Draft

This is usually my favorite time of the sports calendar, particularly for the NHL (and NBA) playoffs and NFL Draft. The playoffs have not started off great. My teams are injured to hell and won't make it out of the first round while teams I really don't like are thriving. The NFL Draft is much less stressful for a fan.

I've got a Sportlots box and a  COMC order due to arrive between now and the end of the draft, so I'll have something fun to do in between each team's picks. The Hurricanes' Cam Ward is expected to go first overall.

Nope, not that Cam Ward  #everythingishockey

I've never been a college football fan and I rarely know more than a couple names before flipping through prospect profiles and mock drafts. Here are some things I'm keeping an eye on ahead of this weekend:

• Green Bay is hosting! It will be a blast seeing Cheeseheads show out. I'm sure the host of Packcast will be there, he'll probably announce a mid-round pick for the Pack.

• The Browns and Giants have a tough decision - one of them will take two-way star Travis Hunter and the other will get Edge rusher Abdul Carter. But neither team really needs Carter. Could there be a trade?

• Ashton Jeanty is probably going to the Raiders at #6. I'd rather see him go to Jacksonville at 5 - Trevor Lawrence has never had a legit weapon in his NFL career - but Vegas is fine. As long as he doesn't fall to the Bears at #10.

• The Saints and Steelers will probably get their QBs in the first round. I didn't like Shedeur Sanders at first, but that may have been more about Coach Prime than his son. If the draft experts are correct, N'awlins is suddenly souring on Shedeur and leaning toward Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart. Do not ask Pat McAfee about Ole Miss.
  
  I'd prefer to see Sanders on the Saints, but as long as the Steelers take a QB that can cut off Aaron Rodgers' best option to continue his career, I'm good with whoever. 

• Once again the Packers are picking in the 20s, and the host team has a couple areas of need to address. An edge rusher to help out Rashan Gary would be nice, and this draft is loaded with 'em. The Pack signed cornerback Nate Hobbs and Jaire Alexander is still on the roster (for now) but they could go secondary. And for the fourth straight year the Pack lack a true #1 wide receiver, so... they'll probably draft one in rounds 2-4.
  
  If Green Bay can add any one of Texas A&M EDGE Shemar Stewart, Ohio State WR Emeka Egbuka, or Kentucky CB Maxwell Hairston, I'd be very happy. But! If they take an offensive lineman... it better be this guy:
  
  

I'm more interested in Alabama guard Tyler Booker than most fans would be about a blocker. When I saw his name pop up in draft previews I immediately asked where's he from?  Because I went to high school with an offensive lineman named Booker...

Uncle Ulish was the tallest dude in my high school; you could see him from across the hallway. Don't make me bust out the yearbook, lol.  I was hoping nephew Tyler would go to Seattle (#19), but recent mocks have him all over the back half of round 1. Hopefully he doesn't get past Detroit at pick #28. 

What does your team need entering this weekend's NFL Draft? Which players are you excited about?

Thanks for reading!



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Free Stuff Finale

I honestly feel like this whole "Free Stuff Friday" thing has jumped the shark. It started off as a very generous idea by Jon, and it was nice to see other bloggers take the ball and run with it. (Rod has really outdone all of us.) However the number of bloggers making claims far outweighs the number of those who offer up something for others to claim.

It's frustrating to see a blog post that takes time and research and creativity get a smattering of comments while a "Free Stuff" post draws dozens. It's disheartening to see comments from people who haven't visited a certain blog since the last time there was a giveaway. And it's aggravating that Fridays on the blogosphere have become one big race to see who can claim the best stuff first. 

I'm guilty of it, too. I've been looking forward to Fridays, checking blogs to see who's offering what. I'm getting competitive with other collectors and resenting those who simply claim all the available cards for a given sport. I try to be mindful of this when I comment - only claiming cards that truly fit my collection, deferring to others even when I get there first, and writing a meaningful comment that shows gratitude. 

Some bloggers (myself included) aren't reading the fine print. Jim (GCRL) offered up some great cards but they weren't quite free. He was just looking for a little help with his want list, a la Nachos Grande. Which reminds me... my wantlist tab has been updated. Hint hint nudge nudge wink wink. 


Anyway.. you're not here to read my complaints. You're here to claim some cards, am I right? 

I've moved "Free Stuff Friday" ahead a day because I'm off tomorrow and I will be venturing out to the post office to ship out trades and claims. I had planned on doing one more round of Free Stuff next week but I'd rather get this all out now while I can.

Please claim up to eight of the cards scanned below and indicate if you do not want me to ship your cards out tomorrow (I know Billy is holding off on receiving mail; not sure about anyone else.) 

We finally get an actual legit sporting event tonight! I'll be watching as much of the NFL Draft as I can, for three things in particular:

• There was talk that the Dolphins would Tank for Tua last year but they played hard down the stretch (3-2 in December) and they might end up getting him anyway at #5. I hope they do. If Tagovailoa is still on the board when the Panthers pick at #7 it will get interesting. 

• This draft is loaded with impact wide receivers. The Packers are in desperate need of a play-making pass-catcher to pair with Davante Adams... so they're probably going to end up taking an offensive lineman from Iowa :/

• The Las Vegas Raiders have two picks in the first round, #12 and #19. I'm not usually interested in the Raiders but I'm curious as to how they will kick off the Vegas era. It's a key component of my next post. Hint. 

I'd be happy to hear your thoughts on the NFL draft - if you're not in a hurry to claim cards ;)

Again, please make sure to indicate if you do not want me to send your claims tomorrow. I'll have no trouble sending out PWEs but if you've claimed more than 12 cards total and the scene at the local post office is too much to handle I might have to break them up into multiple envelopes rather ship in a bubble mailer. (I should probably do that anyway to save money.) 


Thanks for reading!



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