As draft nears, deception intensifies

Game of deception reaches highest levels.

By JOANNE KORTH
Published April 22, 2007

The NFL draft is six days away, which means the game of deception played by teams positioned at the top of the picking order is about to reach the two-minute warning.

On your mark, get set, lie!

This sort of behavior takes place every year, of course. But efforts seem to have intensified, likely because the master of deception, Oakland owner Al Davis, has his paws on the No. 1 overall pick. What the Raiders do during those first 15 minutes on the clock will send, at minimum, three other teams scrambling.

Davis tips the first domino.

Can't you see him smirking?

As a result, the rest of the teams atop the draft - Detroit, Cleveland and Tampa Bay - have done their best to keep everyone guessing by expressing interest in several of the top offensive players in hopes of getting what they really want.

Conventional wisdom calls for Oakland to take LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell with the No. 1 overall pick. The Raiders desperately need a quarterback, and Russell is the best available, a strong-armed passer with quick feet and a linebacker's build.

But when was the last time Davis did anything in step with conventional thinking?

Georgia Tech receiver Calvin Johnson is considered a rare player, the draft's only can't-miss prospect. Every team would love to have him, including one or two willing to trade players, picks and cash for the right to draft him.

All Davis has to do is express interest in Johnson, real or feigned, to make plenty of people nervous.

At No. 2, the Lions have expressed little interest in Russell or Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn, and most have assumed general manager Matt Millen would not dare spend another first-round pick on a receiver after drafting three from 2003-05.

But who knows?

Detroit is the wild card. It reportedly has talked to Oakland about a trade that would send veteran backup quarterback Josh McCown to the Raiders, which would allow Davis to draft Johnson. And Detroit is entertaining offers from Tampa Bay, which wants to move up to take Johnson. Obviously, the Lions cannot do both.

Detroit could stay at No. 2 and draft Johnson or Wisconsin left tackle Joe Thomas.

At No. 3, the Browns would love to have Russell, whom general manager Phil Savage has known since he attended Savage's football camp as a teen. But the Browns need one of two things to happen: They must trade up from No. 3 or hope the Raiders and Lions pass on Russell.

If both are gone, Cleveland will be tempted by Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson but likely will take Quinn, who longs to play for his hometown Browns. Savage has convinced himself Quinn can be a solid NFL quarterback because of his work ethic and head start playing in a pro-style offense, but he'd rather have Russell.

At No. 4, the Bucs want Johnson, but it's hard to imagine three teams passing. Coach Jon Gruden has sung the praises of each of the projected top-five picks, and it's never outside the realm of possibility for the Bucs to take a quarterback given Gruden's fascination with the position.

Gruden has even suggested the playbook would benefit from the addition of Peterson, despite having spent a top-five pick on Cadillac Williams two years ago.

How much of this talk is a smoke screen?

We'll find out Saturday.

[Last modified April 21, 2007, 23:08:21]