A confession before I begin: I'm not a True Draftnik. By that admission
I mean I can't reel off the top 3 Strong Safety prospects from the
Big Ten for 2002 and I don't have the faintest idea where Lambuth
College is. I don't know if Drew Brees is failing Calculus and I
honestly don't care what CD Michael Vick has in his Discman (although
I heard it was the new D'Angelo). For a True Draftnik, such things
are common knowledge. True Draftniks laugh with impunity at mere
Football Junkies like you and I with our limited brains and feeble
recall. But then again, most of us have some semblance of a life,
unlike your average Draftnik. It's not a bad compromise.
What I will admit to is celebrating the draft with unbridled enthusiasm.
In a game that's now a year 'round affair, the Draft is the official
waving of the green flag for most folks. And it's about time. Basketball's
been going forever and I heard they were still playing Hockey. After
weeks (is that all it's been?) of watching the baseball geeks flagellate
themselves over the superiority of "the game", it's refreshing to
see some real sports news again featuring actual athletes (Sorry
Jr, you're the exception) So it was with much anticipation that
I settled in for the spectacle known as the National Football League
Annual Selection Meeting last weekend. I was ready to hear those
hallowed labels of "tweener" and "overachiever" while discussing
in minutia the differences between 40 times indoors and out. I wanted
numbers, numbers and more numbers to describe every conceivable
measurement from wingspan to vertical leap. If you watched (and
I know you did) you know I was most definitely not disappointed.
With that in mind, here are a few Random Shots from the draft and
general musings from the weekend. I'll also offer my thoughts on
what all this ruckus really means when it comes to your fantasy
draft and then some insights on key players in this year's rookie
crop. Here goes.
Random Shots
Why does it takes Cleveland 13 minutes to select Brown who they
already had under contract?
The answer is "Danny Snyder". They likely knew Washington and Lil'
Danny would take all of 15 seconds to select Arrington at
#2, effectively sweeping Brown and the Browns off the stage and
the ESPN screen. I kinda like that move in a Simpson's Mr. Smithers
kind of way. I do credit Snyder with not screwing around with Arrington
and taking him at #3 for negotiation purposes.
I don't understand the Tinactin Video Conference thing. It was horrible
in '99 but I figured a year of technological advances would have
it cleared up. Nope. It still made everyone scary. These guys looked
like bad actors from a Japanese movie with the English dubbed over.
I kept expecting Belichick to say "Your Kung Fu is no good here".
Like most people, I was a little surprised to see the Raiders tap
Janikowski in the first (or at least as surprised as I am by
anything the Raiders do) But I think it might be the right (maybe
even great) move. Gruden was in love after the combines saying,
"He put on an orbital display.'' People, especially us Fantasy Football
guys, sometimes forget that this isn't like your throw back fantasy
draft where all the players are available. This is like having a
Fantasy Draft with 31 owners where every player is a keeper. Kickers
have little value in Fantasy drafts since there are an abundance
of good ones to go around. In the real world of the NFL, the Raiders
deal with a much different situation. Every coach stresses the value
of the kicking game for field position and the Raiders just pumped
theirs up considerably. Here are the numbers you need to know: Janikowski
booted kickoffs 83 times for FSU last year. Of those 83 kicks, 57
(69%) were not returned. Of the 26 that were returned, 24 were not
advanced past the 25 yard line. Says Coach Gruden, "We're talking
about a weapon here. He can change strategy."
Speaking of Janikowski, much has been made of the off the field
skirmishes and the ominous threat of deportation should the trouble
continue. (When accused of bribing an officer arresting Janikowski's
friend, his explanation for dropping 3 one hundred dollar bills
on the windshield of the police car while asking "How much will
it take?" was that he just didn't understand how the bail process
worked in this country. That's classic.) My thought on the matter
is very simply: College kids from FSU get deported a heck of a lot
easier than do Multi Millionaire 1st round NFL Picks residing under
Al Davis' wing. Unless he really flies the coop, I see him doing
just fine.
