2023 NFL Draft As-It-Happens

[MichiganCardinal]

3 minutes ago, Motown Bombers said:

I don't know, he seemed awfully excited to get Gibbs. He had a bigger reaction than when he got Sewell. 

Admittedly, I haven’t seen that yet.

[NYLion]

Also, I wonder if Holmes would have taken Gonzalez had the stupid Patriots not sniped him at 17. That was probably the biggest gut punch for me tonight, seeing him so close to the Lions and then hearing his name called right before 18. Oof.  If they were that high on Witherspoon, I'd have to think that Gonzalez was a consideration had he been there at 18. Now I'm hoping for Porter at 34 but, of course, the Steelers are drafting 32 so you just know they'll take him. 

[Motown Bombers]

1 minute ago, MichiganCardinal said:

Admittedly, I haven’t seen that yet.

This doesn't come off to me as someone who has regrets and would choose a different player. I think he got the player he wanted. 

 

[NYLion]

2 hours ago, RandyMarsh said:

lol wow. Don't get me wrong I LOVE Jack Campbell he is my favorite off the ball LB but if you were to believe the online rankings seems like a guy we could've gotten at 34. 

He's a MIKE. It does make the Anzalone signing a little more confusing now because they both play the same exact position. The linebacker room is all of a sudden very crowded along with the running back room so I'd have to think there's some maneuvering to be done to clear up the clutter.

[Motown Bombers]

I've read they will likely move Anzalone to WILL and Rodriguez will rotate off the bench along with Barnes. 

[MichiganCardinal]

 

[MichiganCardinal]

The Bijan v. Jahmyr comp will be an interesting one to make one, three, and five years from now.

Gibbs has a great head start, being on a really good team and running behind a top five offensive line. Bijan meanwhile got the Saquon treatment of being drafted by a team that is rebuilding. Time will tell.

[MichiganCardinal]

Instant Reactions (will likely have better takes when the draft is over)

The Trade: C-

Gibbs: B+

Campbell: B+

[Motown Bombers]

Dan Campbell comes from the Payton tree and I think people forget how well those high scoring Saints teams ran the ball. Between Kamara and Ingram, they averaged well over 300 carries a year and over 100 catches per year. That's over 400 touches by running backs and those Saints offenses were always top 5 in scoring. Gibbs and Montgomery are the new Kamara and Ingram. Brees didn't have elite arm strength and was similar to Goff in arm talent. You can see the Campbell imprint on this offense. 

[MichiganCardinal]

I didn’t know Gibbs returned kicks. I wonder if he will take that over from Raymond.

[Motown Bombers]

This also signals to me they are committed to Goff. Goff is at his best when he has a good run game to fall back on and can play action pass off of. Now you add someone like Gibbs as a safety valve and this offense is being built around Goff. 

[Mr.TaterSalad]

Is Gibbs that much better than other pass catching backs like Tyjae Spears? Did we just pull a Clyde Edwards-Helaire when we could have just waited and got Isaiah Pacheco later on in the draft? RBs drafted later than Gibbs, as well as guys they could have drafted like Jalen Carter/Tyree Wilson/Christian Gonzalez are who I'm going to compare him to, not Bijan Robinson.

Edited April 28, 2023 by Mr.TaterSalad

[Mr.TaterSalad]

If David Montgomery is the starter and will get a majority of the snaps, did they just draft a pass catching a RB who will be off the field on obvious running situations? Realistically speaking, how many touches can we expect Gibbs to get per game? 8-10-12?

[Mr.TaterSalad]

5 hours ago, MichiganCardinal said:

The Bijan v. Jahmyr comp will be an interesting one to make one, three, and five years from now.

That's not the comparison I'm most interested in. Jalen Carter/Tyree Wilson vs. Gibbs and Tyjae Shape and other RBs they could have had later on vs. Gibbs are the comparisons I'm more interested in.

[RandyMarsh]

I think some people get too caught up in the actual rankings instead of the actual grade of the player. 

Like I see people bitching about Campbell cause many people had him ranked in the 40s but the thing is that yes he was ranked in the 40s but his grade was nearly the same as guys in the teens and in some cases the same. 

Its been said for months that this draft wasnt exactly strong at the top and there wasn't a big drop off from say the 10th guy to the 50th guy. 

 

[AlaskanTigersFan]

 

We've needed a LB for a while. This looks pretty good.

[AlaskanTigersFan]

Also, in terms of Gibbs. From what I'm reading, it doesn't really seem like he's a "RB" per se. Looks like they will be using him as a WR sometimes and he will be the main return man too. So we basically got three positions in one player. I'm starting to like this pick more and more. Maybe I'm just talking myself into it, but if we truly got a homerun hitter, then I'll be all for it if he spaces out to WR to take some heat of Amon Ra.

