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  1. <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  2. <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xml:lang="en">
  3.  <title>Revenge of the Birds -  All Posts</title>
  4.  <subtitle>An Arizona Cardinals community -- the best one there is</subtitle>
  5.  <icon>https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/51297/rotb_fav.png</icon>
  6.  <updated>2024-05-05T12:37:27-06:00</updated>
  7.  <id>http://www.revengeofthebirds.com/rss/current/</id>
  8.  <link type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/" rel="alternate"/>
  9.  <entry>
  10.    <published>2024-05-05T12:37:27-06:00</published>
  11.    <updated>2024-05-05T12:37:27-06:00</updated>
  12.    <title>The Cardinals’ Draft and CFAs per Dane Brugler’s “The Beast”</title>
  13.    <content type="html">  
  14.  
  15.    &lt;figure&gt;
  16.      &lt;img alt="COLLEGE FOOTBALL: OCT 07 Texas Tech at Baylor" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9U0DHT1g0YBbUc9RsP2_XYzUpSI=/0x0:3403x2269/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73328602/1715286248.0.jpg" /&gt;
  17.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Buono/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  18.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  19.  
  20.  &lt;p&gt;How The Athletic’s Dane Brugler and Monti Ossenfort were of similar mindsets about the Cardinals picks&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="GdUW2a"&gt;If you haven’t taken a good look at Dane Brugler’s “The Beast” 2024 NFL Draft “encyclopedia” —- this possibly even outdoes Mel Kiper’s old Blue Books! To me, “The Beast” is worth the entire year's subscription to The Athletic. &lt;/p&gt;
  21. &lt;p id="1GZtwD"&gt;&lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F5399690%2F2024%2F04%2F10%2Fnfl-draft-2024-the-beast-dane-brugler%2F%3Fsource%3Dgooglesearchcontentads%26ad_id%3D653379310708%26gad_source%3D1%26gclid%3DCjwKCAjwxLKxBhA7EiwAXO0R0NuV65yMxbqAsfriz2rX3ISFGzXtZvgjXur6aGaz68M4omH-ZwI3xBoC0RIQAvD_BwE&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.revengeofthebirds.com%2F2024%2F5%2F5%2F24149540%2Fthe-cardinals-draft-and-cfas-per-dane-bruglers-the-beast" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;NFL Draft 2024 ‘The Beast’ Guide: Dane Brugler’s scouting reports and player rankings - The Athletic&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  22. &lt;p id="5eZvYG"&gt;Of all the NFL Draft analysts, I often consider Dane Brugler to be one of the most accurate and resourceful talent evaluators. &lt;/p&gt;
  23. &lt;p id="PjOynT"&gt;When you see how close Brugler and Monti were in their evals, I believe it adds greater credence to the value of Monti’s picks, because, as we know, Monti strayed from what some fans may have considered “the consensus” on a few occasions.&lt;/p&gt;
  24. &lt;p id="M7Mk8A"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Here’s how Dane Brugler rated the Cardinals’ picks and CFAs per expected draft round:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  25. &lt;ul&gt;
  26. &lt;li id="nTRiMH"&gt;Round 1 —- WR Marvin Harrison jr., Ohio St.  —- Round 1 —- given&lt;/li&gt;
  27. &lt;li id="rjh2NT"&gt;Round 1 —- DE Darius Robinson, Missouri —- Round 2 —- Jer’Zhan Newton’s Jones fracture&lt;/li&gt;
  28. &lt;li id="Ova6Y8"&gt;Round 2 —- CB Max Melton, Rutgers —- Round 2 —- on the money&lt;/li&gt;
  29. &lt;li id="zE1tqo"&gt;Round 3 —- RB Trey Benson, Florida St. —- Round 3 —- on the money&lt;/li&gt;
  30. &lt;li id="v8we0p"&gt;Round 3 —- G Isaiah Adams, Illinois —- Round 3 —- on the money bc Brugler’s eval was at G&lt;/li&gt;
  31. &lt;li id="zlcxZj"&gt;Round 3 —- TE Tip Reiman, Illinois —- Round 4 —- in the ballpark&lt;/li&gt;
  32. &lt;li id="CwKUei"&gt;Round 3 —- CB Elijah Jones —- Round 5 —- superb Senior Bowl and his 4.44 40 at Combine&lt;/li&gt;
  33. &lt;li id="zVOW68"&gt;Round 4 —- S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson —- Round 3 —- steal&lt;/li&gt;
  34. &lt;li id="TqCNjb"&gt;Round 5 —- ED Xavier Thomas —- Round 5 —- on the money&lt;/li&gt;
  35. &lt;li id="sYOeG9"&gt;Round 5 —- T Christian Jones, Texas —- Round 4 —- steal&lt;/li&gt;
  36. &lt;li id="CK5U3R"&gt;Round 6 —- WR Tejhuan Palmer, UAB —- PFA (Priority Free Agent) —- super sleeper?&lt;/li&gt;
  37. &lt;li id="RHf233"&gt;Round 7 —- CB Jaden Davis, Miami —- PFA —- in the ballpark&lt;/li&gt;
  38. &lt;li id="b7AWGd"&gt;PFA —- WR Xavier Weaver, Colorado —- Round 6 —- steal&lt;/li&gt;
  39. &lt;li id="Rklh3i"&gt;PFA —- DT Myles Murphy, North Carolina —- PFA —- on the money&lt;/li&gt;
  40. &lt;li id="fFyE8u"&gt;PFA —- LS Joe Shimko, North Carolina St. —- PFA —- given&lt;/li&gt;
  41. &lt;/ul&gt;
  42. &lt;p id="rgWOLR"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ROTB Poll:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  43. &lt;div id="1FEbzq"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="poll:12325634"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  44. &lt;p id="QwVU5s"&gt;Your thoughts?&lt;/p&gt;
  45. &lt;p id="BQt9Ky"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ROTB Question of the Day:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  46. &lt;p id="sdhHux"&gt;Max Melton calls himself “The Chameleon” because of the pride he takes in his versatility and ability to adapt to situational challenges. Dadrion Taylor-Demerson is already widely known as “The Rabbit” because of the quick way he scoots after the carrot (football). &lt;/p&gt;
  47. &lt;p id="XQ1N4v"&gt;What do you think would be an apt anthropomorphic name for one or more of the other Cardinals’ draft picks?&lt;/p&gt;
  48. &lt;p id="aLYzKE"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  49. &lt;p id="FpUQrP"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  50. &lt;p id="EDg1U9"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  51. &lt;p id="4dOxiK"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  52. &lt;p id="ve9v9D"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  53.  
