Holy Shit The First Round Of The 2011 NFL Draft Was Awesome
I know the storyline of Cam Newton (the #1 pick in 2011) and Von Miller (#2 pick in 2011) was a big part of the Super Bowl. Cam wins the regular season MVP, Von wins the Super Bowl MVP. But good Lord that first round is incredible. Like I wrote in my Shockey blog earlier, certain pages on the Internet are sports porn. The 2001 Miami Hurricanes Wikipedia page. Barry Bonds’ Baseball Reference page. The Vince Carter dunk over Frederic Weis video. And I think this draft makes the cut too.
The 1984 and 2003 NBA Drafts are similar, but there are so many less players in the NBA and one player can make such a bigger difference in basketball. This draft is already a who’s who in the NFL. Again, the 2015 NFL MVP. The Super Bowl 50 MVP. The best defensive player (and worst Wildcat back) in the league in J.J. Watt. Julio Jones is one of what, the best 3 receivers in the league? A.J. Green is the SECOND best receiver in the Top 6 of this draft. Patrick Peterson is a stud. Aldon Smith is a pass-rushing freak, even if he can never stay out of trouble. Just an SEC fan’s wet dream. Tyron Smith is maybe the best damn left tackle in the league. Mike Pouncey, Robert Quinn and Ryan Kerrigan are game changers too. And Muhammad Wilkerson, Mark Ingram and Jimmy Smith pick up the slack at the end of the round.
I looked at the later rounds and there obviously is a drop off in quality, but still some absolute superstars. Richard Sherman in the 5th. Justin Houston and DeMarco Murray in the 3rd. Randall Cobb and (I guess?) Andy Dalton in the 2nd. Chris Harris, the #1 DB on the newly-crowned Super Bowl champions, went undrafted. And while I hate that the Giants drafted an average player in Prince Amukamara, I still think NFL fans have to consider the first round of the 2011 Draft as sports porn.
*Unless you are a Jags fan, Titans fan, a Vikings fan, or Eagles fan. Then it is probably a nightmare. Three shitty quarterbacks and an old fireman don’t move the needle. Or if you are a Browns fan that watched your team trade down from the Julio pick. But just being a Browns fan means that the NFL is a nightmare 24/7/365.
And while I didn’t include Marcell Dareus in my initial part of the blog, i have heard #BillsMafia’s gripes loud and clear on Twitter. Yes I know Dareus is awesome, but I didn’t want to write about every player in the draft. But I also don’t want any trouble with you crazy SOBs. So I am here to say Dareus is a stud too. Now please don’t put me threw a table that is on fire if I head to Ralph Wilson Stadium any time soon. Deal?