Wow -- what an afternoon. Photographer Patrick Kavanagh and I were at the Draft Party at The Jacksonville Landing when word of a trade came down. We were actually interviewing last year's first round pick Reggie Nelson (his reaction "whoah") about a story for our early 6pm show.
The 7,000 on hand loved what the Jags did and I did too. This was a bold move by Jacksonville. They knew what they needed and went and got Derrick Harvey. It sounds like the Jags gave up a bunch with their 26th overall pick, two third rounders and a fourth rounder this year, but I think it speaks volumes to how close the Jags feel they are to winning. I'm not sure Harvey makes the difference in being a Super Bowl winner or not, but he certainly helps now and down the road.
We were at the Gators pro day last month and you could tell the Jags had a keen interest in Harvey. Obviously, its just down the road in Gainesville, but Shack Harris and defensive line coach Ted Monachino were there to workout Harvey. There was a funny moment during the workout when Harvey ran right over Monachino during a drill (there's video on our website). Another interesting note behind this relationship is that Monachino recruited Harvey out of high school (Monachino was at Arizona St). Of course, Harvey became highly recruited and chose to go to Florida.
We talked to Harvey via phone today and he's fired up to be a Jags player like Reggie Nelson a year ago.
Just a thought here, no inside information. Miami took defensive end Phillip Merling with the first pick of the 2nd round. What if this opens the door for the Dolphins to keep shopping Jason Taylor -- could the Jags get in on that game too? Stay tuned.
Continue to follow our draft coverage on the web and on CBS47 all weekend long. We are at Jaguars headquarters right now awaiting Jacksonville's 2nd round selection -- 58th overall.
