What about Bob?

The supplemental draft will be held next week and several players are drawing interest from NFL clubs, especially Kentucky defensive end Jeremy Jarmon.

Jarmon, 6-3 and 278 pounds, held a pro day on Thursday and 18 teams were represented. Jarmon was deemed ineligible for his upcoming senior season after testing positive for a banned substance, but is believed to be the top prospect available.

In 2007, Jarmon started all 13 games for the Wildcats, making 62 tackles (including 13.5 for a loss) with nine sacks, and was named second-team All SEC. He has the third most sacks (13) in Kentucky history (see the video below for one of the 13).

His 40-yard dash on Thursday ranged from 4.79 to 4.83 on Thursday, and his weight (278) was six pounds slimmer than his college playing weight.

Said Redskins executive VP of football operations Vinny Cerrato to the Lexington Herald-Leader: "I think he worked out well. He ran well and was in good shape. He needs to get a little stronger, but he represented himself well. He’s a great kid, solid in the locker room. He’s smart. He’s got all of the intangible things."

Said Jarmon: "I’ve been just trying to stay strong and stay focused. A few times in my workouts the past five weeks, I’ve zoned back and my mind has been here (at Kentucky). I had to get myself out of that mind-set and look forward, but it has definitely been a trial. I feel like I’m doing better getting over it, and now I’m ready for the next step in my life."

Also entering the supplemental draft are Texas Tech defensive end McKinner Dixon and Kansas State receiver Deon Murphy (pictured above). Dixon had nine sacks last season but was suspended by coach Mike Leach after falling behind academically. Then he was arrested on May 31 after having an open alcohol container in his car and failing to produce an insurance card.

Murphy, who transferred from Coffeyville (Kan.) College, caught 37 passes for 555 yards and six TDs last season for K-State, which was a decline from 2007, when he had 57 receptions for 605 yards and seven TDs (two rushing) and was named Big 12 offensive newcomer of the year. He also returned two punts for touchdowns in his two seasons at K-State.

-Chris Mascaro

(AP Photo)

After Mr. G's heartfelt column and accompanying blog post, why don't we lighten things up a little, shall we?

Many heads turned (and not just because of Erin Andrews) during a strange segment that aired on Day 2 of the draft, as EA interviewed former Texas receiver Quan Cosby and his new friend Bill Cosby (no relation). The clip can be seen below.

The 26-year old Cosby, a small (5-8) receiver who spent four seasons playing minor league baseball in the Angels' system, went undrafted over the weekend but has agreed to terms with the Bengals and will be at their rookie mini-camp beginning Friday.

Cosby caught 212 passes in four seasons at Texas, including 92 for 1,123 yards and 10 TDs this past year.

Now he'll try to latch on in the NFL. Let's hope Bill just sticks to Jello from now on.

-Chris Mascaro

Thanks to Bob's Blitz for pointing out this article by SI's Peter King that states safety Abram Elam was the key component to the trade which landed the Jets Mark Sanchez.

According to King, Eric Mangini loves Elam (whom he coached for the last two seasons) and signed the restricted free agent to a one-year, $1.5 million offer sheet in March. But the Jets, despite signing safety Jim Leonhard this offseason, matched the offer, keeping Elam a Jet.

When the Browns and Jets began talking trade last Friday, Elam was the centerpiece of the deal. But the Browns' VP of Football Administration Dawn Aponte found an obscure rule in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (Article XIX of Veteran Free Agency, Section 3 [h]) that states: "If a Club exercises its right of first refusal and matches an offer sheet (which the Jets did), that club may not trade that player to the Club that submitted the offer sheet for at least one calendar year, unless the player consents to such trade (meaning the Browns).''

So the night before the draft, the Jets had to explain to Elam that they would need him to sign a formal document approving any trade that could potentially be made the following day. If one wasn't completed, he'd still be a Jet.

Realizing that going to Cleveland would give him a better chance to play (the Jets have Leonhard and Kerry Rhodes as their safeties), Elam signed the document, which the Jets e-mailed to him, and faxed it back to their offices in Florham Park late Friday night.

