Dowagiac: Want to double your cap space? Cut Kevin Jones. Bock has already said to expect it and we do. Also, Lions Jon Kitna is offically the best second-string starter in NFL history.


2007 MFL Draft Previews - Part Four of Four
Rookies will go 1-2-3
(August 7) With only 22 wins in four seasons, including only 7 wins at home, and a .390 winning percentage with zero playoff appearances, there have been grumblings in central Wisconsin about the job of head coach/GM Josh Stuckey. In order to save it, he'll need a killer season in 2007. To have a killer season, he'll need a killer draft. He will.

The Aardvarks will take rookie RB Adrian Peterson with their third overall pick. Peterson has had some injuries in the past, but his legs look primo heading into his first MFL campaign. The former Heisman hopeful will get an increased number of carries as the season progresses, which will translate into more scoring opportunities. Peterson could eclipse current Varks starter Clinton Portis by the middle of the season, that is, if he's still on the roster. (His $8.6 million salary may be too steep to keep both.)

Once the first round ends, Arkdale will look for a solid backup receiver. They will find one in the form of another rookie sensation, WR Anthony Gonzalez. He has tremendous potential to touch the ball often as the third option in the Colts offense. Much like another Vark receiver, Reggie Wayne, did in drawing defenses away from double-teaming Marvin Harrison, Gonzalez could draw them away from double-teaming Wayne.

Chicago is in a big-time bind. They have no money going into the draft and are stuggling to figure out what to do to leave the MFL's basement. GM Jeremy Bonk's penchant for quarterbacks may finally pay off if, and only if, they can solve their money problems and snag QB JaMarcus Russell with the second pick. In order to make that deal work, RB Rudi Johnson will probably have to be let go before the draft. Regardless of how it gets done, Russell would instantly be the best on the Ravens squad. He's like a rookie Daunte Culpepper, but maybe even better.

Another problem spot for the Ravens is at receiver. WRs Jerricho Cotchery or Mark Clayton would add credibility to a severely depleted corps. Both have experience finding the endzone, something that Chicago will desperately need in order win more than one game at Soldier Field this season.

Finally, the moment you have all been waiting for. On Sunday, you'll hear...

With the first pick in the 2007 MFL Draft, the Missouri Peregrines select University of California runningback Marshawn Lynch

Lynch will start from day one and could give Missouri the best backfield tandem in the league with fully-recovered RB Shaun Alexander. Although Lynch will more than likely share the Bills load with Anthony Thomas, he will emerge as the main man very quickly.

After the Grines take Lynch, they'll turn their attention to the tight end position since current starter Alge Crumpler is banged up and aging. Rookies Greg Olsen and Matt Spaeth might be good insurance, along with young standout Tony Scheffler.

It could be a first. The South Bend Scraps have three first round picks. We honestly don't expect the Scraps to have three first-rounders in their clutches by the end, but it's very possible that they use some or all of those picks as leverage to move up. If not, South Bend will take rookie RB Brandon Jackson at four. After the top two rookie runningbacks in the NFL Draft, Jackson has the best shot at starting for his club. Some say that RB Vernand Morency will get the lion's share of Green Bay's carries, but believe that Jackson will start to emerge as the main man behind Brett Favre by October. Dude can catch as well, something that Morency can't do well. Finally, his frame is nearly a mirror image of that of a young U of A runningback who didn't get recognition until mid-way though the 2001 season: Shaun Alexander. South Bend might have a year to wait until they see him pay dividends, but it could be sweet after '07.

2007 MFL Draft Previews - Part Two of Four
Sophomores, Scraps end the first round
(July 24) South Bend earned Trade of the Year honors last year, but that honor could only be given within the last seven days. Why? The Scraps traded QB Michael Vick to Canton for their 2007 first-round pick. Nice. At least Canton was able to parlay that into snagging QB Drew Brees. South Bend was also able to get QB Matt Leinart and Pittsburgh's first- and second-round selections. This sets up the Scraps as the best positioned club heading into the draft. With over $13 million in cap room, they can almost get whatever they want. Too bad a case can be made for them dealing away their playoff chances last year.

With all that said, know that the Scraps will more than likely trade up or steal picks to get the better prospects. However, this preview only rates on what we know now. Therefore, with the last two picks in the first round, South Bend will take QB Brady Quinn and RB LenDale White.

Keeping Quinn in South Bend will be a high priority. Even though the NFL Draft let him slide, he will start this year. If Quinn was on a club with a long-time veteran, maybe he'd sit for a year, but with Charlie Frye as his competition, know that before the end of August, the throne will be his. He will be a solid back up to Leinart.

After all of the big names are selected, the Scraps will be left with...well...the scraps as the first round comes to a close. White is a good solid pick up. Despite his weight issues in the past, his stellar USC career should indicate that '06 was a fluke. With rookie Chris Henry and veteran Chris Brown on the Titans roster, White may have to work hard to compete, but he should be their starter once the dust settles. Other options with their final first-round pick are RBs Vernand Morency and Leon Washington. If still available in Round Two, expect the South Bend to eye TE Vernon Davis or rookie WR Ted Ginn, Jr.

The Iowa Hawgs, fresh off their sub-.500 playoff season, will look to make their mark in the draft and position themselves at another shot at the West Division. Can it happen? Well, after taking into consideration that QB Daunte Culpepper will be cut on August 5 and that RB Corey Dillon is retiring, that leaves Iowa with almost $16 million in cap space. Sixteen million! They will certainly compete for bigger and better prospects, but with the eighth pick, rookie RB Lorenzo Booker would be a nice selection. The Florida State product has a great shot to split the Dolphins backfield with RB Ronnie Brown. Booker can be a receiving threat, but also has enough speed to give himself a legitimate chance at earning more and more carries as the season progresses.

