Vikes first-round picks draw raves from the "experts"

The online sports press is gushing about the Vikings top two picks in the first round of yesterday's NFL draft. CBS Sportsline.com's senior football writer Pete Prisco hands out his only A+ grade to Scott Studwell and the other Purple People Drafters. ESPN.com's pigskin guru John Clayton cites the Vikes behind only Dallas in his "winners and losers" column, saving some praise for the team's second-round choice. And over at the website shared by Sports Illustrated and CNN, former Vikings beat writer Don Banks likewise slots Minnesota as the second best winner among all NFL franchises, this time as runner-up to Dallas. Finally,  SI/CNN.com's John Donovan, after first voicing reservations regarding the Purple's pick of Troy Williamson over Mike Williams, quickly comes around to proclaim that, "The Vikings got all they could hope for from their two first-rounders."

While I love what the Vikes have done with their defense--especially the signings of Smoot and Sharper in the secondary--all these huzzahs about Williamson must be tempered by the fact that he arrives at the cost of losing Randy Moss. And as good as Williamson might be (thus far all we really know about him is that he's very very fast) I think it is fairly safe to say that there will still be an extreme drop-off at the wide receiver position this season.

Meanwhile, what does it say about the increasing senility of South Carolina coach Lou Holtz that he had a blazing stud lined up on the wing for three years and rarely got him the ball? (Um, I guess is says that Holtz is increasingly senile. )