Interesting maneuvering by the Jets.

-Chris Mascaro

Remember when I told you that I liked Ramses Barden of Cal Poly as a potential sleeper on the second day of the draft?

Apparently the Giants were listening because they took the 6-6 receiver with their third-round choice (85th overall).

Barden is slightly slow for a receiver (he ran a 4.68 40-yard dash), but he's another big target for Eli Manning, and the Giants can't get enough of those right now.

The 23-year old caught 67 passes for 1,257 yards and 18 TDs last season for the Mustangs.

Here's some video of him against Southern Utah:

-Chris Mascaro

Here is the list of first-round selections. And here is a breakdown of that group:

By position
-Wide receiver: 6 (Heyward-Bey, Crabtree, Maclin, Harvin, Nicks, Britt)
-Defensive end: 4 (Jackson, Maybin, Orakpo, English)
-Linebacker: 4 (Curry, Cushing, Ayers, Matthews)
-Offensive tackle: 4 (J. Smith, A. Smith, Monroe, Oher)
-Quarterbacks: 3 (Stafford, Sanchez, Freeman)
-Running backs: 3 (Moreno, Brown, Wells)
-Defensive tackle: 3 (Raji, Jerry, Hood)
-Defensive back: 2 (Jenkins, Davis)
-Center: 2 (Mack, Wood)
-Tight end: 1 (Pettigrew)

Alas, no kickers or punters. Haha...

By school
-USC: 3 (Sanchez, Cushing, Matthews)
-Georgia: 2 (Stafford, Moreno)
-Ole Miss: 2 (Oher, Jerry) *went back-to-back at Nos. 23 & 24
-Missouri: 2 (Maclin, Hood)
-Ohio State: 2 (Jenkins, Wells)

-Baylor: (J. Smith)
-LSU: (Jackson)
-Wake Forest: (Curry)
-Alabama: (A. Smith)
-Maryland: (Heyward-Bey)
-Virginia: (Monroe)
-Boston College: (Raji)
-Texas Tech: (Crabtree)
-Penn State: (Maybin)
-Texas: (Orakpo)
-Northern Illinois: (English)
-Kansas State: (Freeman)
-Tennessee: (Ayers)
-Oklahoma State: (Pettigrew)
-Cal: (Mack)
-Florida: (Harvin)
-Illinois: (Davis)
-UConn: (Brown)
-Louisville (Wood)
-UNC: (Nicks)
-Rutgers: (Britt)

Time of first round: 3 hours, 23 minutes
Time of first round in 2008: 3 hours, 30 minutes

(***UPDATE***: The Giants selected outside linebacker Clint Sintim of Virginia with the 45th pick. Pat White, the QB from West Virginia, went the pick before to Miami — he'll play a hybrid role in the Phins' Wildcat schemes.)

(***UPDATE #2***: The Cowboys, who didn't have a first-round pick, traded down from the 51st spot for Buffalo's third- and fourth-round choices.)

(***UPDATE #3***: With their second pick of the second round, the Giants selected UConn offensive tackle William Beatty, who people were talking about as a possible late first-round selection. Great value pick for the Giants at No. 60.

Okay, that's all from Radio City. A hearty thank you to everyone who came out this evening.

Goodnight!

More NFL draft news

(Photo by Paul Sakuma/Associated Press)

Denver is up to its silly tricks again. Yes, Jay Cutler is off to Chicago. But that doesn't mean Denver has stopped doing dumb things.

The Broncos just traded up to No. 37 to get cornerback Alphonso Smith of Wake Forest. No problem with Smith, he seems like a pretty good player. But they traded a first-round pick in next season's draft to get him. Really, Denver??

You liked this kid that much that you sacrificed part of your future to get him? There's something severely wrong with Denver management.

