With the 36th pick of Pride of Detroit's 2011 NFL Mock Draft, the Denver Broncos select Baylor defensive tackle Phil Taylor. CapitolLions is serving as the Broncos' general manager, and his reasoning for the pick is below.
The gamble to take Von Miller No. 2 pays off, but barley. With what we considered taking at this spot, the gigantic Phil Taylor from Baylor is the only one left in this very deep DT draft. This is another example of talent to adjust in the system. If there were more 3-4 teams in the top 20 picks, he would be gone, but since he isn't we will take our chances on a first-round talent overlooked due to scheme.
Taylor, at 6-3, 335, is a house and he is at his lightest and in the best shape he of his life. We called several people after his AMAZING pro day. He has fantastic feet for his size and figures to clog holes and take up blockers immediately. He is a dominate run stopper, and although he isn't fast enough to be a factor in pass rushing, he can bull-rush. He uses his hands well and has no problem arm tackling people. The A gap has to be avoided or double teamed if Taylor is in it. We are willing to look past his minor off field issues to get a player that we had listed ahead of a few players that are no longer available. We wish our opponents good luck single-man blocking Elvis Dumervil or Robert Ayers with this monster lined up on their inside.
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Check out the 2011 Pride of Detroit Community Mock Draft tracker for a look at all of the picks.