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 Draft eve buzz: Bears very popular
Posted: Friday April 16, 1999 08:11 PM
Pat Kirwan has spent many a draft in the war room as an NFL scout and assistant personnel director. Check back throughout draft weekend as he provides us scoops and analysis. How deep is the rippling effect of the Marshall Faulk trade? For one, if the Rams stay put and take cornerback Chris McAllister as expected, suddenly the Bears' No. 7 pick becomes very valuable. New England, Kansas City and New Orleans all would like to trade up for a shot at running back Edgerrin James. For the Bears, the question is can they trade that far down and still get one of the guys they want -- linebackers Jevon Kearse and Chris Claiborne or UCLA QB Cade McNown, who many think would be a perfect fit in Chicago. The answer is probably not. With three teams in pursuit, they could also ask for a whole lot. But if they like McNown so much, they should take him, even if he was viewed as a second-round pick at best after the Senior Bowl. People have watched his tapes and fallen in love with his intangibles. Meanwhile Arizona, picking behind the Bears, never dreamed that James might still be there when they pick. If not, they'd also be very happy to get WR Torry Holt. Even Pittsburgh, picking 13th, was affected by the Faulk deal. With the Saints apparently out of chances to move up from No. 12 and get a running back (James or Ricky Williams), their choice comes down to McNown or WR David Boston, whom the Steelers were hoping for. No love for IrvinYou've probably heard the rumors about Dallas trying to deal Michael Irvin for draft picks. The Cowboys are desperate to free up his $2.3 million in cap room after using up the surplus from Troy Aikman's restructuring on Quentin Coryatt and Rocket Ismail.
But not many teams are willing to give up much for Irvin right now. I'd be surprised if they get more than a fourth-round pick for him. He'll play next year somewhere (teams that need a receiver include New Orleans, Arizona and Pittsburgh) and be productive, but these are the kind of guys that, shockingly, get let go for cap space. Defensive ends in demandA couple defensive ends whose stocks are rising fast are Lamar King (Saginaw Valley) and Dimitrius Underwood (Michigan State). The problem teams are encountering is that most of the defensive end candidates are light, speed rushers, so if you're looking for a guy who can line up at left end, you have to look farther down the list. Underwood is a guy who didn't even play last year at Michigan State (ankle injury) and probably should have gone back to school. But he's 6-foot-6, 285 pounds. He's only rated about the 12th best defensive end prospect, but two coaches I spoke with said they don't expect him to be around by the end of the second round. Ups and downsMore guys on the rise include Troy Edwards, the receiver out of Louisiana Tech. More and more people I speak to have him sneaking into the first round. He's definitely the third receiver on the list. Sedrick Irvin (Michigan State) has also moved up. He ran slow at the combine, but he's being categorized as a very good running back. And Barry Gardner, a linebacker out of Northwestern, has emerged as a definite second rounder. On the way down is Cecil Collins. He will NOT go to Miami in the first round. Jimmy Johnson and his staff like the troubled running back a lot, they just don't think it will work.
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