The Sports Hound's thoughts, views and experiences in sports
This edition of the 2014 NFL Mock Draft is based on my post draft NFL Power Rankings.
Also check out my list of NFL Mock Draft Databases to see what other people think about the upcoming draft.
1. New York Jets - Jake Matthews OT/Texas A&M
2. Oakland Raiders - Jadeveon Clowney DE/South Carolina
3. Jacksonville Jaguars - Teddy Bridgewater QB/Louisville
4. San Diego Chargers - David Fales QB/San Jose State
5. Arizona Cardinals - Taylor Lewan OT/Michigan (more…)
Following the 2012-2013 NFL season and the 2013 NFL Draft, here are my initial 2013-2014 NFL Power Rankings. The way the teams ended the season, their off-season moves and my draft grades all have an impact on this list. My post draft 2014 NFL Mock Draft will be in the order of this list as well.
Top 10
1. San Francisco 49ers - Normally the runner-up in the Super Bowl is easily forgotten, but the 49ers off-season acquisitions and draft choices made it hard not to rank them #1. An entire training camp with Colin Kaepernick working with the 1st team and his new shiny toys Anquan Boldin, Quinton Patton and Vance McDonald will make that offense scary. You can say this is disrespectful to the champs, but they lost too much for me to take them serious as contenders this year.
2. Atlanta Falcons - The Falcons are my preseason pick to win the Super Bowl. Matt Ryan finally tasted what a playoff win is and the return of Tony Gonzalez has Hollywood “storybook” ending written all over it. The addition of Steven Jackson on offense will open up their already explosive passing attack. The additions of Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford will upgrade the secondary and I expect Osi Umenyiora and Malliciah Goodman to give a solid pass rush.
3. Denver Broncos - Wes Welker coming over to Denver joining Peyton Manning, Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas gives them a more dangerous passing attack and Montee Ball will help Peyton with the play action. The loss is Elvis Dumervil is going to be missed, but the additions of Sylvester Williams and Terrence Knighton on the interior of the line will help.
4. New England Patriots - As long as Tom Brady is healthy and in the league the Patriots will be a powerhouse. He’s just that good and they are coached pretty well too, if you didn’t know. Wes Welker may be missed, but Danny Amendola, Aaron Dobson and Josh Boyce will be productive. I also loved the Logan Ryan, Jamie Collins and Michael Buchanan picks and feel they will play a major role on the defensive side of the ball.
5. New Orleans Saints - Sean Payton! Need I say more? Everyone seems to have completely forgot about the Saints, but Payton and Drew Brees will get the offense back to pass and catch with ease this season. Rob Ryan and his 3-4 scheme can only help their horrible defense. I expect big things this season starting with big John Jenkins in the interior of the defensive line and Kenny Vaccaro at the back end. (more…)
With less than a month left in the season and around 10 games to be played for each team, here are my 2012-2013 NBA homestretch Power Rankings. It’s safe to say that everyone knows the Miami Heat climbed to the top of the standings after their “historic” run of 27 consecutive wins in a row. The Denver Nuggets also went on a pretty long streak, but where does the rest of the league stand?
1. Miami Heat (56-15)
2. Oklahoma City Thunder (53-19)
3. San Antonio Spurs (54-17)
4. Denver Nuggets (49-24)
5. Los Angeles Clippers (49-23)
6. New York Knicks (44-26)
7. Indiana Pacers (46-27)
8. Memphis Grizzlies (47-24)
9. Brooklyn Nets (42-29)
10. Chicago Bulls (39-31)
11. Golden State Warriors (41-32)
12. Atlanta Hawks (40-32)
13. Houston Rockets (39-32)
14. Los Angeles Lakers (37-36)
15. Boston Celtics (37-34)
16. Dallas Mavericks (35-37)
17. Utah Jazz (36-36)
18. Milwaukee Bucks (35-36)
19. Portland Trail Blazers (33-38)
20. Philadelphia 76ers (28-43)
21. Sacramento Kings (27-46)
22. Washington Wizards (26-45)
23. New Orleans Hornets (25-47)
24. Minnesota Timberwolves (25-45)
25. Toronto Raptors (26-45)
26. Detroit Pistons (24-48)
27. Cleveland Cavaliers (22-48)
28. Phoenix Suns (23-50)
29. Charlotte Bobcats (17-54)
30. Orlando Magic (18-54)
It’s NBA All-Star Weekend and teams get to regroup and work on some upgrades, changes and trades before the trade deadline. The top 5 teams haven’t changed overall, but they’ve switched positions throughout the season.
1. San Antonio Spurs (42-12) – Tony Parker is playing at an MVP level and Tim Duncan is quietly averaging 17/10 in less than 30 minutes a game. The mix of youth infuse with the veterans is playing dividends for coach Gregg Popovich.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder (39-14) – The Thunder are playing at a high level, but they will not win a championship with Russell Westbrook leading the team in field goal attempts and Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins not averaging more rebounds than they do.
3. Miami Heat (36-14) – LeBron James is playing at one of the most efficient levels of his career and probably the most efficient since Wilt Chamberlain. The Heat are on a roll and I don’t see anyone stopping them.
4. Los Angeles Clippers (39-17) – The Clippers got through a lot of injuries and still are in the mix for the #1 seed in the West. Chris Paul will lead them deep into the playoffs and possible changes could make them better.
5. Memphis Grizzlies (33-18) – I am one of the rare people who think the Grizzlies got better after the Rudy Gay trade. Tayshaun Prince gives them a true leader and winner who has experienced winning it all. (more…)
by Travis Gordon of A Good Sports Hang
Contenders
1. San Antonio Spurs (36-11) PR: 3
The Spurs have won 8 straight and have the best record in the entire league, playing the 4 of their last 5 without Tim Duncan. San Antonio hosts the Bobcats and Wizards before embarking on their 9-game “Rodeo Roadtrip.”
2. Oklahoma City Thunder (34-11) PR: 1
The Thunder finally get back to the confines of their beautiful home after going 3-3 on their season-long 6-game road trip. The Thunder yielded 106 points and 46.6 % shooting on this trip which is very alarming.
3. Miami Heat (28-13) PR: 5
Rebound, rebound, rebound!!! Their defense is creating missed shots, but they aren’t able to secure the boards. If they are to repeat, they will have to do better than LAST in rebounding (39.5 RPG). The good news is that Chris Bosh is averaging just under 12 RPG over his last 3 contests.