| 2003 NFL Mock Draft | |
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17) Philadelphia Eagles - Clifton Smith, LB, Syracuse. They'll be tempted to draft a WR, but it's risky, none of the WR's left here are guarateed gamebreakers (plus they're still feeling the sting of Freddie Mitchell). Smith will help offset the loss of Trotter, and shore up the run game, which has been vulnerable of late.
18) New England Patriots - Kindal Morehead, DE, Alabama. Another piece to shoring up the defense, especially at stopping the run. Don't know if you noticed, but one of the reasons Quentin Griffin isn't a more legitimate Heisman candidate is because of the performance of the Alabama defense. Granted, they had more than just Morehead, but he certainly played a big role in it.
19) Kansas City Chiefs - Derrick Strait, CB, Oklahoma. Don't think I need to explain this one much, though the Chiefs do seem to be getting better. Still, their major weakness is their secondary, and Strait will Straighten it out (sorry, it was irresistable)...
20) St. Louis Rams - Brandon Lloyd, WR, Illinois. This is the type of coach Martz is. He'd rather fix his problem at the #3 WR than at CB, where Aeneas Williams career might be over. He'll go after CB later on, but this one will be a guilty pleasure.
21) New York Jets - Vince Wilfork, DT, Miami. Everyone seems to be divided on this guy. Is he the next Sapp, or is he a product of the people around him. All I know is that he's a Cane, and when you think about recent Cane history in the draft, particularly on defense, they haven't turned out too many that were a product of the other guys' success. I don't think Wilfork is any different.
22) Pittsburgh Steelers - Troy Polamalu, S, USC. Love this guy. I think there's a renaissance going on right now at the safety position, and this guy, along with Roy Williams, Ed Reed, Archuleta (and Terrence Holt from this draft) are going to be leading the charge. Just a guy I don't think Cowher can pass on.
23) New York Giants - Doug Gabriel, WR, Central Florida. Another guy that's going to sky up the charts (he's starting to already). This year, the Giants are a Toomer crossing pattern from having no legitimate threats at wideout (obviously they have a threat at TE). Gabriel will fix that.
24) San Diego Chargers - Eugene Wilson, CB, Illinois. The hope is that this guy can team up with Jammer for years to come and lockdown opponents' wide receivers. They're already difficult enough to run against.
