NFL Draft Overview Capsules: Stafford picked first by Lions, Jets get Sanchez
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NEW YORK - Matthew Stafford's mission is daunting: Lead the Detroit Lions back from the only 0-16 season in NFL history. Mark Sanchez has nearly as big a challenge: He'll compete to replace Brett Favre.
The Lions found the centerpiece for one of the biggest rebuilding jobs in league history, taking Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford with the overall No. 1 pick in the draft Saturday. Detroit already had signed the 21-year-old Stafford to a six-year deal with $41.7 million in guarantees and a maximum value of $78 million.
Stafford, who left school a year early, is not expected to start immediately.
"I'm a competitive guy," Stafford said. "I'm going to try to get ready as quick as I can.
"I put a lot of pressure on myself to be great anyway."
Then the New York Jets rocked Radio City Music Hall by trading with Cleveland - and of all people, Eric Mangini, whom they fired as coach in January - for the fifth overall spot. The Jets took the other premier quarterback in the draft, Sanchez of Southern California.
"I learned how to compete and deal with pressure at ‘SC and in a large media market in Los Angeles," Sanchez said of stepping in for the retired Favre, "and things are only going to bigger and better. It's a very exciting time, a special time in my life, so I'm excited to get things going."
Oddly, both drew plenty of boos and chants of "OVERRATED" to go with the many cheers.
The Lions, whose poor draft history this decade under Matt Millen eventually led to the winless season, have veteran Daunte Culpepper as the projected starter this year under new coach Jim Schwartz. That should give the 21-year-old Stafford a chance to watch and learn.
"Now, it's up to us to develop him and get good players around him," Detroit general manager Martin Mayhew said.
The Lions drafted tight end Brandon Pettigrew of Oklahoma State with the 20th pick overall, which they acquired from Dallas in the trade that sent wide receiver Roy Williams to the Cowboys.
Nine of the last 12 top overall picks have been quarterbacks. They have included the likes of Peyton and Eli Manning. And Tim Couch, David Carr and Alex Smith.
The massive trade saw Cleveland send its pick to New York, prompting wild cheering in the arena. When the Jets chose Sanchez, the fans had equally vociferous positive and negative reactions.
Sanchez started for just one season at USC, leading the Trojans to a 12-1 record and a Rose Bowl victory. He had six career starts in college, and will now compete for the job of replacing Brett Favre as the Jets' QB.
"With Mark, I think he's a special guy," Jets coach Rex Ryan said.
New York sent the No. 17 and No. 52 overall choices, plus defensive end Kenyon Coleman, safety Abram Elam and quarterback Brett Ratliff, to Cleveland.
The Browns pulled off two more trades to keep moving down in the opening round and adding later-round picks. At No. 21, the Browns finally stopped dealing and took center Alex Mack of California.
Before that, Baylor offensive tackle Jason Smith was the second pick, by the St. Louis Rams. The 6-foot-4, 306-pound former tight end should be used to playing for a weak team: Baylor was 18-31 in his four years there.
Kansas City, like St. Louis, used nearly all 10 of its minutes seeking a trade before selecting LSU defensive end Tyson Jackson. He will join college teammate Glenn Dorsey on the Chiefs' defensive line.
Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry, who had spoken with Detroit about being the top overall pick, landed in Seattle at No. 4. Curry is considered capable of playing inside or outside in the pros.
Cincinnati went for Alabama tackle Andre Smith, the first AP All-American selected, at No. 6. Smith had some issues that included leaving the NFL combine early without notifying anyone, but the Bengals were unswayed.
Another tackle, Virginia's Eugene Monroe, went eighth overall to Jacksonville, one spot after Oakland - no surprise here - was seduced by the speed of Maryland's Darrius Heyward-Bey. The Raiders grabbed the player who had the fast 40-yard time in workouts, even though many projected him to go far later.
Boston College defensive tackle B.J. Raji to Green Bay and Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree, the highest-rated receiver before the draft, to San Francisco, rounded out the top 10.
Other noteworthy picks in the opening round included Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno, 12th to Denver; Southern California linebackers Brian Cushing (15th to Houston) and Clay Matthews (26th to Green Bay); Kansas State quarterback Josh Freeman (17th to Tampa Bay); RB Donald Brown, the nation's leading rusher with 2.083 yards and the first UConn player ever selected in the first round, No. 27 to Indianapolis; and WR Kenny Britt (No. 30 to Tennessee), the first Rutgers player to go in the opening round.
West Virginia's highly productive quarterback, Pat White, who some teams look at as a wide receiver in the pros, was chosen by Miami, where he could fit nicely in their Wildcat formation.
San Francisco acquired a 2010 first-round pick from Carolina by sending its second-rounder, 43rd overall, and its fourth-rounder to the Panthers. Carolina took defensive end Everett Brown of Florida State, who was projected as a first-rounder in mock drafts.
In all, 19 offensive players and 13 on defense went, and 15 underclassmen were chosen. Eight players from the Southeastern Conference were selected. Southern California had three Trojans picked, the most of any school.
The second round concluded with Denver acquiring the 64th spot from Pittsburgh and selecting North Carolina tight end Richard Quinn.
Crabtree said he still felt he was the top receiver. He was asked about chasing the 49ers' receiving records held by one Jerry Rice. He smiled and said: "I got some big shoes to fill when I go to the 49ers, you know, with Jerry Rice. I am looking forward to that. I love challenges."
Not even Stafford nor Sanchez face that big a challenge.
NOTEBOOK: Listen to the Tweets
NEW YORK - In today's high-tech world, not even live television is always quick enough with the news.
Several teams embraced the most modern technology Saturday, either posting their picks on their Web sites or on Twitter.
The San Diego Chargers scooped even commissioner Roger Goodell in announcing their pick of Northern Illinois linebacker Larry English on their Web site before Goodell announced it in New York. The Chargers then interviewed general manager A.J. Smith and had English on a speaker phone interview.
Jets owner Woody Johnson announced first-round news with a Tweet, saying: "We have selected Mark Sanchez. Go Jets." The team had traded up to No. 5 overall for that opportunity.
Also, moments before Goodell announced Atlanta had taken Ole Miss defensive tackle Peria Jerry with its first-round pick, the Falcons went public on Twitter.
A team official, who wasn't identified, delivered the news in 140 characters or less. General manager Thomas Dimitroff and coach Mike Smith said they weren't involved.
"I just learned what (Twitter) meant about three days ago," Dimitroff said.
"I still don't," Smith added. "What does it mean?"
The NFL is less than thrilled with such announcements. Spokesman Greg Aiello said the league will review how teams are announcing their picks and determine whether it needs to develop a policy.
TIMELY PICKS
The first round of the draft took 3 hours, 23 minutes, far less than some of the interminable rounds of the past.
The NFL clearly has speeded up the process by limiting teams to 10 minutes in the opening round, 7 minutes in the second, and 5 minutes in the other five rounds.
Several teams took almost all of the 10 minutes in the first round, particularly St. Louis at No. 2 (Baylor tackle Jason Smith) and Kansas City at No. 3 (LSU defensive end Tyson Jackson). In contrast, Oakland barely waited 30 seconds to select Maryland wideout Darrius Heyward-Bey, and Pittsburgh was even quicker in finishing off the first round when it took Missouri DT Evander Hood at No. 32.
MONEY MAN
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sage Rosenfels was taken aback, to put it mildly, by the six-year contract top pick Matthew Stafford signed with Detroit. The Georgia quarterback will get $41 million in guaranteed money and could earn as much as $78 million.
"That blows me away. I guess that's the way it's set up now, right or wrong," Rosenfels said. "He makes twice as much money as Tom Brady or something like that. To me, that doesn't make sense. Congratulations to him. I think he'll do a great job. Hopefully he earns every bit of that."
And if he doesn't?
"But if he's not successful, it's really going to put that organization on hard times for a couple of years, all that salary cap money they're going to have to dish out," added the veteran entering his ninth year and acquired from Houston in February. "To me, I wish it wasn't these crazy numbers for these top picks. If I were a team, I wouldn't want a top pick. I'd want a late first-round pick or a second-rounder because there's a lot of good players that are going to be picked 20-32 or 32-50.
"There's great players out there. A lot of our good players in Houston were late-round picks. ... To give a guy $41 million guaranteed before he's thrown an NFL football is a huge risk. It has a possible huge reward at the other end, too."
USC'S 'BACKERS
The last of the USC linebackers picked on the first day of the NFL draft was the All-American.
Middle linebacker Rey Maualuga, the most decorated of the Trojans' three highly touted linebackers, ended up going in the second round with the No. 38 pick to Cincinnati.
He won the Bednarik Award last season as the nation's top defensive player.
His teammates, Brian Cushing and Clay Matthews, were both first-rounders and there was speculation all three USC 'backers would go in the first round. Indeed, Sports Illustrated guaranteed it with a cover story this week.
