Free Republic

The scenario has been floated before, but when someone like ESPN’s John Clayton predicts that the Washington Redskins will select Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota with the fifth overall pick of next month’s NFL draft, ears perk up. And so, that’s what happened late Tuesday night and early Wednesday, after Clayton said just that during a radio interview on the first day of the league year, when the league was whipped into a frenzy by trades and big-money free agent signings.

Hitting on every draft prediction made right now would be nice, but the main purposes of this and most subsequent mocks are two-fold. They are meant to A) offer some insight into a team's needs, with the picks hopefully highlighting a current hole; and B) reveal a little bit about how the prospects are stacking up against one another.

Jameis Winston, winner of the 2013 Heisman Trophy, has opted to enter the NFL Draft. The Florida State quarterback’s father, Antonor, said his son will forgo his junior season and enter the NFL draft, according to ESPN. Antonor Winston said that his son had initially wanted to announce his plans until after the College Football Playoff National Championship game but, after praying Tuesday night, decided he would acknowledge his plans on Wednesday.

I wanted to do something for my country during the holidays, so I went to the movies. I watched the Christmas Day opening of “The Interview,” to show North Korea that I wasn’t afraid of its threats to blow up theaters that screen the parody of Kim Jong Un. The $9.50 I paid in the name of patriotic pride bought me stadium seating, a preview of the coming feature “Hot Tub Time Machine 2,” and a feature film full of jokes about rectums, sex organs, ricin and the Supreme Leader defecating in his pants. Except for the Asian stereotypes, it...

A veteran of the Cold War–era draft argues that once again sharing the burden of defending the country would produce better foreign policy—and better Americans. The author doing his draft-time duty at a recruiting station in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1960.As the struggle with the Islamic State, or ISIS, grows more intense and the Obama administration’s air-attack strategy—if the experts turn out to be correct—proves unavailing, the calls for boots on the ground in Syria and Iraq are likely to become more insistent. Despite the coalition of nations aligned against ISIS and other terrorist groups, no one doubts that any...

Karl Eikenberry couldn't understand why the staff sergeant insisted that he take a loaded pistol to patrol the barracks. The West Point cadet was in Hawaii for the summer, serving as a staff duty officer with the 25th Infantry Division, which had recently returned from Vietnam. It was his job on weekend nights to ensure good order. "Why would I take a sidearm?" Eikenberry asked. "In case you need it, that's why," replied the sergeant. As soon as he entered a darkened barracks building, Eikenberry says, he understood why his staff sergeant was so nervous. Soldiers were gathered in small...

When the wackiness of the final play was over and one forward pass and three laterals had come up nine yards short for the Titans, two words likely crossed every smart Jets fan’s mind: It figures. Rex Ryan and his players rejoiced over this December win during this lost season, while the legions of team followers cursed a meaningless moment that almost certainly cost the Jets a chance at drafting a franchise quarterback in the coming months.

While I am optimistic about our Commander-in-Chief’s strategy to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, I voted against the Continuing Appropriations Resolution 2015 that would grant the President the authority to provide funds to train and arm Syrian rebels against the enemy. I opposed the amendment because I strongly believe amassing additional debt to go to war should involve all of America debating the matter. That is why I have called for levying a war tax in addition to bringing back the military draft. Both the war surcharge and conscription will give everyone in America a real stake...

Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay football player to be drafted by an NFL team, has made waves in just three preseason games. But on a surprisingly deep St. Louis roster, Sam's spot is hardly guaranteed. "He’s no different than any other late-round pick or college free agent that we have. He’s just trying to make this team,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said in his office the other day. “We have a reality that we can only keep so many players at that position. Is he better than that fourth or fifth defensive end? Right now, I can’t...

Are you a man born in Pennsylvania between 1893 and 1897? If so, a government agency may have just reminded you to register for the draft. The Selective Service System, which keeps a roster of potential men who can be enlisted in the military, inadvertently sent out mailings to more than 14,000 Pennsylvania men born in those years, reminding them to register. These letters were sent due to a computer error, the agency said in a message posted online, and the Selective Service has apologized to the families who have received these letters. The problem occurred following an automated data...

No, the United States isn’t trying to build a military force of centenarians. It just seems that way after the Selective Service System mistakenly sent notices to more than 14,000 Pennsylvania men born between 1893 and 1897, ordering them to register for the nation’s military draft and warning that failure to do so is “punishable by a fine and imprisonment.” The agency realized the error when it began receiving calls from bewildered relatives last week. Chuck Huey, 73, of Kingston, said he got a notice addressed to his late grandfather Bert Huey, a World War I veteran who was born...

No, the United States isn't trying to build a military force of centenarians. It just seems that way after the Selective Service System mistakenly sent notices to more than 14,000 Pennsylvania men born between 1893 and 1897, ordering them to register for the nation's military draft and warning that failure to do so is "punishable by a fine and imprisonment." The agency realized the error when it began receiving calls from bewildered relatives last week.

‘Was He Worth It?” blared the cover of Time magazine, as if that should be the question Americans ask in light of the release of Bowe Bergdahl after five years of brutal captivity by the Taliban. No, the question we should be asking is a version of the one Pope Francis made famous in a different context: “Who Are We To Judge?” Who are we, in the safety of our civilian homes, to judge whether an American soldier captured overseas is worthy of rescue? Who are we to decide whether, somehow, the fact that he was imprisoned for so many...

Saving energy is not an easy task but how do the Boeing engineers do it? The answer is flying above you.

Could Johnny Football ditch the pads and cleats for a future on the diamond as Johnny Baseball? Probably not. But he might want to consider it. The Cleveland Browns quarterback was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 28th round (No. 837 overall) of the 2014 MLB Draft Saturday. Manziel was listed as a shortstop for Texas A&M, although he hasn't stepped foot on the baseball diamond since his junior year of high school. Apparently, he was a pretty decent infielder and even talked to Texas A&M baseball coaches about joining the team in 2012.

see link to see who your ball club drafted today...

Last January 2013, then Defense Secretary, Leon Panetta, ordered the Joint Chiefs of Staff to study the feasibility of opening all military jobs to women by 2016. This would include more than 200,000 jobs that make up the core of the ground-level combat force in the Army and the Marine Corps. Opponents of women in combat argue, rightly in my opinion, that the military's physical standards must not be compromised to expand access because our military's fighting effectiveness is at stake. Hauling 50 pounds of equipment while walking 20 miles is a standard that must not be demoted as it...

Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay football player drafted on Saturday in the seventh round, believes he should have been drafted in the first three rounds.

The NFL draft — the league’s Radio City-staged, nationally televised, endlessly hyped off-season spectacle — opens Thursday night, and for the first time an openly gay player will be waiting for a phone call. But it could be a long wait for Michael Sam, the University of Missouri defender and all-American who came out in February. Draft analysts say he might not be selected until the last picks are made on Saturday — and perhaps not at all. If that happens, Sam could still sign with a team as an undrafted free agent and play on Sundays this fall. But...

<p>After the big names are off the board in the NFL Draft, the biggest question may not be when Michael Sam will be picked, it may be whether Michael Sam will be picked at all. Despite being named the Defensive Player of the Year in the SEC, Sam’s underwhelming physical measurables and his lack of a defined role in defenses could prevent him from being the first openly gay player selected in the draft.</p>