Pee Dee continues to produce NFL talent
It’s NFL draft day once again and as usual a few Pee Dee players are expected to become future pros.Marlboro County’s Robert Ayers and Lamar’s Michael Hamlin are expected to hear their names called this weekend.
Ayers, a linebacker/defensive end, is expected to be taken in the first round. I think teams will get a solid pick in Ayers, who has rapidly moved up the draft board since the end of the season.
Hamlin, a safety, has been getting mixed reviews and is expected to go tomorrow between the third and fifth rounds. The knock on Hamlin has been his speed and injury concerns. But this guy knows how to make plays and has a knack for making big tackles and forcing turnovers.
Hamlin and Ayers’ selections will give the Pee Dee 11 players in the NFL, all on the defensive side of the ball.
The Pee Dee definitely won’t be done sending guys to the pros as Cheraw’s Cliff Matthews, a rising junior at South Carolina, and West Florence’s Malliciah Goodman, a freshman at Clemson, are just some of the area’s top NFL hopefuls.
Well enjoy the draft, and I have listed below my mock draft for the first round, although I expect some trades to alter things today.
1. Detroit — Matthew Stafford, QB, Georgia (already signed)
2. St. Louis — Jason Smith, OT, Baylor
3. Kansas City — Aaron Curry, LB, Wake Forest
4. Seattle — Mark Sanchez, QB, Southern Cal
5. Cleveland — Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech
6. Cincinnati — Eugene Monroe, OT, Virginia
7. Oakland — Jeremy Maclin, WR, Missouri
8. Jacksonville — Andre Smith OT, Alabama
9. Green Bay — B.J. Raji, DT, Boston College
10. San Francisco — Michael Oher, OL, Mississippi
11. Buffalo —Brian Orakpo, DE/LB, Texas
12. Denver — Tyson Jackson, DE, LSU
13. Washington — Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR, Maryland
14. New Orleans — Malcolm Jenkins, CB, Ohio State
15. Houston — Knowshon Moreno, RB, Georgia
16. San Diego — Aaron Maybin, LB, Penn State
17. New York Jets — Josh Freeman, QB, Kansas State
18. Denver (from Chicago) — Brian Cushing, LB, Southern Cal
19. Tampa Bay — Everette Brown, DE, Florida State
20. Detroit (from Dallas) — Robert Ayers DE/LB, Tennessee
21. Philadelphia — Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Oklahoma
22. Minnesota — Percy Harvin, WR, Florida
23. New England — Clay Matthews, LB, Southern Cal
24. Atlanta — Peria Jerry, DT, Ole Miss
25. Miami — Ray Maluluga, LB, Southern Cal
26. Baltimore —Eben Britton, OT, Arizona
27. Indianapolis —Evander Hood, DT, Missouri
28. Buffalo — Phil Loadholt, OT, Oklahoma
29. New York Giants — Hakeem Nicks, WR, North Carolina
30. Tennessee —Vontae Davis, CB, Illinois
31. Arizona — Chris Wells, RB, Ohio State
32. Pittsburgh — Alex Mack C, California
Posted by
on 04/25 at 01:12 PM
