PA Season Ticket Holder
04-06-2003, 09:33 PM
Last year, 50 picks went by before the name “Clinton Portis” was uttered from the NFL draft podium. LeCharles Bentley was an afterthought. Second-round WRs André Davis, Antwaan Randle El and Deion Branch croaked the top three receivers taken in the draft — Donté Stallworth, Ashlie Lelie and Javon Walker — in nearly every offensive category.
In 2000, teams overlooked S Mike Brown and WR Jerry Porter in the second round. In 1999, they forgot about OT Jon Jansen and WR Peerless Price in the first round; DE Mike Rucker and OL Randy Thomas, both second-rounders that year, certainly look better than DE Lamar King and OL Aaron Gibson. Heck, even QB Shaun King has proved more valuable than Cade McNown.
The list goes on, year in and year out.
Former San Diego GM Bobby Beathard had an odd but effective approach he tailored: He would trade first-round picks in draft classes he deemed to be weak at the top for future second-rounders, confident that he could find hidden gems there and avoid paying big bonus money that first-round picks generally receive.
Beathard was right. Every year there are at least half a dozen players drafted in the second round who go on to All-Pro careers but for whatever reason were slighted first-round merit. Sometimes it’s a previous injury that scares teams off. Maybe it’s a perceived attitude problem. Perhaps the player never got to fully display his talents with their college team.
Also, NFL teams tend to skip over certain positions in the first-round — center, safety, fullback, tight end are good examples — believing that it’s more important to find cornerstones at key positions such as quarterback, running back, defensive end and cornerback.
There are several prospects who could be second-round impact players this year. The crops at defensive tackle, wide receiver and quarterback have depth and talent; there might also be some good finds at cornerback and offensive line after the initial round.
The result is that there will be good players — with first-round talent — who, for myriad reasons, are taken somewhere in the second round but will outperform their first-round predecessors.
Here is a look, position-by-position, at players who have a chance to be impact players in the NFL:
http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFLDraft/Draft+Extras/2003/edholm040403.htm
In 2000, teams overlooked S Mike Brown and WR Jerry Porter in the second round. In 1999, they forgot about OT Jon Jansen and WR Peerless Price in the first round; DE Mike Rucker and OL Randy Thomas, both second-rounders that year, certainly look better than DE Lamar King and OL Aaron Gibson. Heck, even QB Shaun King has proved more valuable than Cade McNown.
The list goes on, year in and year out.
Former San Diego GM Bobby Beathard had an odd but effective approach he tailored: He would trade first-round picks in draft classes he deemed to be weak at the top for future second-rounders, confident that he could find hidden gems there and avoid paying big bonus money that first-round picks generally receive.
Beathard was right. Every year there are at least half a dozen players drafted in the second round who go on to All-Pro careers but for whatever reason were slighted first-round merit. Sometimes it’s a previous injury that scares teams off. Maybe it’s a perceived attitude problem. Perhaps the player never got to fully display his talents with their college team.
Also, NFL teams tend to skip over certain positions in the first-round — center, safety, fullback, tight end are good examples — believing that it’s more important to find cornerstones at key positions such as quarterback, running back, defensive end and cornerback.
There are several prospects who could be second-round impact players this year. The crops at defensive tackle, wide receiver and quarterback have depth and talent; there might also be some good finds at cornerback and offensive line after the initial round.
The result is that there will be good players — with first-round talent — who, for myriad reasons, are taken somewhere in the second round but will outperform their first-round predecessors.
Here is a look, position-by-position, at players who have a chance to be impact players in the NFL:
http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFLDraft/Draft+Extras/2003/edholm040403.htm