BUST-O-METER

The NFL Draft is suppose to be a time where teams fill their rosters with young promising players that will ensure success in the future, unfortunately this isn’t always the case. Year in and Year out players are selected and fail to live up to their potential and are labeled BUSTS. These Busts could potentially have a crippling affect on a franchises future. Some of the more famous draft Busts are Ryan Leaf, Akili Smith, Lawrence Phillips, and Ki-Jana Carter. How a bust is determined is too undefined to get into details about.

A prime example is the 6 straight losing seasons following the Bengals failure to develop Akili Smith into a capable NFL starter. Compare that to the 6 straight winning seasons produced by the Chargers after drafting Phillip Rivers in 2004. Of course these players are not solely responsible for their team’s success or failures but they did have a major impact.

After looking over the players projected to go in the first round I was amazed how many gave me an uneasy feeling. I am going to start a weekly BUST-O-METER and examine those players who I feel have the biggest red flags. I encourage that all the readers get involved and suggest potential busts of the week. You can email me by clicking the mail link by my user profile. I also encourage good conversation on the comment sections. Leave comments to help me feel better about a player or continue to add on the pile.

Player:

Anthony Davis- OT- Rutgers

BUST-O-METER:

7 out of 10

Thoughts:

Anthony Davis has had a roller coaster draft process. Davis’s draft stock has fluctuated from a potential top 5 pick to falling into the second round. Davis has both the size and experience teams are looking for in a starting left tackle. He has been starting somewhere along the offensive line since his freshman season where he played several games at guard. He has just about 2 full seasons under his belt at the tackle position, where he has been dominate at times. The questions with Davis come with this technique, consistency, and character. Davis has the skills and ability but allows sloppy footwork to put him out of position. In the NFL you cannot afford sloppy footwork, this will get your quarterback killed. Davis has struggled with consistency, he may lack the drive and focus to become a dominate force. Davis has some character red flags. Davis struggles to keep his weight in check and has been late to several team meetings which resulted in suspensions.

I have discussed several times that NFL teams put a heavy focus on the offensive tackle position and this leads to the over drafting of players. Davis plays this coveted position which could lead to teams overlooking the concerns and taking a chance. Depending on what team he ends up with he could miss a lot of time due to missing meetings and being overweight. This past training camp saw several players sent home because they didn’t make weight; one example is Marcus Harrison of the Chicago Bears.

Potential Teams: Chiefs team needs; Seahawks team needs; Raiders team needs; Bills team needs; 49ers team needs; Steelers team needs; Packers team needs; Cardinals team needs