The 2009 NFL Draft came and went this weekend with plenty of storylines...

J-E-T-S LAND SANCHEZ: The Jets moved up to the No. 5 spot and got their quarterback of the future. Sanchez certainly has the star power to make it the Big Apple. The question is does he have enough experience on the college level to be successful in the pros? I don't see what all those concerns are about. He fits the team and has proven in big games he can get it done. All the pieces are in place around him to be successful. They did give up anything, but role players to get him and that is what makes it a great deal!

AL MAKES MIKE LOOK GOOD: There's no doubting that Derrius Heyward-Bay has some upside, but taking him over Michael Crabtree is a HUGE stretch, but that was nothing compared to the Raiders reaching for Ohio cornerback Mike Mitchell in Round 2. The hard-hitting and fast Mitchell wasn't invited to the NFL scouting combine. He wasn't even on the draft board of at least two teams. Raiders' owner Al Davis can even make Bengals' fans feel good about Mike Brown.

GO BEARCATS: The University of Cincinnati football team had a record-setting NFL Draft with five selections on day two of the annual event for six overall draft picks. Kevin Huber (fifth), DeAngelo Smith (fifth), Brandon Underwood (sixth), Mike Mickens (sixth), and Trevor Canfield (seventh) all were second-day picks, while Connor Barwin (second) was a day-one choice. UC's six overall draft choices was the most in school history, bettering the previous mark of five, which had occurred three times, in 1998, 1960, and 1947. The six selections were the most of any BIG EAST school, and the Bearcats were one of nine institutions in the nation with six or more players drafted.

MORENO FINDS A GOOD HOME: I really like Knowshown Moreno going to the Broncos. The franchise really needed to have a good draft to take some of the heat off for trading franchise quarterback Jay Cutler. I'm not sure if they did that or not, but Moreno makes for a stellar fit in what is expected to be hybrid of the old Mike Shanahan zone-blocking scheme and New England's gap-running scheme under new coach Josh McDaniels. He was the best pass-catching back in the draft and that will greatly help Kyle Orton's transition as the team's starter. Just look at last year's success Orton had with rookie running back Matt Forte.

OFFENSIVE BOOST IN PHILLY - The Eagles needed to add some weapons for Donovan McNabb and they did so in a big way landing wide receiver Jeremy Maclin in the first round, followed by running back LeSean McCoy in Round 2. Both are great fits for what Philly needs to do to stay amongst the elite in the NFC and I think they come out of the NFL Draft as the favorites in the NFC East for 2009.

SOUTH CAROLINA KICKER MR. IRRELEVANT - The final pick of the draft, ending the 15-hour, 15-minute extravaganza, was South Carolina placekicker Ryan Succop. Selected 256th overall by Kansas City, the 22-year-old Succop was a three-year regular kicker for the Gamecocks. He is expected to compete for the Chiefs' job.

NFL NETWORK VS. ESPN  - ESPN has been doing the NFL Draft for as long as I can remember, but I did make a point this weekend to watch some of the NFL Network's coverage. While ESPN seemed to have a better prodcution, I still preferred the Rich Eisen-led crew of Boomer and Mel Kiper. Erin Andrews on Day 1 on the floor definitely made ESPN more appealing, but after that it was over to NFL Network and I did not turn back.

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