the point is players like Amobi & Andre where just as much a pipe dream yet they fell into the Texan hands. others who I'll just call ascending, the Dunta Robinsons & Duane Brown come so far off the radar they catch you by surprise. less obvious choices not ones fans have been banging hard for going back to their SR/JR seasons or bowl games. its a fluid process & our opinions/dreams constantly change.
This is a bit of a nitpick, but the Robinson pick was not really a surprise. Once he ran a 4.34, he began to skyrocket, and at least based off of prognostications, he was a lock for the top half of round 1, at least according to
this,
this, and
this, from John McClain, the only mock drafts from 2004 that I could find. Wilfork was also a possibility, but the FO believed Payne could come back from his ACL injury in 2003 and be a solid player, and for the record, he bounced back and played pretty well, starting every game. However, with Glenn and Coleman aging, we needed a young CB, and Robinson was the second rated in the draft. Drafting Robinson allowed us to move Coleman to FS, strengthening two positions, and gave us the best secondary we have ever had. Then the whole Buchanon thing happened, and the rest is history.
Anyway, the point of my post is that, even though Dunta only had two years of experience at CB, based off of measurables, he was bound to be picked in the top 15, at least. I can not find his college stats anywhere, but he also had a pretty good career at South Carolina, IIRC. Furthermore, McClain had this to say in the April 19, 2004 edition of the
Chronicle:
Dunta Robinson 5-10 3/4 186 4.34 South Carolina
Former safety who started at cornerback the last two years and improved each season. Outstanding speed and athletic ability. Strong for his size. Can jam receiver at the line or turn and run with him. Fluid hips. Comes out of pedal without skipping a beat. Cuts on a dime. Good ball skills. Excellent leaping ability. Team leader who works hard all the time. Lacks ideal height; can bite on play fakes because he can be overaggressive. Could be the first cornerback drafted.
This definitely shows that Robinson was in consideration for the #10 pick, and may have went higher. In all honesty, he should be a Jag, but they whiffed on Reggie Williams and he fell into our laps, but I digress. The bottom line is that Robinson was not, or should not have been, a surprise in the top 10. Brown came from nowhere to being a first rounder. I'm not saying Brown was a bad pick, I'm just saying that the general population was not ready to hear his name called on draft day, unlike Robinson.
DeMarcus Ware, Troy DE/OLB 6040 251
Vince Young, Texas QB 6045 229
Levi Brown, Penn State OT 6054 323
Jonathan Stewart, Oregon RB 5102 235
sorry had to one last time 
I was wrong about Mario, love that pick now but @ the time I wanted to severe ties with Carr (not extend his contract) & draft a franchise QB from Houston. 
is keeping notes. 
