It's almost here folks. ' Couple more days and we won't have to wonder about picks or ponder hypothetical scenarios like this one ;) I'm seeing some mocks that have Shane Ray sliding to the 20s, perhaps due to a solid but unspectacular proday, less than ideal size or questions about his foot. While many mocks still have him in the top half of the first round, here are a couple that have him sliding. http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/166716/2015-espn-nfl-nation-mock-draft http://www.nfl.com/draft/2015/mock-drafts/lance-zierlein/245612 http://www.draftcountdown.com/sub/Mock-Draft-C.php Now, the LAST thing I want to see is our RBs running into a wall and our new QB getting pressured every time he drops back to pass and I would have liked to see some lineman brought in during the early parts of free agency so that we would not be forced to draft OL in rounds two and three. That said, If Ray slides into the 20s would you be in favor of trading up? AgainstOT and OG are needs and to put it politely, waiting to the mid rounds to address these positions last year did not provide an immediate solution (though Pamphile and Edwards may develop). While capable lineman can be found in the mid rounds, there is a great deal of urgency to fix this issue and the odds of doing so are better if we invest premium picksThe pick(s) involved in the trade may prevent us from addressing other areas such as slot receiver and safety. Shane Ray lacks ideal size and strength seen in a prototypical 4-3 endRay has a foot injury that kept him out of the combine though he did work out at the proday and will not need surgeryProspects such as Nate Orchard could be acquired later with out giving up picksFor Ray has been touted as a top ten pick throughout the pre-draft process. He has the burst to run the arc and the ability to dip under lineman. He's also aggressive and has a tenacious motor. While his aggressive play can get him into trouble, he's still developing and has considerable upside. Lovie's T2 is predicated on pressure from the front four. With ray, McCoy, McDonald and Smith we'd have four guys that go hard every snap. While Ray does not possess ideal size for a three down 4-3 DE, players like Von Miller, Clay Mathews and Robert Mathis have made a living beating offensive tackles en route to the QBThere is good OL depth in this draft. Rob Havenstein is a mammouth who showed better feet than his body would suggest and Tyler Sambrailo shows the feet to play LT. Both guys are projected to go after the second round. AJ Cann is starting to show up in the third or late second and there are multiple big OTs that look like they'll be moved to guard if tackle is addressed in the third. Free agency is an ongoing process. Joseph Barksdale is back from his wedding and perhaps honeymoon as well. Also more players will be cut once the draft is over. Glennon and Doug could be used to acquire the ammunition to trade up while still allowing us to address the OL. What say you?