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-Chris Mascaro

The second round is underway and two Ohio State teammates went back-to-back at Nos. 35 and 36. Linebacker James Laurinaitis, the 2006 Bronko Nagurski Award (given to the nation's best defensive player), was scooped up by the Rams before the Browns jumped on wideout Brian Robiskie.

His father, Terry, is the wide receivers coach with Atlanta.

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-Chris Mascaro

It had been widely rumored that the Giants were interested in Nicks — the wide receiver from UNC — and they took him with the 29th choice.

Nicks packed on a couple pounds near the combine, but is reportedly back down to his fighting weight. At 6-1, 212 pounds, he's not exactly the physical presence of a Plaxico Burress, but he and Steve Smith provide two solid targets for Eli Manning to throw to.

The Giants threw for less than 200 yards last season, and could certainly use a receiver to stretch the field. Nicks had three catches last season over 70 yards and scored 12 TDs. His best performance of the year was in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, as he caught eight passes for 217 yards and three TDs in a 31-30 loss to West Virginia.

He is the first underclassman from UNC to declare for the draft since Julius Peppers in 2001.

(***UPDATE***: Kenny Britt of Rutgers was selected 30th by the Titans. He is the first Rutgers player ever selected in the first round. Ray Rice, Brian Leonard and L.J. Smith were all second-round picks.

(***UPDATE #2***: The champions have selected. The NFC champion Cardinals took running back Chris "Beanie" Wells of Ohio State. Makes sense, considering Arizona rushed for a league-low 73.6 yards last season, and because Edgerrin James isn't getting any younger. Then, the Steelers took defensive tackle Evander Hood of Missouri to close the first round — the 300-pounder runs a sub-5.0 second 40. Wow.)

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-Chris Mascaro

(Photo by Gerry Broome/Associated Press)

One of my favorites is UConn's Donald Brown, whose stock rose quite a bit in the last couple of weeks. He was just selected No. 27 by Indianapolis. The 5-10, 210-pound Brown was a horse for the Huskies, rushing the ball 367 times for 2,083 yards and 18 TDs last season.

He should do an excellent job complementing Joseph Addai.

Also, the Packers traded up to No. 26 (with New England) to snag Clay Matthews of USC — the second of the Trojan trio of linebackers expected to be taken today.

The G-Men are on the clock...

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-Chris Mascaro

Apparently the Vikings weren't scared away by Percy Harvin's testing positive for marijuana.

They took the receiver/running back combo with the 22nd pick. Harvin caught 40 passes for 644 yards and seven TDs last season, and rushed for 659 yards and 10 TDs and 70 carries. He's a Reggie Bush-type player that should fit in quite nicely in Minny, so long as he behaves himself.

One pick later, the feel good story of the draft, Michael Oher of Mississippi, was selected by Baltimore.

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-Chris Mascaro

Apparently the Browns don't really want to make a choice. After trading down to No. 17 in a trade with the Jets, the Browns moved down yet again, handing their pick over to Tampa Bay. (The Browns received the 19th pick, and Tampa's sixth-round choice.)

The Bucs selected QB Josh Freeman of Kansas State — a 6-6, 248-pound beast with a rocket arm. Freeman is an NFL-ready product, but needs to develop his footwork (think Jason Campbell). Tampa Bay brought in Byron Leftwich recently and still has Brian Griese and Luke McCown on the roster (Jeff Garcia is now with Oakland), so Freeman will probably be holding a clipboard this season.

No player who took the stage today looked as big as Freeman, including beasts like Monroe, Smith and Cushing.

(**UPDATE**: The Browns made yet another move, trading the No. 19 pick to Philadelphia, who took receiver Jeremy Maclin of Missouri. Maclin has some pretty insane speed, which you can see below. In return for the pick, Cleveland took Philly's spot at No. 21 and picked up another sixth-round choice.)

(**UPDATE #2***: The Browns finally put off making a pick, as they chose center Alex Mack of California with the 21st pick. Oops, I mean, Alex Mack of California.

