To preface my vote, let me say that for me, Mendenhall was the most coveted player in the draft who had a reasonable chance to drop to us. I assumed DRC would not get this far, and to be honest I didn't really think Mendenhall would either.
That said, I figured at 18 we'd be choosing between Jonathan Stewart, Talib, and Jenkins, which had me hoping that we'd trade down and get Antoine Cason instead.
When Mendenhall fell into our lap, I was absolutely stoked. Granted, maybe not thinking all that clearly because we were all well into our draft-day drinking game, but still excited. I thought we'd take him for sure. Yet when we traded down, I was even more excited.
I'm still a little bit disappointed that we didn't get Antoine Cason (who I think will be a monster CB), but the more I read about this guy, the more I like the pick. Did anyone watch the clip of his footwork drills? There aren't many 300-pounders who can move like that. With a little technique and coaching, this kid is going to do wonders for our O-line. And having a left tackle who can get downfield like he'll be able to will do more for our running game than even DMC would have done.
It'd be nice if he were ready to play this coming year, but I think he's going to be our LT for many years. And when you can draft a player that your coaching staff likes, a player who fits a need, and a guy who plays arguably the most important position on the field, you've done well for yourself. Especially if you get another guy who can make the roster in the process (Slaton).
Although, I do think we could have squeezed more out of Baltimore. We should have gotten at least a 5th instead of that 6th, or at least their #8 3rd round pick (71st overall) instead of the 26th (89th overall).
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