Former Heisman Trophy winner RB Ron Dayne is finally coming into his own in Houston and may be an option for the Hawgs at Eight as well. The Hawgs also need wide receiver help and WR Vincent Jackson may be just the guy to take in the second round.

No more Porpi. The Mafia came in and eliminated them, knowhudimsayin? Fagedaboudit. They also plugged their way through the rest of the MFL to amass an amazing 8-5-1 record in their first season in operation. Fantastic job.

Speaking of elimination, Vick may be out. However, the organization has made it clear that going after QB JaMarcus Russell is out of the question. That means that they will probably look for a cheap insurance policy in the later rounds. But, what about their first rounder? WR Larry Fitzgerald would be a perfect fit. He could be the bargain of the first round since everyone else will be falling all over themselves to take rookies early and often.

The Mafia will have the ability to get a bona fide starter and former Rookie of the Year for much less than the $7.2 million he made in Missouri last season. Other than a quarterback, putting quality at wideout should be the priority. Have Roy Williams on the other side of the hashes would be a powerful threat.

Dave Wills is still pacing the office floor with the phone surgically attached to his ear in hopes of landing a solid veteran QB in a trade. It will probably happen. Thus, a good third string pick up will be Matt Schaub. We'll see if he's all he's cracked up to be, but all indications are that he's ready now. If RB Marshawn Lynch isn't panning out early for Buffalo, the Mafia could really benefit by taking veteran RB Anthony Thomas in the late rounds.


2007 MFL Draft Previews - Part One of Four
Hard to see how Lynx, Cougars end up
(July 17) When you look at the upcoming draft choices for the New York Lynx and the Canton Cougars, you may probably ask "Where?". The Lynx don't pick until the fifteenth selection, while the Cougars won't find their name called until the thirty-ninth pick overall, the second-to-last choice in the entire draft.

So, instead of saying that New York will take QB David Garrard or that Canton is looking at TE Visanthe Shiancoe, we're going to take a look at their needs. Also, not even a naïve child would believe that either team is going to stay put and be content with their current picks.

Despite their below-.500 mark in '06, it's hard to see an obvious need on the Lynx roster. The QB position is solid, they have lots of talent at RB and they have arguably the best TEs in the league. With a little change in their pockets, New York may be eyeballing the opportunity to snag WR Larry Fitzgerald from someone late in the first round. He certainly won't collect the $7.2 million he did with Missouri last year, so getting him for around $4 to 5 million may be a bargain.

If they decide not to go after Fitz and think about being ambitious, they may not be able to afford it. One could easily see head coach Dion Mawhorter salivate at the prospects of landing QB JaMarcus Russell or RB Marshawn Lynch, but it may not be in the cards.

After that, placekicker is of some concern. With their second round pick, it wouldn't be hard to imagine the Lynx going after PK Stephen Gostkowski, who is quickly emerging as one of the best in the game.

In Canton, there is a good chance that the Cougars could end up with one draft player. The have less than $1 million in cap room and they are full-loaded already heading into '07. Unless the Cougars trade away the 12 Million Dollar Man, they won't edge up much. On the other hand, GM Tim Jones loves to roll the dice. We'll see.

The Cougars are weak at two positions: wide receiver and placekicker. WRs Devery Henderson and Vincent Jackson are both former Cougars who may find their way back to the Cougars roster. If rookies are their fancy, Anthony Gonzalez, Dwayne Bowe or Dwayne Jarrett may be good options with their fourth-round pick. Another rookie, PK Mason Crosby, could be worth drafting with that #39 selection as well.


The 2007 Online 15
Rookies galore in this year's survey
(July 10) One who takes a cursory glance at the Online 15 this year will notice that there are several rookies that have popped up. In fact, there are more rookies in this bunch than ever. However, that is not an indicator of how good this rookie class is.

Granted, Marshawn Lynch, Adrian Peterson and Calvin Johnson will be instantly all-world, but after that, you'd be hard pressed to find one that will make any kind of impact in 2007. Conspicuously absent from this bunch are three big prizes: JaMarcus Russell, Ted Ginn, Jr., and Brady Quinn. The highest our ranking services put any of these three guys was Russell at 136th out of 200 (Fantasy Sports). Don't let that fool you: at least two of these three, if not all three, will be selected in the first round.

It is also interesting to point out that the veterans on this list aren't exactly going to jump to the top of the draft charts for any MFL team. Larry Fitzgerald will start somewhere and Donald Driver may be a great insurance option, but other than that, only TE Vernon Davis looks good. Jericho Cotchery may make a nice addition also, but don't expect him to get a ton of TDs.

Who made the list and won't impress? LenDale White and Reuben Droughns will share that honor. Droughns especially just seems like he’ll go the way for Fred Taylor, constantly floating from team to team. How about who missed and should be given a look? Matt Schaub may be the savior in Houston, but the jury will be out until at least October. Also, at least half of the war rooms will have Devery Henderson somewhere fairly high on their lists. By the way, even though no kickers even got close, PK Stephen Gostkowski could be a late-round selection.

As a final note, the trend will continue where rookies will be the focal point of this list, as they should be. With a league that has grown to ten teams and with several shrewd owners with a keen eye for talent, expect future Online 15's to be packed with fresh faces and mediocre vets. What does that mean in 2007? At least eight of the first ten picks will be rookies and four—Lynch, Peterson, Johnson and Russell—will have the pigskin in their possession from Week One.