Cushing, considered the most versatile of the bunch, went No. 15 to the Houston Texans.
Matthews, whose father and grandfather played in the NFL, went No. 26 to the Green Bay Packers. His uncle, Bruce Matthews, is a Pro Football Hall of Famer.
The three teammates push each other hard. Cushing had even admitted there was friendly competition among the three about who would be drafted first.
"It feels good. You know I was kind of expecting it and would have been a little disappointed if it hadn't happened, but I guess I've got those bragging rights for a bit," Cushing said.
USC ended up with three players selected in the first round: quarterback Mark Sanchez, fifth overall to the Jets, plus the two linebackers. Last season, the Trojans had four players selected in Round 1.
Also taken in the second round was USC defensive tackle Fili Moala, selected No. 56 by the Colts.
USC's other starting linebacker last year, Kaluka Maiva, who was third on the team in tackles behind Maualuga (79) and Cushing (73) with 66, was expected to be a second-day pick.
No wonder the Trojans' defense was best in the nation last season.
Color them optimistic: jerseys show fans' hope
NEW YORK - There's no other sight like this in sports: An elegant old performance hall, packed with bellowing fans in every color.
It's the NFL draft, maybe the most optimistic day in sports. And on a day for daydreaming fans, what better attire than the jersey of your favorite player?
It was the shirt of choice for fans filling Radio City Music Hall on Saturday, setting off the hall's art-deco accents with their black and gold, Honolulu blue, teal, and every other color in the NFL palette.
Anyone can wear a team-logo shirt or cap. Donning a jersey is a bolder statement of loyalty, coming complete with the personality of a beloved player.
Paul Gardner wouldn't wear any jersey but the one he sported Saturday - a seal brown No. 42 for his favorite player - Paul Warfield of the Cleveland Browns.
"I'm just a true NFL fan," Gardner said.
The 52-year-old freelance journalist and poet from New York has only been to Cleveland once in his life. He's always liked Warfield because he was a star deep receiving threat on the Browns teams of the late 1960s - including their last title-winning team, in 1964.
"There's only one Paul Warfield," he said.
As Gardner spoke, a fan in a white Pittsburgh jersey - Cleveland's bitterest rival and the defending Super Bowl champs - interrupted to taunt him.
"You'll never get one of these!" the man shouted, standing next to a Lombardi Trophy placed in the theater's lobby for fans to drool over.
Gardner was unrattled. Any place with fans wearing gear from all 32 teams - the AP counted - mix is going to have some confrontations.
And it's not as if he could hide - Gardner stands over six feet and was dressed head to toe in Browns gear, including an orange hardhat with a white-and-brown helmet stripe.
He wasn't alone. Not by a long shot.
Packers fans Pete and Grant Alex complemented their green-and-gold Packers jerseys with yellow hats. Perhaps a subtle nod to the cheesehead? (At least two pieces of cheese-themed headgear were spotted in Radio City's brassy halls.)
Pete, 41, wore a green No. 12 "RODGERS" jersey. Although Aaron Rodgers was taken by Green Bay in 2005, Alex only bought the jersey recently, when he realized his No. 4 Brett Favre jersey wouldn't do in New York.
"I had to sport the current quarterback," he said.
The 13-year-old Grant left both of his Favre jerseys - he has a New York Jets one, too - at home in Pennsylvania.
He was wearing a No. 25 "GRANT" jersey that was doing double duty representing Packers running back Ryan Grant and Grant's name, too.
He also owns an A.J. Hawk jersey. Not only does the flowing-haired linebacker not share the kid's name, he's also worn out his welcome.
"I never wear it," Grant Alex said. "He's nothing anymore."
Joe Mekhayel probably won't be stashing the Lions jersey he was wearing Saturday in the back of a closet anytime soon.
His Honolulu blue Detroit jersey had his own name on the back.
Though he knows he won't be catching passes from new Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, he wanted to point out that he wasn't the one booing when the pick was announced.
"We need a face of the franchise," said Mekhayel, who came from Lansing, Mich., to watch his Lions pick first overall.
When he's not wearing his own custom jersey, he also wears the No. 81 of wide receiver Calvin Johnson, one of the few bright spots in the Lions' recent 0-16 season.
"Calvin's just a beast," said Mekhayel, a former tight end whose high school number, 83, was on the back of his custom jersey.
Mekhayel, like most fans, was optimistic about the future for his team. How could someone not be, looking at Radio City's stage, built to resemble sunrise on a ship crossing the Atlantic?
