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With only 14 picks to go until the night is over, it's looking more and more as if Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith will not be a first-day pick.

That's not a huge surprise, since most scouts had Smith rated no higher than the third round - at best. Smith's stock dropped considerably at the scouting combine, where he performed poorly. And scouts believe he's simply too short and not an accurate enough passer to take seriously as a starting quarterback.

We're certain that wherever he goes, he'll get there with a chip on his shoulder, since he believes he's a legitimate NFL quarterback. But as we've seen with other Heisman quarterbacks - see: Chris Weinke, Gino Torretta, Andre Ware - college dominance does not always translate to the NFL.

(P.S. - The Ravens have taken a chance on Smith, selecting him with the last pick of the fourth round.)

Heard back from former Giants GM Ernie Accorsi, who spent his first post-NFL draft watching ... college baseball.

Accorsi is a baseball freak, and he took in a game in the South Atlantic League last night, went to Duke-Wake Forest this afternoon and then Maryland-Virginia this evening.

Evidently, this man had enough of draft days in his lifetime.

Time to smell the roses ... and the pine tar.

Just got word the Raiders have traded their fourth-round pick to the Lions in exchange for receiver Mike Williams and quarterback Josh McCown.

This could be a prelude to a deal for Randy Moss. There's talk the Raiders and Patriots are discussing a deal for Moss, and the Packers remain interested in acquiring Moss.

McCown's presence is important in Oakland, because he'll be the sacrificial lamb until JaMarcus Russell is ready to play. There's always a chance Russell starts right off the bat, but if he's not ready coming out of training camp, the Raiders will go with McCown as their stop-gap starter - or, as Bill Parcells likes to say - the "hold-the-fort" guy.

A bit surprised that Michigan linebacker David Harris didn't go in the first round. He'd been climbing the charts in recent days, and there were indications the Jets and Patriots had interest. He fell out of the round entirely. We're at No. 43 overall, and he's still on the board ...

The Saints have a need to get better on defense, but they went offense with the 27th overall pick. But they got a good one in Tennessee receiver Robert Meachem, who was extremely impressive to NFL scouts with his size-speed combo (6-3, 210, runs a 4.39). The Saints already have three really good receivers in Marques Colston, Terence Copper and Devery Henderson, but coach Sean Payton couldn't resist getting another. Meachem might turn out to be better than all of them ...

So, the defending champion Colts get smacked around in free agency, losing CBs Jason David and Nick Harper and outside linebacker Cato June. So they go offense, right? Nope. They took wide receiver Anthony Gonzelez out of Ohio State, even though they're well stocked with Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. But GM Bill Polian likes to have that third receiver - he didn't most of last year because of the injury to Brandon Stokely - and he got a good one in Carpenter, a terrific route runner, especially in tight coverage ...

The Ravens probably hoped Central Michigan tackle Joe Staley dropped to them at 29, but it didn't happen. Like their attempted move-up to get Brady Quinn, they were beaten out by the 49ers, who swooped in with a trade to New England. The Ravens did get a good pick, though, taking Auburn guard Ben Grubbs, a bruiser ...

Hey, get a look at Adam Abramson's blog. The kid worked his butt off today. This dude knows college ball.

Just got through interviewing Brady Quinn after his selection by the Browns at No. 22 overall. The relief on the kid's face was palpable.

Quinn admitted he was ticked at the Browns for not picking him at No. 3, then ticked at the Dolphins for not going with him at No. 9 - they told him they were definitely interested. And the most interesting nugget of all: The Ravens were making a major attempt to move up to 22 overall to get Quinn.

It makes sense, with Steve McNair close to the end of his career and the Ravens clearly not sold on former first-round pick Kyle Boller as their long-term quarterback.

But in the end, it was Quinn's hometown team that stepped up and grabbed him, giving Dallas their second-round pick this year and next year's first-round pick. It's a hefty price, but it's worth it.