  54. </content>
  55.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149540/the-cardinals-draft-and-cfas-per-dane-bruglers-the-beast"/>
  56.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149540/the-cardinals-draft-and-cfas-per-dane-bruglers-the-beast</id>
  57.    <author>
  58.      <name>Walter Mitchell</name>
  59.    </author>
  60.  </entry>
  61.  <entry>
  62.    <published>2024-05-05T08:00:00-06:00</published>
  63.    <updated>2024-05-05T08:00:00-06:00</updated>
  64.    <title>Cardinals Reacts Survey: Arizona Cardinals are big winners coming out of the 2024 NFL Draft</title>
  65.    <content type="html">  
  66.  
  67.    &lt;figure&gt;
  68.      &lt;img alt="2024 NFL Draft - Portraits" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3Ru-J1ZpVeh4_13h3TCDaCzvkHY=/0x0:5616x3744/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73328249/2150249851.0.jpg" /&gt;
  69.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  70.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  71.  
  72.  &lt;p&gt;Fans are almost unanimous in their opinions that the Arizona Cardinals were big winners.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="jO2w7L"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Arizona Cardinals&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; fans and fans across the country. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/EFIUQ7/"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Sign up here&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  73. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="b6zUWa"&gt;
  74. &lt;p id="M1bdIB"&gt;It is almost a consensus, which is hard to believe with NFL fans since no one agrees on anything.&lt;/p&gt;
  75. &lt;p id="ynV6zT"&gt;Yet, almost everyone agrees that the Arizona Cardinals were winners coming out of the 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-draft"&gt;NFL Draft&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  76. &lt;p id="HHJuHX"&gt;As 97% think the Arizona Cardinals were winners.&lt;/p&gt;
  77.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  78.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/XY-C-ffYCJleZW4IkHJ9VWSWnI8=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25433642/Arizona_1_050124.png"&gt;
  79.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  80. &lt;p id="uxx6AD"&gt;That is not a shock, as the Arizona Cardinals were widely considered to have a top 10 draft coming out of the 2024 NFL Draft.&lt;/p&gt;
  81. &lt;p id="przSsF"&gt;In fact, in the consensus draft grades the Cardinals are currently sitting at sixth, which is impressive.&lt;/p&gt;
  82. &lt;p id="jljET7"&gt;We know what the Cardinals did in the 2024 NFL Draft, now we need to see what the players can do on the field in the NFL.&lt;/p&gt;
  83. &lt;p id="IjmoeX"&gt;Then we can truly determine if they are winners.&lt;/p&gt;
  84. &lt;p id="SnpJ9v"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Check out &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/featured?wpcid=163864&amp;amp;wpcn=SBNation&amp;amp;wpcrid=Reacts&amp;amp;wpscn=Social&amp;amp;wpsrc=Vox&amp;amp;category=live-in-game"&gt;&lt;em&gt;DraftKings Sportsbook&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;, the official &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/featured"&gt;&lt;em&gt;sportsbook&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; partner of SB Nation.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  85. &lt;p id="msDNAG"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  86. &lt;p id="bygVVn"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  87.  
  88. </content>
  89.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149082/arizona-cardinals-are-big-winners-coming-out-of-the-2024-nfl-draft"/>
  90.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149082/arizona-cardinals-are-big-winners-coming-out-of-the-2024-nfl-draft</id>
  91.    <author>
  92.      <name>Seth Cox</name>
  93.    </author>
  94.  </entry>
  95.  <entry>
  96.    <published>2024-05-05T05:00:00-06:00</published>
  97.    <updated>2024-05-05T05:00:00-06:00</updated>
  98.    <title>Grades, reactions to Arizona Cardinals’ 2024 draft class </title>
  99.    <content type="html">  
  100.  
  101.    &lt;figure&gt;
  102.      &lt;img alt="2024 NFL Draft - Portraits" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9Uz0NUEfrtnI0UKgOeXxLwSif8Y=/0x0:5433x3622/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73328066/2150316061.0.jpg" /&gt;
  103.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  104.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  105.  
  106.  &lt;p&gt;The Arizona Cardinals 2024 NFL Draft class in review.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="IPcUeT"&gt;Happy Sunday one and all.&lt;/p&gt;
  107. &lt;p id="EgXlaq"&gt;A long weekend for yours truly, as we had state baseball and two seven-on-seven tournaments between three kids.&lt;/p&gt;
  108. &lt;p id="x9o1Te"&gt;Yet, we survived.&lt;/p&gt;
  109. &lt;p id="09sxdD"&gt;To kick off your Sunday Jess and I discuss the 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-draft"&gt;NFL Draft&lt;/a&gt;, and the &lt;a href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/"&gt;Arizona Cardinals&lt;/a&gt; moves within it.&lt;/p&gt;
  110. &lt;p id="G2npt1"&gt;This is a long one, but thought it would be perfect to kick off your Sunday with and sit back, relax and enjoy.&lt;/p&gt;
  111. &lt;p id="P8HI4f"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Enjoy the show with the embedded player above or by subscribing to the show on &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rise-up-see-red-podcast/id670822447?mt=2"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Apple Podcasts&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;, &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/27gxR7Oml5yVPywhOG8KHR?si=cGJ0FN6aRBquiLus5nj7rw"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Spotify&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt; or your favorite podcast platform, so you never miss a show. Make sure as well to give it a five-star rating!&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  112. &lt;p id="QSSKLk"&gt;Times and topics:&lt;/p&gt;
  113. &lt;p id="pmtrCA"&gt;&lt;em&gt;(1:00) Mock draft results and reactions to Round 1 of the draft&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  114. &lt;p id="oNfqtT"&gt;&lt;em&gt;(20:42) The Cardinals’ two first-round picks&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  115. &lt;p id="nBulkz"&gt;&lt;em&gt;(43:32) The Cardinals’ five picks and two trades on Day 2&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  116. &lt;p id="jBDylq"&gt;&lt;em&gt;(1:13:59) The Cardinals’ five picks on Day 3&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  117. &lt;div id="8W51pv"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 80%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://widget.spreaker.com/player?episode_id=59749654&amp;amp;playlist=show&amp;amp;cover_image_url=https%3A%2F%2Fd3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net%2Fimages.spreaker.com%2Foriginal%2F8cf8c3998e26fdbdc0bdc2d40529ddaa.jpg" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  118.  
  119. </content>
  120.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149080/grades-reactions-to-arizona-cardinals-2024-draft-class-marvin-harrison-jr-darius-robinson-max-melton"/>
  121.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/5/24149080/grades-reactions-to-arizona-cardinals-2024-draft-class-marvin-harrison-jr-darius-robinson-max-melton</id>
  122.    <author>
  123.      <name>Seth Cox</name>
  124.    </author>
  125.  </entry>
  126.  <entry>
  127.    <published>2024-05-03T10:00:00-06:00</published>
  128.    <updated>2024-05-03T10:00:00-06:00</updated>
  129.    <title>Get to know the Arizona Cardinals 2024 undrafted free agents: Joe Shimko has been perfect as a long snapper</title>
  130.    <content type="html">  
  131.  
  132.    &lt;figure&gt;
  133.      &lt;img alt="NCAA Football: Louisville at North Carolina State" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oJAgZVyU3SZtAGb3jyb8qRG7BSI=/0x38:2312x1579/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73325200/usa_today_21532608.0.jpg" /&gt;
  134.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  135.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  136.  
  137.  &lt;p&gt;The Arizona Cardinals brought in a long snapper to compete with their veteran.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="X8UpUc"&gt;Happy Friday one and all.&lt;/p&gt;
  138. &lt;p id="by3OMy"&gt;The &lt;a href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/"&gt;Arizona Cardinals&lt;/a&gt; made a plethora of moves in their 12 person 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-draft"&gt;NFL Draft&lt;/a&gt;, that followed up their nine-man 2023 NFL Draft class, and all nine are still with the team.&lt;/p&gt;
  139. &lt;p id="XZAeIV"&gt;That explains the three-man practice squad for the 2024 NFL Draft class.&lt;/p&gt;
  140. &lt;p id="U5k68e"&gt;Today, we take a look at another of the Arizona Cardinals undrafted free agents.&lt;/p&gt;
  141. &lt;p id="9OOXmw"&gt;Joe Shimko, an intriguing long-snapping prospect from North Carolina State.&lt;/p&gt;
  142. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="UTepAz"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Shimko&lt;/strong&gt; (6-0, 233) snapped in 62 games over the past five seasons at N.C. State and won the Patrick Mannelly Award following the 2023 season as the nation’s top long snapper. A three-time All-American selection, Shimko was named second-team All-American in each of the past two seasons. He finished his college career with 12 total tackles on special teams and was perfect on all 607 snaps while at N.C. State. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  143. &lt;p id="eGXbay"&gt;We will see if the size of Shimko is an issue, but he has been a great snapper for five years.&lt;/p&gt;
  144. &lt;p id="MPr5uU"&gt;Welcome to the desert, Joe and good luck.&lt;/p&gt;
  145.  