Time for another confession: I like Mel Kiper, Jr. I know
it's the popular thing to ridicule the guy but I like him. There,
I said it. I may not agree with his assessments at times, but you
gotta give it up to the man that he comes prepared and with a game
face on. If you watched Kiper while Berman was announcing the pick,
you could see he just starts welling up with what he wants to say
before Berman can even get the name out. It's like he can't hold
it in. Make the selection, pull the string out of his back, and
like clockwork, Mel gives you 45 seconds of what you need to know.
It impresses me the range of players he covers. He seemed just as
comfortable reeling off material on Mike Green as he did Courtney
Brown. And what Draft article would be complete without paying homage
to the hair? You can't not like the hair. While I do sort of miss
the older days when he did the Kramer Pompadour thing (remember
the wrap around headset mic's?), this year's modified Eddie Munster
was right on target. You can tell Theisman is feeling the pressure.
Note to Joe: Lighten up on the tanning bed, Pal.
Given the limited selections New Orleans was allotted, it's probably
a good thing Ditka was out playing craps somewhere in a casino where
he's not yet banned.
LaVarr Arrington reminds me of Keyshawn Johnson. And that's a compliment.
Perfect contrast between he and Brown was the scene backstage after
the selection with Mike Tirico. The ever humble Courtney Brown looked
almost embarrassed by all the fuss shifting from one foot to the
other. He was clearly more comfortable in uniform than in a suit.
Arrington, on the other hand, began immediately lobbying for Theisman's
job as he had one arm around Tirico's neck and the other reaching
for the mic. As Mrs. Arrington says, "That boy loves to talk".
Chris Berman is clearly getting older and stumbles more than
he used to. His delivery is nowhere near as slick as the ultra smooth
Mike Tirico's. And I'll take Boomer 10 to 1 all day long.
Anyone else get tired of seeing poor Purdue QB Drew Brees pancaked
in every highlight film by Courtney Brown or LaVarr Arrington?
You know it's a bad sign for San Francisco when Sean Salisbury's
press backdrop at the 49'er War Room featured the jersey of their
two best players: Charlie Garner and Garrison Hearst. Speaking of
that, I don't understand Steve Young. You'd think if he was going
to do something, he'd do it well ahead of the draft so they could
plan for the team needs. If not through the draft, they could likely
be making free agency moves that would impact the drafting strategy.
I guess he figured if Barry Sanders doesn't have to than neither
does he.
If you're the Redskin PR Guy, for crying out loud give Chris
Samuels a cap that isn't 5 sizes too small. I've got pee wee
caps that fit better than the one they gave him.
Anyone else not surprised that the first few words out of Andy Reid's
mouth were "Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich"?
Most people know Peyton Manning spent 4 years in Knoxville, Tennessee
with the Vols. Some may not know top rated QB Chad Pennington is
also from Knoxville and attended high school here. Parents of prospective
QB's take notice. Apparently, there's something in the water…
I thought ESPN made a smart move featuring Kirk Herbstreit and Chris
Fowler. Not only are they strong personalities, these are the guys
who cover these college players.
Tom Donahoe is I'm sure a nice guy and a very talented football
man. But I see his draft analysis spread throughout the land and
have to wonder. The guy has a resume in to most of the teams. How
critical is he really going to be?
There is a very good reason why the Giants had that little "ny"
logo in mothballs…
When the Steelers picked Plaxico Burress over Chad Pennington
at #8, it looked on the surface to be a strong endorsement for Kordell
Stewart. Tirico pressed Cowher on the question repeatedly and the
Stiff Jawed One managed to completely dance around the issue. It
was almost as if he was determined not to say Kordell was his guy.
It's been widely reported that they tried to trade up later in the
1st to get another shot at the Marshall QB.
