CBS: Half the Top 10 Wants to Trade Down

[stlouisfan37]

Originally Posted by Don Vito

So you're saying you aren't going to find a franchise QB, LT, or pass rusher by trading down? If you like a guy who doesn't project to go very early, why not trade down and add more picks. So do you think the draft should only be one round? Yes the top talents will generally go early, but what separates the good teams from the rest is being able to find value in guys later in the draft.

Elite QBs right now are probably Brady, Rodgers, Brees, Eli, Stafford, Rivers, Big Ben, Cutler, and Peyton depending on how you view the injury stuff. Teams traded picks before all but the Mannings and Stafford were picked. I think the consensus top 3 QB's right now are Rodgers, Brees, and Brady and there were definitely opportunities to trade down before they were picked. Yeah again top prospects go first, but smart teams see the ability of guys that dumb teams won't.

I won't get in to left tackles. Elite left tackles are a luxury, look at the success of the Browns with Joe Thomas and Miami with Jake Long. Would Brees, Rodgers, Brady, and the Mannings benefit from an elite LT? Probably, but they win without them.

Best pass rushers? Jared Allen, D Ware, Trent Cole, Suggs, JPP, Tuck, Woodley, Hali, Dumervil, Orakpo...I don't know pretty much all the elite guys besides Peppers and Mario could have been taken if a team wanted to trade down. Cam Wake was taken out of Canada for Christ's sake.

All in all I am not disputing there is talent at the top, but there is talent elsewhere too. That is the job of the people who really are supposed to disect the draft. Find the guys who aren't top 10 picks and make them into pros, and if you can trade down and add more pieces then why not. I don't understand your arguement.

I completely agree. As far as I'm concerned, you cannot get good draft value at the top of the draft.

Take Minnesota for example. They draft 3rd. Even if Luck were to fall to them, the very best value gain they could get at that spot is 2 spots.

In the second round, however, there could be a guy sitting there who was ranked 15 spots higher and no one has nabbed him. Now you are getting mid-1st value at a 2nd round spot. Thats how you build a team. If you can trade down and get more value out of your picks then you come away from the draft with more talent. Even the Colts, who were well documented in finding great talent in the first round every year, had a bunch of late firsts with the exception of Manning and James. Contenders aren't built on the backs of top 5 picks. They are built through finding the best player every step of the way to supplement the elite talent that you have.