Veteran Presence: Making a Mockery of the 2000 NFL Draft

Making a Mockery of the 2000 NFL Draft

(by Bill Barnwell)

A couple of months ago, I did a little feature looking at some of the 1999 Mock Drafts of the NFL, pointing out that mock drafts shockingly weren’t very effective at actually predicting what might happen in the real thing. That was fun, and since the time when people are MOST likely to be interested in a mock draft is a week after the real thing, I figured I would publish the next one, taking a look at the 2000 NFL Draft.

The 2000 draft was pretty interesting; the Jets had four first rounders, while the Redskins had two of the first three picks. God bless Charley Casserly.

The format from this one is a little different from the 1999 review; I’m not going to be analyzing, pick-by-pick, what eight or nine mock drafts might’ve said about the particular pick. I will look at the comments of four legitimate professional football experts from the CNNSI website: the un-credited CNNSI Mock Draft, Dr. Z, Trev Alberts, and Peter King (The Big Caffeine’s post-draft grade for the team will be given in parentheses where his comments come up). Of course, as easy as it is to make fun of writers with five years of hindsight on my side, it’s even easier to make fun of NFL front offices. Before we start, let’s get a quote from SI’s Jack McCallum:

Attention, draftniks: Get a life. All you number-crunching geeks who create draft Web sites, all you newspaper-perusing know-it-alls who were glued to the endless draft telecast, all you T-shirt-wearing loyalists who feel that your team will suddenly re-invent itself as a winner just because Paul Tagliabue calls out a first and a last name ... forget it. It doesn't happen that way. Go back five years to the 1995 draft. Thirty-two names were called in the first round, and only half are still with the team that drafted them. And only a handful of those players (Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, Tony Boselli, Ty Law) have developed into true stars.

Attention Jack McCallum: You are a dick.

I’m also going to, say, harbor a guess here: guy didn’t like Moneyball. Just a hunch.

Cleveland Browns

Courtney Brown, DE, Penn State

Experts Said:

Dr. Z: “I heard one comment that makes no sense to me: Brown, a quiet, shy guy, will have trouble filling a leadership role but Arrington is well-suited for it. Rookies don't lead veterans. They run coffee and donuts for them.”

Trev Alberts: “It's all there -- the ability, the speed, the size -- but Brown sometimes disappeared in big games last season and had no impact. He's either the best player in this draft or the biggest bust.”

Time Said:

A lot of the time, sportswriters tend to over-reward the false machismo and aggressiveness that Jim Bouton describes so well in “Ball Four”; even more so, they bury the guys who don’t show it. With Brown, they were right. Alberts’ comments were shockingly valid – but don’t worry. He’ll make up for it in a few picks. Now

2	Washington Redskins	#56, OLB, Penn State
	Experts Said:	Trev Alberts: “There's no doubt he's a playmaker, and his improbable dive against Illinois has teams seeing "The next Lawrence Taylor."
	Time Said:	Was the dive really improbable? The result, maybe, but is there something I don’t know about? Poor, poor Penn State. LB Redskins has certainly revealed himself to be one of the better linebackers in the league when healthy and/or interested. Comically decided to not join the NFLPA until he realized that the exclusive deal he signed to be the only NFL player featured in the sequel to “Ten Yard Fight” wasn’t resulting in much fruit for the Arrington family. Has also proven to be a leader by taking Sean Taylor under his wing. Oof…

3	Washington Redskins	Chris Samuels, OT, Alabama
	Experts Said:	Dr. Z: “A no-brainer. Plug him into Andy Heck's spot on the left side and keep him there as long as he can handle it.”
	Time Said:	I’m not sure what “…as long as he can handle it” is supposed to mean. How will he show that he couldn’t handle it? Is Dr. Z expecting Samuels to gradually reach a point where he becomes overwhelmed and unstable and then explodes? The Redskins pretty much nailed these two picks. In order to ensure parity within the NFL and prevent a dynasty from forming, the commissioner’s office instructed Daniel Snyder to force his coaches into making awful decisions for the next five years. Or, as Paulie Tags called it, “follow your instincts”.

