With just a couple of weeks left until the 2006 NFL selection draft, teams have settled into their offseason regimens, and free agency has sorted out a lot of team needs. College scouts are meeting with NFL general managers and coming up with their respective war room strategies. But the nice thing about mock drafts is that anyone can do one…
| Pk | Team | Player | Pos | Comments: |
| 1. | Texans | Reggie Bush | RB | If there was any doubt, a 4.33 at his USC pro date should have removed it for Bush. |
| 2. | Saints | D’Brickashaw Ferguson | OT | The Saints already grabbed their quarterback in free agency but they also brought in the incumbents for a looksee. Posturing for a trade, or are they serious? If they don’t trade this pick, conventional wisdom is that a defensive tackle might be the move, but why not protect that new QB’s blind side? |
| 3. | Titans | Matt Leinart | QB | It’s virtually impossible to imagine the Titans not taking the former Hisman trophy winner with Norm Chow there and the present quarterback debacle. |
| 4. | Jets | Vince Young | QB | Do the Jets ever do what anyone expects them to on draft day? A lot of conventional wisdom has the Jets NOT grabbing a quarterback after signing Patrick Ramsey via free agency, but he’s a free agent next year. For once the Jets surprising their faithful might actually be a pleasant surprise down the road. |
| 5. | Packers | Michael Huff | DB | The Packers secondary isn’t exactly menacing… Huff could provide an immediate upgrade in quality. |
| 6. | 49ers | Mario Williams | DE | The 49ers can’t believe their fortune and grab the year’s best pass rushing prospect. |
| 7. | Raiders | A.J. Hawk | LB | Art Shell starts re-vamping Oakland where they need it most… defense. Hawk is a great athlete and would be a solid find at number seven. |
| 8. | Bills | Haloti Ngata | DT | The Bills didn’t look the same without Pat Williams, and while Larry Triplett was already added, why not grab the junior from Oregon State that leads the class of defensive tackles? |
| 9. | Lions | Jay Cutler | QB | Sure they got Jon Kitna and Josh McCown through free agency… but they got JON KITNA and JOSH MCCOWN! Why not put Cutler in the stable? |
| 10. | Cardinals | Vernon Davis | TE | Dennis Green could add another piece to the offensive puzzle and give their weakest link, Kurt Warner, a better chance to be successful. Offensive line upgrades should also be considered. |
| 11. | Rams | Jimmy Williams | CB | The Rams could do anything, but their secondary needs addressing the most. |
| 12. | Browns | Ernie Sims | LB | Romeo Crennel can’t have too many linebackers for that 3-4 defense, so the Browns take the best one available. |
| 13. | Ravens | Broderick Bunkley | DT | Signing Mike Anderson probably negates the need for a runningback but the Ravens haven’t replaced the loss of free agent Maake Kemoeatu yet. |
| 14. | Eagles | Chad Jackson | WR | Terrell Owens is gone and so are Donovan McNabb’s dangerous receiving threats. |
| 15. | Broncos | DeAngelo Williams | RB | Anderson’s gone and Shanahan jumps at grabbing the second best RB in the draft with the pick they got from the Falcons (John Abraham deal). |
| 16. | Dolphins | Winston Justice | CB | Another guy who improved his stock with a great pro date performance, Justice could step in right away. |
| 17. | Vikings | Tye Hill | CB | Antoine Winfield and Fred Smoot weren’t all they were cracked up to be last year, and the Vikes lost nickel back Brian Williams to Jacksonville in free agency. |
| 18. | Cowboys | Tamba Hali | DE | Greg Ellis is still there, but is he right for that 3-4 defense? The Cowboys opt for Hali who is good value at the pick. |
| 19. | Chargers | Santonio Holmes | WR | Simply the best receiving option available to the Chargers at their biggest need position. |
| 20. | Chiefs | Chad Greenway | LB | The Chiefs could use a receiver but is Sinorice Moss a stretch with Jackson and Holmes off the board? Shawn Barber left for Philadelphia and the 3-4 defense needs good linebackers to be successful. |
| 21. | Patriots | LenDale White | RB | White hurt his stock showing up for the pro date out of shape, but Bill will be able to work with him and make everyone feel dumb for forgetting what a good football player he was at USC. |
| 22. | Broncos | Donte Whitner | S | Moss may even be a reach at 22 but that doesn’t mean the Broncos won’t be tempted. In the end they surprise and settle for upgrading their secondary with a guy who scorched two sub 4.4 40-times at his pro date and has rocketed up the draft boards. |
| 23. | Bucs | Johnathan Joseph | CB | Anthony Cromartie’s an option here too but his previous knee injury helps the Bucs choose Joseph as the man to bolster their aging secondary with. |
| 24. | Bengals | Leonard Pope | TE | Will the Bengals see Pope as the best TE option available to them? We do. |
| 25. | Giants | Bobby Carpenter | LB | Having seemingly bowed out of the LaVar Arrington sweepstakes, the Giants still need a linebacker. |
| 26. | Bears | Sinorice Moss | WR | A team with receiver needs is happy to see others view Moss as being a stretch and grabs the speedster. |
| 27. | Panthers | Laurence Maroney | RB | The Panthers are tickled pink to land one of the top four running backs with Stephen Davis gone and DeShaun Foster’s injury history. |
| 28. | Jaguars | Marcedes Lewis | TE | With a staunch defense carrying them to a 12-4 season last year, and with the top four RBs and the top three WRs being off the board too, the Jags still try to improve their offense. |
| 29. | Jets | Nick Mangold | C | The Jets added Trey Teague but lost Kevin Mawae and Jason Fabini in free agency. Mangold could help re-balance the scale. |
| 30. | Colts | Anthony Cromartie | CB | The Colts would have liked to have drafted a RB, but Addai is a bit of a reach so they grab a guy who’s ONLY negative is being sidelined last year with a knee injury. It didn’t look like much of a problem when he blazed two sub 4.4 forty-times at his pro date though. |
| 31. | Seahawks | Max Jean-Gilles | G | The Seahawks couldn’t stop Steve Hutchison from going to Minnesota, and while he may be irreplaceable, they have to start somewhere. Gilles would be an excellent place to start. |
| 32. | Steelers | Mathias Kiwanuka | DE | Nice fit for a team with a 3-4 defense and not many need positions. |
| Posted April 15th, 2006 | ||||
Edit: This blog was archived in May of 2016 from our original articles database.It was originally posted by Mark Solway