Draft Day
In 1970, the Vietnam war was in full swing. The military was not, as it is today, an all-volunteer service. Men were selected for enlistment via a draft. In December 1969, Days of the month were loaded into a container and drawn out. September 14 was the first date drawn and if you were between 19 and 26 on January 1, 1970 and born on September 14 (numbered 001), you were all but assured of making the long journey to the South East Asian jungle. I suspect there were a bunch of men who would've preferred to have been watching Mayberry RFD that evening. Jimmy Buffett wrote, "...and when they tried to draft me, I earned a college degree..." Throughout military history, we have honored the service of others, it seems, while trying to avoid service ourselves. Remember a WWII pilot who was replaced in office by a man who had some questionable activities keep him from having to go to Vietnam? Then that WWII pilot's son handily trounced a Vietnam Veteran in a recent national election, not to mention the fact that our current President defeated a bona fide war hero POW. I remember the day I registered with selective service - I did my own little passive aggressive thing and registered a day after my grace period had expired. Normally when we're talking "draft," we're talking hops and barley. This time we're talking a little something different. In 1936, a draft of a different sort had it's start and it is that draft to which we turn our attention in this weeks roundtable. Like that evening in 1969, men were being selected to head into battle. Unlike that evening, these men largely wanted to be selected...well except the very first one. Not unlike the men selected "001" for 1970 induction, Jay Berwanger wanted nothing to do with being inducted. The very first man ever drafted by the National Football League, was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles and made no bones about his lack of desire to play there.
The first man selected in the 2010 NFL draft - Sam Bradford - has to feel not wholly dissimilarly. Quarterbacks being selected by 1-15 team don't generally fare well. I can't help but remember Drew Bledsoe being selected by the 2-14 Patriots, he spent so much time on his back it was amazing he had a career. Kind of like David Carr.
Like Bledsoe, Bradford will probably start right out of the gate - never really a good developmental path for a QB. Bledsoe was one of those guys who was always the biggest, strongest guy around and never had to improve...until it became evident that he wasn't improving and making the same mistakes over and over again. Like Bradford, he didn't have a solid veteran presence to help him. The Rams have AJ Feeley and a dude named Craig Null. You're going to trust AJ Feeley to mentor your franchise? Of note, four of the first six picks were guys out of Oklahoma State. Pretty amazing - I'm also thinking if you're a Cowboys fan, you might be in for a bit of a rough season.
Draft day is kind of like baseball's opening day. Nothing but hope and promise. Like on draft day 1998. "I'm looking forward to a 15 year career, a couple of trips to the Super Bowl, and a parade through downtown San Diego." Ryan Leaf collected a hefty $11-million signing bonus, was an NFL player for parts of 4-years and is largely considered to be the biggest draft bust ever. He finished his career with a 50.0 QB rating and some 3600 yards passing. $11-million, four draft picks and two players traded to acquire 4 wins over 3-years. The draft is littered with the debris of bad decisions - Lawrence Phillips and "The Boz" - but it's also ripe with stories of the unexpected find. While Drew Bledsoe was the touted name, #1 overall pick, Troy Brown was an 8th round pick but played some 15-years with the Patriots. As a Pats fan myself, I can't imagine Super Bowl XXXVI without Troy Brown. Yet he was waived/cut. Re-Signed. Then there's that guy that replaced Mr. Bledsoe as the starting quarterback in New England. So, who will be this year's Peyton Manning and who will be Ryan Leaf?
Then, there are the other issues that arise. Leaf was a head case on the field. The dude just came unglued. Big Ben Roethlisberger has become the latest in a string of high draft picks to come unglued off the field. This is a guy who has won 2-Super Bowls - the first one of which made him the youngest ever to win, despite an incredibly poor performance - but has crashed his motorcycle in a near fatal accident, and now multiple allegations of sexual assault, to the point that he's now been suspended. I've heard so many conversations asking the question how he could be suspended when charges have no been filed. The fact is that the NFL policy is not linked to criminal code. He only needs to have brought dishonor to the shield. Why bring this up? Well, rumor had it the Steelers were shopping him for a top 10 pick - all because he's apparently a miscreant. If I were the Rams, I think I'd be more interested in a Roethlisberger than a Bradford. Seems like a no-brainer, but then again, maybe - just maybe - there are more than just a few questions about Ben that teams just don't want to touch.
We'll get through the first round Thursday night, and then we'll get started on round two today. |
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