FEELING A DRAFT

At last, the NFL draft. After months of speculation about who is going where, endless reports of trades that may or may not be made, and continued scrutiny of the top players, we get some clarity on Thursday night.

Maximizing this event for television, the NFL spreads the draft over three days. So the Thursday night star-studded event is only the first round of seven. This is when the top talent gets dispersed.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hold the first selection. They seem likely to take Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, whose skills translate well to the NFL but whose off-the-field resume includes allegations of sexual assault and a few minor (more or less) incidents. Can the Bucs take this risk and hope Winston’s past does not repeat itself?

The Tennessee Titans pick second. They also need a quarterback. They could take Oregon’s Marcus Mariota. His reputation is impeccable but his fit in a pro scheme is questionable.

There could be some trades as teams look to either move up or down. The Cleveland Browns, also quarterback-hungry, might want to take a run at Mariota. Same for the Philadelphia Eagles, who have been collecting quarterbacks in the off-season (Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow). Eagles coach Chip Kelly coached Mariota at Oregon, so …

Neither Winston nor Mariota will be attending the draft in Chicago. So another key question is whom Commissioner Roger Goodell will finally get to man-hug after announcing his name and his future team.

The NFL Network and ESPN will offer competing analysis with an array of experts. The preference here: NFL Network’s Mike Mayock. He’s generally spot-on with his take and his predictions.

Settle in for a long evening of intrigue and blather. Round one promises to be fun.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .