DraftHistory.com

DraftHistory.com is the premier site for historical information on the NFL Pro Football College Draft. Submit articles, suggestions for improvement and errata to: Chris Malumphy at cmalumphy@earthlink.net. This site is best viewed using a Mozilla based browser such as Firefox or Safari.

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Friday, July 16, 2010

Bears Select RB Harvey Unga and Cowboys take DE Josh Price-Brent in 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft

The Chicago Bears used a 7th round pick in the 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft to select BYU running back Harvey Unga. The Dallas Cowboys also used a 7th round selection to draft Josh Price-Brent, a defensive end, from Illinois. The Supplemental Draft was conducted by e-mail. The Bears and the Cowboys used draft picks that would have been available to them in the 2011 regular NFL Draft. Unga had some good seasons at BYU, topping 1,000 yards rushing three times demonstrating that he could run, block and catch the ball out of the backfield. However, his rushing and receiving totals steadily declined. Unga does have a nose for the endzone as evidenced by his 36 touchdowns rushing and 9 touchdowns receiving. Unger will battle Matt Forte, Chester Taylor and others for playing time. Dallas will likely try Price-Brent at nose tackle. Two players who were eligible in the Supplemental Draft went unselected: wide receiver Vanness Emokpae of Truman State and running back Quentin Castille of Northwestern (La.).

Football News

USA Today

• NFL power rankings: Aaron Rodgers, Packers cool at No. 1
• ESPN: Ben Roethlisberger will ask Roger Goodell to reduce suspension to 3 games
• NFL: Attendance likely to fall for third straight season in 2010, to lowest level since 1998
• Stigma of depression diagnosis hard to overcome for Andrews
• Roethlisberger to meet with Goodell on Friday
• Healthy again, Antwan Odom looks for a big rebound in 2010
• Now in UFL, Maurice Clarett is confident but won't discuss past
• AP: Union questioning motives of NFL rookie trades
• HD TV and technology pit NFL stadiums vs. fans' living rooms
• Cowboys' Marion Barber prefers to let his running do all the talking

ESPN

• Sources: Ben Roethlisberger to ask NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to reduce suspension
• Teams in discussions about trading for Matt Leinart, sources say
• 49ers coach Mike Singletary separates Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree
• Arizona Cardinals sign defensive tackle Darnell Dockett to contract extension
• NFL makes adjustments with umpire positioning
• Dallas Cowboys WR Dez Bryant wants to play in preseason finale, but won't
• Maurice Clarett sidesteps past, focused on future in UFL
• Ochocinco talks up new touchdown celebration against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium
• Sources: Two trades being monitored by NFLPA
• Cleveland Browns DT Shaun Rogers fined for gun charge

Sports Illustrated

• NFLPA looks into legality of recent rookie trades
• NFL makes adjustments to positioning of umpires
• Cardinals sign DT Dockett to four-year extension
• Raiders deny reported interest in a Leinart trade
• NFC SOUTH
• NFC SOUTH
• Merriman cautious in return from Achilles' injury
• 'Hawks ship Wilson to Ravens
• Colts' Saturday hopes to play in season opener
• Patriots place starting cornerback Bodden on IR

Sunday, June 13, 2010

All-Time Great Linebacker Les Richter Passes Away; Once Traded for 11 Players

Les Richter, the second player selected in the 1952 NFL Draft, died at age 79. Richter played college football at California-Berkeley where he was valedictorian. He was a linebacker, guard and placekicker. The future all-pro linebacker was taken by the New York Yanks after the Los Angeles Rams made quarterback Billy Wade the top pick in the 1952 Draft. Hall-of-Fame running back Ollie Matson was chosen by the Chicago Cardinals right after Richter. The Yanks moved to Dallas shortly thereafter and became the Texans for the 1953 season before moving on to become the Baltimore Colts in 1954. Richter never played for the Yanks/Texans/Colts franchise.

Following the draft, Richter spent two years in the army and then played his entire career with the Los Angeles Rams where he was an 8-time Pro Bowler at linebacker. He was a first-team all-pro in 1956. Richter also kicked for the Rams from 1954 through 1956. The Rams acquired the rights to Richter by sending 11 players to Texans on June 13, 1952. The Texans received running backs Dave Anderson, Billy Baggett, Dick Hoerner and Dick McKissack, centers Aubrey Phillips and Joe Reid, tackle Jack Halliday, end Richard Wilkins, linebacker Vic Vasicek, and defensive backs Tom Keane and George Sims. The trade was highly lopsided in the Rams' favor.

Richter was also well known in the auto racing world. He is credited with reviving the Riverside International Raceway in California, where he variously served as executive director, president and general manager from 1959-1983. He was also involved in the creation and promotion of the NASCAR Motor Trend 500 in 1963. In 1983 Richter joined NASCAR where he served as executive vice president of competition before becoming senior vice president of operations. Later Richter served as vice-president of special projects for International Speedway Corporation.

Richter is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and the Riverside Sport Hall of Fame. As an 8-time Pro Bowler, he has deserved to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for a long time.

