"I'll Take 'Draft Busts for Millions', Alex."

Draft busts. They are an "albatross" in the NFL. If a team can avoid drafting too many, then they can keep payroll low and win totals high.  If a team drafts too many then........


Pro Football Weekly touched on that very subject today. They questioned the "bust factor" in two highly rated players: Taylor Mays and Jason Pierre-Paul. 


These type of discussions are always raised about draft picks who have certain issues. 


It is difficult to know whether a draft pick will be a successful NFL player or not.

I believe that the teams that draft successfully understand how to use the players they draft. They find players with strengths that fit their system, and then try to minimize the players' faults.

A perfect example was Dwight Freeney. Being only 6' 1", he was viewed as having "bust potential" because taller offensive tackles with long arms could latch on to him. It was believed Freeney wouldn't have the size to get off of their blocks. The Colts drafted him and let him use his strengths, speed and leverage to become one of the top pass rushers in the league.

Busts happen more times than not because teams don't have the foresight to envision that draft pick's future role on the team. They can't go on measurables or hoping that the player will be able to make a drastic change. They have to know what this player is going to bring to the team based on something they have already seen.




Every Morning Quarterback by Aharon Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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The Real McCoy?

Pro Football Weekly recently joined Mike Mayock and Charley Casserly, two NFL Network draft “gurus” who are often maligned or celebrated in ranking DT Gerald McCoy ahead of the de facto best overall player DT Ndamukong Suh. I happen to respect all three sources, because they make their assumptions off their own observations and not because they think the draft is a popularity contest.

The fact that PFW added that they believed McCoy was “a special talent” and did not bestow the same observation on Suh was suprising. They also added that Suh has an “inability to unlock and use the power in his hips.” Ouch.

This all begs the question. Could we see McCoy selected ahead of Suh? Two months ago, I would have been taken out and executed by firing squad for even thinking it. I can't wait for April 22nd.

Every Morning Quarterback by Aharon Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Based on a work at www.everymorningqb.com.

Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at www.everymorningqb.com.