Winners and Losers from the NFL Combine

As many of you know, the NFL held their annual scouting combine this past week. For those of you who don't know, the combine is where potential draft picks are put through a variety of on-field and interview drills in order to test their NFL readiness. With that in mind, every year there are players who both help, and hurt their pending draft stock. Let's look at the winners of the 2015 NFL combine:

Winners: 

QBs Jameis Winston  Marcus Mariota: Both look comfortable on the field and apparently really impressed in the interview room. Both are likely top 10 if not not 5 selections

Comparison of Mariota (Front) and Winston running the 40-yard dash 

CB Trae Waynes: Waynes was considered to be the top corner available to begin with, and he did solidified  that claim in Indy. Along with, running a  4.31 forty, Waynes also performed at a high level during the drill portion of the event.                                   

CB Byron Jones: Jones may have improved his stock most out of anyone.  Jones posted a combine record broad jump of 12 feet 3 inches. Along with his record jump, Jones posted the second best vertical jump overall at 44.5 inches. 

Jones' record broad jump

Potential Opening Day Lineup

Baseball is back! Well, not quite, but pitchers and catchers reported to spring training so we are getting closer. It's in that spirit that I'm going to project the Oriole's everyday line-up for 2015.

 Let's start with the locks:                

Adam Jones CF
J.J. Hardy SS
Manny Machado 3B
Matt Wieters C
Chris Davis 1B (after one-game suspension)

That means the Orioles need to 4 spots in the lineup:
*Leaders are highlighted
LF:Alejandro De Aza, Nolan Reimold, David Lough
RF:Steve Pearce, David Lough
2B: Jonathan Schoop,  Ryan Flaherty, Everth Cabrera
DH: Delmon Young, Steve Pearce

With the positions now projected, let's look at the "likely" lineup:

1)Alejandro De Aza LF
2)Manny Machado 3B
3)Adam Jones CF
4)Chris Davis 1B
5)Matt Wieters C
6)JJ Hardy SS
7)Steve Pearce RF
8)Delmon Young DH
9)Jonathan Schoop 2B

Now this line-up has the potential to be scary, but it is banking highly on players returning from injury. Manny Machado was a potential 40 doubles hitter prior to both of his knee injuries. Chris Davis led the league in home runs prior to a horrendous year last year. Matt Wieters was off to the best start of his career prior to Tommy John surgery. Bottomline, the Oriole's offense will likely live or die by the players returning from injury.

Whatever the lineup is come opening day, the Yard is sure to be packed with excited O's fans looking forward to another competitive year in the AL East.

2015 NFL Mock Draft

Well, the football season is at its slowest point of the year. There isn't too much to talk about other than, that's right, the 2015 draft. I know, trying to put together a mock draft is a total crapshoot this early, but why not give it a shot. Here we go....

Baltimore Ravens 2015 3 Round Mock
Note**Only doing three rounds here because mid-round picks are virtually impossible to project prior to the combine.


Round 1: Marcus Peters CB Washington 

Analysis: Marcus Peters would be a classic Ravens draft pick. A top 10 talent with significant character concerns that will undoubtedly make him slip come draft day. The Ravens have a glaring need a CB and Peters is likely able to make an impact early in the season. Along with the obvious needs, the Ravens are no strangers to picking CBs with potential red flags. In the 2011 draft, they drafted Jimmy Smith after his first round slide due to his own character concerns. 







Round 2: Sammie Coates WR Auburn 

Analysis: Coates has a freakish blend of size, speed and strength. Reportedly has been clocked in the 4.3s in the 40-yard dash and this speed is apparent on the field. The Ravens also have a need at WR with Torrey Smith being a free agent and not much depth behind Steve Smith Sr. 



Round 3: TJ Yeldon RB Alabama

Analysis: Classic BPA draft pick here. Yeldon is likely to slip in the draft following his relatively disappointing season.It would make tons of sense for the Ravens to take a chance on him here because of their need at RB. Yeldon, a big, one-cut RB is a great fit in the offensive scheme.


This draft sets up to fill the majors holes in the Raven's rosters. With this set-up, I would predict that the Ravens would need to address the Safety and Defensive Line positions. 

What Should The Ravens Do With Pick 26?

Well, the football season is now officially over following the Patriot's Super Bowl 49 win over the Seahawks. As a football fan, that means one thing-on to the draft.  In this year's draft, the Ravens hold the 26th overall pick in the first round. When looking at potential draft picks, the first thing to look for is potential needs. For the sake of argument I have identified three main positions of need this offseason.

1) Secondary
There is no doubt that the secondary was the biggest point of weakness for the Ravens this year with a season ending injury to their best secondary player Jimmy Smith, the down year from Lardarius Webb, lack of production from the safety position, and a carousel of no-name defensive backs filling in. The Ravens secondary could face even more change in the coming months. Will Hill, the sole semi-bright spot in the secondary facing an arrest warrant, and Webb potentially being cut due to his contract. 

Potential Secondary Draft Picks:
Marcus Peters CB (Washington)
Trae Waynes CB (Michigan State)
Landon Collins S (Alabama)

2) Running Back
The need here is pretty straightforward. Obviously with the Ray Rice debacle behind them, the Ravens turned to Justin Forsett. Forsett, who is coming off of a career year, is an impending free agent who will likely have the chance to make more money outside of Baltimore. 

Potential RB Draft Picks:
Melvin Gordon RB (Wisconsin)
Todd Gurley RB (Georgia)

3) Pass Rusher
Pass Rushers are players that every team needs. While the Ravens have two stud OLBs, they could use some help on the defensive line. Pernell McPhee is likely to get a large pay raise somewhere other than Baltimore, while veteran Chris Canty could chose to retire. With that, the Ravens could look to pick up a pass rusher if they see fit. 

Potential Pass Rusher Picks:
 Leonard Williams (USC) 
Shane Ray(Missouri)
Dante Fowler, Jr. (Florida)


Other potential needs: WR, OL, TE
What I think will happen:
Too be honest, your guess is as good as mine. It seems like there is always a player that falls into reach of Ozzie Newsome and the Ravens, and he has repeatedly shown that he is willing to pick the best player available regardless of need. If I had to guess, I would predict that the Ravens will draft their highest rated player amongst defensive backs and running backs.