Cincinnati Bengals

Peter Warrick, WR, Florida State

Experts Said:

Trev Alberts: “The NFL Draft is rapidly approaching and I have one simple question: Why are general managers so caught up with workout stats? Just because a linebacker is 6-4 and runs a 4.5 in the 40, why does that make him a Top 5 pick? (Oh wait, that was me!) Here's my philosophy: Forget about numbers, forget about drafting for need, take the best athlete and he'll make an impact.

So, with the Cleveland Browns' No. 1 pick, I select Peter Warrick.

That's right, Warrick.

Forget the reasons you've heard not to pick Warrick. Yes, I was there when he ran his 4.6 for the scouts. Who cares?

Did you see him play?

He's the best playmaker to come out since Deion Sanders.

How about all those teams that passed on Jerry Rice 15 years ago? Something about being "a step slow?"

Peter King (C): “I will say this: Peter Warrick will be the offensive rookie of the year or my name is Giovanni Carmazzi.”

Time Said:

Every time someone wants to justify slotting a receiver who runs a slow 40 high, they get compared to Jerry Rice. Here’s the thing, though: Jerry Rice is the exception, not the rule. Every fat guy who plays baseball isn’t Babe Ruth. Every European basketball player isn’t Dirk Nowitzki. Receivers don’t NEED to run a fast 40 to be a very good receiver. But it sure helps. And if you can’t, you better be good at most everything else. People have given all kinds of reasons for Warrick’s failure: poor quarterbacking, poor vision, injuries, terrorism, the malaise of Cincinnati. He’s about to be cut, and in that vein, we can look to Occam: Maybe he’s just not that good. And you were doing so well, Trev…

Baltimore Ravens

Jamal Lewis, RB, Tennessee

Experts Said:

Peter King (C): “Shaun Alexander (who went 19th) will be a better pro than Jamal Lewis (fifth), by the way.”

Time Said:

People thought the Ravens might trade this pick for Corey Dillon. It probably worked out better that they didn’t in the long run; they won a Super Bowl anyway (stupid Jason Sehorn), and Dillon probably would’ve had to be cut when the Ravens hit their spending limits a couple of years ago and had to rebuild. On the other hand…Corey Dillon only has to worry about getting his groin right. That’s hard to do behind bars.

Lewis vs. Alexander is a pretty interesting question. Alexander’s ran 1347 times for 5937 yards and 62 TD’s, averaging 4.4 ypc; Lewis has 1239 carries for 5763 yards, but only 33 TD’s, averaging 4.7 ypc. Lewis’ year off due to injury is countered by Alexander spending most of 2000 backing up Ricky Watters.

The thing that separates them? Lewis has 110 catches and 1 TD over four years; Alexander, 173 and 10.

6	Philadelphia Eagles	Corey Simon, DT, Florida State
	Experts Said:	Peter King (C+): “Hope they know what they're doing with Corey Simon's health. But I know Andy Reid. I'd be shocked if he makes a mistake here.”
	Time Said:	I wonder if Peter King’s trust for Andy Reid is like Joe Torre’s trust for relievers. How far does his trust extend? Would he leave his daughter alone in a room with Andy Reid? Can you imagine being hit on by Andy Reid? I think I would probably be too flustered trying to say “No” so many different ways at once that I would lock up and not even be able to respond.

Arizona Cardinals

Thomas Jones, RB, Virginia

Experts Said:

Dr. Z: “At one time their GM, Bob Ferguson, was a guy I used to be able to talk to and trade information with. Now he plays it cute, mentioning one guy, smoke-screening, picking another, etc.”

Time Said:

Poor Dr. Z. “But if you’re honest and direct, and avoid making a flowery emotional speech when you break the news, the boy will respect you for your frankness. And honestly, he’ll appreciate the kind of straightforward manner in which you told him your decision. Unless he’s a real jerk or a crybaby, you’ll remain friends…”

Here’s a list of the Big East running backs who went in the first round in the 1990’s:

Maybe that should’ve been a sign.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Plaxico Burress, WR, Michigan State

Experts Said:

Peter King (B+): “Steelers got two big receivers (Plaxico Burress and Danny Farmer) and I have a sneaking feeling that [Tee] Martin will be throwing to them in December, at the end of a lost Steelers season. I like Kevin Gilbride taking Martin under his wing.”

Trev Alberts: “Cincy needs playmakers, so I'd sure use the No. 4 pick on Plaxico Burress. He's big, fast and nobody could cover him in college. Just imagine Akili Smith throwing to Burress and the Bengals lighting it up. I said imagine.”

