If you take Mike Smith at his word, this team is hungrier than a pack of wolves at an outdoor BBQ. Smith told the official site that his team just has to stay humble through the a gauntlet of fan gratitude and go out there ready to plant their collective foot in another team's hindquarters. I couldn't possibly agree more.
What remains to be seen is if the team sticks to an even more significant point, that of shooting for a draft based on positional needs. I thought we might get something like that last year, but the draft was a pretty even mix of needs (Sam Baker, Matt Ryan, Chevis Jackson) and guys the team thought might fit into their overarching plan (Kroy Biermann, Harry Douglas, Curtis Lofton). Obviously those picks which weren't at a position of huge need worked out great, especially in the case of Lofton.
Still, with so many holes on the defense, I'm hopeful that that Smith and Comrade Dimitroff are looking through the same microscope I am. Using the bulk of our picks to shore up the most glaring weaknesses there would go a long way toward ensuring our long-term success, and I believe there's nothing the dynamic duo wants more than to have their mantles collapse under the weight of all their awards a decade from now. I guess I'd say I'm a believer in drafting on need.
How about you, aggressive readers? Do you believe in a need-based draft philosophy?