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While mock drafts are fun and take up a lot of our offseason time, they will all blow up as soon as Roger Goodell announces there has been a trade. We have heard rumors for just about every team moving up or down in the draft, but there are a few that I think will stick.

Trading Down

6. Cleveland Browns- The Browns need a lot of help and with the new front office they could use as many picks as they could get. If there is one thing this team needs it’s a talented WR or the quarterback of the future. They are without a second round pick and with the amount of teams wanting to move up to take a tackle this is a perfect storm for the Browns.

12. Miami Dolphins- I think they will get the trade done for Brandon Albert before Friday. With that taking away the need at tackle, the top need switches to cornerback. Dee Milliner should be off the board, and there are a lot of question marks that should keep the rest of the corners out of the top half of the first round.

22. St. Louis Rams- They also pick at 16 and will likely solve one of their top 2 needs (safety and wide receiver) with that selection. 22 is far enough back where teams early in the second will start moving up and Fisher always likes to have extra picks to work with.

29. New England Patriots- They don’t have a pick in rounds 4-6 so they will be trading down at some point. 29 is a good spot for a team to move up to take a quarterback. Of all the teams likely to trade down, they are the most likely. With needs in the secondary and wide receiver there will plenty of prospects in the second round.

Trading up

11. San Diego- They absolutely have to grab a top 5 lineman. The reports are they want Lane Johnson, but so does Arizona at 7. If he gets past Detroit at 5 I think you see them pull the trigger and trade up to 6 to get their man. The only way they don’t trade up is if Cooper, Warmack, and Johnson are still available at 6 and they think one will make it to 11.

30. Atlanta Falcons- This would come as no surprise for a team that was only a play away from the Superbowl. They have been rumored to be wanting a top-flight corner and they have been known to give up a lot to move up and grab “their guy” –see Julio Jones. Dee Milliner could easily slide into the 6-11 range and once that happens expect them to be making phone calls.

31. San Francisco- With both the 31^st and 34^thpicks in the draft along with 11 others the 49ers have more picks than roster spots. With needs on the defensive line and secondary, expect them to move up in the draft and take the players slotted high on their board. Don’t be surprised with the amount of picks they move up to take Tavon Austin as a luxury. He is unlike every other receiver on the roster and would give them an explosive playmaker very few teams have. I don’t think they will move into the top 10 unless they are winning the trade, but moving into the middle of the first round is not only possible but probable.

41. Buffalo Bills- Owner Ralph Wilson made it clear this was the year to move up and take a quarterback. I have a hard time believing they will select one at 8, especially with their interest in Matt Barkley. They will be the team to move back up into the first to grab either Barkley or Nassib and will hopefully, maybe, finally have a quarterback of the future.

A lot of fans and offensive players are in an uproar over the new “Crown-to-Helmet” penalty. You’ll hear the quotes “they’re taking away the game”, “pretty soon they’ll just being wearing flags” and so on and so forth.

With the amount of ex-players suing the NFL, the league isn’t left with much of a choice. The NFL isn’t taking away big hits, well not completely, they are taking away hits to and with the helmet. Any player safety rule coming up the next few years will ultimately be passed because the league has to show they are taking a proactive approach to player safety. If you don’t like it, there’s always soccer. Okay, so perhaps I shouldn’t use soccer it is a collision sport, in fact I know someone who had to stop playing due to concussions, there you go Mel, happy birthday.

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What fans need to understand about the rule is that it’s not taking away the ability of a back to lower his head. A runner can still deliver a hit using his shoulder, face mask and all the way up to his hairline. All this is taking away is a runner lowering his head and using the top “crown” of his helmet as a weapon. If you’ve ever put on a helmet the warning label is on there.

“Do not use this helmet to butt, ram or spear an opposing player. This is in violation of the football rules and can result in severe head, brain, or neck injury or paralysis or death to you and possible injury to your opponent. There is a risk these injuries may also occur as a result of accidental content without the intent to butt, ram or spear. NO HELMET CAN PREVENT ALL SUCH INJURIES.”

This rule will create more buzz than it will change the game. Most backs keep their eyes up so they can see where they are going, if anything this will just be beneficial to coaches teaching guys to keep their heads up and down the field.

If you don’t like, again there’s always soccer baseball, no different than taking away clotheslining, roughing the passer, or moving the kickoff back to the 35, it’s all a part of protecting the players from themselves. It’s just one more warning label that can help eliminate a sue-happy society. Who know coffee was hot?

As for the elimination of the Tuck Rule, the NFL might be making a big mistake.

While the Tuck Rule was ambiguous to say the least, it had more clarity than the alternative. Now we are asking for an official to determine where a quarterback’s release point is. Yep, see the problem, I’ll go on record right now saying this rule change won’t last.

Take for example, a quarterback drops back to pass, his arm is coming forward then he gets hit, at what point does is go from being an attempted pass to being a fumble? The Tuck Rule stated that is the arm was still come forward even after he passed his release point, even if he was bringing it back to his body, it was to be viewed as a pass. Now we are asking the refs to determine when it switches from his arm going forward to attempt a pass, to where he would be bringing it back to his body. The biggest problem is that will change depending on the quarterback throwing motion, his normal release point, and the place he was planning to throw the ball.

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The 14 year old rule most notably is know for the 2002 AFC Divisional Playoff game in which Brady was hit and lost control of the ball as his arm was coming forward but back towards his body. To that point the rule wasn’t widely known. Since then the rule has taken place in many games, but none of that caliber. Photo to the right shows Brady getting hit by Carlos Rogers while attempting a pass. In this situation at what point does the ball when moving forward change from a pass to a fumble?

Tuck rule arm going forward, pass. No Tuck Rule arm going forward, ?????. Asking a ref to see if a guy’s arm is going forward is one thing, asking him to find the point where is switches from being a pass to bringing it back to his body is a disaster waiting to happen. Raider fans among many others will rejoice over what they view as a victory over a rule they didn’t understand, but the NFL is bringing on a lot more problems than what was solved.

While many Chiefs fans classify DT Glenn Dorsey a bust, 49ers fans should be happy with the acquisition. The former 5^thoverall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft will have something he hasn’t had at a pro level, a ton of talent surrounding him. The 49ers inked the 5 year veteran to a 2 year deal per reports. While details of the deal still haven’t been released, it can be expected in the 2-4 million a year range.

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When you put Dorsey’s numbers up against those of former 49ers Isaac Sopoaga and Ricky Jean Francois, Dorsey had more tackles than the combo. In fact he averages almost twice as many a year. Most people discount defensive tackle stats, because let’s face it, tackles are there to eat up blockers so linebackers can make plays. If it says anything about his game, it’s that he is an upgrade in run defense which is a scary thought for the rest of the league.

Dorsey is primarily a 4-3 defensive tackle, and 49er fans shouldn’t expect that to change. The 49ers played more snaps last year with 4 down lineman than 3, so it’s still a fit even though the defense is considered a 3-4. What Dorsey will bring is an instant upgrade on the interior D line and depth to move to defensive end if someone gets injured i.e. the Justin Smith injury last season.

If there are any knocks on his game it’s in pass rush situations. Dorsey is more of a standup-locate-the-ball-carrier type player and does have the speed or moves to get past the guy to pressure the quarterback. The most you’ll see him do on passing situations, if he is even on the field, is take up blockers to allow are rushers free shots. Again, there’s nothing glamorous about being a tackle.

The signing of Dorsey does not take away need of a true nose tackle. That position is most likely to be addressed in the draft due to the number of talented players coming out and the amount of picks the team will have.