Dr. Z: “The best quote I heard was from an NFL coach who sat near him at the NCAA basketball championship: "He didn't even stand up when they played the Michigan State fight song. And you should have seen the way he was dressed. School stuff, but it was all cut up, with all sorts of frilly things on it."

Time Said:

Other people had the Steelers going for Chad Pennington. I’m pretty sure everyone involved is happier with how things really went. Except for maybe Kordell Stewart. He is just lonely. And will punt for money.

I am thinking that Tom Coughlin doesn’t take too kindly to frill. Or fringe. The thought of Plaxico Burress playing a game dressed like Ricky Morton makes me smile, though.

It turned out Tee Martin, taken in the fifth round, wasn’t actually a real NFL football player. It also turned out Akili Smith wasn’t actually a real NFL football player. I’m guessing that they were probably about just as good as each other. Fortunately for the Steelers, it cost them a lot less to find out. Also fortunately for the Steelers, they are not the Bengals and haven’t ever had to be.

Let’s play a Rob Neyer game. I’m gonna list two receivers with their stats. You guess who they are.

Player 1				Player 2
Year	Rec	Yds	TD	Year	Rec	Yds	TD
2001	66	1008	6	2000	57	669	0
2002	78	1325	7	2001	84	1097	9
2003	60	860	4	2002	67	703	4
2004	35	698	5	2003	58	634	3

Player 1 just got a huge, multi-year contract from a team that didn’t read this chart. Player 2 is going to be the fourth receiver for a team that gave him a one-year deal.

Plaxico Burress and Kevin Johnson. But – you know – Plaxico is always going to be tall. Yes sir.

Chicago Bears

Brian Urlacher, ILB, New Mexico

Experts Said:

Trev Alberts: “In two years, Brian Urlacher will be among the best in the business. Urlacher is another impact guy who made plays from virtually every defensive position in his career.”

Dr. Z: “I watched the Senior Bowl again a few days ago and saw a big, agile guy (he's a converted safetyman) who moves well and has a nose for the ball.”

Time Said:

Definitely typed “Ron Mexico” into the bar up there out of habit. I also kinda like the term safetyman – it sounds old-timey (not old-timey like, say, the baseball “rover”) but “safety” in and of itself just sounds so…afterthoughtish, like a backup plan. “Safety” is the positional equivalent of leftovers. “Safetyman” is an occupation.

10	Baltimore Ravens	Travis Taylor, WR, Florida
	Experts Said:
	Time Said:	Taylor rose up late in the pre-draft process, to the point where most mock drafts I looked at had him going late in the first round, if in the first round at all. Taylor was the 2nd WR from a Florida school taken in the top 10; the fourth one in the draft fell to the third round; Laveraneus Coles. He wasn’t even the second WR taken from FSU; Ron Dugans got the honor. Cincinnati had the right region and position…but failed twice. For Cincinnati, only wasting two picks isn’t that bad, I guess.

New York Giants

Ron Dayne, RB, Wisconsin

Experts Said:

Peter King (C): “I do think Dayne's a plodder, which would be okay here if he had a line to open a hole for him.”

CNNSI: “Giants love large Big Ten running backs.”

Dr. Z: “Some people have given them Shaun Alexander, the Alabama tailback. One of my spies said he attended an Alexander workout and the Giants scouts there went positively nuts over him. Said he looked like the second coming of Marcus Allen. Never heard that comparison made before, mainly because there's a vast difference in toughness. When I asked Jim Fassel, he said Dayne fitted his purposes a lot better; in other words, he wanted a back he could hand the ball to 20 to 25 times a game.”

Time Said:

As a Giants fan, I don’t know if I can speak in a coherent and dignified manner about Ron Dayne, or, in particular, that Dr. Z comment.

I will note that Shaun Alexander has 37 20+ carry games in his career. Dayne has 6. Yay toughness!

Plodding is maybe the best word to describe Ron Dayne in the English language. Unfortunately, though, it doesn’t fully capture the ineptitude that marks his rushing, the malaise for contact with which he blocks, the allergy to pigskin he develops when a quarterback checks down and throws the ball in his direction without first realizing his the folly of his ways. I don’t know whether the word exists in a different language, or whether we will never be able, as a people, to properly come together and truly understand the utter horror it is having Ron Dayne on your football team.