Sunday, May 02, 2010

Quarterback Decision Time in Oakland; Raiders Must Choose Between Six Seasoned Veterans

Update 2: J.P. Losman has signed with the Seahawks, reducing Oakland's choices to four. Campbell will start. Boller has always "looked" like a prototype quarterback, but hasn't played like one. Gradkowski did o.k. with the Raiders last year, but doesn't doesn't appear to have much upside. Frye also has limitations.

Update: JaMarcus Russell has now been released, reducing the number of quarterbacks now on the Raiders' roster. Jason Campbell is the clear starter. The question remains how many of the experienced quarterbacks will Oakland keep. For some of these veterans, the Raiders may provide the last real chance for them to remain in the league.

The Oakland Raiders prepare for the 2010 season from a unique position. Under Al Davis' leadership, they often do. The unique aspect for the Raiders in 2010 is the quarterback situation. Remarkably, Oakland currently has six, count 'em, six quarterbacks on its roster each of whom have started at least 16 NFL games. And more remarkably, five of those quarterbacks started no fewer than three NFL contests last season, with three of them doing so for the Raiders. The sixth quarterback led his UFL team to a championship last year before returning to the NFL by signing with the Raiders shortly before the end of the season. The quality of the quarterback talent on the Raider's roster may be slim, but there is no lack of experience.

Based on past performance alone, Oakland should have little difficulty parsing out the wheat from the chaff. Jason Campbell, obtained from the Washington Redskins during the 2010 NFL Draft, should be handed the position outright. Whether he will or not, only Coach Tom Cable, or perhaps Al Davis, knows for sure. A glance at the statistics shows that Campbell has the most on the field experience, the highest quarterback rating and is the only quarterback among the five with more touchdown passes than interceptions. Campbell is accurate, tough, avoids stupid decisions and avoids being sacked better than any of the others. The knock on him is that he is a slow decision maker who plays too conservatively.

The real decisions for the Raiders should be who else to keep on the roster with Campbell. A case, albeit a very mild one, could be made for each of the others. Perhaps the least likely to stick would be Charlie Frye. Frye has already been found wanting in Cleveland and Seattle and he hasn't done particularly well when given the opportunity to play in Oakland. Frye does have a respectable career completion percentage, the best in this group, but his touchdown/interception ratio and his sack percentage are the worst of the five. His win-loss percentage is only better than JaMarcus Russell's. Frye is a dink and dunk quarterback who has the ability to scramble but never seems to make the most of it. While in Cleveland, which was admittedly a horrible situation for any quarterback, Frye was often known to have spun away from a perceived rush by turning directly into an oncoming blitzer, whence he'd get clobbered.

Base upon maturity and desire, former number one draft pick JaMarcus Russell should have been long gone by now. But based upon physical talent alone, Russell should be the best of the group. He is a mountain of a quarterback with a cannon arm. That is why he was the first draft pick in 2007. The Raiders must decide whether to fish or cut bait. Russell has the talent. Does he have the desire? If the Raiders believe his career can be resurrected, they may hang on to him, since no other team seems to be expressing any interest in Russell at the moment. If Russell can be developed for the future, he may have some value. Otherwise the Raiders should let him go, which could happen very soon.

Oakland's hardest decision may really be deciding between Bruce Gradkowski and Kyle Boller. Pretend for a moment that Campbell is the hands-down selection to start and that the Raiders decide to give Russell the opportunity to turn his career around with the team. Then who will the Raiders want to be their backup or third string quarterback. Boller and Gradkowski are not that much different if you look at the stats alone, but it appears that Boller is a bit better. The only thing is, Gradkowski was passable for the Raiders last season and his play helped turn their fortunes around somewhat. Boller has the better career won-loss record as a starter, but much of that was due to his playing for a strong Ravens' team where he was the weak link. Boller has a higher career completion percentage, but both he and Gradkowski are below NFL standards in that regard. Boller can get the ball downfield a little better too, as evidenced by their average yards per attempt, 5.9 to 5.4, respectively. But both of those averages are again below NFL norms. Both Boller and Gradkowski throw slighly more interceptions than touchdowns. Both are sacked the same percent of times. Boller's career quarterback rating is slightly higher and at 6-3, 220, he fits the stereotypical size for an NFL quarterback better than Gradkowski who weighs about the same but is only 6-1. Thing is, Boller doesn't instill confidence. Gradkowski doesn't really either, but he does seem to be a grittier fighter, which keeps him in the running. And I've overlooked former Buffalo Bill starter J.P. Losman, who won a championship in the UFL last season before joining the Raiders at year end. Look at Losman's career statistics, which in many respects appear better than all the other's except Campbell. Losman completes a fair percentage of his passes, for as many yards per attempt as Campbell, throws nearly as many touchdowns as interceptions, but does have a hard time making decisions which results in an inordinate number of sacks. He was shell-shocked in Buffalo, but as a former number one draft pick, he may be worth the risk of keeping.

It will be fun to see how this plays out. Decision time is coming up in Oakland. Wonder who will actually be calling the shots on this one.