More NFL draft news

-Chris Mascaro

(Photo by Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

Jenkins, a corner out of Ohio State, joins the 23rd ranked passing defense in New Orleans. He is the first Buckeyes' corner taken in the first round since the Panthers selected Chris Gamble in 2004.

Jenkins looks to have an immediate impact, as New Orleans currently has the underwhelming duo of Randall Gay and Jabari Greer as the top corners on their depth chart. Jenkins has drawn comparisons to Charles Woodson, and is big enough (6-0, 204 pounds) to defend the most physical receivers.

At No. 15 the Texans selected USC linebacker Brian Cushing, who attended Bergen Catholic High School in Oradell, New Jersey. He is the first of a trio of linebackers (Clay Matthews Jr. and Rey Maualuga are the others) expected to be taken in the first round. Cushing had 74 tackles last season.

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-Chris Mascaro

(AP photo)

The Texas Tech receiver, easily one of the most recognizable names in this draft, is headed to the Bay Area to give the 49ers their first significant receiving threat since T.O. left town in 2003. Crabtree had 97 catches for 1,165 yards and 19 TDs, including the dramatic game-winner as time expired to beat Texas (video below).

Crabtree was the Biletnikoff Award winner — given to the best receiver in the country — the last two years.

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-Chris Mascaro

The Packers opted for the 337-pound Raji ... not a bad idea. Raji had a successful return to the field in 2008 after sitting out the previous season due to academic issues. He had 42 tackles and seven sacks while plugging up the middle of the line.

SI.com reported a couple weeks ago that Raji had flunked a drug test at the combine, but that turned out to be untrue.

He'll try to sure up a defensive unit that allowed 131.6 rushing yards per game last season.

More NFL draft news

-Chris Mascaro

Continue reading "NFL Draft: Packers go with B.J. Raji" »

It's Darrius Heyward-Bey of Maryland, the seventh overall pick of the Raiders. Of course, it would have to be the Raiders.

Heyward-Bey is the fastest receiver in the draft, but he has questionable hands. Troy Williamson, anyone?

Remember the former Vikings receiver, who had all the speed in the world but couldn't catch the ball? The Vikes found out the hard way after drafting him 7th overall in the 2005 draft? He wound up getting cut last year and joined Jacksonville.

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In typical Raiders fashion, Oakland bucked conventional wisdom and took wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey of Maryland with the seventh pick.

Nearly every analyst believed Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree would be the first wideout taken, but apparently Al Davis fell in love with Heyward-Bey's show at the combine, where he ran a 4.3-second 40-yard dash and jumped 38.5 inches.

Heyward-Bey, however, needs to work on his route running. He had just 609 receiving yards an five TDs last season and went over 100 in a game just once (in a win over Wake Forest). He got lost in the offense at times and that could be a problem in Oakland this season.

**UPDATE**: The Jaguars selected 6-5, 309-pound offensive tackle Eugene Monroe out of Virginia with the 8th pick. Makes sense to draft a big tackle that newly re-signed Maurice Jones-Drew can run behind.

More NFL draft news

-Chris Mascaro

The Jets have their franchise quarterback.

In the first big move of the day, the Jets traded safety Abram Elam, defensive end Kenyon Coleman, quarterback Brett Ratliff (who was supposed to compete for the starting job with Kellen Clemens), their first-round pick (No. 17) and their second-round pick (No. 52) to the Browns (and old friend Eric Mangini) for the 5th overall pick, which they used to select Mark Sanchez of USC.

Sanchez, 22, had just one full season as a starter with the Trojans. He threw for 3,207 yards, 34 TDs and 10 picks last season. His best performance came in the Rose Bowl, as he was 28-for-35 with 414 yards, four TDs and no INTs in a 38-24 win over Penn State.

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-Chris Mascaro

Aaron Curry, the Butkus Award winner (given to the nation's top linebacker), was selected fourth by the Seattle Seahawks.

Curry, who runs a 4.56 40, had tears in his eyes on stage.

