“I do think the first four are pretty much set,” Kiper said.  “The only issue there is who does Detroit take at two because that obviously impacts Tampa.  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will just sit there and take whatever player is left.  That’s usually a good spot to be in.  Let the other team make the call on who they want.

“Then it’s Kansas City.  You hear Bryan Bulaga, you hear Trent Williams.  I still go with the safety, Eric Berry.  They don’t have anything resembling a big-time safety, a free safety.   So, to me, Berry would be fitting in very well there.”

The Rams insist publicly they haven’t settled on Bradford. But at this point, drafting anyone other than Bradford, the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner, would only further enrage their rapidly dwindling fan base.

Next up are Suh and McCoy, or McCoy and Suh depending on the whims of the Lions.

Even before making the trade with Philadelphia for McNabb, new Washington coach Mike Shanahan wanted to repair a decrepit offensive line.  Only three teams allowed more sacks and only three rushed for fewer yards per carry last season.

It’s even more important for Washington to grab a lineman now after the trade for McNabb.  It won’t have another chance to grab a lineman until the fourth round.  The team traded its second-round pick for McNabb and lost its third-round choice last year.

Then come the Chiefs, who could reasonably go in any of several ways.  That makes Kansas City the place where the fun begins in this year’s draft.

It’s interesting to hear Kiper mention Williams in the same thought as Bulaga and Berry.  I think Williams and Anthony Davis from Rutgers are both slightly better options than Bulaga, but I’ve yet to hear their names connected to the Chiefs the way the others have been.

Once the Redskins traded for McNabb it appeared the Chiefs wouldn’t have a shot at Okung, but I still think they could be a wild card at No. 4.  With such a lack of picks, they would benefit more than most teams by trading back and there is also the uncertainty surrounding Albert Haynesworth.

So while the Chiefs might be “unofficially” on the clock, there is still plenty of time between now and the draft for a lot of things to change.

What would be the situation around the Chiefs right now if they were 2-3, instead of 0-5?  Even without a victory on the season, and the apparent demotion of an assistant coach in the past week, there is not the feeling of desperation and negativity hanging over the team or the locker room.  Nobody is happy, but they continue to put their head down, handle the work they’ve been given and hope to earn their first victory this Sunday when they play the Washington Redskins.

Now, the Skins are 2-3 and the kettle is boiling around the franchise.  If you thought the Chiefs might be catching Washington at the right time, think again based on the comments of QB Jason Campbell.

“It’s not just another game,” Campbell told the media this week.  “It’s a big game for us, for a lot of ways and a lot of reasons.  We’re in a tough division.  You can’t afford to fall too behind in your division.  And for the morale of our team, to get confidence going back in the right direction, you got to do everything you can to get the win.”

Campbell might be saying the right things, but there’s no way all of the distractions won’t impact the Redskins on Sunday.  It’s hard enough to deal with coaching questions week in and week out, but add an injury to their starting left tackle and their most prominent former players ripping them and it’s bound to affect the team when they hit the field.

It’s Friday and that means the “expert” predictions have started to roll in for Sunday’s Chiefs-Redskins matchup.

WASHINGTON 17, Kansas City 16 (+6½): The only two wins by the Redskins were over winless St. Louis and Tampa Bay by a total of 5 points.  Washington is 1-7 ATS in its past 8 home games.  The Chiefs figure to win a game sooner or later.

I haven’t decided one way or another yet, but this is the most confident I’ve been about the Chiefs at this point in a week since the beginning of last season.  The Redskins are thisclose to self destructing and there were a lot of positives to take out of the Chiefs loss to the Cowboys.

Even if you don’t feel confident that the Chiefs will win outright, 6.5 points is a lot of points get get from a scuffling team.

If the Jim Zorn plans on keeping the Chiefs winless, he is going to lean heavily on his defense.

The Redskins were opportunistic on defense the last two games.  They pressured quarterbacks consistently, forced and recovered fumbles and intercepted passes.  Producing turnovers is the sign the Redskins’ defense is back on track after being momentarily derailed, secondary coach Jerry Gray said.

“You’re getting turnovers, you’re getting deep into other people’s territory, you’re getting sacks on a consistent basis,” Gray said.  “And then the coverage and the pressure is going hand-in-hand.  You’re not saying, ‘Well, we were almost there.’  Now, we’re actually getting there, and we’ve got good coverage.  Those are things that you see.  When you’re actually on the same page, you see coverage and pressure there at the same time.”

With both offensive lines dealing with injuries, we could end up seeing a lot of sacks and turnovers this weekend.  Albert Haynesworth, Andre Carter and Brian Orapko will be the players to watch for Sunday as the Washington defense attempts to dictate the tempo.