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20/20 Hindsight brings Painful Memories

On NFL Draft Day

By Ray Mulle Editor

There is one constant to be stated when talking about the NFL Draft, There are no guarantees. How many times have we heard about can’t miss selections that will be the final piece of a teams puzzle. We’ve all seen players from all the different position that were great in college then, in the pros, they fizzle out or just fall flat on their face. However, a What if? comes to mind. What would happen if we could hop into Mr. Peabody & Sherman’s time machine with the what we know now knowledge of the NFL Draft. Without taking injuries into consideration, let’s see what we find.

Let’s set the dial for the 1976 Draft, the first in Buccaneer history. Now no one here or any other knowledgeable sports writer would dare claim the #1 pick in team history, DE Leroy Selmon was a mistake. He is in my mind the best selection ever made by the Bucs. In the third round that year, the Bucs picked OT Steve Young out of Colorado. He was the 1^st pick in the 3^rd round and the 61^st pick overall. He was to be a protector for Buc QB’s for years to come. Young played 11 games in 1976, starting all 11 times and never saw the field as a Buccaneer again. Using the what we know now powers we notice down at pick #86, 25 picks after Tampa Bay selected Young the then Los Angeles Rams Selected OT Jackie Slater from Jackson State. Slater played 259 games over 20 seasons and was inducted into The Hall of Fame in 2001.

We move forward to the 1980 Draft. The New York Jets have the 2^nd overall pick in the Draft. The Jets needed a wide receiver or an offensive lineman and with only top pick RB Billy Sims off the board to Detroit, they were ready to make an impact selection. Their pick was WR Johnny Lam Jones out of Texas. Jones lasted only 5 seasons and never caught more than 43 passes in any one of them. Looking back they passed on Future Hall of Fame OT Anthony Munoz of the Cincinnati Bengals. Who was taken with pick #3, and played 185 games in 14 years. If the Jets were set on taking a WR, the Washington Redskins got it right with their pick of Hall of Famer Art Monk. Monk Caught 920 passes for 12,721 yards and 68 Tds over 16 years.

Flashing forward to the 1982 Draft, the Baltimore Colts Needing a QB to lead them to the Promised Land, gambled on Ohio State QB Art Schlichter with the 4^th overall pick. Just like his the rest of his career this pick turned out to be a bad bet. Especially when the Bears, with the very next pick at #5, selected BYU QB Jim McMahon. The 1983 Draft produced the greatest list of Quarterbacks to ever come out of one draft. The Philadelphia Eagles needed a Running Back and selected Michael Haddix with the 8^th pick. Haddix played 8 seasons and never gaining more than 311 yards in any one of them. San Francisco 49ers had much better luck with the #49^th pick overall in the 2^nd round. That pick, RB Roger Craig Played 11 seasons gaining 13,100 yards and 73 TDs on the ground and through the air.

In the 1988 Draft the Cleveland Browns at pick #21, needing a linebacker,

Selected Florida LB, Clifford Charlton. Charlton played 2 full seasons with the Browns. In the 2^nd round at pick #29, The Detroit Lions selected LB Chris Spielman. The hard nosed Spielman played 11 seasons. Two teams, who selected QB’s in the 1991 Draft, missed the boat when you look back now. Seattle with the 16^th pick in the 1^stround, selected QB Dan McGwire. With the 24^th pick in the 1^st round, Al Davis, in his infinite wisdom, chose Todd Marinovich, QB from USC. They both could have had QB Brett Favre who was selected with the 2^nd round pick, 33^rd overall by the Atlanta Falcons. Both teams had a second chance for Favre when the Falcons traded him to the Packers the next season.

We’ll leave the rest to debate another time. I left out the Bo Jackson pick of the Bucs. Also the Great Montana selection in 3^rd round of the 1979 Draft, Everyone missed on that one. Actually there are so many examples you could pick apart each round of every NFL Draft and come up with a better pick for almost every team. Looking back can be fun and also a lot of heartache, based on your favorite team. By the way, in 1990, I would have preferred LB Junior Seau instead of LB-DL Keith McCants for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1st round pick. However, you can blame Ray Perkins for that!