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-Chris Mascaro

Checked out NFL muckety-muck Greg Aiello's twitter feed. The Syosset native and former Newsday sportswriter, now the league's Senior Vice President of Communications, tweets about former Syosset QB Joel Fisher ('72). As Aiello reports: "QB between the Kupecs for you Syosset fans."

"Joel is now top exec at Madison Square Garden and our liaison for Draft at Radio City."

I guess I should now disclose that MSG is owned by Cablevision, which owns Newsday. Cablevision also owns Radio City, which is where Mad Dog Mascaro and I are providing you with all the action from Draft Central.

Mad Dog holding up well so far, although it's a good thing the wireless is still working. Last year, when the wireless went down, Adam Abramson's head nearly exploded. We miss the Big Cat.

Kansas City went with the 6-4, 295-pound defensive end out of LSU, Tyson Jackson. Jackson had just four sacks last season, and 16 in his four-year career.

This is the third straight year the Chiefs have drafted an LSU player with their first-round choice — last year it was defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey and two years ago it was receiver Dwayne Bowe.

More NFL draft news

-Chris Mascaro

The 6-5, 305-pounder out of Baylor was taken No. 2 by St. Louis, and will fill in Orlando Pace's vacated left tackle spot. The pick probably made Marc Bulger a very happy man, as St. Louis QBs were sacked 45 times last season, sixth most in the NFL.

Smith gave the commish a big long hug when he came out on stage.

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-Chris Mascaro

The Lions needed just over 10 seconds after commissioner Roger Goodell put them on the clock to select QB Matthew Stafford of Georgia. The QB donned his light blue Lions cap (he also had a light blue hankie in his breast pocket) and took some snapshots with the commish holding his "No. 1" jersey.

He then got to speak with Erin Andrews on ESPN and take pictures on stage with his (rather large ... in numbers) family.

Little to no intrigue...but we're underway nevertheless.

The Rams are on the clock.

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-Chris Mascaro

The rumor mill is humming with talk of USC quarterback Mark Sanchez, and the Jets are in the thick of all the talk.

Rams GM Billy Devaney, who is essentially on the clock now that the Lions have agreed to contract terms with Matthew Stafford, said he has received more calls than he expected for the No. 2 overall pick.

NFL Network's Rich Eisen reports that the Jets are attempting to trade up to that spot, which means they're likely after Sanchez, since that's how high any team might have to go to get him. There's even talk that the Rams would take Sanchez, thereby making Marc Bulger expendable.

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Good afternoon everyone, we're here at Radio City Music Hall in New York City to bring you all the comings and goings of the 2009 NFL Draft.

I'm Chris Mascaro and I'll be here blogging all the picks, trades, Jets booing and more until the final pick tonight.

The Lions took the suspense out of the top choice, as they signed quarterback Matthew Stafford to a six-year, $78 million deal ($41.7 million of which is guaranteed) late last night. It is the richest rookie contract in the history of the league.

Stafford, who will likely start the season as Daunte Culpepper's backup, was 27-7 as a starter at Georgia, throwing for 51 touchdowns and 33 INTs. The Lions had the first 0-16 season ever and will be starting fresh this year with first-year head coach Jim Schwartz.

After the top selection, it's a crapshoot. Here's our own Mr. G's take on how things will pan out. But, as you all know, things tend to get a little nutty on draft day.

As of right now, here is the order of the top 10 selections:

1. Detroit
2. St. Louis
3. Kansas City
4. Seattle
5. Cleveland
6. Cincinnati
7. Oakland
8. Jacksonville
9. Green Bay
10. San Francisco

The Jets are up at No. 17, and the Giants will choose 29th.

On my way in, I saw commissioner Roger Goodell greeting the fans on line. Two observations on that: 1. Cool thing for the commish to do in my opinion, and 2. The fans will be going absolutely bonkers in the crowd today. I saw two Raiders fans with their faces painted black with a giant Raiders flag screaming their heads off.

Oh, and the Eagles fans are out in full force as well, and just moments ago, I heard the first J-E-T-S Jets, Jets, Jets chant. Should be fun day.