Quinn and Joe Thomas in the same draft the same year.

Very nice.

We talked about it just a few minutes ago, the possibility of Cleveland going from dunderheads of this draft to geniuses.

When the picked Joe Thomas at No. 3 overall instead of Brady Quinn, we're like, what are you thinking?

But after watching Quinn freefall through the first round, the Browns pulled off the stunner of the draft - moving up with Dallas at No. 22 overall and then taking Quinn, who had spent the previous four-plus hours sitting uncomfortably backstage at Radio City. After a couple hours, he was moved from the Green Room to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's private suite just to save him from the embarrassment of the constant camera shots as teams continued to pass over him.

All's well that ends well. Quinn gets to play for the team he idolized as a kid, and the Browns get a left tackle to protect his blind side.

Ok, it's bad enough that Cleveland passes on Brady Quinn at No. 3.

Then the Vikings take Adrian Peterson at No. 7.

And the Dolphins, desperately looking for a quarterback, take Ted Ginn Jr. at No. 9.

Whoa.

Brady Quinn is squirming backstage right now, because we've gone through 19 picks, and he's still not off the board. Tennessee is about to pick, but you know it won't be Quinn, because they've got Vince Young. The Giants are next at 20, and they've got Eli Manning. Maybe Jacksonville at 21, but they've got other needs.

One scenario that would certainly be interesting: What if the Lions, Browns or Browns somehow get in position to get him in the second round, or else move up to the lower part of the first round to get him. If Cleveland can somehow pull off a move up in the second round, then getting Joe Thomas AND Brady Quinn would be a coup.

Ditto for the Lions, who are sticking with Calvin Johnson, but have aging Jon Kitna as their quarterback.

The Dolphins still haven't pulled the trigger on a deal for Trent Green, but they're also said to be interested in quarterbacks John Beck of BYU and Stanford QB Trent Edwards.

Stay tuned on this one, because Quinn's still in freefall.

I know the Giants had their eye on Lawrence Timmons from the start of this draft, and he would have made a perfect linebacker for their defense. Sorry. The Steelers just got him.

We'd figured Pittsburgh was in the market for either TImmons or Revis, and with the Jets swooping up to No. 14 to get Revis, Timmons was the logical choice.

We're still sticking with Miami linebacker Jon Beason for the Giants at No. 20 overall, but if Leon Hall is on the board, maybe they cornerback. A mild surprise that Revis was the first cornerback taken, but Hall shouldn't last much longer ...

Huge buzz when announcement was made of Jets' trade up with Panthers.

Of course, once the fans heard the cost of the deal - giving up first, second- and fifth-round choices - the reaction was more muted. But that's what it costs to move up so dramatically from 25 to 14.

The reaction was decidedly mixed when the selection of cornerback Darrelle Revis was announced, but we like this pick. Revis and Leon Hall were considered 1-2 in cornerback talent in this draft, and with teams just behind Carolina very interested in Revis - especially Pittsburgh right behind at No. 15 - the Jets felt they had to make this deal.

The need was huge at corner, because the Jets just don't have enough of them. Revis will be a good one.

Just got a visit from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, a guy we've known since his early days as one of former commish Paul Tagliabue's trusted lieutenants. Abramson sitting here with eyes wide open :-)

One thing Goodell told us: There is a realistic chance that the Super Bowl will one day be played in an international venue.

The idea just doesn't sit right with us. It's America's game, so how do you have the crown jewel of the sport be exported to Mexico or England or Germany? Just doesn't sound right. In any event, Goodell tells us the league has had plenty of interest from other countries to host the Super Bowl. We'll see if NFL owners eventually go along with it.

Goodell, by the way, looks entirely comfortably in his first draft. He's a guy who's in charge, and he knows what he's doing.

... check out Abramson's blog. This kid knows what he's talking about. Read on.

The traffic is terrific today ... thanks for making this thing work. Let me know what's on your mind if you have any questions ...