Other places that love large Big Ten running backs: Old Country Buffet…DeVry Institute.

12	New York Jets	Shaun Ellis, DE, Tennessee
13	New York Jets	John Abraham, DE, South Carolina
	Experts Said:	Peter King (C+): “The big question here is: Is Keyshawn Johnson for John Abraham and Anthony Becht a good trade? Didn't think you'd think it was.” Dr. Z: “Jon Gruden mentioned Abraham and LB Julian Peterson, who had a big Senior Bowl. "Peterson fits our need better right now," he said, "but Abraham's potential excites me. I like him as a third-down rusher. I like his burst. He's a project but he might be worth it."
	Time Said:	Packers wanted Ellis badly; Jets picked him first and traded up a few picks to grab Abraham. Jets last few front seven picks: Jonathan Vilna, Dewayne Robertson, Bryan Thomas, Ellis, Abraham, James Farrior, Hugh Douglas, Marvin Jones, Jeff Lageman. The Jets have actually been pretty fantastic drafters altogether over the last ten years. Do you think they became really good at drafting just because they were afraid/sick of being heckled by the fans at MSG?

Green Bay Packers

Bubba Franks, TE, Miami

Experts Said:

Peter King (B+): “Bubba Franks becomes the next Mark Chmura, for health and off-field reasons, immediately.”

Dr. Z: “The only TE people think merits a first-round pick. Every TV announcer belabors us with the importance of tight ends in an offense, but then they're always picked lower down in the draft. This is a position in which the size-speed equation, the workout performances are not the most accurate gauges, I feel. Much more important is the ability to find the hole in the zone on third down (Jay Novacek) and hold onto any ball that hits your hands (again, Novacek) -- which, of course, will only be discovered when the games start for real.”

Time Said:

I like Dr. Z’s point a lot except for his confusion of importance with value. It is important to have a tight end in your offense, certainly. The reason they go in the late rounds – or were – was because a replacement-level tight end is very easy to find. Even easier to find than a replacement-level kicker – but we’ll get to that later.

Do you think Bubba Franks didn’t really succeed in Green Bay cause he wasn’t Brett Favre’s fishing buddy? I also guess Mark Chmura’s “Not Guilty Comeback Tour” didn’t go over so well. So sad.

Denver Broncos

Deltha O’Neal, CB, California

Experts Said:

Peter King (C): “Deltha O'Neal is a better returner than corner; Denver needs him to be great at both jobs.”

Dr. Z: “Many differences in opinion, as well, as to how people rate the top three corners. Ahmed Plummer and Rashard Anderson are the other two, and there's no consensus as to which one is better.”

Time Said:

I miss the old Broncos jerseys.

I didn’t see any Bengals games this year. Did O’Neal look at all competent? He certainly never did as a Bronco.

Peter King also wrote this: “Bill Romanowski, those are Ian Gold's footsteps you're feeling. And his hot breath on your neck.” I don’t think Andrea Kremer’s gonna be happy about that…

San Francisco 49ers

Julian Peterson, LB, Michigan State

Experts Said:

Peter King (B): “The 49ers did the right thing by passing on Pennington.”

Time Said:

If they take Pennington, they get to take Braylon Edwards last weekend.

People were pretty quiet on Peterson – who has been very good. In the absence of make fun of related to this pick, I’ll list my favorite mock draft prediction, taken from nfldraftcountdown.com’s final mock draft, listing Aaron Rodgers as going #5 to the Buccaneers:

“Don't listen to all of those who think Rodgers is going to freefall, maybe as far as #24, if the Niners don't take him. A guy simply doesn't go from a possible #1 overall pick to a late first rounder in a matter of days for no reason whatsoever.”

Oakland Raiders

Sebastian Janikowski, K, Florida State

Experts Said:

Peter King (A): “Janikowski is the best kicking weapon to come out of college football, maybe ever. Assuming he can stay in America and stay out of trouble, Janikowski will increase the Raiders' touchbacks from 8 to about 50 this year, and he should soon be a great pro field-goal man. Punter Shane Lechler was the best in college football this year. Remember: special-teams plays account for about 22 percent of the plays. Field position wins. Love these picks.”

