Get Herald RSSApril marks the beginning of the playoffs that some people notice (NBA) and another that no one outside of Canada does (NHL). It's a time of Rich Harden's annual trip to the disabled list and panic fantasy baseball trades after slow first weeks that threaten to ruin the league (David Ortiz for Brian Bannister? Really?) And of course, it's time to admire Mel Kiper Jr.'s mesmerizing hair, which signifies the greatest non game-day sports weekend of the year: the NFL draft. Even after Jake Long was made the first pick of the draft on Tuesday, plenty of questions abound.
Will Jeremy Shockey or Chad Johnson be traded? Shockey is recovering from a broken leg, and true to crazy, selfish athlete form, is unhappy with his role on a team that just won the Super Bowl. "Ocho-Cinco" is an elite talent that many teams would love to roll the dice on, but the $8 million cap hit that the Bengals would assume by trading Johnson makes dealing him unappealing.
Will the Chiefs (owners of six of the top 82 selections) become the youngest team in pro sports since the 1993 Cubs signed 12-year-old Henry Rowengartner, owner of the 100 mph fastball with inexplicably perfect command and control? Or will they use their plethora of picks in trades to move up in the draft?
Will any ESPN contributor ever again rise to fame as quickly as Scout's Inc.'s Todd McShay? Anyone who has followed the draft to date is starting to feel guilty as they realize McShay sometimes makes more sense than Kiper. Meanwhile, anyone who hasn't followed the draft but has seen Sportscenter at least once in the last six weeks has seen this guy. He's everywhere… like that one person that you haven't met, but somehow see twice a day every day.
Will running back Darren McFadden or quarterback Matt Ryan fall to the Jets at pick number six? The J-E-T-S Jets, Jets, Jets lack a franchise quarterback and a dynamic playmaker on the offensive side of the ball, making D-Fad and Ryan particularly intriguing.
Will money rule the draft? The ridiculous price tags on top selections make trades into the top five unlikely, but it's possible the cap-conscience 18 and one-ers (The Patriots) will decide no one is worth the $40 million that their selection is likely to cost and trade down.
Will Madden 2009 outdo past draft day commercials? Electronic Arts often reveals their first TV ads during day one of the NFL draft featuring draft prospects. In the past, they've produced instant cult classics, such as Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs' masterpiece: "13 sacks… owned by me, Terrell Suggs. Two sacks… of dirty laundry, owned by me, Ray Lewis, for you, Terrell Suggs."
Does it get any better than an entire afternoon of watching your favorite team's future unfold in front of your very eyes? Wings, football and Mel Kiper's hair? Sign me up.