  146. </content>
  147.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/3/24148112/arizona-cardinals-2024-undrafted-free-agents-joe-shimko-has-been-perfect-as-a-long-snapper"/>
  148.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/3/24148112/arizona-cardinals-2024-undrafted-free-agents-joe-shimko-has-been-perfect-as-a-long-snapper</id>
  149.    <author>
  150.      <name>Seth Cox</name>
  151.    </author>
  152.  </entry>
  153.  <entry>
  154.    <published>2024-05-02T12:00:30-06:00</published>
  155.    <updated>2024-05-02T12:00:30-06:00</updated>
  156.    <title>Get to know the Arizona Cardinals 2024 undrafted free agents: Myles Murphy offers size, and an anchor in the middle</title>
  157.    <content type="html">  
  158.  
  159.    &lt;figure&gt;
  160.      &lt;img alt="Syracuse v North Carolina" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/TvxDdL8jCqGIRymdD3-g_6l8Iwc=/0x0:3717x2478/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73323179/1727906148.0.jpg" /&gt;
  161.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  162.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  163.  
  164.  &lt;p&gt;The UNC defensive lineman is a big man who can help along the defensive line&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="C5R7kZ"&gt;Every year we take a look at the undrafted free agents the &lt;a href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/"&gt;Arizona Cardinals&lt;/a&gt; sign.&lt;/p&gt;
  165. &lt;p id="gd01cD"&gt;This year, with a 12-man 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-draft"&gt;NFL Draft&lt;/a&gt; class, the free agent list was much shorter, but these three deserve their time.&lt;/p&gt;
  166. &lt;p id="T69ANv"&gt;Let’s start with North Carolina defensive tackle Myles Murphy.&lt;/p&gt;
  167. &lt;p id="SllD18"&gt;From Football Gameplan:&lt;/p&gt;
  168. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  169. &lt;p id="OmVXju"&gt;Strengths: &lt;/p&gt;
  170. &lt;p id="FXYlTf"&gt;- Love the hustle in which he plays with, has a non-stop motor and ends up making some plays because of it. &lt;/p&gt;
  171. &lt;p id="Wcg9uQ"&gt;- Gets off the ball rather well and quickly into the line of scrimmage. At times his ball get off catches the lineman by surprise and he’s able to get into the backfield. &lt;/p&gt;
  172. &lt;p id="9K6uoe"&gt;- Works his hands well. Has a nice swim over chop that is both efficient and effective for him. &lt;/p&gt;
  173. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  174. &lt;p id="Pg4SGB"&gt;Murphy is a big man at 6-4 and 310lbs, but he did not test well, and his production while at UNC was limited.&lt;/p&gt;
  175. &lt;p id="UsL1Sd"&gt;However, he is disciplined and his work ethic will give him a chance to find an spot on an NFL Practice Squad and maybe even an NFL roster one day.&lt;/p&gt;
  176. &lt;p id="Ea2H6r"&gt;Welcome to the desert, Myles Murphy.&lt;/p&gt;
  177.  
  178. </content>
  179.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/2/24147364/arizona-cardinals-2024-undrafted-free-agents-myles-murphy-offers-size-and-an-anchor-in-the-middle"/>
  180.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/2/24147364/arizona-cardinals-2024-undrafted-free-agents-myles-murphy-offers-size-and-an-anchor-in-the-middle</id>
  181.    <author>
  182.      <name>Seth Cox</name>
  183.    </author>
  184.  </entry>
  185.  <entry>
  186.    <published>2024-05-02T08:04:38-06:00</published>
  187.    <updated>2024-05-02T08:04:38-06:00</updated>
  188.    <title>2024 Arizona Cardinals’ Draft Trends</title>
  189.    <content type="html">  
  190.  
  191.    &lt;figure&gt;
  192.      &lt;img alt="2024 NFL Draft - Portraits" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ITMsVLz_Ra_p4LSNTrPyueW2ROk=/0x0:5433x3622/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73322491/2150316061.0.jpg" /&gt;
  193.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  194.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  195.  
  196.  &lt;p&gt;How Monti Ossenfort and Dave Sears Cater Their Draft Approach&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="asoY4t"&gt;Now that the Cardinals 2024 draft is in the books, it’s interesting to connect the dots with a specific regard to Monti Ossenfort’s and Dave Sears&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;’ modus operandi.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  197. &lt;p id="XrT4Fb"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 1&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  198. &lt;div id="KawjyE"&gt;
  199. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  200. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Every pick from the 2024 &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NFLDraft?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#NFLDraft&lt;/a&gt;   Who won?   &lt;a href="https://t.co/LyeNJyp2sl"&gt;pic.twitter.com/LyeNJyp2sl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782370114867672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  201. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  202. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  203.  
  204. &lt;/div&gt;
  205. &lt;p id="sKhAiq"&gt;Round 1 Themes: Size, Athleticism, Playmaking Ability&lt;/p&gt;
  206. &lt;ul&gt;
  207. &lt;li id="h9lnpf"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;WR Marvin Harrison Jr. —- 6’4” 218&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  208. &lt;li id="2VXytv"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;DI Darious Robinson —- 6’5” 275&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  209. &lt;/ul&gt;
  210. &lt;p id="Q2ywWh"&gt;Round 2&lt;/p&gt;
  211. &lt;div id="qOUlki"&gt;
  212. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  213. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/95m571hOdR"&gt;pic.twitter.com/95m571hOdR&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782372065251506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  214. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  215. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  216.  
