These days, the air is full of draft talk: guesses, speculations, rumors,
projections, scouting reports, player strengths and weaknesses, red flags
relative to character questions, deals up, deals down, wishful thinking,
regional biases---the whole tiresome ball of wax.
As eager as many are to have the actual Draft Day arrive, the processes
leading up to it can be exhausting, exasperating, tedious and fatiguing. The
desire is to put the day behind us as soon as possible, to move from
anticipation to analysis, from forecasting to evaluating.
Yet there can room for the original thought, the storyline which has
heretofore escaped examination.
Such an example might be the case of Alabama LB DeMeco Ryans, a finalist for
college football's premier LB award, an Academic and consensus All-American, an
intelligent and instinctive playmaker and a possibility for the Cleveland Browns' linebacking corps, though not likely at choice 12.
It is remotely possible Ryans will remain available for selection at choice
43, the location of Cleveland's second-round pick. Much could be determined by
what New Orleans does at choice 34, the second of Round Two.
At that point, the Saints may be deciding between Iowa's Abdul Hodge,
considered by many to be the top-rated ILB and a target for many Cleveland fans
concerned about who might start next to Andra Davis in 2006, and Ryans, possibly
the regional preference down on the Delta.
Ryans is projected as an OLB, however, who some feel could factor inside in
the right system. He is slightly larger (6-1 240) than the 5-11 233-pound Hodge
and the next-highest-ranked ILB, Maryland's 6-0 228 D'Qwell Jackson, neither of
whom is considered first-round material. Ryans, once been thought viable for the
Browns at 12 and originally a top-15 candidate, now is often excluded from Round
One in the many circulated mocks.
Particularly inasmuch as the Browns themselves have been vague about whether
Chaun Thompson is being forecast inside or out, another able to factor at either
slot invites someone such as Ryans.
Bear in mind Savage is an Alabama native, served as a Crimson Tide assistant
and likely has numerous friends and contacts in Tuscaloosa testifying to what a
gem DeMeco might be for a club in need of fortification amid the second-line of
defense.
Technique, quickness, anticipation, lateral movement, hand usage, coverage
skills, discipline and the abilities to attack the line of scrimmage and play
with consistent leverage are among Ryans' listed strengths. His relatively
modest size and bulk and struggles to hold the point are among his reputed
deficiencies.
Protected---as he can expect to be by vet NT Ted Washington---Ryans may be
able to transition smoothly to ILB at the pro level, at least as well as either
Hodge or Jackson, neither of whom would arrive with DeMeco's pedigree.
That all being true, it is difficult to argue DeMeco Ryans will be there for
the Browns at 43, but he does represent one of the as-yet undiscussed scenarios
at a position the club seems certain to address early on Day One of the 2006 NFL
draft process.
Organizations possibly looking for LB help late in Round One are TB, Chicago,
Carolina, Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh, with the Jets and Raiders
joining the Saints as those inclined between 33 and 43. OSU's Bobby Carpenter,
UTEP's Thomas Howard, Iowa's Chad Greenway, Hodge and Jackson, with Ryans,
comprise the expected draft class at that point.
Saturday will have to be soon enough to discover which, if any, is called to
address what appears to be a gaping vacancy in Savage's front seven. Until then,
such thoughts simply add to the plethora of pre-draft babble. Pardon me, please.