Also got a close-up view of Mel Kiper's widow's peak, which was a lot of fun. Okay, the first pick is just under an hour away. Stay tuned with us throughout the evening, it's going to be a fun ride.

Feel free to post all your comments and questions right here on the blog!

**UPDATE**: Quick bit of non-draft related news. ESPN.com's John Clayton is reporting that the Steelers have signed Hines Ward to a four-year, $22 million extension.

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Continue reading "Live from the NFL Draft!" »

In my mock draft that ran in today's newspaper, I had a line about Florida wide receiver Percy Harvin (who I have going to the Jets at No. 17), and it read as follows:

Florida receiver Percy Harvin’s stock could be affected by his positive test for marijuana at the Scouting Combine, but we’re hearing a number of teams won’t hold that against him, so he could wind up going high.

A reader on Best's blog named JKM gave me a bit too much credit for making a funny out of the double entendre of Harvin's positive test for pot and the possibility he would "wind up going high."

If I'd done it on purpose, I'd surely take credit.

I did not do it on purpose. It just came out that way.

It's funny, nonetheless.

It's always an exciting time in Glauber Nation when Big Daddy Glauber shares the camera with the Big Cat, aka Adam Abramson of Campus Confidential.

In this NFL draft video, Glauber and Abramson talk about the top picks, sleepers and more. It even features the always exciting and occasionally accurate mock draft by Bob Glauber. So sit back and enjoy 5 minutes and 55 seconds of pure football excitement.

- La Monica

Get Glauber's take on what the Jets and Giants should do in this year's draft.

Here's a cool video courtesy of NFL.com listing the top 10 players drafted out of "small schools" (I believe they mean the former Division I-AA and below). There are some great players on there. Maybe guys like Joe Flacco (Delaware), Kurt Warner (Northern Iowa) and Brian Westbrook (Villanova) will join this group before their time is up.

In this year's class, there are a few small school guys that could make an impact, including quarterback Chris Pizzotti of Harvard (joining fellow Crimson alum Ryan Fitzpatrick in the NFL QB fraternity), running back Javarris Williams of Tennessee State (though he could make his living as a fullback), wide receiver Ramses Barden of Cal Poly (at 6-6, the tallest receiver in the draft), and defensive tackle Vaughn Martin of Western Ontario (Canada).

-Chris Mascaro

Check back later for an overall preview of the NFL Draft.

We'll have a full crew at Radio City on Saturday, including La Monica, Mad Dog Mascaro, Wallace T. Matthews (I'm not sure his middle name begins with a "T", but it looks about right) and yours truly.

We'll therefore put on a blogging extravaganza throughout the day, weighing in with info., opinions, some obscure factoids that only Mad Dog can dig up, and surely some scatalogical humor from La Monica.

... but that doesn't necessarily mean he's in for a precipitous fall in Saturday's draft.

In fact, we're told by two league sources that Harvin is still very much in play for teams in need of receivers, and that could include both New York teams, as well as the Colts, Vikings, Dolphins and Ravens.

My sense is that the Giants would take Harvin in a heartbeat if he slips to 29. The Jets? At 17, it might be a bit high for a player now with a question mark - and guaranteed entry into the NFL's substance abuse program. But it shouldn't be out of the question, because Harvin is a game-breaking type receiver who had a tremendously productive collegiate career.

I asked one scout recently whether he felt Harvin would be in the lower portion of the draft - say at around 20 or 25, and he said: "No way. He'll be gone by then."

Interesting.

The Texas Tech speedster has surgery for a foot injury, but he's now almost at full strength, and pronounced himself fit for the top 10 in Saturday's draft.

Crabtree had experienced soreness in his left foot last season, but an X-ray at the Scouting Combine revealed a stress fracture. He had initially decided against srugery, but then changed his mind.

His injury is not expected to affect his draft status, and executives would be stunned to see him slip out of the top 10.