We're awaiting the Bills' pick at No. 12.

49ers have just drafted Mississippi linebacker Patrick Willis, who I think will be one of the most memorable players in this year's draft. Terrific tackler. Terrific leader. He will have a huge impact in 'Frisco. Interestingly, he'll hook up with a legendary former middle linebacker, Mike Singletary, the 49ers' assistant head coach. Willis has a lot of Singletary in him, and it should be a dynamic combination.

An FYI on this pick: There was talk before the draft that the Broncos were interested in trading up with Houston at No. 10 and taking Willis as a replacement for Al Wilson, who was released. The Broncos never did the deal, though, and Houston wound up taking Amobi Okoye at No. 10. Very good value there.

Cool moment now: Bruce Smith, former Bills defensive end, announces selection of .... Marshawn Lynch, the Cal running back. Fills a huge need for the Bills, who had talked about trading for Michael Turner of the Chargers ...

LaRon Landry just got drafted by the Redskins, although we're still scratching our heads over this one.

Yes, there had been talk of their infatuation with him. And yes, he's one of the top safety prospects to come along in years. Then again, so was Sean Taylor, who has been less than awesome for the Redskins, spending more times in the headlines for his off-field problems than his on-field prowess.

One team that's entirely disappointed about this: the Falcons. They adored Landry, and had targeted him if he was available at No. 8.

T Joe Thomas to the Browns at No. 3, Clemson DE Gaines Adams to the Buccaneers at No. 4 and T Levi Brown to the Cardinals at No. 5. It's another reflection of the NFL's pursuit of linemen on both sides of the ball. Offensive tackle and defensive end have become premier positions to get, and the last three picks are indicative of that.

We'd heard conflicting reports about Brown, who didn't run well at the combine and wasn't overly impressive in his drills. Some teams were leery of a potential knee problem, and we're told he failed some physicals. Yet others, including the Cardinals, did not see a red flag from his knee issues, and cleared him.

With the third pick of the NFL draft, the Browns take ... Joe Thomas?

Other than giving me a lay-up column to write later on for the paper, what the hell were the Browns thinking?

Brady Quinn wanted desperately to play for the team he grew up rooting for. He was right there for the taking. And the Browns select a left tackle to protect whom? Charlie Frye?

Please.

We went back and forth on this one a zillion times, just like the Lions. Gaines Adams or Calvin Johnson? The big fear, of course, was that the Lions were drafting ANOTHER receiver. But Johnson's talent too much to pass up.

Now, there is still a chance they trade the pick, because the Bucs covet Johnson, as do the Redskins and Falcons. So don't forget the Eli Manning to the Chargers scenario a couple years ago. Within hours, he'd been traded to the Giants for Philip Rivers, who was taken fourth overall.

The sense this time, though, is that the Lions will hang onto him. With everyone saying Johnson has Hall of Fame talent, dealing him away and then watching him star elsewhere would be just one more downer for Lions fans who have dealt with more of their share of heartbreak.

... btw, Abramson about jumping out of his seat next to me frothing over Johnson's talent.

Awaiting announcement of first draft pick from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who is presiding over his first draft ... and it is ... JaMarcus Russell of LSU. This is the guy we'd been hearing the last several days would go here, but with the Raiders, you never know. Calvin Johnson was in play a couple weeks ago, but now it's Russell, the strong-armed thrower who the Raiders hope can resurrect the franchise.

Good choice ...

Met briefly with former Virginia Tech alums Bruce Smith, Michael Vick and DeAngelo Hall, who are here to help commemorate the senseless tragedy at the school less than two weeks ago, when a psycho gunman cut down 32 people. All the former first-round picks were emotional in recounting their horror over the incident ...

Sitting next to Newsday colleague Adam Abramson, who is going to provide plenty of insight today. Adam is a college football freak, and knows as much as anyone in the business. Read this guy. He's good.