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Behind The Scoreboard
By Claude Vinson NFL Draft If
you have been paying even the slightest bit of attention to commercials
on the tube this year, you have undoubtedly seen the commercial which
pumps up the importance of education and goes something like this,
“There are over 400,000 student athletes in our colleges and
universities and over 90 percent of them will be going pro in fields
other than sports.” As true as that statement is,
one would be hard pressed to use it to dampen the spirit and
expectations of the hundreds of hopefuls who had declared for the NFL
Draft which was held in New York April 22-24. Even with the NFL
commissioner, Roger Goodell, vowing stiffer and more equitable
punishment for any and all who transgress the rules of the order,
collegiate notables lined up for the big day with nervous enthusiasm. Perhaps
the Philadelphia Eagles could be guilty of firing the starting gun just
a bit early. In a move that shocked just about everyone who was not
privy to the dealings, Philly swiftly sent their super-rated
quarterback, Donovan McNabb, to the Washington Redskins. There
were rumblings at the end of last season that the Redskins’ primary
signal caller was not exactly ecstatic with his role in the ’Skins
scheme of things. However, Jason Campbell’s fate was not known until
after the draft was completed. The Mississippi native, who excelled as
a quarterback at Taylorsville, was shipped off to the Oakland Raiders.
No one really knows how long this deal had been discussed or what
implications it will have for the Raiders’ JaMarcus Russell, who was
the top choice in the 2007 selections. And
speaking of quarterbacks, this was actually supposed to have been the
“year of the quarterback.” Such collegiate standouts as Jevan Snead,
Tim Tebow, Sam Bradford and Jonathan Crompton all had been pointed to
as signal callers with high potential, to name a few. Of those,
Bradford was the only one who seemed to have solidified his
credentials. He was taken with the first round pick by the St. Louis
Rams. Only three more were taken in the intermediate rounds with the
last nine all being selected in the final round. There were others
picked up after the draft on free agency contracts. Snead was one of
these, landing a deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The
world was watching to see what the reigning champs, the New Orleans
Saints, would opt for on the market. Strength assessors claim that the
“Who Dat” boys had the biggest chinks in their armor on defense. And,
their offensive selections, called curious by some and interesting by
others, seemed to please only the coach (Sean Payton) and general
manager (Mickey Loomis). But it would be hard to argue their tactics
since they built a long-standing loser into a Super Bowl winner.
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