  217. &lt;/div&gt;
  218. &lt;p id="BNM1Yq"&gt;Round 2 Themes: Length, Speed, Agility, Vertical Jump, Ball Skills&lt;/p&gt;
  219. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="y6BZIL"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CB Max Melton —- 5’11 193, 4.39, 40.5” V&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  220. &lt;p id="kGppcA"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 3&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  221. &lt;div id="SK39Bt"&gt;
  222. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  223. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/EeUhv6jnCU"&gt;pic.twitter.com/EeUhv6jnCU&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782374325969330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  224. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  225. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  226.  
  227. &lt;/div&gt;
  228. &lt;p id="8axGbg"&gt;Round 3 Themes: Size, Speed, Brute Strength, Playmaking Ability&lt;/p&gt;
  229. &lt;ul&gt;
  230. &lt;li id="49Moj6"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;RB Trey Benson —- 6’0” 223, 4.39, 23 reps&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  231. &lt;li id="r6ylNM"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;G Isaiah Adams —- 6’4” 318, 1.8 ten-yd. split, 22 reps&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  232. &lt;li id="dOgjzk"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;TE Tip Reiman —- 6’5” 268, 4.64, 28. reps&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  233. &lt;li id="gl7GiT"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CB Elijah Jones —- 6’2” 183, 4.44, 42.5” V&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  234. &lt;/ul&gt;
  235. &lt;p id="dJnsYf"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 4&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  236. &lt;div id="xeeKCF"&gt;
  237. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  238. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/i7cIKVFoAS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/i7cIKVFoAS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782376465141993?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  239. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  240. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  241.  
  242. &lt;/div&gt;
  243. &lt;p id="B5O7El"&gt;Round 4 Themes: Speed, Flexibility, Versatility, Playmaking Ability, Ball Skills&lt;/p&gt;
  244. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="0nkgB0"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson —- 5’10” 189 4.41, 38” V&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  245. &lt;p id="qu7hWM"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 5&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  246. &lt;div id="v2gLfU"&gt;
  247. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  248. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/K1O9SEJ85y"&gt;pic.twitter.com/K1O9SEJ85y&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782378654474549?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  249. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  250. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  251.  
  252. &lt;/div&gt;
  253. &lt;p id="werG59"&gt;Round 5 Themes: Speed, Quickness, Strength, Arm Length&lt;/p&gt;
  254. &lt;ul&gt;
  255. &lt;li id="d7jTK5"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ED Xavier Thomas —- 6’2” 247 4.62, 1.67 ten-yd split, 28 reps&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  256. &lt;li id="XIjE1s"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;T Christian Jones —- 6’5”, 320 5,04, 1.78 ten-yd split, 34.5” arms&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  257. &lt;/ul&gt;
  258. &lt;p id="P3qort"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  259. &lt;p id="7M233B"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 6&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  260. &lt;div id="B3xfXN"&gt;
  261. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  262. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/3FhCtGkdWP"&gt;pic.twitter.com/3FhCtGkdWP&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782380462326064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  263. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  264. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  265.  
  266. &lt;/div&gt;
  267. &lt;p id="yB5ljy"&gt;Round 6 Themes: Size, Athleticism, Strength, Arm length&lt;/p&gt;
  268. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="Ibd84B"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;WR Tejhuan Palmer —- 6’2”, 210 4.45, 35” V, 33.8” arms&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  269. &lt;p id="uAjabd"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Round 7&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  270. &lt;div id="nVrIWi"&gt;
  271. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none"&gt;
  272. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/gPe3llRDEf"&gt;pic.twitter.com/gPe3llRDEf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NFL (@NFL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1785782382580424961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  273. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  274. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  275.  
  276. &lt;/div&gt;
  277. &lt;p id="E7ZLQo"&gt;Round 7 Theme: Baller DB With Rare Burst to the Ball&lt;/p&gt;
  278. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="8OECrs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Jaden Davis —- 5’10, 182 4.44 1.49 ten-yd split, 35.5” V&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  279. &lt;p id="S4zqJi"&gt;Summary&lt;/p&gt;
  280. &lt;p id="npZTzp"&gt;After Monti Ossenfort’s and Dave sears’ first two drafts in Arizona, it is clear that they have precise physical coefficients in addition to production and leadership grades for prospects at each position. These eval coefficients help them tailor and taper their draft board.&lt;/p&gt;
  281. &lt;p id="p1IynY"&gt;Interestingly, a couple of weeks ago when Monti was asked by the Arizona media how many players are on his draft board, he declined to answer.&lt;/p&gt;
  282. &lt;p id="rg0Vj0"&gt;My guess is that their board is somewhere in the vicinity of 120. &lt;/p&gt;
  283. &lt;p id="8mREct"&gt;In my opinion, a tapered down Big Board is very smart, because it creates greater clarity with each upcoming pick —- and, best of all —- it shows how independent MODS are with regard to so-called “consensus” picks. &lt;/p&gt;
  284. &lt;p id="C4zu6N"&gt;Essentially, MODS’ draft goal is to add highly productive and charismatic prospects who possess high caliber physical traits that make the roster bigger, faster and stronger.  &lt;/p&gt;
  285. &lt;p id="dQcSWm"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ROTB Poll:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  286. &lt;div id="Ql0OXR"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="poll:12323352"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  287. &lt;p id="FeI1el"&gt;How did you vote and why?&lt;/p&gt;
  288. &lt;p id="DwboDY"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  289. &lt;p id="ANwBJt"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  290. &lt;p id="JvKk2f"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  291. &lt;p id="gLURZO"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  292.  