It's only fitting that they host the draft here - it's always been a place people have been coming to be transported, if temporarily, by people in costume.
With the season's first fumble, first incomplete pass - and first loss - five months away, there's plenty of time for the good feelings to last.
"I don't think they'll do too well this year," Gardner said. "But I'll definitely be a Browns fan."
-- Rick Freeman
20 years after Sanders, Pettigrew goes 20th to Lions
OKLAHOMA CITY - After 20 years and 20 picks, the Detroit Lions revisited the school that provided the best player in franchise history.
Exactly two decades after drafting Barry Sanders, the Lions picked tight end Brandon Pettigrew from Oklahoma State with the 20th overall pick in the NFL draft on Saturday.
"He is the best running back - ever," Pettigrew said on a conference call with reporters. "I met him one time. He came into our locker room after a game at Oklahoma State."
Pettigrew, the first Oklahoma State player drafted in the first round since receiver Rashaun Woods in 2004, joins No. 1 overall pick Matthew Stafford of Georgia in the Lions' rebuilding effort under new head coach Jim Schwartz. Detroit last season became the first team ever to finish 0-16.
"Getting to the NFL has always been a dream of mine and I'm excited that the day is now here," Pettigrew said. "I want to thank all my Oklahoma State coaches and teammates and everyone who has helped me get to where I am. It's kind of a relief to know where I am going now after so much talk leading up to the draft and I'm excited for what's to come."
Right tackle Phil Loadholt, who went to Minnesota in the second round, was the only Oklahoma player taken on the first day of the draft. The Sooners have now gone without a first-round draft pick the past two years after having at least one for a school record six years in a row.
Loadholt, who protected Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford's blind side at Oklahoma, was the No. 54 pick and will join former Sooners running back Adrian Peterson with the Vikings. The two never played together in college, with Loadholt transferring in a year after Peterson was drafted.
Next year figures to be a bigger draft year for the Sooners, when Bradford, tight end Jermaine Gresham and offensive tackle Trent Williams could all be first-round prospects.
Like Sanders - who won the Heisman Trophy in 1988 before being drafted by the Lions with the third pick of the following year's draft - Pettigrew had a record-setting career at Oklahoma State.
He holds the school marks for receptions (112) and receiving yards (1,450) by a tight end, but his draft stock was bolstered by his reputation as the best all-around player at his position. He was known at Oklahoma State for delivering punishing blocks and opening holes for the Cowboys to lead the Big 12 in rushing each of the past three seasons.
Pettigrew averaged more than 54 knockdown blocks per season, and coach Mike Gundy bragged after the Cowboys' 2007 season opener against Georgia - and his future teammate, Stafford - that the burly tight end had a dozen knockdowns against the Bulldogs.
Tight ends coach Doug Meacham related a story that Pettigrew once came to the sidelines and asked coaches to run a play to his side - but it was a run play and not one where he got the ball.
"I've done that too many times," Pettigrew said. "I like catching the ball as well, but blocking is just as important to me."
Pettigrew was the first tight end taken in the draft and went in the first round despite injuries and an off-field incident that could have chased some teams away.
He missed three games last season with a sprained ankle and then ran a disappointing 40-yard dash time of 4.83 seconds at the NFL combine. A hamstring injury kept him from running at Oklahoma State's pro day, but Pettigrew was still confident teams would judge him by his performance on the field.
That was doubly true when it came to a January 2008 arrest on a felony assault charge for elbowing a police officer. Pettigrew, generally known as mild-mannered and soft-spoken, said the topic came up in pre-draft interviews with the Lions.
"I just told them the whole story. I was straightforward with them," Pettigrew said. "I was in Stillwater with some friends. Some things went south. The cops came. It was a mistake. It was bad judgment on my part. I didn't handle myself well, but I learned from it and I've moved on."
Pettigrew, who eventually pleaded guilty to reduced charges of misdemeanor assault and battery and public intoxication, got a deferred sentence that won't go on his criminal record if he follows the terms of his probation until June.
"I've done some good stuff in the past as well," Pettigrew said. "So, I wasn't really worried about."
Pettigrew is the 15th Oklahoma State player ever taken in the first round of the NFL draft and narrowly missed being the highest tight end drafted in school history.
Reuben Gant still holds that honor, going to Buffalo as the 18th overall pick in 1974.
