The day after the draft, and it’s time to see who the winners and losers are. I’m not one who believes you can pick winners and losers the day later — I think it takes two years, not three, like most of the experts say to see who really won — but with that said, I will say this: Tennessee, m’friends, you were losers. They drafted Chris Johnson in the first round, a halfback who’s fast, and that’s about it. In the fourth round, they drafted William Hayes, who wasn’t a player expected to be picked in the full seven rounds.

Aw, such is life; we’ll know more of who won and who lost when the season starts, but for now I cling to the hope that Matt Ryan’s a combination of Michael Vick (without the animal abuse, of course), Brett Favre (without the interceptions, of course), Tom Brady (without being a dick, of course), Dan Marino (without the anger, of course), and Peyton Manning (without being a, you know, a Manning, of course).

The draft is pretty much over, at least anything important, but I guess I should at least make some sort of comments on the first ten picks. They were as follows:

1. Miami, Jake Long: We knew this pick a week ago, and it’ll probably be the safest of this draft. You need a tackle to anchor the line, and getting one that’s 6′7″ and 317 pounds is a solid way to start.

2. St. Louis, Chris Long: Son of Howie; long, athletic guy. The Rams needed help on defense, and he’ll be plugged in there immediately. I was a little surprised, though, that they passed on Dorsey.

3. Atlanta, Matt Ryan: Questionable pick. Dorsey was on the board. Good quarterbacks can definitely be gotten in the later rounds. That said, there’s no great QB’s coming out in next year’s draft, so this may have been their only option.

4. Oakland, Darren McFadden: Surprised? Not if you know Al Davis, who loves speed, doesn’t care about character, and wants a big name playing for his organization.

5. Kansas City, Glenn Dorsey: He’s a steal at the fifth pick. The Chiefs have depth at DT, and it wasn’t their biggest need, but you can’t pass up on what’s probably the best player in the draft when he slips to No. 5.

6. New York Jets, Vernon Gholston: I’m used to hearing Jets fans boo when they announce their selection, but this name brought only cheers. He’s a freak of a talent, but he’s going to have to apply it to the field; if you look at his stats in college, they’re not all that remarkable, but he should fit in well in a 3-4 defensive scheme.

7. New Orleans, Sedrick Ellis: He was the best defensive tackle after Dorsey, and some think he’ll be a better pro. At any rate, New Orleans needed help on their line, and they got it.

8. Jacksonville, Derrick Harvey: They traded up, gave up a lot, and at the eight spot maybe made the biggest reach in this draft. Derrick Harvey played one great game against Ohio State two years ago, but has been a sub-par defensive end otherwise.

9. Cincinnati, Keith Rivers: They need to start going after guys that can affect a locker-room in a positive way, and they did that with this pick. Rivers may not be an athletic freak, but he’s a smart player on and off the field.

10. New England, Jerod Mayo: Good pick. He’s smart, and he’ll fit right in with New England, who loves players with high football intelligence. He’s got a ton of up-side, and though a little small, he’s very explosive.

The long negotiations between Dallas and Tennessee are over, and Pacman can finally say he found a home in Big D.

The agreement, which was first reported by ESPN’s Ed Werder, was confirmed to The Associated Press by both teams. No terms had been filed with the NFL office, which already had closed for the day.

Sources tell Werder that Dallas will send its fourth-round pick (the 126th overall) in Saturday’s draft to the Titans for Jones.

You have to chalk this one up as a win for Dallas — who gets a good corner — and every fan out there anxiously waiting for a fist fight between Jessica Simpson and The Lady Beater. Dallas took a step back in the character department when they grabbed TO, and this could probably be characterized as a step back, a fall down the stairs, and a busted head upon impact.

To their credit, they did become much more fun to watch with this. The Romo/Simpson/TO/Pacman controversies will be fun, and will be even funner with Wade Phillips trying to mediate them.

DeAngelo Hall, who is good but maybe overrated, and who often causes a stir in the media/locker-room/sidelines, has been traded to the Raiders, according to ESPN.

The Atlanta Falcons have reached an agreement in principle with the Oakland Raiders to trade cornerback DeAngelo Hall for the Raiders’ second-round pick in the 2008 draft, pending the Raiders finalizing a contract with Hall, a source close to the Falcons told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen.

The source is saying Hall will get something close to what Asante Samuel got with the Eagles, and putting the outspoken Hall with Nnamdi Asomugha will make for one of the better one-two tandems in the NFL at the corner position. The Falcons, meanwhile, will receive the 35th overall selection, where they may be able to pick up a quarterback like, say, Joe Flacco.

With the draft coming up, I’m going to try and mock this thing as best I can; and, based on Mel Kiper’s past predictions, I can probably do better. You’ll see his mock drafts all over the web the next few months, but be advised: One, the guy’s a terrible judge in talent and, two, he’s seldom right. We’ll see how I do, but I can’t imagine doing much worse.

