"

MT: "I think they should. He would be, not only a starter, but a captain. A leader they could build around. I know he didn't play that much last season but I think he could be one of the smartest picks Chuck Pagano can do tonight. Get a veteran leader in that locker room who is still a darn good footballer."

Defensive Backs
FH: "Another player on the list I found a bit surprising at first is CB Robert Alford from Atlanta so I had to do my research to figure out why Atlanta would give away what I think is a very solid CB and here's the deal: Atlanta feels very good about their other CB; Desmond Trufant, Jalen Collins and even the rookie Brian Poole who has gotten a lot of snaps this season and played well. Here's the thing; Trufant is the #1 CB � there's not doubt about that � and they need to re-sign him this season. That's not gonna be cheap. Then, in 2018, they need to resign Jalen Collins and Brian Poole who are both younger than Alford. Meanwhile, Alford is on a contract that's only getting more expensive over the next few years and it looks like a smart decision to try and offload that contract before it becomes a big problem."

MT: "But should the Express take him?"

FH: "Oh, absolutely! They have the cap space and they'll be getting a solid man-to-man coverage CB and having good CB's in this league is crucial."

MT: "Agreed, and he is the best option out there. But let's find a couple of other options as well. First, Patrick Robinson from the Colts. Again, a player who knows Pagano and his system but he's been sitting behind Vontae Davis and Darius Butler this season and the Colts feel good about letting Robinson go. Then, you have Davon House from the Jaguars. Also third on the depth chart this season and for Jacksonville he makes too much money to not be a starter. Could be an excellent pick for the Express though."

FH: "I haven't been a huge fan of Davon House's play this season but I'm not gonna rule out that a new team and a new system might benefit him. But at his salary he is a bit too risky for my taste. Another option though could be Shareece Wright from Baltimore. Playoff experience this season, is about to lose his spot to the rookie Tavon Young who's had a great season, but up until now Wright has been #2 on the depth chart and he could be a good #2 in San Antonio."

MT: "Any Safeties you like here?"

FH: "Not really and I think it's a similar case to the offensive linemen. Not a lot of good options and a position they might have to address in the draft."

MT: "I think they could go with Tramon Williams Sr. from Cleveland. He's 34 and has a high cap hit, but not more than the Express can handle, and if they do draft a young safety, Williams could at least be a good mentor if he's not a great player anymore."

FH: "That's an option, but not one I'm very comfortable with. If you want experience, I'd go Jairus Byrd from the Saints. He's cap hit is even higher than Tramon Williams, but he's also 4 years younger and should have a few more good years in him."

MT: "Alright, folks, those are just a few of the options that the San Antonio Express could go with, but we see the commissioner getting ready to take the stage so we're gonna wrap this up now and let the 2017 NFL Expansion Draft get underway!"