We are mere hours from cracking open the book on the Texans' 2008 season. Sure you have 12:01 on the first day of free agency, but that's just the prologue, a foreshadowing of things to come. The NFL draft is the first sentence of the first chapter of the new season. And by all accounts, Texans 2008 should be a great read.
Okay. Enough with the metaphors; its time to get down to business. This is the third and final installment of the 2008 mock draft survey. While there has been some movement, the consensus favorites have maintained their tally mark leads. Again, I used Hail Redskins enormous mock draft database. The criteria for inclusion also remained the same, only Pro/Media/Vet/A+ listed sites. The only difference between the last two mock draft surveys and this one is that I took a larger survey sample this time, seventy sites as opposed to fifty. Below is a graphic representation of the findings.
As you can see, LT Chris Williams takes sole control of the lead at 23%, while CB Mike Jenkins maintains his 20% for a second straight week. RB Jonathan Stewart remains a fixture in our survey, climbing to 18%.
Most sites had CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie as the second corner off the board. It's no wonder he slipped off out chart. In fact, only one site had him falling to the Texans. I'd be remiss if I failed to mention that DRC was also taken in the NBC Bloggers Draft. A couple of hacks from some site called thetexasblog (or something) made the pick. I kid, I kid. Matt and BFD wrote the most original, most insightful reasoning in support of their pick. They were a terrific representation of the Texans blog scene. Great job guys.
RB Rashard Mendenhall's resurgence was due to a handful of drafts that have Stewart going before him. This left me wondering which of the two will be taken first. I guess we'll have to wait and see; but, its that kind of intrigue that makes the draft worth watching.
Rounding out the top five is CB Aqib Talib, who remains a fairly popular choice at 13%. Some pundits feel that he's the real deal, and will excel in the NFL. Others aren't sold and think his penchant for pot smoking will prevent him from realizing his potential. Please. It's not uncommon for people stop smoking pot because of a drug testing policy in the workplace. Unless he's like Sticky Icky Ricky, it shouldn't be a problem.
So after three surveys, I can honestly say that it's anybodies guess. Comparing and contrasting mock drafts is little more that an exercise in redundancy, but it makes for interesting off-season research. Although I've tried to be as thorough as possible, I'm looking to refine my method for next year. Koz, in all his awesomeness, sent me the Huddle Report's mock draft accuracy results. He also took the picks of the 25 most accurate sites and came up with data similar to mine - for one big exception: We have DRC and Stewart at opposite ends of each others lists. Next year, I look to incorporate accuracy track records, that is, of course if Tim renews my contract.
Tomorrow's draft will undoubtedly affect the future of the Texans franchise. I can't wait to meet the impact players of tomorrow. See you there!