t's Draft Talk time! I jotted down my first mock draft a few days ago, and I must say that I got very excited about doing so. If you are interested in finding out who I have your team taking within the first two rounds, PM me and I'll let you know.

I normally try to do my Draft Talk blogs about more than one player, but something has been burning my insides so much these past few days. I wasn't going to mention it, but then Jim Rome talked about it and I feel that all I needed was some backup so that I don't look totally stupid.

Here's the question: Is Arkansas running back Darren McFadden the next Adrian Peterson? And the answer is no. There are a ton of reasons, and I'll give you a whole bunch.



First of all, Darren McFadden and Adrian Peterson are two different types of backs. McF had most of his long runs on ocean-wide holes straight up the middle. But if he is touched, he goes down. You don't see his runs become a highlight until he is running untouched down the side of the field. AP, on the other hand, is more of a "vision runner." He can stop and start on a dime, and he can run sideline to sideline better than anyone in the NFL besides A.J. Hawk.

Peterson is 6-1, 217, but he looks like a bull. If I asked you how much the Vikes' RB weighed before I told you that, I guarantee that eight out of ten of you would say at least 230 pounds. McFadden is 6-2, but he's just 205 pounds. To give you a comparison, Reggie Bush was 6-0, 200 when he went to the combine two years ago. That means that this guy has a really skinny body. He'll get beaten up so much in the NFL that he won't last much longer than two years as a top-notch back, and there is no way that he will be able to pound out yards between the tackles like Peterson does.



Now I know that Darren tested out of his shoes at the combine, but so did Mike Mamula. Yep, Mike Ma-freakin-Mula! You don't even know who that is, do you?



Plus, there is the unavoidable factor: off-field issues. McFadden is making babies out of wedlock like they are candy (I have nothing against it, I'm just saying...), and he was in a few tiffs in his days at Arkie. Peterson, on the other hand, is a relatively clean player, and I don't think he'll ever get you in any legal trouble. I know that character might not be as important at running back, so I can't compare #5 to the ultimate character issue from the Draft, Ryan Leaf. But what about Ricky Williams? And that's all I'm going to say.



I'll make a prediction this year just like I made one last year that Amobi Okoye was the second-best player in the Draft. I'll predict that McFadden won't be the first running back taken. Jonathan Stweart is rising so fast that some team could fall in love with him and nab him at number 6 (NYJ), or some team could trade up in the Draft just to take him.  And don't forget about Rashard Mendenhall. Just remember this: there is a reason that McFadden is falling in the Draft, and it ain't because teams don't need him. Trust me, it ain't.