Time Said:

There are no jokes to make that haven’t been made a million times already. Except…

You know how I was mentioning how terrifying it would be to get hit on by Andy Reid before? Imagine how terrifying it must be to get hit on by Sebastian Janikowski. In much the same vein, I imagine I would try to run away so fast that I’d trip and fall, like the co-ed running away from the slasher. Is it a situation where if he comes within ten feet of you at the club, you automatically have to throw away your drink?

18	New York Jets	Chad Pennington, QB, Marshall
	Experts Said:
	Time Said:	Most people had Pennington going to the Steelers at #8. Chad’s great, but I’d be a little worried about that seven-year contract he signed. He has played exactly 0 full NFL seasons so far. If he doesn’t make it through 2006 healthy, I think it becomes chronic.

Seattle Seahawks

Shaun Alexander, RB, Alabama

Experts Said:

Peter King (B+): “Four words: Shaun Alexander, Chris McIntosh. To get Alexander at 19 -- he'll be a better pro than Ron Dayne...”

Time Said:

This was a slightly less difficult statement to make for Peter King than the Lewis comparison, I am guessing.

I’ve seen a fair amount of Seahawk games over the past couple of years and I’m very indecisive about whether Maurice Morris could replace Shaun Alexander. There are games where Morris looks like he’s just as good as Alexander, blowing through the line and making guys miss in the secondary. There are also games, though, where Morris looks totally in over his head, blowing assignments left and right.

Also worth noting: Morris’ 5 biggest games in his career came against the ’02 Cardinals (two of them, actually; they ranked 30th in the NFL in run defense that year), the ’03 Cardinals (19th), the ’03 Steelers (13th), and ’04 49ers (20th).

Detroit Lions

Stockar McDougle, T, Oklahoma

Experts Said:

Peter King (C-): “Stockar McDougle and Aaron Gibson will be pulling this year for James Stewart one play, some linebacker will get leveled by the 748 pounds of padded beef, and he'll file a lawsuit claiming cruel and unusual punishment.”

Dr. Z: “Al Groh says he likes McDougle's "mean streak," which reminds me of a line by the old Jets defensive end, the undersized Gerry Philbin, about his much-bigger running mate, Verlon Biggs: "If I was as big as Biggs, people would have to pay me to let them live."”

Time Said:

Other mock drafts had the Lions going for Chris McIntosh. That Peter King comment is great because you know he looked at the Lions draft, couldn’t think of anything, went to the bathroom, got on the scale, was unhappy with himself, thought about changing his diet, went to the hotel gift shop, looked for a protein bar but got a candy bar instead, went back up to his room, and realized he hadn’t written anything about the Lions yet. So he spend eight seconds adding up the two fat tackles weight and boom – you have a draft review.

Does anyone remember the Al Groh era in New York? It seems like it never happened; I’m not sure whether Al Groh spent more time as a Jet than Mike Piazza did as a Marlin.

Kansas City Chiefs

Sylvester Morris, WR, Jackson State

Experts Said:

Peter King (C): “I like Sylvester Morris. But I can't figure for the life of me why Carl Peterson, who is a smart man, didn't go out and spend a couple of picks to save his running game for years by dealing for Corey Dillon. Dumb, dumb, dumb.”

Dr. Z: “Big wideouts are the blue-plate specials this year. As one scout told me, "Most of your downfield catches are made by big guys outpositioning little cornerbacks." And then he added, "A small receiver gets even smaller the farther he gets downfield."

Time Said:

That scout quote just seems like something Joe Morgan would say.

I wonder how long it will take for people to realize that running backs are fungible properties. I wonder whether people think Priest Holmes suddenly became an incredible running back once he left Baltimore. Someone has to notice these things besides me. Please.

Morris would be a very rich man right now if he’d been able to stay healthy and played in that offense. Poor guy.

22	Seattle Seahawks	Chris McIntosh, T, Wisconsin
	Experts Said:
	Time Said:	McIntosh, believe it or not, actually selected for the apple jokes alone. Never developed due to neck problems/not actually being good at football. Better than next pick, though.

Carolina Panthers

Rashard Anderson, CB, Jackson State

Experts Said:

Peter King (C-): “Top pick Rashard Anderson, a corner/safety, has hands of stone. Not a good quality for an interceptor.”

