Sixth round: Never enough pass rushers … or blockers
Two trades net Oakland picks for defensive end, tight end
NEW YORK — Two years ago, the New York Giants proved you can never have enough pass rushers when they upset the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
The Raiders seem to have adopted that philosophy in the 2009 NFL Draft. Despite glaring needs on both lines, Oakland used a sixth-round pick acquired by trade on its third pass-rushing prospect of the draft: Stryker Sulak, a defensive end from Missouri.
Sulak joins third-rounder Matt Shaughnessy and fourth-rounder Slade Norris as hybrid end/linebacker types chosen on the draft’s second day.
The all-name team candidate racked up 10 sacks as a senior, giving him 22 in his four-year career. Ourlads’ Scouting Services had Sulak rated ahead of Shaughnessy among defensive ends, saying he “graded out in the top two-thirds athletically of all the defensive ends.”
Shortly after taking Sulak, the Raiders worked a trade with the Carolina Panthers for the 202nd overall pick. The Raiders swapped its seventh-round pick, 216th overall, and a sixth-round pick in 2010 to Carolina.
They then chose Brandon Myers, an Iowa tight end who Pro Football Weekly described as “used primarily as a blocker in a pro-style offense.” The Raiders have been searching for a blocking tight end to complement Zach Miller and free the team’s leading receiver up to be an even bigger part of the offense.
Myers checks in at 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds and Pro Football Weekly says he “looks the part” of a pro tight end.
On the other hand, Pro Football Weekly says Sulak — surprise — needs more size, but has the motor and desire to make the team.
Both players could be projects for strength coach Brad Roll, as PFW says Myers “lacks upper-body strength,” and Sulak is “not naturally big or strong … lacks strength against the run.”
On the other hand, Sulak “Demonstrates good first-step quickness,” according to Ourlads’, and is “Smart and tough enough to adjust to a new position” if a move to linebacker is necessary.
“Reacts very quickly mentally and physically in a game situation to make a play,” Ourlads’ continues.
And although Pro Football Weekly says Sulak may only be a pass-rush specialist — and “not a creative pass rusher” at that — being called a “high-motor overachiever” is never a bad thing.
Like Shaughnessy before him, Sulak has something of an injury history, including a plantar fascia injury and torn knee cartilage.
Myers is the only player the Raiders drafted in 2009 with any off-field questions, coping not just with a back injury between his junior and senior years, but an arrest (and guilty plea) after an alcohol-related incident.
Perhaps of more concern is PFW’s assessment that he “Does not finish blocks despite being in great position. Does not play with enough urgency or show the killer instinct desired in a base blocker.”
On the bright side, “Myers has some upside to continue developing but is still very much a developmental project.”
The Raiders did not have a fifth-round pick, thanks to the disastrous DeAngelo Hall trade of 2008 (Dallas wound up with the pick and, perhaps inspired by Hall, took cornerback DeAngelo Smith of Cincinnati), and sent their own sixth-round pick to the Miami Dolphins as part of the Samson Satele trade earlier in the offseason (Miami selected tackle Andrew Gardener of Georgia Tech). Oakland acquired the 199th overall pick from New England when they traded down in the second round.
Earlier in the day, Southern Cal kicker David Buehler, nephew of longtime Raiders lineman George, went to the Dallas Cowboys — who change kickers about as often as they change head coaches — late in the fifth round.
The sixth round has been something of a graveyard for rookie hopes. Only two of Oakland’s 13 sixth-rounders since 1999 remain on the team — Trevor Scott from 2008 and Oren O’Neal from 2007, who missed the season on injured reserve — and only two others played anywhere in the NFL last season (Cody Spencer with the New York Jets and Kevin Boothe with the New York Giants).
Recent Raiders sixth-round picks:
2008 — Trevor Scott, defensive end, Buffalo
2007 — Oren O’Neal, fullback, Arkansas State
2006 — Kevin Boothe, offensive lineman, Cornell
2005 — Anttaj Hawthorne, defensive tackle, Wisconsin; Ryan Riddle, linebacker, California; Pete McMahon, offensive tackle, Iowa
2004 — Shawn Johnson, defensive end, Delaware; Cody Spencer, linebacker, North Texas
2003 — Dustin Rykert, offensive tackle, Brigham Young
2002 — Keyon Nash, defensive back, Albany (Ga.) State; Larry Ned, running back, San Diego State
2001 — Chris Cooper, defensive lineman, Nebraska-Omaha
2000 — none
1999 — Daren Yancy, defensive lineman, Brigham Young
Bold = On current Raiders’ roster
As the Raiders have no more picks remaining in the 2009 draft, S&B Report is wrapping up its live coverage from New York City. Should Oakland deal back into the seventh round, watch for later updates!
