The NFLDraftguys staff is going simulate playing the GM of each of the 31 teams picking in the first round and justify their picks. You can look forward to a new pick every other day leading up to April 28, when the staff will be in Radio City Music Hall to see if they took our advice.
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Follow the progress of the On The Clock Draft Board, where you can see exactly how the first round would play out if the NFLDraftguys staff were making the calls in the war room.
Sean Baca
With the seventh pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings SHOULD draft Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame
If by the grace of "our lady of victory" the Irish quarterback is still there, I think you have to take him. The Vikings last year caused 36 turnovers, had 30 sacks and were number one against the rush.. so bolstering the defense is not a need right now. Tarvaris is a little too much of risk taker to be a franchise QB (twice as many INT's as TD's).
Quinn is a seasoned and prepared quarterback. He has been in a pro system and is battle tested against the elite programs in the college game. Sure he didn't win the big games, but he competed as hard as anyone on the field on every down. His ceiling is very high and I believe we have seen the bottom floor of Quinn's ability, which in-and-of itself was pretty high. With a young receiving core and a stout defense, the Vikings offense can mature together, and eventually succeed, with a leader like Quinn.
Marc Faletti
With the 7th pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings SHOULD select LaRon Landry, FS, LSU.
WR and QB are top needs for Minnesota. Unfortunately, no WR outside of CJ warrants the 7th selection, and Jamarcus Russell's weight fluctuations worry me almost as much as Brady Quinn's well-documented struggles against defenses with NFL talent.
Whenever a solid "need" choice isn't feasible, teams should acquire the best talent available. At this point in my draft, that means Landry.
We know the kid can hit, usually taking excellent angles and finishing fiercely, but his cover skills are nothing to sneeze at, either. He isn't easily fooled, recovers nicely on the rare occasions he is, and has the natural hands of a receiver. Opposing coaches seemed to take note; several noticeably steered away from Landry's side of the field at times last year.
In today's NFL, safeties need to play goalie, center fielder, and hockey thug. Landry possesses those qualities and more. Other than Calvin Johnson, I see no surer impact player in this draft than LaRon Landry.
Cecil Lammey
With the 7th pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings SHOULD take Gaines Adams, DE, Clemson.
That is, if they don't trade this pick plus some other players for Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald. DE is a serious need for the Vikings, and Tarvaris Jackson will get some more time to prove himself worthy of the starting position.
On defense Brad Childress finds his squad with 2 of the best defensive tackles in the game. So why not take a beast of a DE? Gaines is all that and then some. He can get to the QB in a hurry, and uses his long arms to his full advantage. His closing burst is among the best in the nation, and he has a great knack for finding the ball carrier and disrupting the offense. Versatility at the next level is an added bonus as Gaines could line up at OLB if need be. Pressure on the QB helps a defense out in so many ways, and the Vikings would be wise to make this pick - ON TIME - and make it Gaines Adams.
Sigmund Bloom
With the seventh pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings SHOULD draft Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame
The Vikings are surely hoping that Tarvaris Jackson will become their franchise QB, but let's face up to reality here. Jackson is a boom/bust project with all the physical tools to make it in the NFL and none of the experience. His limited time last year showed the tools, but the inexperience also reared its ugly head. Even if the Vikes truly believe that Jackson can't miss, it never hurts to have two young starting quality QBs.
We can not get too carried away with how fashionable it is to hate on the golden boy QB before the draft. Last year, it was Matt Leinart, and in 2007, it's Quinn. We hyperanalyze looking for flaws and amplify them so that they overshadow the very strong body of work that made them the top ranked QB to begin with.
It's also important to point out that if Russell and Quinn are both really available at 7, some team is going to get antsy and trade up to snag a QB they likely have in the top 3 on their board. This exercise is about "shoulds". Adam Schefter has reported recently that the Raiders are taking a long look at Russell, and that the Browns brass is pushing for a QB at #3. If we had a parallel "on the clock" about "wills" instead of "shoulds", neither Quinn nor Russell would be there for the Vikings at 7, and they would be reduced to hoping that one of the elite DEs slides to them.
