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.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0120349/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
and was in Django Unchained, so they're not all fourth-guy-on-the-left-in-one-episode sort of credits.
David Terrell: 8th overall pick
Chris Perry: 26th overall pick
Braylon Edwards: 3rd overall pick
Tim Biakabutuka: 8th overall pick
I think you're confusing "not living up to expectations" with "bust."
Braylon had an 8 year NFL career. One in which he caught 16 TDs in one season, four seasons of over 800 yds receiving and over 50 catches. No one can argue that the potential was there for him to be a Megatron-like receiver. But using a Lions metaphor he was closer to Megatron than Charles Rogers, definitely not a "bust."
Considering Braylon had 1 good year, I would put him as a huge bust. He should have been a perennial all pro with his size and speed, but drops plagued him. Braylon was NOT a good NFl player, other than that good year with Cleveland, he did nothing in the league. Jason Avant was a million times better than Braylon in the league. Hell, Breaston had a better pro career than Braylon. For the 3rd pick in the draft, he was a bust.
I think "bust" is inappropriate given his level of production (one terrific season, five seasons with at least 50 catches) and the length of his career. However, the arguments that he was very disappointing are persuasive and I find myself on soft ground here.
and the rest are either meh or sucks. He was never a good NFL player.
he never lived up to the expectation as a 3rd overall pick so he's in the bust category. 8 year career isn't bad which is more than most can say but if you're picking someone at 3rd overall, you expect an all-pro career.
Again, there's a difference between being a bust and simply not living up to expectations. Braylon had an 8 year NFL career. Was a Pro Bowler and All Pro. In that same season he led the NFL in TD receptions. He had 3 other years of 50+ catches and 800+ yards.
Not a hall of famer. Not a perennial top guy. Not even a "good" NFL career. Did he underperform expectations that we all had for him? Yes, of course. But the sheer fact that he remained on an NFL roster for 8 years pretty much eliminates him from the "bust" category. The fact that he was at one point in his career among the very best at his position, eliminates him from "bust" but doesn't mean that he didn't underperform.
As far as busts go... he's not even in the same conversation as someone like Charles Rogers (15 gms 38 catches), Vernon Gholson (45 gms 24 tackles), Jamarcus Russell (31gms 65.2 rtg), and other notable actual busts.
doesn't mean that he's eliminated from bust label. He is absolutely a bust for where he's picked. If he was a 2nd round pick, different story.
aren't bust but Braylon Edwards was definitely a bust. All three had good years on a consistent basis. Brandon Graham is a top 10 edge pass rusher in the league. Jake Long was a mainstay as a starting LT and Lewan is a starting LT. Braylon Edwards had one good year and wasn't good the rest.
A "bust" is entirely relative to expecations.
I don't think its possible for a player to be a bust if drafted in the 3rd or 4th round or later. Given that sort of draft position, it is obvious expectations are low.
A #3 pick has much higher expectations. Ryan Leaf had 4 years on NFL rosters and 2 more on practice squads. But he's one of the biggest busts of all time because he went #2.
I think a WR taken in the top 3 has very lofty expectations.
Here's every player ever drafted for Michigan:
http://touch-the-banner.com/michigans-nfl-draft-history/
Terrell, Biakabutuka, and Perry come to mind.
How come we don't have MGoHotGirls?
We can have nice things too...maybe in moderation...
It's frowned upon by the powers that be.
were out lawed a while back. A sad day for the board
busts. right?
there could be a language barrior or slight misinterpretation
If I recollect, the plethora of sexybits images was getting the site flagged for adult content on Google searches. Since Brian's business model does not involve adult erotica, he took appropriate measures.
That is correct.
Bueller
Bueller
Busts of some degree:
Terrance Taylor: 4th-round pick, never played
Jeremy LeSueur: 3rd-round pick, played only part of one season
Marlin Jackson: Played five years (three or so as a starter) but had a pretty quiet career for a 1st-round pick.