The new Rams Jerseys and Helmets are killer. What a great marketing
move too. Give the fans something new to buy right when interest
is highest. If Trung Canidate in the first round is any indication
of things to come, I hope they sell quick.
Surest pick from the first round? Easy. Keyshawn Johnson
for the Bucs. Many players drafted last weekend show tremendous
promise and potential. Keyshawn is the only one that's a guaranteed
100% lock to be an NFL star. He already is. I wonder if the Jets
ever sat down and did the math on the signing bonuses they'll have
to pay the first round picks from Tampa Bay compared to how much
they would have had to pony up and keep Keyshawn? I understand honoring
what you commit to. But Woody Johnson has to understand the real
world.
I've long been a critic of Leslie Visser and her interviews where
her nodding face is on camera more than the guy she's interviewing.
So I was very glad to see the outstanding job done by ESPN's Suzy
Kolber. Very very good.
Dave Wannestedt reported that Jimmy Johnson's primary role in the
Dolphin War Room was playing "Devil's Advocate". I bet THAT was
interesting.
Is ESPN's Hank Goldberg related to Harry Carey?
It occurs to me that maybe the best thing for Patriot fans to come
out of the Bill Belichick hire is that now maybe Drew Bledsoe won't
go into his normal Belichick Defense inspired tailspin after the
Jets game.
Favorite Pre Draft Quote. ESPN's Dan Patrick was giving LaVarr
Arrington a hard time saying he was a lock for a top 3 pick. Arrington
was trying to be cool about it playing the aw shucks "just glad
to be here and happy to go wherever I go" thing. He said, "I really
don't know where I'll go. I love Cleveland, I love Washington, I
love…who's after Washington?" Exactly.
Fun moment at the draft: Chris Samuel making his way over
to the Washington Redskin fanatics in the Hog attire and shouting
"There's a new Hog in the House!"
I think one reason you didn't see much trading is that GM's looked
around and saw the repercussions of mortgaging the future for today
as teams like the Falcons, Dolphins and Saints sat on their hands.
The Falcons traded (gave) away the 2000 first round pick so they
could move up and select "superstar" TE Reggie Kelly in the 1999
draft.
Class move of the first round: LaVarr Arrington's hearty
handshake and hug after Brown's selection looking as excited as
Brown was and than later saying, "Courtney deserved to be the first
pick"
Bill Polian says of wild man LB Rob Morris, "I think we're going
to put in his contract that he can't chase crocodiles, or surf on
cars or dive out of windows into pools" You like to see that in
a Linebacker.
It's fun to talk about the potential of a guy like Trung Canidate
but it's not as fun the next year when you realize they're Kevin
Faulk and that it takes more than a dazzling 40 time to excel at
this level.
The slide of Georgia Tech QB Joe Hamilton baffled me. To
hear folks talk, it was like he put those stats up against midgets
last year or something. Perfect example of letting the tape measure
and stopwatch outweigh the game film. The Bucs got a steal. Anyone
disagree that National Champion Florida State has some reasonably
tall defenders? All Hamilton did last year in the Tech / FSU game
was go 22 for 25 (including completions on his last 14 pass attempts),
throw for 3 TDs, rush for another and tally 387 passing yards. I'd
say that's pretty good against the National Champs.
Joe Theisman doesn't look right in his reading glasses.
I realize I'm in the minority but I think Jamal Lewis at
#5 overall was a huge reach. Many UT people felt he had little choice
but to come out as a Junior because he'd be the #2 RB on the Tennessee
team behind Travis Henry if he'd stayed. This is coming from a guy
who watched him play every game last year. He may be back physically
from the knee injury, but he's miles from being the same player.
He was proclaimed 100% back last summer. Actually, he looked awesome
early in the season against Wyoming but went steadily downhill.