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Tuesday, April 27, 2010

2010 NFL Draft by Position

Teams drafted 255 players in the 2010 NFL Draft. Defensive backs led the way with 53 picks followed by linebackers with 39 selections. The top position on offense was wide receiver with 27 draftees. Defensive ends (24) and defensive tackles (21) were nearly evenly split. A somewhat astounding 20 tight ends were drafted. Although tackles (17) tend to be of greater importance, there were nearly as many guards (16) selected. Only five centers were picked. Teams selected 16 running backs and 14 quarterbacks. Three teams expended picks on punters.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Florida, Alabama, Oklahoma and USC Lead Colleges with Most 2010 Draft Picks

Florida led all colleges in the number of players selected in the 2010 NFL Draft with nine. Florida had three players drafted in the 1st round and three more in the 2nd round. Bill Belichick thought enough of the Gators to draft three of their stalwarts (linebackers Jermaine Cunningham and Brandon Spikes and tight end Aaron Hernandez). The Gators were also popular in the AFC North where the Browns, Steelers and Bengals picked Floridians. Only the Ravens missed out and they may have been eyeing Hernandez at one point. Players drafted from Florida were: Joe Haden, defensive back, 1st round, Browns; Maurkice Pouncey, center, 1st round, Steelers; Tim Tebow, quarterback, 1st round, Broncos; Jermaine Cunningham, linebacker, 2nd round, Patriots; Carlos Dunlap, defensive end, 2nd round, Bengals; Brandon Spikes, linebacker, 2nd round, Patriots; Major Wright, defensive back, 3rd round, Bears; Aaron Hernandez, tight end, 4th round, Patriots; Riley Cooper, wide receiver, 5th round, Eagles.

Alabama, Oklahoma and USC finished tied for second with seven players each.

The Crimson Tide had two players selected in the 1st round and two more in the 2nd. The players selected from Alabama were: Rolando McLain, linebacker, 1st round, Raider; Kareem Jackson, defensive back, 1st round, Texans; Javier Arenas, defensive back, 2nd round, Chiefs; Terrence Cody, defensive tackle, 2nd round, Ravens; Mike Johnson, guard, 3rd round, Falcons; Marquis Johnson, defensive back, 7th round, Rams; and Brandon Deaderick, linebacker, 7th round, Patriots.

Of course it was Oklahoma that dominated the early stages of the draft with three of the top four selections and four picks in the 1st round. Sooners drafter were: Sam Bradford, quarterback; 1st round, Rams; Gerald McCoy, defensive tackle, 1st round, Buccaneers; Trent Williams, tackle, 1st round, Redskins; Jermaine Gresham, tight end, 1st round, Bengals; Keenan Clayton, linebacker, 4th round, Eagles; Dominique Franks, defefensive back, 5th round, Bengals; and Brody Eldridge, tight end, 5th round, Colts.

USC had seven players selected, but none in round one. To Taylor Mays’ dismay, new Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll passed up all of his former players, even with two picks in round one, until he selected tight end Anthony McCoy in the 6th round. Trojans drafted were: Tylor Mays, defensive back, 2nd round, 49ers; Charles Brown, tackle, 2nd round, Saints; Damian Williams, wide receiver, 3rd round, Titans; Kevin Thomas, defensive back, 3rd round, Colts; Everson Griffin, defensive end, 4th round, Vikings; Joe McKnight, running back, 4th round, Jets; and Anthony McCoy, tight end, 6th round, Seahawks.

No player from Ohio State, USC, Notre Dame, LSU, Auburn, Arkansas or Miami FL was drafted in the first round. Yet, Rutgers, with an ever improving program under coach Greg Schiano, sent two players to the 1st round and had three players selected overall. Scarlet Knights drafted were: Anthony Davis, tackle, 1st round, 49ers; Devin McCourty, defensive back, 1st round, Patriots; and Ryan D’Imperio, linebacker, 7th round, Vikings.

Troy State had three players selected, more than traditional football factories Arkansas and Auburn. Players selected from Troy State were: Cameron Sheffield, linebacker, 5th round, Chiefs; Jorrick Calvin, defensive back, 6th round, Cardinals; and Levi Brown, quarterback, 7th round, Bills.

Edwin Veldheer was the first player drafted from tiny Hillsdale College since 1980. If Veldheer is any type of historian, however, he will know that Hillsdale produced another offensive lineman, Howard Mudd, who went to the Pro Bowl three consecutive years (1966-1968) for the San Francisco 49ers and who served as an assistant NFL coach for 33 years, the longest of any active coach. Mudd has been the offensive line coach for Indianapolis since 1998. Veldheer will do well to follow in his footsteps.

Defensive tackle David Howard of Brown was the only Ivy Leaguer drafted in 2010. He was a 7th round draft choice of the Tennessee Titans who also selected Rhodes Scholar Myron Rolle from Florida State in the 6th round. Perhaps they can study their playbooks together, although it should be a breeze for them academically.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

2010 NFL Draft Highlights

2010 NFL Draft by Team