Chris Cooley!!!

Tight end might not be a position of 'desperate need', but as Gibbs said himself, he loves TE's. He's probably looking for as much competition at the position as he can get, plus it's likely he'll carry 3 or even 4 TE's on the roster, so the position is very critical to him and what he wants to do on offense.

Taylor got his playmaking safety, and Gibbs got his h-back. As with any pick, to be fair I think we need to give it some time to see how things pan out before we label it a blunder or a bad pick.

Earnest mid-western (Mormon?) white guys make productive nfl tight end's.

Mel Kiper in his draft guide compared him to Clint Didier & said he could be a prototype H-back in the NFL . I don't like giving away next years #2, but that is pretty high praise in Skins country.

Cooley had been targeted by the Skins early on-- he was one of the guys they brought in a few weeks ago to interview. When I first heard the news that he had been brought in for pre-draft discussions, I had a strong feeling he would be the contingency plan at H-back if they decided to forego taking Winslow in the first round.

Did they give up too much by trading away their second rounder? I think it's safe to say they probably gave up much more than they needed to-- considering he was generally considered a Day 2 pick, somewhere in the 4th-5th rounds. I'm not really sure why the Skins felt like they had to move into the 3rd round to get him, other than the fact that they knew he was the guy they wanted, and they didn't want to risk losing him. But yes, a 2nd rounder was way too much to sacrifice, in my opinion.

After the Skins passed over Winslow, I had originally foreseen the Skins trading into the early 4th round to get Cooley. But I had figured they would try to work Jeremiah Trotter or one of their other potential cap cuts into that trade, and not have to sacrifice too much in terms of draft choices.

I'm happy the Skins got their man, but I'm disappointed that they overpayed to get him. Such is life as a Redskins fan!

Here's Scouts, Inc.'s take on Chris Cooley:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft04/tracker/player?id=7955


Cooley is a good athlete who can adjust to the ball in the air. Rarely drops a pass, catches balls away from his frame and has the hands to make tough catches in traffic. Is a mismatch problem because of size and skills and has the potential to develop into a productive red-zone target. Shows good awareness and finds soft spots in zone coverage. Gets upfield quickly after the catch and is a powerful runner in the open field. Is a versatile player who can contribute in many different roles. Has experience lining up in the backfield, does a nice job of blocking in space, and really works to sustain his blocks. Plays with good intensity and takes adequate angles to his blocks. But Cooley isn't a dominant inline blocker and is more of an H-Back prospect. Doesn't play with a great base, doesn't get much pop at the point of attack and lacks the lower-body strength to push the pile in the running game. Lacks ideal speed and won't stretch opposing defenses at the next level. Isn't explosive coming out of his cuts and is more effective working against zone coverage than man coverage. Doesn't show much elusiveness or a second-gear after the catch. Cooley started his college career at defensive end and moved to tight end midway through his freshman season. He played as a ?move? tight end at Utah State, basically a hybrid tight end/fullback/H-back. Cooley has been one of the most prolific tight ends in Division I-A the last two seasons. He finished his senior season with a team-high 62 receptions for 732 yards and six touchdowns. Cooley projects as an H-back in the NFL. He lacks explosive speed and has limited upside after the catch. He also is undersized when compared to traditional tight ends and must be protected as a blocker. But Cooley is an intriguing early Day 2 prospect because of his versatility, hands and athleticism. He knows how to separate and get open as a receiver, he catches the ball extremely well on the run, and he is an efficient blocker in space. Cooley will never be a starter, but he has the potential to contribute at fullback, H-back and on special teams, and he certainly has the potential to develop into an excellent short-yardage/goal-line weapon.

Obviously, the FO (Gibbs included) have decided that a bird in the hand is worth at least two in the bush, when it comes to picks and FAs. They seem to value high/mid picks less than other teams. I figure they feel they can always make up the difference in FAs. We'll see.

I like the pick from this perspective: we needed saftey and H-back help in the draft, and we got it. I do think this is a "Gibbs player" pick, and if he's like Clint Didier, enough said. Maybe they had a tip that someone else had him in their sites?

Oh, well, another short draft next year. If we're winning, it's all good.

I wish we would have traded up and given a 2nd and trotter/betts or something of the sort for maybe Troupe or Watson. I think we could have easily gotten that.

One big question about draft picks is can you re-sign them when their rookie contracts are up? It may be a big problem for teams like the Lions in a few years when all those talented young players want the big bucks all at once.

I'm not saying that I don't want the picks, but I do think this is a big issue these days.

Cooley is also a good long snapper which I didn't know about him. That's a bonus.

And as a super added bonus, one of Chris Cooley's teammates at Utah State is none other than one of all of our favorite players...

ADE JIMOH!!!!!

Can you spell W-I-N-N-E-R?

I think you can!

I'm sure all this offseason Jimoh was in Gibbs' ear saying, "Cooley, Cooley"!

LOL