  293. </content>
  294.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/2/24147093/2024-arizona-cardinals-draft-trends"/>
  295.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/2/24147093/2024-arizona-cardinals-draft-trends</id>
  296.    <author>
  297.      <name>Walter Mitchell</name>
  298.    </author>
  299.  </entry>
  300.  <entry>
  301.    <published>2024-05-01T11:30:00-06:00</published>
  302.    <updated>2024-05-01T11:30:00-06:00</updated>
  303.    <title>Arizona Cardinals get high remarks for their 2024 NFL Draft</title>
  304.    <content type="html">  
  305.  
  306.    &lt;figure&gt;
  307.      &lt;img alt="Syndication: Detroit Free Press" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/7LcDc19bi7cKXJFdA_atWW6zRfo=/0x0:2367x1578/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73320589/usa_today_23118610.0.jpg" /&gt;
  308.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  309.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  310.  
  311.  &lt;p&gt;The Arizona Cardinals had one of the better drafts in 2024 according to the consensus.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="7vbl6k"&gt;As grades have filtered out over the last week since the 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-draft"&gt;NFL Draft&lt;/a&gt;, we have waited to see how things fell.&lt;/p&gt;
  312. &lt;p id="9QBZHO"&gt;For the &lt;a href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/"&gt;Arizona Cardinals&lt;/a&gt;, it was almost universally loved, which is really hard to believe.&lt;/p&gt;
  313. &lt;p id="Sp2AOp"&gt;Look at what Rene Bugner compiled:&lt;/p&gt;
  314. &lt;div id="DPSqJE"&gt;
  315. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  316. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;   ‍  I´ve compiled 20 evaluations of the 2024 NFL draft and totaled the team grades. &lt;br&gt;Here is the spreadsheet. Sorted by GPA for all 32 teams.&lt;br&gt;I also sorted the 20 evaluations by GPA. From left (soft graders) to right (hard graders).&lt;br&gt;Thanks to all who give out grades every year! &lt;a href="https://t.co/53EozhxKQT"&gt;pic.twitter.com/53EozhxKQT&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— René Bugner (@RNBWCV) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RNBWCV/status/1784675268193305036?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 28, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  317. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  318. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  319.  
  320. &lt;/div&gt;
  321. &lt;p id="HZOZD8"&gt;The Cardinals ended up with a 3.61 total on a scale of 4.0.  The top team, the &lt;a href="https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/"&gt;Pittsburgh Steelers&lt;/a&gt; were at 3.92, the bottom team, the &lt;a href="https://www.thefalcoholic.com/"&gt;Atlanta Falcons&lt;/a&gt; were at 1.68.&lt;/p&gt;
  322. &lt;p id="Ns5kjr"&gt;So, for the Cardinals coming in sixth out of 32 teams is an improvement, especially when you look at the top ten.&lt;/p&gt;
  323. &lt;ol&gt;
  324. &lt;li id="5wJkwC"&gt;Pittsburgh Steelers - 2023 NFL Playoff team, perennial playoff team, no losing seasons under Mike Tomlin&lt;/li&gt;
  325. &lt;li id="d9lkvF"&gt;
  326. &lt;a href="https://www.windycitygridiron.com/"&gt;Chicago Bears&lt;/a&gt; - Two top ten picks, a highly lauded offseason in 2024.&lt;/li&gt;
  327. &lt;li id="WcsqV7"&gt;
  328. &lt;a href="https://www.bleedinggreennation.com/"&gt;Philadelphia Eagles&lt;/a&gt; - Really, no notes needed.&lt;/li&gt;
  329. &lt;li id="G9j9D8"&gt;
  330. &lt;a href="https://www.hogshaven.com/"&gt;Washington Commanders&lt;/a&gt; - Starting anew... again.&lt;/li&gt;
  331. &lt;li id="5uf3Zj"&gt;Kasnas City Chiefs - Decent franchise&lt;/li&gt;
  332. &lt;li id="VjVwSF"&gt;Cardinals&lt;/li&gt;
  333. &lt;li id="M4TfEc"&gt;
  334. &lt;a href="https://www.boltsfromtheblue.com/"&gt;Los Angeles Chargers&lt;/a&gt; - Looked at as one of the big offseason winners&lt;/li&gt;
  335. &lt;li id="XC2cUZ"&gt;
  336. &lt;a href="https://www.baltimorebeatdown.com/"&gt;Baltimore Ravens&lt;/a&gt; - Decent franchise&lt;/li&gt;
  337. &lt;li id="D0qul1"&gt;
  338. &lt;a href="https://www.turfshowtimes.com/"&gt;Los Angeles Rams&lt;/a&gt; - Only been great under Sean McVay&lt;/li&gt;
  339. &lt;li id="S2wNCE"&gt;
  340. &lt;a href="https://www.stampedeblue.com/"&gt;Indianapolis Colts&lt;/a&gt; - Fought for a playoff spot in 2023&lt;/li&gt;
  341. &lt;/ol&gt;
  342. &lt;p id="SJJ5F8"&gt;Look at the franchises they were around, that is just good company to be in.&lt;/p&gt;
  343.  
