The first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night was a very active one, as five trades were made during the course of the primetime event at Radio City Music Hall, the biggest being for the Miami Dolphins, who went up to the third pick to select Dion Jordan from Oregon.
The Oakland Raiders felt they made a great move, as they got the player they wanted in DJ Hayden and also got an extra second round pick out of it by dropping to 12. Some of the other trades included the St. Louis Rams, who jumped to get Tavon Austin, as well as the Cowboys, who dropped back to let the 49ers make a pick for a safety, while the Patriots traded out to the Minnesota Vikings, who made three first round picks.
The first round could be called the 2013 Lineman draft, as three of the first four picks were from the line, as were ones made by the Chargers, Bears and Giants, who selected Justin Pugh from Syracuse in an excellent pick. The second round is expected to be just as intriguing, as a number of big name and highly touted players remain, including Eddie Lacy, Zach Ertz and Manti Teo, as well as quarterbacks Ryan Nassib, Geno Smith and Matt Barkley, who are all expected to go in quick succession.
The biggest surprise on Thursday was the Bills selection of EJ Manuel, as the team had been putting out smokescreens on Ryan Nassib and Matt Barkley leading up to the draft. The quarterbacks are expected to of fast Friday, with the Jaguars, Eagles and New York Jets looing to pick from the big three, as well as Matt Scott and Tyler Wilson.
Barkley could be a pick for the Oakland Raiders, while NFL.com says that the Eagles could go after Scott or possibly Geno Smith, as he could be a good fit for Chip Kelly's system. The Chiefs started things off with Eric Fisher, while Luke Joeckel went to the Jaguars and Lane Johnson is now with the Eagles.
The rest of the draft saw names like Ziggy Ansah, Desmond Trufant and Dee Milliner picked and the Jets also added Sheldon Richardson from Missouri. The Raiders got their man in Hayden, while Jonathan Cooper was taken in the top 10 for the Cardinals and Bark Mingo went to the Browns at 6.
