The_Philster
04-27-2003, 01:38 PM
ALAMEDA, Calif. (April 27, 2003 11:21 a.m. EDT) - Speed killed. Lesson learned.
Saturday's first NFL draft session revealed that the relentlessly lethal defensive speed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers used to plunder the Raiders in January's Super Bowl isn't just a still-haunting Oakland nightmare. It is indelibly seared into the Raiders' skulls and crossed swords.
First, the Raiders surprised everyone from you to supposedly all-knowing analyst Mel Kiper Jr. to their first-round draft choices themselves, dark-horse Cal cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and similarly unheralded Colorado defensive tackle Tyler Brayton.
"I was just sitting there saying, 'Man, I'm going to go take a nap,'" Brayton said when asked what he was doing when the Raiders were choosing 31st and 32nd overall early in the afternoon.
Then the Raiders dismissed the positions that Asomugha, Brayton, second-round pick Teyo Johnson (wide receiver, Stanford) and third-round choice Sam Williams (outside linebacker, Fresno State) played in college. Instead, the Raiders announced their intent to convert them all to new NFL spots - Asomugha from the safety he played for 3 1/2 seasons to cornerback, Brayton and Williams to defensive end and Johnson to tight end....more (http://www.sportserver.com/football/nfl/general/story/869487p-6069716c.html)
Saturday's first NFL draft session revealed that the relentlessly lethal defensive speed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers used to plunder the Raiders in January's Super Bowl isn't just a still-haunting Oakland nightmare. It is indelibly seared into the Raiders' skulls and crossed swords.
First, the Raiders surprised everyone from you to supposedly all-knowing analyst Mel Kiper Jr. to their first-round draft choices themselves, dark-horse Cal cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and similarly unheralded Colorado defensive tackle Tyler Brayton.
"I was just sitting there saying, 'Man, I'm going to go take a nap,'" Brayton said when asked what he was doing when the Raiders were choosing 31st and 32nd overall early in the afternoon.
Then the Raiders dismissed the positions that Asomugha, Brayton, second-round pick Teyo Johnson (wide receiver, Stanford) and third-round choice Sam Williams (outside linebacker, Fresno State) played in college. Instead, the Raiders announced their intent to convert them all to new NFL spots - Asomugha from the safety he played for 3 1/2 seasons to cornerback, Brayton and Williams to defensive end and Johnson to tight end....more (http://www.sportserver.com/football/nfl/general/story/869487p-6069716c.html)