On Tuesday afternoon I was listening to Mike Mayock's interview with Mike Francesa on the FAN, in which Mayock stated that Percy Harvin's stock had dropped a bit (although he wouldn't elaborate on why except to say that it was a personal issue).

It seems Mayock was privy to this news.

According to FOXSports.com, both Harvin and fellow wide receiver Brandon Tate (out of UNC) failed drug tests at the combine in February — they both tested positive for marijuana.

Both players' agent, Joel Segal, didn't return FOXSports.com's calls.

Harvin was expected to be a first-round selection, while Tate (who is also a kick-return specialist) was expected to be taken anywhere from the second to fourth round.

B.J. Raji of Boston College was falsely accused of failing a drug test at the combine by SI.com a couple weeks ago, and the story has since been retracted.

-Chris Mascaro

The Mississippi offensive tackle is a likely top 10 prospect, but had to overcome a brutally difficult childhood growing up in west Memphis.

One of 13 children born to a crack-addicted mother, Oher spent years in foster homes and sometimes on the streets.

Incredibly, he was taken in by a family after he enrolled in a parochial school, and has since turned around his life.

Here's my column on Oher from today's newspaper.

The USC quarterback has gradually risen up the charts during the off-season, to the point where he is now a legitimate contender to be a top 5 pick.

He started out as a consensus mid- first-round pick, with some putting him as high as No. 10 to the 49ers (who have since given off signals that they're not interested in Sanchez ... or Georgia's Matthew Stafford, for that matter).

But Sanchez has drawn interest from a number of teams, including the Seahawks at No. 4. Seattle is considering Sanchez as the heir apparent to Matt Hasselbeck.

Sanchez has also drawn interest from teams that could look to move up to get him. That includes Denver (12th) and Washington (13th) and the Jets (17th).

Whether any of those teams looks to move up in a bold move into the top 10 remains to be seen. But if there is a trade up, then it figures to have a major ripple effect down the board.

The Patriots linebacker, who overcame a stroke in 2005 to resume his NFL career, is hoping University of Texas-El Paso center Robby Felix gets to exprerience a similar comeback.

Felix suffered a stroke last November after what would turn out to be his final college game. But he has since recovered and is hoping for a shot at the NFL.

It's stories like this that really make you appreciate the fighting spirit of people, and Felix certainly has it. Here's my story on the kid from today's newspaper. Bruschi has some fascinating things to share about his experience, and his advice to Felix.

Matthew Stafford was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon last night. Among the things they discussed — the possibility of getting drafted by the Lions (said Stafford: "I dunno. Hopefully. We'll see, that'd be nice."), getting a free pair of Foakley's (fake Oakleys) after getting lost at the Thanksgiving Day parade when he was 12 (that was his last visit to New York), and the potential to make more than $30 million in the near future (said Stafford: "...that'd be a nice little payday.").

Oh, and then he threw footballs at plates Fallon threw up in the air. They called it Football Skeet Shooting. You can watch the full interview on this site; the skeet shooting is below.

Stafford looked pretty comfortable doing all the zany stuff Fallon wanted him to do, and overall, he seemed like a good guy.

-Chris Mascaro

There's increasing buzz that teams in the top 10 simply don't want to be there. The reason: money.

NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock says teams are becoming increasingly reluctant to hand out gobs of cash to players in the top 10, simply because of where they're drafted. The value, he says, is lower in the round, since you can easily get players of comparable value for far less dough.

"Every team in the top 10 is looking to trade out," Mayock said on a conference call. "Never seen it, never seen the situation quite this heavy. And the theory is, everybody knows we’re upside-down right now with this draft. The rookies are getting paid way too much money proportionate to their value. So, teams are scared to death of missing (in) the top-10."

The Wake Forest linebacker, projected as a top 5 pick in the April 25 draft, will be bringing a special guest to New York.

He'll be joined in the green room at Radio City Music Hall by St. Jude's Hospital patient Bryson, a 12-year-old boy from Madison, AL.