Time Said:

Also not good qualities for an interceptor: smoking crack rocks. Last seen on the Carmelo Anthony DC “DON’T SNITCH!!!” video. Probably will not feature in any United Way NFL commercials despite generously donating most of salary to fund.

Who was in charge of the Panthers then? John Nash? They sure found a way to pick crazy people.

24	San Francisco 49ers	Ahmed Plummer, CB, Ohio State
	Experts Said:	Dr. Z: “He won't be here, of course. He's too good to have lasted this long. Niners love him, but they also like Rashard Anderson. They have to take a corner here.”
	Time Said:	Well…he was there. Really only a solid corner at best, until you compare to him to what surrounds him. Compared to O’Neal and Anderson, he’s Darrell Green. Compared to Mike Rumph, he’s Rod Woodson. It’s all context, people.

Minnesota Vikings

Chris Hovan, DT, Boston College

Experts Said:

Peter King (D): “Knee-jerk reactions after the Jevon Kearse/Dimitrius Underwood fiasco of 12 months ago.”

Dr. Z: “Defense all the way, said Dennis Green, and here were the names he gave me, in order: Plummer, Ellis, Hovan, Abraham, Rashard Anderson, John Engelberger, DT Cornelius Griffin of Alabama. Hovan, a good, stout run-plugger, was the highest in that bunch who was still available. And, of course, we all know the Vikings' pick will be none of the above. That's the way it always works out when things are too logical.”

Time Said:

That’s actually a pretty decent job of scouting by Dennis Green, all things considered. Was Chris Hovan REALLY that bad the last year or two? I mean – I am not saying I am a big fan or anything. But he’s an ugly white guy in Minnesota. I thought they had carte blanche? Is he gay? Did Chris Hovan sleep with Bob Mould??!???

Buffalo Bills

Erik Flowers, DE, Arizona State

Experts Said:

Peter King (B+): “Pick 89 overall, Corey Moore, will be one of those classic Bills picks (they always get a very good player after the first round, every year), the kind of player GMs will regret passing on.”

Time Said:

Nope.

Bills noteworthy picks after the first round, 1990’s:

Year	Player(s)	Year	Player(s)
1999	Peerless Price (2) Shawn Bryson (3) Keith Newman (4) Jay Foreman (5) Bryce Fisher (7)	1994	Sam Rogers (2)
1998	Sam Cowart (2)	1993	Corbin Lacina (6)
1997	Marcellus Wiley (2) Jamie Nails (4)	1992	Kurt Schulz (7)
1996	Dusty Ziegler (6)	1991	Phil Hansen (2)
1995	Ken Irvin (4) John Holocek (5) Tom Nutten (7)	1990	Glenn Parker (3) Marcvus Patton (8) Mike Lodish (10)

Not bad.

New York Jets

Anthony Becht, TE, West Virginia

Experts Said:

Time Said:

When you have 2 or more tight ends taken in the first round of a draft…you want the first one. Trust me.

Year	1st TE Taken (pick)	2nd+ TE Taken (pick)
1992	Derek Brown (14)	Johnnie Mitchell (15)
1995	Kyle Brady (9)	Mark Bruener (27)
1997	Tony Gonzalez (13)	David LaFleur (22)
2000	Bubba Franks (14)	Anthony Becht (27)
2002	Jeremy Shockey (14)	Daniel Graham (21) Jerramy Stevens (27)
2004	Kellen Winslow (6)	Ben Watson (32)

You’ll note the Jets are involved in 3 of the first 4 of those transactions. That’s a sign.

Indianapolis Colts

Rob Morris, MLB, BYU

Experts Said:

Peter King (C-): “Saved from a D by Bill Polian's rep. Rob Morris is a nice man but overrated.”

Dr. Z: “Everyone and his brother has him going here. In the magazine, though, I gave them Howard because Howard's agent, Gary Wichard, told me he talked to Colts director of football operations Dom Anile, who was Gary's head coach when he quarterbacked C.W. Post, and Dom swore to him that Howard would be the pick if he were there. You still with me? O.K., a swear's a swear, and would a former coach lie to his former QB? Hell, no, and I was gonna be smarter than everyone else, see, but then the Jets-Bucs trade screwed up the board, so now I've joined the lowing herd and will give them Morris. And if Howard is the pick, well, you'll see an early afternoon, draft-day suicide.”

