2001 NFL draft day coverage

Pulse of the draft, pick by pick

Go to round recap: 1|2|3|4|5|6|7

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Impressions of the seventh round

Michigan State CB Renaldo Hill, the younger brother of Bills CB Ray Hill, is (like his brother was) an average cornerback at this point in his career. But with hard work and experience, which he likely will get if he makes it with the Cardinals, he could turn into a good defensive back. With the trade of CB Aeneas Williams, the Cardinals definitely need help in the secondary, so any type of depth they can add this late in the draft helps them tremendously. … The Browns’ choice of Boston College OG Paul Zukauskas is another move adding depth. The Browns really have no one that stands out on the offensive line, and they need better protection for QB Tim Couch, who has had some durability concerns in his short time in the league. … The Bears capped their draft by taking Florida speedster John Capel. The wide receiver tops off a draft in which the Bears selected five offensive players and one defensive player (DE Karon Riley in the fifth round). If Capel catches on with the Bears, he’ll bring a dimension to the receiving corps not seen much in recent years in Chicago with his 4.37 timed speed. … Atlanta must have been concerned about their overall depth, because they traded away their fourth-round pick in 2002 for three seventh-round picks from Denver. It seemed almost a moot point at that juncture, even when you consider the fact that Atlanta had no picks after #167 overall (sixth round). … Ohio State WR Reggie Germany is a very nice addition to the Bills, who need a receiver to step up to take some pressure off WR Eric Moulds. Germany has a shot, even as a seventh-rounder to do that. His Buckeye teammate, Ken-Yon Rambo, will likely be a good addition in Oakland as well. The Raiders’ receivers are getting older, and Oakland needed to look to the future a bit. Rambo could be a nice building block for the future, if he realizes the potential in him. … Pittsburgh made a wise decision in drafting a wide receiver, and an even wiser decision in waiting until now to do so. The Steelers know they can’t handcuff themselves in the event that Troy Edwards and Plaxico Burress, their past two top picks in drafts, continue to struggle. But, at the same time, the Steelers don’t want to discourage their young receivers into thinking that they’ve given up on them. By choosing Chris Taylor out of Texas A&M in the seventh round, the Steelers covered their butts and kept their young receivers happy. … It’s a bit surprising that USC DT Ennis Davis fell this far. The Saints may have picked up a steal at this point in the draft by selecting Davis. Of course, until incumbent stud DTs Norman Hand and La’Roi Glover wear down, the Saints likely won’t use him too much. … In the fourth round, it was a run on players from South Florida. In this round, there was a veritable run on Ivy Leaguers, with picks 222, 223 and 224 coming from Ivy League schools Princeton and Yale. At least these teams know they’re picking players with intelligence on their side. … The Giants got a potential steal in Wisconsin DT Ross Kolodziej, who was rated the 15^th best defensive end by PFW’s Joel Buchsbaum in his printout (as of March 25). If the Giants are to play him at tackle, and if he makes the transition well, the Giants could come away looking quite good with this pick.

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