Draft Recap AFC East Edition

Miami Dolphins - We knew by Tuesday who the Dolphins were going to pick #1 overall, so no real surprise there. The Dolphins are a mess, obviously. You don't need me to tell you that; they barely escaped 0-16 last year. Fortunately for them they had enough picks this year to sort of work on rebuilding. Unfortunately, their needs card included corners and linebackers and they drafted exactly zero of them. DE Phillip Morgan and DT Kendall Langford were the only defensive players of note, but who knows? Maybe DE Lionel Dotson (245 overall) will shock the world. I guess Bill Parcells believes the first step to rebuild is offense, and a guy like Jake Long at left tackle is not a bad thing, but personally I'd rather have a better defense first.

Buffalo Bills - Their needs card had corner and wide receiver at the top, and they picked CB Leodis McKelvin and WR James Hardy early to fill those spots. Hardy's a big fucker at 6'5", 217lbs. which should help take away pressure from Lee Evans, something the Bills desperately needed. If there's another team in the league more in need of a second receiver to relieve pressure on the #1 guy, it'd have to be the Panthers. It was painfully obvious last year that when you can shut down their receiver, there will be no wins.

New England Patriots - I was glad to see them drop in the first round, even if it was only from 7 to 10. The goddamn Patriots have always drafted smart under Bill Bellichick, and this year was no exception. Their linebacker corps' age is measured via carbon dating and their secondary took a hit during free agency, and the Patriots addressed those needs: LB, CB, OLB, QB, CB, WR, and OLB. People are going to tell you that picking LB Jerod Mayo 10th was a reach, but even people living in mud huts who have never heard of the NFL know this: The goddamn Patriots have always drafted smart under Bellichick.

New York Jets - Boy, ESPN sure loves to roll that clip of draft blunders, don't they? That never gets old, no sir. Bunch of fuckin' hacks up in Bristol, lemme tell ya. Anyway, the fans at Radio City didn't boo Vernon Gholston, which is no surprise because the man is a beast and should make the Jets happy. They also picked up the best tight end in the draft with Dustin Keller, and QB Erik Ainge probably heralds the end of Chad Pennington if Kellen Clemens works out.