That's generally true about Jackson, but he signed with the Eagles after he left the Colts and promptly tore his Achilles. So it's not that he played himself out of the league. He just suffered a major injury and was unable to come back.
Sad to see that we haven't had more than 3 picks since 2008. Glad that is going to change this year
Recruiting (measured by draft picks, not high school ratings) really tailed off after 2004.
Chad Henne? I think you expect more out of a 2nd-round pick than to have thrown more INTs than TDs.
Agreed on Henne. You don't draft a QB in the 2nd round looking for a career back up.
Though a 2nd round pick QB is still someone you hope will grow into starter-quality over time. I don't think Chad has ever threatended to be a starting NFL QB. I think of depth QBs being drafted in the 4th-7th rounds. I would think the Jaguars were expecting Henne to grow into a starter eventually and he has not
You do know that the Jaguars did not draft Henne, right? He was drafted by the Dolphins and more than "threatened to be a starting NFL QB" there for a couple of seasons.
Henne was drafted by the Dolphins and was a starter for a few years, he was also a starter for the Jaguars his first couple of years there. He is a quality back-up with a lot of experience. Definitely not a bust.
Edit: beaten to the punch.
Chad Henne started in 53 games.
You also don't draft a QB in the 2nd round expecting to find Joe Montana. Henne is going to enter his 10th year in the league this fall. Having a hard time calling him a bust.
Is he a career backup? He was the primary starter in three of his seasons. I don't really identify that as being a career backup.
Here are the QBs taken in the 2008 NFL Draft and their draft position
Matt Ryan, BC - 1st round (3rd)
Joe Flacco, Delaware - 1st round (18th)
Brian Brohm, Louisville - 2nd round (56th)
Chad Henne, Michigan - 2nd round (57th)
Kevin O'Connell, San Diego St - 3rd round (94th)
John David Booty, USC - 5th round (137th)
Dennis Dixon, Oregon - 5th round (156th)
Josh Johnson, San Diego - 5th round (160th)
Erik Ainge, Tennesse - 5th round (162nd)
Colt Brennan, Hawaii - 6th round (186th)
Andre Woodson, Kentucky - 6th round (198th)
Matt Flynn, LSU - 7th round (209th)
Alex Brink, WSU - 7th round (223rd)
Of these guys, only Ryan, Flacco, and Henne are still in the league. Sure, Henne didn't wind up in their class, but he's proven worthy of an NFL roster spot for going on 10 seasons. Let's show him a little respect fellas.
Yup, Being the third best QB in a draft class, and was expected to be the 4th best. Based on who else was drafted behind him (Or in front of him in the case of Brohm), who would Miami have rather drafted?
There are only 32 starting QB jobs in the NFL and in any given season, how many of those are really up for grabs? Three? Four? Any QB you take after top 2 or 3 prospects is almost always a roll of the dice; unless it's 1983 and 6 QBs get taken in the 1st round, with the 6th being Dan Marino.
their career....Chad Henne is not.
Drafted by Miami. Paid alot of $....traded to Jacksonville Paid alot of $...Chad has been paid multi-millions to be the back-up of a Florida team. Not to shabby of a life.
They want to get drafted. That's why several recruiting experts believe that Michigan will recieve its best recruiting boom after this years draft class. Possibly having 14 players drafted will look much better. It's part of the reason OSU had such a good class last year.
Bennie Joppru was drafted in the 2nd round as a TE and ended his career with no catches.
You don't draft a LB in the 3rd round and expect him to never register a tackle. 3rd round picks are very valuable in the NFL.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Michigan_Wolverines_in_the_NFL_draft
1st Round Picks you can classify as busts:
Marlin Jackson, Chris Perry, David Terrell, Biakabutuka, Jenkins
5 busts out of 20 picks in the last 30 years.
That's a pretty good ratio and even Jackson and Biakabutuka are borderline busts.