Arrogance and the Danny Watkins Pick
The Philadelphia Daily News - Eagletarian
Arrogance and the Danny Watkins Pick
Paul Domowitch, Daily News NFL Columnist
Andy Reid coughs and he is accused of arrogance. He trades up last year for an undersized pass-rusher that most teams had pegged as a 3-4 rush linebacker and he is accused of thinking he’s smarter than you and me and the personnel men of the NFL’s other 31 teams.
So, when he drafted a 26-year-old fireman with the 23rd pick in the first round Thursday night, it hardly was a shock when the e-mails started pouring in accusing Big Red of, yep, arrogance.
Not sure I see it, though, at least in this case. Listen, I did a two-part video for philly.com last week, listing 10 possible guys the Eagles might take in the first round, and Danny Watkins wasn’t one of them. So, I’m not going to sit here and tell you I saw it coming.
But the reason I didn’t see it coming had nothing to do with Watkins’ age or ability. Hell, in my mock draft yesterday, I had him going to Bill Belichick and the Patriots at No. 28. Belichick’s picture is right next to the word arrogance in the dictionary. It’s also right next to the word genius.
I didn’t see it coming because I didn’t think they would go with a guy who played left tackle at Baylor but will be playing guard in the NFL. I thought that if they took an offensive lineman in the first round, it would be a tackle, not a guard.
They didn’t get very good play at either right guard or right tackle last season. But I felt they could fix the problem at right guard by sliding Mike McGlynn, who subbed for injured Jamaal Jackson at center last season, over to that spot. The biggest problem in my mind was Winston Justice at right tackle.
Justice was serviceable two years ago when they first plugged him in at right tackle after he washed out on the left side. Last year, well, last year he was about a $100 cab ride from serviceable. And I’m not sure he’s ever going to be much better than that. Considering that he protects Michael Vick’s blind side, that’s not a good thing.
I’m pretty sure they would have taken Boston College tackle Anthony Castonzo if he had fallen one more spot. But the Colts grabbed him at 22. Next best tackle on the board was Wisconsin’s Gabe Carimi. In my pre-draft ratings, I had he and Watkins pretty much even. Gave Carimi a 48 on a 1-to-60 scale. Gave Watkins a 47.
What the Eagles’ decision to take Watkins over Carimi tells me is that they are giving strong consideration to the possibility of moving left guard Todd Herremans over to right tackle this season and using Watkins and McGlynn at the two guard spots. That or Reid thinks Howard Mudd can turn King Dunlap or Austin Howard into a legit right tackle.
SG - Seriously? If you are questioning whether Herremans will be an upgrade over Justice at RT - ya know, Herremens' natural position - you are too clueless to be commenting in here. Now, beat it!— 5NOT4- should have percolated on this one a bit more before submitting it Paul. You are really stretching for excuses to justify what you acknowledge is questionable pick....especially given that Carimi was available, and is better. They did need to draft a guard, but u don't just simply take which ever guy is left on the board. The Eagles should have put more thought into that pick, just like more thought should have gone into this article. Watkins EASILY could have been had in the 2nd round, or at least another guard of his caliber. This guy better have more of an immediate impact that Brandan Graham or Jerome McDougle....— KingOfPhilly
- Higgs 11.....the Eagles history with O lineman over the age of 30 is completely different then their track record with all other positions.— Armyofthe15Monkies
- Higgs, yes he's 26, but he's only played football for 4 years. From everything I've seen he's got a personality and work ethic similar to Runyan. He's got no mileage on him and guys can play OL into their late 30's. His age is pretty much a non-factor— Mkdazmedia
- How is Bill Belichick's picture next to the word arrogance AND genius?
Those words are in different parts of the dictionary. Duh!— don julio - me no likey the senior citizen canadian hockey playing fireman as our first round pick.. he belongs on ice road truckers and not on our football field!— Tony A.
- anytime you can grab a 26 year old Canadian Fireman with your first pick, you have to do it.— jroache
- Don Julio = Not the sharpest tool in the shed. LMAO— 5NOT4
- Did anyone watch who the Redskins and Cowboys drafted in the first round? That should give you a clue as to why the Eagles took an offensive lineman.— EndzoneAnimal
Comment removed.- Shot has a good point in his projection. There may be an FA for the OL too but defense is now where they should concentrate. I liked the column here that listed many many D people and the fans should be pleased if if if the Birds do not fool us by picking...a QB or punter.— Koons
- Disagree with Domo's assessment that Justice was barely "serviceable" last season. I think he was a notch better than serviceable and yes, I am discounting the final game against GB when he was playing hurt.
Still, a starting OL of Peters, McGlynn, Jackson, Watkins and Herremans is intriguing. Probably safe to say that Mudd will let them all battle it out and run out the best starting 5.
Incidentally, Watkins was easily a more shrewd pick than Carimi who is limited in where he can play - RT only. Watkins affords them the flexibility that the Birds seem to want on the OL.— CarpGuy - Thanks for mentioning Austin Howard, Domo. He may figure into the Eagles' plans this year more than we know. I believe every team in the league wanted to take Watkins. He stood out in this draft. The question was, in Kiper lingo, what's his draft value? Should he be a #20, #35, or #50? That they took him this high suggests that Mudd and Reid see him as a possible tackle in year two. They could have four starters capable of playing tackle -- Peters, Herremans, Watkins, and McGlynn.
Watkins is not especially small, and definitely not slow, so he may be the tackle Mudd wanted most. Never know how people will actually play, but I loved this pick. Smart, safe, but also a little daring. Definitely not arrogant, because everyone wants this guy on their team.
Herremans could be a real good right tackle in the NFL if he ever gets healthy. Playing him on the inside helps mask his injury problems.— armchairGM - I am ok with the pick. It is all a crapshoot, but getting a guard is a lower-risk pick.— Clt Philly Fan
- Have no respect for writers who are pretend to know something about the draft. 25 percent of all first round draft picks aren't starters even by their fourth year in the league according some report I read. Why is this an "arrogant" pick? More bias by a writer who tries to prove how cool he is by being negative and a know-it-all. Give it a chance to work before you start griping. The over 30 recycle bin hasn't applied to O-linemen. I'm losing more respect for the Philly press. At least they're not as bad as the "experts" on TV who hype all these draft picks as the coming of gridiron messiahs. Shows how bored we are that there can be a three hour presentation of a draft. I thought American Idol was ridiculous.— retzlaff