-- Jeff Latzke
2009 NFL Draft Selections
ROUND ONE
1. Detroit, Matthew Stafford, qb, Georgia.
2. St. Louis, Jason Smith, ot, Baylor.
3. Kansas City, Tyson Jackson, de, LSU.
4. Seattle, Aaron Curry, lb, Wake Forest.
5. New York Jets (from Cleveland), Mark Sanchez, qb, Southern Cal.
6. Cincinnati, Andre Smith, ot, Alabama.
7. Oakland, Darrius Heyward-Bey, wr, Maryland.
8. Jacksonville, Eugene Monroe, ot, Virginia.
9. Green Bay, B.J. Raji, dt, Boston College.
10. San Francisco, Michael Crabtree, wr, Texas Tech.
11. Buffalo, Aaron Maybin, de, Penn State.
12. Denver, Knowshon Moreno, rb, Georgia.
13. Washington, Brian Orakpo, de, Texas.
14. New Orleans, Malcolm Jenkins, db, Ohio State.
15. Houston, Brian Cushing, lb, Southern Cal.
16. San Diego, Larry English, lb, Northern Illinois.
17. Tampa Bay (from N.Y. Jets through Cleveland), Josh Freeman, qb, Kansas State.
18. Denver (from Chicago), Robert Ayers, de, Tennessee.
19. Philadelphia (from Tampa Bay through Cleveland), Jeremy Maclin, wr, Missouri.
20. Detroit (from Dallas), Brandon Pettigrew, te, Oklahoma State.
21. Cleveland (from Philadelphia), Alex Mack, c, California.
22. Minnesota, Percy Harvin, wr, Florida.
23. Baltimore (from New England), Michael Oher, ot, Mississippi.
24. Atlanta, Peria Jerry, dt, Mississippi.
25. Miami, Vontae Davis, db, Illinois.
26. Green Bay (from Baltimore through New England), Clay Matthews, lb, Southern Cal.
27. Indianapolis, Donald Brown, rb, Connecticut.
28. Buffalo (from Carolina through Philadelphia), Eric Wood, c, Louisville.
29. New York Giants, Hakeem Nicks, wr, North Carolina.
30. Tennessee, Kenny Britt, wr, Rutgers.
31. Arizona, Chris Wells, rb, Ohio State.
32. Pittsburgh, Evander Hood, dt, Missouri.
ROUND TWO
33. Detroit, Louis Delmas, db, Western Michigan.
34. New England (from Kansas City), Patrick Chung, db, Oregon.
35. St. Louis, James Laurinaitis, lb, Ohio State.
36. Cleveland, Brian Robiskie, wr, Ohio State.
37. Denver (from Seattle), Alphonso Smith, db, Wake Forest.
38. Cincinnati, Rey Maualuga, lb, Southern Cal.
39. Jacksonville, Eben Britton, ot, Arizona.
40. New England (from Oakland), Ron Brace, dt, Boston College.
41. New England (from Green Bay), Darius Butler, db, Connecticut.
42. Buffalo, Jairus Byrd, db, Oregon.
43. Carolina (from San Francisco), Everette Brown, de, Florida State.
44. Miami (from Washington), Pat White, qb, West Virginia.
45. New York Giants (from New Orleans), Clint Sintim, lb, Virginia.
46. Houston, Connor Barwin, de, Cincinnati.
47. Oakland (from San Diego through New England), Michael Mitchell, db, Ohio.
48. Denver, Darcel McBath, db, Texas Tech.
49. Seattle (from Chicago), Max Unger, c, Oregon.
50. Cleveland (from Tampa Bay), Mohamed Massaquoi, wr, Georgia.
51. Buffalo (from Dallas), Andy Levitre, g, Oregon State.
52. Cleveland (from N.Y. Jets), David Veikune, de, Hawaii.
53. Philadelphia, LeSean McCoy, rb, Pittsburgh.
54. Minnesota, Phil Loadholt, ot, Oklahoma.
55. Atlanta, William Moore, db, Missouri.
56. Indianapolis (from Miami), Fili Moala, dt, Southern Cal.
57. Baltimore, Paul Kruger, de, Utah.
58. New England, Sebastian Vollmer, ot, Houston.
59. Carolina, Sherrod Martin, db, Troy.
60. New York Giants, Will Beatty, ot, Connectitcut.
61. Miami (from Indianapolis), Sean Smith, db, Utah.
62. Tennessee, Sen'Derrick Marks, dt, Auburn.
63. Arizona, Cody Brown, lb, Connecticut.
64. Denver (from Pittsburgh), Richard Quinn, te, North Carolina.