  344. </content>
  345.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/1/24146475/arizona-cardinals-2024-nfl-draft-grades"/>
  346.    <id>https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2024/5/1/24146475/arizona-cardinals-2024-nfl-draft-grades</id>
  347.    <author>
  348.      <name>Seth Cox</name>
  349.    </author>
  350.  </entry>
  351.  <entry>
  352.    <published>2024-05-01T08:58:28-06:00</published>
  353.    <updated>2024-05-01T08:58:28-06:00</updated>
  354.    <title>Should Mel Kiper one day be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame?</title>
  355.    <content type="html">  
  356.  
  357.    &lt;figure&gt;
  358.      &lt;img alt="NFL: APR 29 2023 Draft" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/v1OmPPHSuKKWdp2eakjMbL5IZ6A=/4x0:6000x3997/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73320098/1252451670.0.jpg" /&gt;
  359.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  360.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  361.  
  362.  &lt;p&gt;Here is a deep dive into Mel Kiper’s NFL Draft legacy on ESPN&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="31aSoz"&gt;This year on Day 3 of the NFL Draft, ESPN’s Matt Miller posed the question:&lt;/p&gt;
  363. &lt;div id="ktNmsW"&gt;
  364. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  365. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;ESPN colleague Matt Miller called for Mel Kiper Jr's induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  &lt;a href="https://t.co/RAfHq2hN2c"&gt;https://t.co/RAfHq2hN2c&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1784956806571147388?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 29, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  366. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  367. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  368.  
  369. &lt;/div&gt;
  370. &lt;p id="iiPqNH"&gt;What single person has done the most to enhance the intrigue, evolution and popularity of the NFL Draft?&lt;/p&gt;
  371. &lt;p id="t9PzTD"&gt;Here is a story I have told before, but for those of you who have yet to hear it, it may be worth repeating. &lt;/p&gt;
  372. &lt;p id="6WPcjH"&gt;Back in the day when NFL drafts were held in conference rooms in a New York City hotel, were 12 rounds long and not televised (and you had to read the results in the newspaper the next day), I was so starved and desperate for information about a Cardinals’ draft that I called Cardinals’ headquarters posing as an NFL columnist for the Boston Herald and asked to speak with GM George Boone. &lt;/p&gt;
  373. &lt;p id="jRbZMC"&gt;Much to my surprise, after the cordial secretary connected me to George Boone’s office, he picked up the call. Mind you, this was the day after the draft. I introduced myself and said that I was writing a draft recap for teams in the NFC East (which back then were the Giants, Eagles, Redskins, Cowboys and Cardinals) and that if he could give me a few minutes I would appreciate hearing the rationale for his 12 picks.&lt;/p&gt;
  374. &lt;p id="xwGlru"&gt;George Boone could not have been nicer or more accommodating. He gave me a whole hour of his time and answered every one of my questions. I felt so grateful to the point where I felt such a profound and poignant pang of guilt when Mr. Boone asked me to mail him my article —- which, of course, I assured him I would. &lt;/p&gt;
  375. &lt;p id="NSu8JT"&gt;Thanks to Mel Kiper and Pro Football Weekly’s Joel Bushbaum who started selling their yearly NFL Draft guides, I and thousands of other NFL fans who were draft thirsty for info about the players selected in the drafts, could find great satisfaction in Mel’s and Joel’s outstanding reports. &lt;/p&gt;
  376. &lt;p id="O8BaFU"&gt;In 1979 when Mel Kiper was a senior in high school, he wrote his first Draft Guide and sent it to all of the GMs in the NFL. The GM closest to Mel’s home at the time was the Baltimore Colts’ GM Ernie Accorsi. Accorsi was so impressed that he wanted to hire Mel as his assistant. Not only that, Accorsi kept encouraging Mel to keep publishing his Blue Books —- sensing that there would be such a strong market for them. &lt;/p&gt;
  377. &lt;p id="PyYzRy"&gt;This weekend Mel explained that Accorsi back in 1983 advised him to take his reports to a jam-packed draft convention for Colts’ fans to see what kind of reaction he would get. Mel said he was overwhelmed by the reception that he and his Blue Book received from the fans. &lt;/p&gt;
  378. &lt;p id="UeHl3h"&gt;Upon Accorsi’s urging, Mel traveled to Bristol, CT to meet with ESPN about being hired as an analyst on the eve of the first televised draft (in 1984). While Mel was tempted to stay on as Ernie Accorsi’ assistant, when ESPN offered him the job, he couldn’t refuse. Per reports, Mel’s first-year salary at ESPN in 1984 was $400.&lt;/p&gt;
  379. &lt;p id="X9pSyP"&gt;It was during that inaugural NFL Draft in 1984 that I and thousands of other NFL fans were made aware of Mel’s Blue Books. I bought my first of dozens Blue Books that year. In fact, when I called in my order, Mel picked up the phone. When I informed him that I am a Cardinals’ fan, he offered some of his thoughts about the Cardinals draft. I will never forget Mel urging me to keep an eye on the Cardinals'’ 8th round pick, LB Niko Noga from Hawaii. Mel was touting Nico as one of his “super sleepers.”&lt;/p&gt;