Time Said:

Can anyone follow that Dr. Z quote? Anyone? Was there some sort of decoder ring I didn’t get?

Colts ended up with Morris, Marcus Washington, and David Macklin out of this draft. Bill Polian’s rep, worth noting, was not usable in 2000 when I tried to present it as part of my petition to get a C- in high school Spanish.

Jacksonville Jaguars

R. Jay Soward, WR, USC

Experts Said:

Peter King (C+): “R. Jay Soward and Tom Coughlin. Now that's a match made in heaven. Why do I give this a chance? Because scouts love Soward -- assuming he'd have someone to lean on him 25 hours a day.”

Dr. Z: “"Best available athlete," Tom Coughlin told me.”

Time Said:

You know you didn’t accomplish much in professional football when the “I’m Feeling Lucky!” result for your Google search takes you to your college bio and stat page. Still, I think, on the Jaguars roster. 4 catches, 1 ejection in the CFL last year.

Tennessee Titans

Keith Bulluck, OLB, Syracuse

Experts Said:

Peter King (B): “Good value in LB Keith Bulluck at 30. The Titans are the NFL's Linebacker U.”

Time Said:

That especially makes sense when you consider where the Titans and Nittany Lions are at right now. Bulluck reminds me of Ken Norton, Jr. for some reason – I just see him flaming out around 31-32.

Stole Rippa’s girlfriend in high school.

31	St. Louis Rams	Trung Canidate, RB, Arizona
	Experts Said:	Peter King (D): “I have no idea why you take a Marshall Faulk (Trung Canidate) when you have a Marshall Faulk (Marshall Faulk).”
	Time Said:	You know why you don’t have any idea why you take Trung Canidate, Peter King? BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT AN OFFENSIVE GENIUS. YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND THE INTRICACIES OF HOW FOOTBALL WORKS! MIKE MARTZ IS A GENIUS!!! HE IS TWO STEPS AHEAD OF YOU!!!!

Best Draft: Green Bay hit on all their linemen, picking up Franks, Chad Clifton (44), Na’il Diggs (98), KGB (149), Mark Tauscher (151), and even Rondell Mealey (252). The Jets got two excellent defensive ends and an excellent quarterback…but it almost feels like cheating when they had four first rounders to do it with. The Patriots had a very mediocre draft (Adrian Klemm (46), JR Redmond (76), and Patrick Pass (239)), but they did grab Tom Brady at 1999. Ah, random luck. New Orleans didn’t have a first round pick but managed to grab Darren Howard (33), Chad Morton (166), and Marc Bulger (168). I think the Packers have it.

Worst Draft: Yeah – the Cowboys BEST pick was Mario Edwards. And he was the third corner they chose. But compare that to the Jacksonville draft and it’s absolutely frightening. Jacksonville had 11 picks. I….you just have to see for yourself.

Pick	Name	Pos	College
29	R. Jay Soward	WR	Southern California
60	Brad Meester	C	Northern Iowa
92	T.J. Slaughter	ILB	Southern Mississippi
123	Joe Chustz	T	Louisiana Tech
159	Kiwaukee Thomas	CB	Georgia Southern
196	Emanuel Smith	WR	Arkansas
236	Erik Olson	FS	Colorado State
241	Rob Meier	DE	Washington State
243	Shyrone Stith	RB	Virginia Tech
245	Danny Clark	ILB	Illinois
247	Mark Baniewicz	T	Syracuse

Soward, we already discussed. Meester is their starting center. Slaughter played sparingly and was cut after he pulled a gun on a guy. He conveniently made his way to – HEY! – the Ravens. Chustz didn’t make it. Thomas is a nickel corner. Smith never made it to an active roster. Likewise Olson. Meier’s a reserve lineman. Stith returned kicks for a year, blew out his knee, and disappeared. Clark was their best pick and I’m pretty sure they chose him because his name was easier to pronounce than Baniewicz’s. This draft was UGLY and came to roost in 2004.

Best Pick: Brady, of course. Excluding him, Mark Tauscher at 224 is pretty fantastic for one of the better tackles in pro football. Marc Bulger at 168 is also a pretty good pick – and followed by Neil Rackers! Aww…the Bengals.

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