On April 13th, Curry visited St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.,to tour the hospital and interact with patients. During this time, Aaron spent the day with Bryson and his family and got an inside glimpse of what St. Jude patients and their families deal with on a daily basis. Wanting to now offer Bryson an inside look at a special time in his life, Curry surprised him with a special invitation to accompany him and his family to New York for the draft.

“I just wanted to do something special for a kid that has been through some major struggles and hard times,” said Curry. “I’ve been through hard times, none of which compare to Bryson’s, but we have a common theme, and that is hope. And that’s really what St. Jude is all about. Everyone can do their part to give hope to kids like Bryson when they support St. Jude.”

After complaining of chest pains and difficulty breathing during football practice, Bryson was taken to the doctor and ultimately diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2007. Bryson received a total of five rounds of chemotherapy at St. Jude, which pushed his cancer into remission in June 2008. Acute myeloid leukemia carries a 30- to 40-percent risk of relapse and Bryson has a cell mutation that puts him in an even higher-risk group.

If the worst happens and a relapse occurs, a bone marrow transplant is considered the only treatment. Fortunately, doctors determined that Bryson’s younger brother is a 100 percent bone marrow match, which gives his family that much more assurance going forward.

The 2008 Butkus Award Winner, Curry was arguably the top college linebacker in the entire nation and enters the 2009 NFL drafted as one of the highest rated players.

The Florida receiver has been linked to a failed drug test for marijuana, a poor Wonderlic test, and questions about his off-field associations.

There's no questioning Harvin's talent, but with millions of dollars at stake for draft-eligible players, the whispers certainly aren't helping the receiver.

But as Ben Volin of the Palm Beach Post points out, other star college players have been linked to off-field problems, and their draft stock wound up falling. They include Warren Sapp, Dan Marino and Randy Moss, all of whom enjoyed fine NFL careers.

Two internet reports last week, one by SI.com and the other by NFLdraftbible.com, reported that B.J. Raji, a defensive tackle out of Boston College who is expected to be a top-10 pick, failed a drug test at the combine.

But Raji told Matt Maiocco of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat that he has been assured he did not.

Raji's agency, Athletes First, issued a statement early on stating the reports were untrue.

"The media reports accusing BJ of a failed drug test at the Combine are false," is how SI.com quoted them in the initial report.

Raji, who is in the Bay Area visiting the 49ers, is now trying to get to the bottom of these reports.

"The biggest thing is trying to figure out how this started," Raji told Maiocco. "I couldn't understand how this rumor became such a big splash in the media when there was no evidence -- there was no substance to believe it. The last couple days, I was just trying to figure out: Who? What? Basically, why?"

"Now, I'm happy the truth is out. Obviously, it's not going to be as big of a splash as the negative part. But as long as the coaches and the decision-makers know what is true, then I don't need to be concerned with everybody else."

Raji sat out his junior year at Boston College to to academic issues, but had 42 tackles and seven sacks last year, which in addition to his strong work at the combine, drastically rose his stock in the last few weeks. He is expected to be the first defensive lineman taken.

-Chris Mascaro

If you get a chance, check out this look at the top 10 early entrants into next month's draft, written by Campus Confidential's Mike Rose. When he's not serving as "Mr. Moderator" during the myriad live chats on the Newsday website, Rose assumes his role as an avowed college football freak and joins Adam "Big Cat" Abramson on the CC blog.

Good stuff here, as Rose equates some of the stars of this year's draft to players in today's NFL.

Sources say Rose has a fave college team, although he tries to keep his allegiances to himself. But every now and then, you can hear him scream "Long live JoePa!" from his office, and he gives it away. He does manage to remain objective about Penn State defensive end Aaron Maybin.

Being this year's draft is not very deep (especially at the skill positions), teams at the bottom of the first round (and top of the second) are scouring the board for value picks.

Donald Brown is the guy they should be looking for. I believe when all is said and done, we'll be looking at Brown — a 5-10, 210 pound junior out of UConn — as the C