  380. &lt;p id="YU0CJY"&gt;Over the first few years it was easy to contact Mel. And he was always eager to talk to his customers. But before long, Mel was so much in demand and was so busy watching film that he, quite understandably, didn’t have to keep answering the phone. &lt;/p&gt;
  381. &lt;p id="VLnpKQ"&gt;Mel Kiper and Joel Bushbaum were the world’s first &lt;em&gt;bona fide&lt;/em&gt; draftniks. What made Joel’s PFW Draft Previews so popular is how he had the guts to spend equal time for each prospect on strengths and weaknesses —- which, of course, is common practice today. &lt;/p&gt;
  382. &lt;p id="6GAq0B"&gt;But it’s important to acknowledge that Mel and Joel were the first draft analysts to provide 1st and 2nd round mocks. &lt;/p&gt;
  383. &lt;p id="nO3c8N"&gt;Therefore, as I watched Mel this past weekend sitting on the panel all three days as he has always done for the past 40 years —- and still being able to roll out info with regard to even the most obscure super sleeper prospects in the country, unlike anyone known to mankind —- I couldn’t help but think of how much in awe Mel should have been with how the NFL Draft has grown into such a national showcase that generates so many millions of viewers —- and how the draft is now coming to different NFL towns each year like the Super Bowl —- and how mock draft simulators have helped millions of fans become avid draftniks themselves!&lt;/p&gt;
  384. &lt;p id="BLr59e"&gt;Back in 1984 when it all began, no one but Mel and Joel would have ever considered LB Nico Noga as a draft sleeper. Yet, today, thanks to all of the easy draft info on the internet, thanks to the NFL Combine, to countless NFL Draft previews and 7-round mock drafts and to mock draft simulators —- Day 3 prospects like “The Rabbit” (aka safety Dadrion Taylor-Demerson from Texas Tech) and tackle Christian Jones from Texas have become household names for draftniks. &lt;/p&gt;
  385. &lt;p id="7QIeIc"&gt;Amazing too that during Day 3 of the NFL Draft, Brett Kollmann and E.J. Snyder of Gridiron Football had 3,500 info-thirsty draft zealots opt to join their “live” video in order to hear their takes of each pick. &lt;/p&gt;
  386. &lt;p id="Yiutya"&gt;The fascinating thing about the NFL Draft is how right and wrong the teams and the draftniks’ opinions and projections about prospects can be. We now live in an NFL world where a 6th round pick at QB has won more Super Bowls than any other QB —- and where this past February a “Mr. Irrelevant” QB in his 2nd season as a surprise starter came within a whisker of beating three-time Super Bowl Champion MVP QB Patrick Mahomes.&lt;/p&gt;
  387. &lt;p id="h2nUbp"&gt;It just goes to show that EVERY one of 256+ picks a year can matter. &lt;/p&gt;
  388. &lt;p id="WfsiAi"&gt;And it just goes to prove the value of a draftnik who knows a plethora on info on EVERY single prospect, the way Mel Kiper, year after year, expertly and tirelessly manages to do. &lt;/p&gt;
  389. &lt;p id="m9Ju3B"&gt;Should Mel Kiper one day be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame?&lt;/p&gt;
  390. &lt;p id="4g9mMN"&gt;That is a question, like most NFL Draft related questions that can be debated and discussed for years to come. &lt;/p&gt;
  391. &lt;p id="LrOSvY"&gt;In some ways this video about the infamous 1994 draft speaks volumes about Mel Kiper’s 4-decades long stamp on the NFL Draft —- the high school senior in 1979 who had a passion for knowledge about the pros and cons of draft eligible players across the USA and abroad —- a complete unknown who turned that passion into a legacy that no other football fan on the planet can possibly emulate.&lt;/p&gt;
  392. &lt;p id="s42Gsu"&gt;Be sure to take this trip down memory lane —- with a click.&lt;/p&gt;
  393. &lt;p id="04Ozu3"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYwfxtFbga8"&gt;Mel Kiper And The Crazy Feud That Changed the TV Draft Forever | NFL 1994 Draft Story (youtube.com)&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  394. &lt;p id="vM3CJr"&gt;P.S. RIP Chris Mortenson —- missed you, your insights and your class so much this year, Mort. &lt;/p&gt;
  395. &lt;p id="Fbcovu"&gt;Regardless of what accolades Mel Kiper, the inventor of “The Big Board”, receives for his uncanny career as the original draftnik on ESPN’s coverage of the NFL Draft, what one person has done more to enhance the intrigue, evolution and popularity of the NFL Draft than any other?&lt;/p&gt;
  396. &lt;p id="ZtM6bY"&gt;The question can be answered in one tidy word:&lt;/p&gt;
  397. &lt;p id="7D0K3Y"&gt;Mel&lt;/p&gt;
  398. &lt;p id="O07FZU"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  399. &lt;p id="Kupj6d"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  400. &lt;p id="cmMNLz"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  401. &lt;p id="kcMXxv"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  402.  
  403. </content>
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  406.    <author>
  407.      <name>Walter Mitchell</name>
  408.    </author>
  409.  </entry>
  410. </feed>
  411.  

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