Sneak Preview of This Year's NFL Draft

by Jordan Mamorsky

On April 21st, about 500 college players are hoping to reach the pinnacle of American football, the NFL. However, only 200-225 kids will be drafted by NFL teams, crushing dreams of money-making, and leaving most to explore other options, such as walk-in free agents, or a role with the Canadian Football League.

Productivity is weighed highly in the NFL, and if a player is unproductive, nothing is guaranteed, even for the Heisman Trophy winner. I explored the topic of the draft in an interview with B.J. Schecter who covers college football for Sports Illustrated.

Warrick, Arrington, Brown, Jones, Burris, Simon, Samuels, Pennington are just a few of the names that are going to be on the wish list for NFL team owners this spring. Yet, according to Mr. Schecter, they may not demonstrate the high profile they achieved in college on the NFL fields across the country. A common stereotype among football fans is that Heisman Trophy winners will be Pro Bowl caliber players. Many Heisman winners are lackluster in the NFL. Schecter says that this can be attributed to the fact that the Heisman race is statistically driven and the award usually goes to the flashiest player. In addition, he mentioned the fact that a lot of athletic college quarterbacks are "vertically challenged" in NFL terms, meaning that they are 6 feet or less. This height deficiency was disregarded in college competition because undersized quarterbacks made up for height with unmatched athleticism.

Things change in the NFL. Defenses are bigger and faster. The typical lineman is 6';5" and weighs 280 pounds. They also typically have amazing speed for their size. The best ones are almost as fast as the quarterback. This poses a problem for quarterbacks who are athletic, but considered small.