It's time once again to play "Twenty Questions," the annual Buccaneers.com contest in which you test your draft-predicting abilities and potentially win valuable Buc prizes//
Predicting the NFL draft will always be an inexact science, no matter how many well-informed analysts get in on the act.Every year, a growing number of "draftniks" try their hands at it, publishing mock drafts by the bushelful and reading the tea leaves to see where the next great players will land.
Do they succeed?Even the best would admit their stabbing in the dark most of the time.But that's no reason to stop trying.When it comes to mock drafts, we say the more the merrier, because anything that sparks NFL-related conversation is a good thing.
In fact, in this wide-open arena of predictions, guesses and blindfolded dart throws, why shouldn't we all get involved?You know who could be draftniks, too?Us.And you.
Consider that a rallying cry.Maybe you'll post a first-round prediction on your own blog, or blitz the comment section following the latest Michael Lombardi mock draft on NFL.com.Maybe we'll get into the act with a few wild predictions of my own: 1) Despite all the "character" talk, Oklahoma State WR Dez Bryant goes in the top 10; and 2) the player most commonly tabbed as a first-round pick who will fall into the second is Missouri LB Sean Weatherspoon.
Do we really feel confident about either of those predictions?No, of course not.But here's one iron-clad forecast we can make with 100% confidence:
Participate in the Buccaneers.com "Twenty Questions" draft contest, and you will have a lot of fun setting your inner draftnik loose.What's more, you could win valuable Buccaneer prizes.
What is "Twenty Questions?"
If you've played along with us in any of the five previous springs, you already know the answer.It's a simple-to-play but hard-to-master contest in which we ask you to prove your draft acumen by predicting the answers to 20 questions related to the Great Seven Rounds.
As always, we start by asking you to guess who the Buccaneers will draft with their first pick.Since the range of likely answers is so much smaller than last year, however, we fully expect many of you to hit on that one, so we upped the difficulty level on a few of the other 19.
For instance, you'll be asked which team is going to draft Florida quarterback Tim Tebow?You'll also have to ponder which small-school prospect will be the first one taken and which of a select group of 15 players will be the last one off the board.
Who will the Falcons take first?The Saints?How long will the first round take?Which team will add the most picks through trades during the seven rounds?Who will take a defensive end first?
Do you think you've got a good feel for these answers?Or do you just enjoy picking randomly from a pull-down list?Either way, you could win.And here's what you could win:
- The Grand Prize winner will receive four tickets to the 2010 Buccaneers home game of his or her choice.
- The First Runner-Up will receive two tickets to the 2010 Buccaneers home game of his or her choice.
- The Second Runner-Up will receive an official Buccaneers t-shirt and hat.
All for simply making 20 predictions about next week's draft.Study it for days, if you wish, and submit your entry next week.(You can enter up to five times.)Or just whip through the contest, go with your gut and take your chances.After all, even the best draft analysts miss with their predictions far more than they hit.
Maybe you can do better than them all.Maybe you're the ultimate draftnik.Play Twenty Questions and find out.
