2011 Draft Grades – Kensington Dragons

Time for part 3 of my 11-part series. Today I’m going to talk about the Kensington Dragons’ draft. The Dragons are at a geographic disadvantage, as they play in London. They were unable to overcome that disadvantage last season, and ended up earning the Most Futile Franchise moniker. Part of the reason was their weak, weak draft.

Kensington Dragons

Studs

It may be a stretch to call him a stud, but the second round pick of Chris Clemons was far and away the best pick of the Dragons’ draft.  Clemons was a consistent performer in 2011, and was a part of the run on defensive ends in round 2 of the draft.  So, his salary of $10.00 is fairly reasonable for the position that seems to be emerging as the money position on defense in the Immersion.

Misses

Striking out in the first round always hurts, and that’s exactly what the Dragons did with quarterback Blaine Gabbert.  The Dragons didn’t sign him for the $12.50 he demanded, which was probably a good move.  He was signed a couple weeks into the season for $1.15 by the Pirates.  Gabbert was mediocre, even by rookie quarterback standards.  Plus, just look at him. He looks like such a douche.

After being unable to sign Brees or Cassel in free agency, the Dragons were scrambling for a quarterback in the draft.  So in round three they drafted Donovan McNabb.  Ouch.  McNabb was fat and inaccurate, and eventually benched.  Stukas wisely didn’t sign him, so of course the Pirates swooped in and snagged him in free agency.  But McNabb was so bad that even Enright had to cut him.

Wide receiver Deion Branch‘s best years are clearly behind him.  Stukas also refused to sign him to his drafted-deal, but signed him to a one-year deal for less money.  From a business standpoint, that makes sense.  But still, how are you going to have Deion Branch on your team?

Now, normally, I’d categorize quarterback Colt McCoy as “too soon to tell,” especially given his bargain basement salary.  He wasn’t particularly good, and could in no way keep up with the elite Immersion quarterbacks.  But worse was the fact that his brains were severely damaged this season (not that it stopped Stukas from starting him for the last three weeks of the season.)  It just doesn’t seem like McCoy is long for the NFL world, and I doubt that he’ll even see the end of his Immersion deal.

Even if the tight end is a required position, I think it’s safe to say that Heath Miller is just a guy.  He has had one good season.  You can count on him for 2 TDs a year.  Even though Stukas isn’t paying him much, he’s nothing more than a bye-week fill-in.

If you like 75-year old wide receivers, then Derrick Mason is your guy.  Mason didn’t play for anybody this year, and was even released in the NFL.  Drafting a man without a team is not a great strategy.

Too Soon to Tell

Nobody fits that description for the Dragons.  But hey, at least they get the first pick in this year’s draft.

The Grade

What kind of grade do you get if you miss on nearly every player you draft?  I think you fail.  But due to the fact that they did get a decent player in Chris Clemons, I guess I’ll give them a D-.  I mean, they already are the Most Futile Franchise, so there’s nothing to gain by piling on.

So you have to wonder, who will the Dragons take with the first overall pick?  With a decent pick, perhaps their Luck can change.

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