Allow me to just say "Thank you" right now. Why? Because I've gone and outdone myself yet again. Over the last couple of days I have been compiling the greatest Saints-dedicated mock draft list ever to grace the digital inner workings of the world wide web all while putting me in the early lead for 2009's sports blogger of the year. Kidding. It's what we in the blogosphere call a mock draft database and it will be posted here today at 2pm Central.
Before I reveal the mother of all Saints mock draft databases - the mock draft database to end all mock draft databases - I figured I would give a little background on this bad boy to whet your insatiable mock draft appetite. I don't want to tell you exactly how big our database is but I will say this: however big you think it is...double it! Then double that! In fact, you may want to do another set of pointer finger push-ups in your afternoon routine because there is a lot of scrolling in your near future. Once you feast your eyes upon this mockalicious database you will want to eat it while still being astonished by its size. In fact, I don't know what's more incredible: the amount of different mock draft's out there on the internet or my ability to compile them all right here in one easy to read place. I digress.
Though there were quite a few more mock drafts out there to collect for our database, I only included ones created from December 2008 to now. Any mocks created before then were using a warped, made-up draft order so I cut them out. The mock drafts used in the database come from all types of websites from all parts of the world. Some of these mocks were completed by knowledgeable and respectable people who know a thing or two about the NFL draft process while others are just shots in the dark by random bloggers who just needed to put together a quick post. These mock drafts also come from websites that cover a wide range of topics including those that are dedicated strictly to the draft, a few team or city specific blogs, general sports websites and even some of our very own SB Nation members. Some have funny names like "Become a Ninja" and "Like Seriously, WTF." There is even a mock draft site from Iceland! Just remember to always consider the source.
With this diverse melange I began to notice the quality discrepancies as I continued to put together this list and read all of the explanations that some of these sites offered for their draft pick decisions. Some of these writers knew a thing or two about the needs of the Saints. Or at least did a great job pretending. One of the surprisingly more knowledgable breakdowns came from a random blog called PH Sports "where sports and thought intersect." These guys have actually been paying attention...
Mike McKenzie's health is fading and Randall Gay didn't prove to be the answer. The Saints should look into a future with Davis teaming up with Tracy Porter at CB, shutting down opposing WRs.
Here is another mock draft site that I think actually got it right. It's NFL Draft Prophecies and here is what they said about why the Saints should pick Louis Delmas.
The Saints became a true study of contrasts in 2008. On offense they boasted Drew Brees, the NFL Offensive Player of the Year and second player in NFL history to surpass 5,000 yards in a season. On the defensive side of the ball, however, they had one of the worst pass defenses in the league, and were unable to take advantage of Brees' historic season, finishing 8-8 and out of the playoffs for the second consecutive year after reaching the NFC Championship Game in 2006. While the cornerbacks are nothing special, the safeties are down right awful. Replacing either Josh Bullocks or Kevin Kaesviharn with Delmas would give New Orleans a Brian Dawkins-type player to solidify their secondary with.
Applause also goes to Afro Comb from FF Jungle who was the only one who ever even mentioned the possibility of a trade down, though I'm not sure I agree with his pick.
Saints would prefer a CB here but can't get value, may try to TRADE as a result. If picking here it should be a straight choice between Maualuga & Laurinaitis. Think Maualuga is more athletic than Laurinaitis, but really it is a coin toss.
The people at Sports Jabber win the award for most humorous draft pick analysis however. Here is how they summed up their decision to choose Vontae Davis for the Saints...
When Jason David and Randall Gay are your starting corners, you should probably look to bring someone else in...
Couldn't have said it better myself. Pure genius guys.
On the other end of the spectrum, of course, are the idiots. The guys who, at least with respect to the Saints, have never even watched a game. Some of these guys out there just have absolutely no idea what they're talking about. For example, the people over at the appropriately named website Guess Fest had some advice for our linebacking corp.
I think for the betterment of the Saints Scott Fujita should not be back and Vilma needs to move to the outside. You will be hearing Maualuga's name being called at the Pro Bowl for many years to come.
Get rid of Fujita, huh? These guys really are guessing. Perhaps they are more deserving of the title "Guessapalooza."
Here's some more ground breaking insight from over at the Phin Phanatic:
Vilma will not be resigned because they do not want to have to give the Jets a #1 pick. Laurinaitis will give a big boost to the middle of the Saints defense.
Wow, you haven't done any research have you? I could go on but I won't.
One other interesting thing I noticed after compiling the database was the incredibly small sampling of colleges that the players predicted to be drafted by the Saints come from. In fact, if these current statistics hold true, out of the 21 different players chosen by at least one of these mock drafts, there is about an 86% chance that the Saints first round draft pick will come from one of only four schools; Illinois, Ohio State, USC or Wake Forest. Not very diverse.
Now that I've got you all warmed up, I will see you back here at 2pm Central for the release of Canal Street Chronicles' gigantically huge mock draft database. It promises to be Mocktastic!