Michigan's Great Track Record: Only One NFL Draft Bust?
With the NFL Draft Combine taking place this week, there's been a lot of talk about the all-time biggest NFL Draft busts.
Unlike a certain other B1G school in our state, I would argue that Michigan's track record in NOT producing NFL Draft busts is pretty darn good. If you draft a Wolverine, there's an excellent chance he'll have a career at or above his draft spot.
I would argue that there's only been one true NFL Draft bust from U-M: Trezelle Jenkins. He was drafted in the first round in 1995 (31st overall), but only appeared in nine NFL games over three seasons.
Aside from that, our NFL Draft record is excellent. So rest assured, NFL: If you take any of the 14 guys at the combine, you'll get what you draft for.
Yeah, Marlin was a very good CB for Indy. Picked off Brady to seal our first super bowl birth and played a great super bowl. Injuries just like Biakabatuka were the big issues for them, but I wouldn't consider Marlin a bust.
Most would consider David Terrell a bust, though he was surrounded by awful QBs in Chicago.
Terrell was outplayed by Dez White, who was a total chump. It wasn't due to the bad QBs, he just sucked.
Terrell was a huge dissapointment. At least Braylon had 1 good year.
How about when he was picked up by the Patriots and still cut? Can't blame that on the quarterback.
I was living in GB when Desmond was on the team. The rumor was (which I don't like to continue) that Desmond could not remember the playbook.
This is such an odd thread. I think it was meant to be a "Look how great Michigan is" but as everyone starts mentioning all the busts, I'm slowly getting sad. This thread is back firing and a real debby downer.
I refuse to contribute to the sadness. #notmythread
Don't be so negative, of all the guys who have been thrown out as candidates for "busts", which ones have been universally accepted as such? David Terrell? Trezelle Jenkins? Beyond that there's been legitimate debate about others suggested.
I don't think recruits look at Michigan or any other school and decide they want to go there based on how many draft busts they had. OSU has had a TON of draft busts over the years but they still stockpile talent every single year and send, on the whole, more guys to the NFL than we do.
Honestly, even if you are a superstar in college, really making it in the NFL is a total crapshoot. There's a reason that first round picks flame out all the time and that late round to UDFA's become superstars. Even with all the talent OSU is sending to the draft this year, at least one of those guys just won't pan out. Not because of OSU. But that's just the way it is.
Michigan maybe just happens to be a little luckier in that department that they've had less draft busts. But also keep in mind that we have recently sent nowhere near the amount of players to the NFL that schools like OSU and Alabama have.
There was a first round pick in the late 90's. He was a cornerback named Woodson. I think he is better known now for making wine. I'm not familiar with him, so he must have been a bust.
could have been a bit better in the research department before posting.
Negged for upvoting your own thread.
I guess I have to ask because now I am curious - what does the OP believe to be a "bust" in the NFL? I ask because I can think of a lot of Wolverines that were in the NFL for mere moments in grand scheme, and while I don't consider all of them busts - mainly because not all of them were hyped to the hilt, if you will - I am curious to know where the line is here.
David Terrell, for example, was a 1st round pick and in my opinion didn't quite live up to first round pick expectations.
I don't like the "bust" label for guys who don't reach their potential due to catastrophic injury rather than other factors. Ryan Leaf, Jamarcus Russell, Tony Mandarich? Those are classic meltdown busts who had every opportunity to succeed in the NFL and lit it on fire. Ki-Jana Carter tore his ACL before he ever played a down in the NFL, but he is nothing like Leaf. I wish there was a way to properly describe that.
That's not to say that there aren't injury issues that could be anticipated as "draft mistakes." Greg Oden never realized his potential due to injury, and perhaps that should have been anticipated given that he already had issues in college. But he's not a bust on the level of Darko Milicic, either.
This thread title and original post reads like something I'd imagine is smeered all over the Ohio boards with complete blind homerism.
The OP isn't great, but the rest of the thread has some terrific fact-based conversation elaborating on disappointing Michigan draft picks, their stats, and why they are or are not bust-worthy. There's real conversation here.
He was a fifth-round pick. He's had some decent opportunities and actually had provided some real contributions. Without any numbers to support me I would guess that his four-year career with a season's worth of starts and over 1000 career yards is an above average contribution for a fifth rounder. It's certainly not below average. He's not a bust.
Terrell? Braylon Edwards? Chris Perry?