Easiest runner on the team last year to bring down. QB Tee Martin
was a tougher runner. Again, stopwatches over game film. It's a
great situation with an improving team in Baltimore but he'll have
to be vastly improved to make an impact. If I'm a Baltimore fan,
I feel much better if they'd have gone Plaxico Burress and Shaun
Alexander / Ron Dayne there with the 5th and 10th picks. Either
that or traded out of #5 to a team that needed Corey Simon.
While I'm ripping stopwatches, riddle me this: How often does the
average NFL player run 40 yards at a time? How often do they do
something that simulates bench-pressing 225 pounds 20 times consecutively?
Vertical leap and shuttle times give a much more accurate picture
of a players explosiveness and that's what this game is all about.
And why don't they measure Squats? They're much more indicative
of overall practical strength instead of the bench where long arms
are a huge liability.
If I'm a Giant's fan, I'm hanging my head in shame with the Ron
Dixon pick in the 3rd. How can you not know the guy would have
lasted till late Sunday? If you're going to gamble on the first
day, I'd rather gamble with a guy who's got great potential and
maybe a head case vs. a guy that no one has heard of.
You may think the draft took a while. It probably was over in a
flash compared to what it must have seemed for these highly ranked
guys who never had their name called. (CBS Sportsline Pre Draft
ranking) Kwame Cavil, WR Texas (#8), Ryan Johanningmeir, G Colorado
(#5), Hubert Thompson, DE Michigan St. (#5), and Matt Beck, ILB
Cal (#3)
Speaking of names, here's...
B R
Y A N T ' S A L L N A M E T E A M
Gary Berry
SS Ohio St / GB
Rodregis Brooks
CB Ala-Birmingham / IND
Isaiah Kacyvenski
ILB Harvard / SEA
Na'il Diggs
OLB Ohio St / GB
Mao Tosi
DE Idaho / ARZ
Stockar McDougle
OT Oklahoma / DET
Plaxico Burress
WR Mich. St. / PIT
Dez White
WR Georgia Tech / CHI
Shyrone Stith
RB Virginia Tech / JAX
Trung Canidate
RB Arizona / STL
Temaurice (Tee) Martin
QB Tennessee / PIT
JaJuan Seider
QB Florida A&M / SD
Sporting News' Dan Pompei writes that the slippage of Arizona
RB J.R. Redmond had to do with rumors of a kidney problem many
teams felt would affect his ability to stay on the field. I thought
it was his propensity for supposedly accidentally marrying women…
Titans Safety Aric Morris from Michigan State is nicknamed Bam
Bam. You gotta like that.
I bet it's weird for "star" college QB's like Doug Johnson - Florida
(undrafted) and Jarius Jackson - Notre Dame (214th) to sit by
the phone and watch lesser known QB's from smaller programs go
before them like Giovanni Carmazzi - Hofstra (65th) and Spergon
Wynn - Southwest Texas St. (183rd)
Maybe it's just me but knowing what I do about the player, the
city, and Bears Fans, LB Brian Urlacher seems like a perfect fit
for Chicago
Following a personality like Bill Parcells is nearly impossible
so I'm willing to cut the guy some slack, but I have to be honest
in saying listening to Al Groh doesn't inspire a lot of confidence
if I'm a Jets fan.
Had to smile with Bobby Beathard in his likely last draft as a
GM, when he selected little known QB JaJuan Seider from Florida
A&M. For a guy who's tapped his share of gems (Mark May, Art Monk,
Darrell Green) and given up way too much for some other guys (Bryan
Still, Ryan Leaf), reaching out for a head scratcher like Seider
with upside was the fitting way to likely cap a career that's
been anything but predictable.
Speaking of Seider, while being interviewed he was asked if he
thought he could beat out Ryan Leaf. A local San Diego writer
quickly answered the question for Seider saying, "Can he walk?"
We're not done yet... grab a beverage and
move on...
Joe Bryant is the owner of footballguys.com.
More of his work can be found there along with all the information
and tools you’ll need to Dominate Your Draft.
