Round 2 redux: Paea gift-wrapped
Gil Brandt | Tags: 2011 NFL Draft, Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick, Jonas Mouton, Marcus Gilbert, Stephen Paea
NEW YORK — Here are my quick-hit thoughts on Round 2 of the NFL draft:
Best pick:
Cincinnati taking Andy Dalton at No. 35. Without having to move up, the Bengals brought in a young quarterback who has a chance to be very special.
Honorable mention goes to San Francisco with its pick of Colin Kaepernick at No. 36. The 49ers did have to move up to get their man, but these are two young quarterbacks with a lot of upside who went back-to-back with the third and fourth picks of the round.
Biggest surprise:
Chargers taking Jonas Mouton. San Diego selected the Michigan linebacker with the 61st overall pick in the draft. He’s the first player taken in this draft who wasn’t in my Hot 100 (heck, he wasn’t even in my top 125).
As far as teams that should be pleasantly surprised, I’d say the Bears were shocked to see Oregon State DT Stephen Paea sitting there for them at No. 53. Some analysts believed Chicago would draft Paea in the first round.
Swing and a miss:
Steelers drafting Marcus Gilbert. The Florida offensive tackle was all over the board –- one team even had him has a possible first-rounder. But most had him going as low as the fifth round. I had him in my 100-to-125 plateau, so No. 63 is a bit risky.


