Judgements: Goodell's draft day moves get the highest marks

1. A year ago, we urged commissioner Roger Goodell to speed up the draft. So he did, and the results speak for themselves. The first round took 3:30, the fastest since 1990. A year ago it was a painfully slow 6:20, and it took its toll on Goodell. That's why he pushed for a 10-minute limit, and the plan worked so well the first two rounds were completed in the time it took to complete the first round of 2007. When Goodell announced the results his audience applauded. "I'll take that as a sign of approval," he said.

Matt Ryan can go a long way toward determining new Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff's legacy. (US Presswire)

2. This time there was no Green Room drama. All six players the NFL invited to New York for this weekend's draft went off the board with the first six picks. There was no Aaron Rodgers, no Matt Leinart and no Brady Quinn. In short, there wasn't the anguish of reality TV. It was the first time all six players at the draft disappeared with the first six picks.

3. I wonder if Arizona knows what it's getting in cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. The big-screen graphic at Radio City Music Hall listed him a 6-10, 184. Now this I have to see.

4. This is what bothers me about Baltimore's pick of Joe Flacco: The Ravens are putting him in the same position as another big-armed quarterback, Kyle Boller, when he was a rookie. Boller didn't have an experienced quarterback to school him, and neither will Flacco. You tell me who's going to mentor the guy: Boller or Troy Smith? Oh, and one other thing: When you saw that video of Flacco heaving the ball a mile, did it remind you of those pre-draft stories of Boller bombing 50-yarders from his knees? Yeah, me, too.

5. When Carolina traded away its first-round choice in 2009 to Philadelphia for the 19th pick, it told you everything you need to know about the state of the Panthers: This is a club that absolutely, positively must win now. Otherwise, it's over for the head coach and could be curtains for the GM.

6. Tell me that wasn't a tough decision when the Cowboys found themselves faced with Felix Jones AND Rashard Mendenhall at the 22nd pick. The feeling was that Mendenhall was too much like Marion Barber and that Jones gave them an element they lack. So they chose Jones, even though Mendenhall ranked higher on most boards. The move to go up to the 25th pick to take cornerback Mike Jenkins was smart. With two picks and one round, Dallas gained two impact players who should contribute immediately.

7. OK, Lavelle Hawkins, it's time to live up to the hype ... er, your hype. Hawkins is the wide receiver who announced at the combine that "I can pretty much do it all. I would say I'm a combination of Terrell Owens, slash Anquan Boldin, slash Chad Johnson, slash Steve Smith." Asked how he will fare reading coverages, he said, "I would say on a scale of 1 to 10, I'm a 10." Good. Because you're catching passes from Vince Young.

8. Nobody did better in the second round than Washington. At the 21st spot, the Redskins were weighing defensive end Phillip Merling vs. Devin Thomas. Then Atlanta called. The Redskins traded out, moving down to the 34th spot, yet still found Thomas. So they chose him with one of Atlanta's two second-round picks and tight end Fred Davis with the other. Smart.

9. File this one away: After taking wide receiver Mario Manningham in the third round, Giants general manager Jerry Reese said, "We are definitely not giving up on Sinorice Moss." Hmmmm. Let's revisit this again in September.

10. Giants fans are still getting mileage out of their team's Super Bowl upset. Whenever New England was announced as "on the clock" at Radio City Music Hall, the Big Blue faithful would chant, "18-1 ... 18-1 ... 18-1." Yep, it's the Super Bowl that keeps on giving.

Ten biggest winners

1. Jason Campbell, quarterback, Washington -- He implored management to deliver big receivers in the draft, and it responded with tight end Fred Davis and Oklahoma's Malcolm Kelly. Nice. Better yet, the Redskins added Michigan State's Devin Thomas, who might be the best receiver out there.

2. Kansas City Chiefs -- Tell me the Chiefs didn't make out with the Jared Allen trade. With the choices they gained from Minnesota, they picked guard Branden Albert, running back Jamaal Charles, safety DaJuan Morgan and wide receiver Kevin Robinson. These guys just aced the final, scoring 9s or 10s with every one of their first six choices -- including the top player on their board, defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey.

3. Philadelphia Eagles -- Time to start rooting against Carolina, Eagles fans. Philly picked up Carolina's first-round pick in 2009 after failing to move up for an offensive lineman, and that could be good. The Panthers drew no lower than the 14th position in three of the past four drafts.