[RandyMarsh]

Even though I like Gibbs I still think I wouldve just taken Bijan at 6 given the relatively low return they got. Gibbs certainly has the potential to be really good and should immediately help the offense but I think Bijan has the chance to be real special like HOF and perennial Pro Bowler special.  I don't think it's worth passing on that for what we got. 

Holmes will never say it but I do wonder if he was counting on Bijan being there at 12 and Atlanta surprising everybody by taking him threw a wrench in that plan? 

 

[AlaskanTigersFan]

3 minutes ago, RandyMarsh said:

Even though I like Gibbs I still think I wouldve just taken Bijan at 6 given the relatively low return they got. Gibbs certainly has the potential to be really good and should immediately help the offense but I think Bijan has the chance to be real special like HOF and perennial Pro Bowler special.  I don't think it's worth passing on that for what we got. 

Holmes will never say it but I do wonder if he was counting on Bijan being there at 12 and Atlanta surprising everybody by taking him threw a wrench in that plan? 

 

Yea but if they get Porter or Branch who they could have gotten at 18 (I saw some mocks with Porter at 6) at 34, then isn't this a win? Would you rather have Bijan or Porter/Branch + Gibbs? I'll take two playmakers over one. Let's say Bijan is a 10 (skillwise) and Gibbs is a 9. I'd rather take a 9 plus another elite player, than just getting a 10 at a position....... Just my opinion.

[Hongbit]

I wouldn’t have picked either player that early but I like Gibbs and pick 34 better than Bijan.     

[RandyMarsh]

As far as rd 2, I would love to get Porter at 34 but I worry with the Steelers picking 1st they will snag him, not only because of him as a player but the ties to his father playing there for so long. Seems like it would be a natural fit. 

Assuming that happens then Id probably either go Brian Branch or DJ Turner. Riley Moss is another possibility if they want to go back to back Iowa defenders. I'm sure kl2 would like that. 

[MichiganCardinal]

I think the "value" argument has a couple meanings that are worth fleshing out.

1. There is the "don't pick X at #12 because he might have been there at #18.

I don't find this particularly useful. Everyone's board is different for one, but also if he's your top player, don't risk it. I think risking it is more often trying to be the smartest person in the room than simply taking the best player available on your board. If the mainstream pundits had a 3rd round grade on a prospect and you take him at #12, that's one thing. But I don't think taking X at #12 when he maybe would be there at your next pick is bad in this situation.

2. The "positional value" argument of not taking certain positions high

I think this has some amount of merit, but that it goes beyond just "don't take a RB or TE or off-ball LB in the 1st round" and is overused. Mazi Smith and Calijah Kancey are two guys who came off the board yesterday at non-"luxury" positions who are likely not every-down players. I think when you are a rebuilding team, taking a player at a more luxurious position does not really help you rebuild. But, I also think that teams whose 22 starters are all top-ten at their position are those that are Super Bowl contenders. At some point, you need to have great players fill those roles too.

3. The quality of player X at position A vs. the quality of players Y and Z at position A that almost certainly be there at #34 and beyond.

This is what I really think of when I think of value. If I pass on corner A at #12, what kind of corners am I looking at in the 2nd round, and what is the drop-off between A and X, Y, and/or Z? It's also where I think the value argument doesn't work to take away from Gibbs and Campbell, at least based on their evaluations. I think the drop off between Gibbs and Charbonnet is so significant as to not even make it worth taking the latter, and that they see the drop off between Campbell and the other LBs as just as much.

I also think this argument is why I would have been opposed to taking Gonzalez at #12 (or Witherspoon at #6 if he had been there). I don't think the drop off between Witherspoon and Quan Martin, or Gonzalez and Porter or Branch is that significant. In overly simplistic Madden terms, I would rather take a 96 RB in the 1st and an 88 CB in the 2nd than take a 96 CB in the 1st and only have RBs in the 70s available in the 2nd, with that 88 CB available, and have to now pass on addressing the RB position, or reach for a lesser player.

[RatkoVarda]

they did not want Gonzalez; if they did, they would have moved up to get him; there was a ton of trades and the cost in the teens was not high to move up a little; they had 3 5th round picks to use; talented guy, but not a fit for them

[RandyMarsh]

6 minutes ago, Hongbit said:

I wouldn’t have picked either player that early but I like Gibbs and pick 34 better than Bijan.     

If you view them pretty equal like apparently Holmes did then yeah getting that extra capital is worth it but as much as I like Gibbs I think he's a tier below Bijan.

[Hongbit]

3 minutes ago, RandyMarsh said:

If you view them pretty equal like apparently Holmes did then yeah getting that extra capital is worth it but as much as I like Gibbs I think he's a tier below Bijan.

They are different backs but Gibbs probably is a tier lower.   That high 2nd round pick has a ton of value and at least for me makes up the difference.