For past picks and predictions, click here.

-Today’s Selection: #10, New Orleans Saints

The Saints appear to be the front runners for Asante Samuel, though the Jets are suddenly creeping into the picture. If the Saints don’t get Asante, look for them to draft a corner — a cover corner, a good corner, any corner — whose name isn’t Jason David. David was smoked on a regular basis, proving that a corner who’s decent in a Cover 2 Indy scheme probably isn’t setup for success in a man system. But if they do get Samuel, I highly doubt they’ll spend a top 10 pick on another one.

That said, look for them to help the offensive line and bolster the run attack of Reggie Bush and The Deuce by drafting the big Left Tackle from Vandy, Chris Williams. Williams is a solid pass blocker, someone who can certainly protect the blind side of Drew Brees, and is also very stable in run support.

With the draft coming up, I’m going to try and mock this thing as best I can; and, based on Mel Kiper’s past predictions, I can probably do better. You’ll see his mock drafts all over the web the next few months, but be advised: One, the guy’s a terrible judge in talent and, two, he’s seldom right. We’ll see how I do, but I can’t imagine doing much worse.

For past picks and predictions, click here.

Today’s Selection: Cincinnati Bengals, Pick No. 9

With the ninth pick, the Bengals have to address the defense, unless they plan on moving Chad Johnson and decide to address a receiver (and in this draft, there aren’t any top 10 receivers). There’s a good chance Vernon could be gone by this point, given his size and speed, and his ability to probably play end/linebacker in the NFL.

The Bengals need more than just one player to shape up that D, but getting a cornerstone guy who can play two positions with the ninth pick isn’t a bad start.

McFadden ran the 40 in Indy today, and it was pretty blazing: He posted a 4.27 on his first run, and a 4.33 on his second, both very acceptable for running backs. The other things that were found out is that he already has two children, and apparentky has two more on the way. I’m not going to lecture about condoms or birth control or, you know, pulling out, but jeez: Something’s gotta give.

With the draft coming up, I’m going to try and mock this thing as best I can; and, based on Mel Kiper’s past predictions, I can probably do better. You’ll see his mock drafts all over the web the next few months, but be advised: One, the guy’s a terrible judge in talent and, two, he’s seldom right. We’ll see how I do, but I can’t imagine doing much worse.

For past picks and predictions, click here.

Today’s Selection: No. 8, Baltimore Ravens

Ryan Clady is the second best offensive lineman in his draft, and if you’re going to spend a Top 10 pick on an offensive lineman, it may as well be a LT. Jonathan Ogden is getting ancient, and Willis McGahee and whoever the QB happens to be need somebody bit up front to block for ‘em. He’s not going to be as good as Jake Long, but he’ll be close enough.

It’s that time of year again when NFL Scouts drool over a player’s leaping and running ability more than anything else. What the guy did in college doesn’t matter; if he can’t run a 4.2 and cut on a dime, he won’t make it in the NFL.

Such is the overrated hype of the NFL Combine, an event that has become more circus than spectacle.

This year will surely produce some guys that aren’t that good but be drafted and paid as if they’re the next big thing. It happens every year. Some guy runs fast (Donte Stallworth, who wasn’t a bust, but isn’t top 10 material), some guy throws far (Kyle Boller), some guy seems really agile as an offensive lineman (Robert Gallery), or some linebacker shows freak stats all the way around (LaVar Arrington).

I have a sleeper for this year’s Got Picked Way Too High Award. DeShawn Jackson, who’s sure to run a 4.3 or better, and because of his punt returning ability, will slide his way up into the top 15.

This thing kicks off Wednesday. From there we’ll watch guys rise and watch guys fall, all on the basis of numbers that don’t matter. But it does help keep us busy until next season, and with Spygate dying down, it’ll have to do.

With the draft coming up, I’m going to try and mock this thing as best I can; and, based on Mel Kiper’s past predictions, I can probably do better. You’ll see his mock drafts all over the web the next few months, but be advised: One, the guy’s a terrible judge in talent and, two, he’s seldom right. We’ll see how I do, but I can’t imagine doing much worse.

For past picks and predictions, click here.

Today’s Selection:

#7, New England Patriots: Leodis McKelvin

He’s one of those guys that not a lot of people have heard of, but he’s also one of those rare guys out of college that possess the size, speed, and cover ability to play immediately. With Asante Samuel waiting on a big pay day, a pay day that won’t happen in New England, the Pats will need help at the corner position (in a year Ellis Hobbs becomes a restricted free agent). He’s 5′11″, 190 pounds, and runs about a 4.4. Beyond that, if he’s with the Pats, he’ll be successful because they’re the Pats, and they have an annoying little way of drafting only great players.