So I'm in the minority of people who believe that going back to school is a good thing. I guess I like the idea of coming back for their team and playing even if it costs them money. But I certainly see the all the arguments against returning and many people are quite vocal if a player does in fact return to school. But their is another argument to why you would want to have players go back to school. Obviously when you pick a player in the NFL draft you are selecting players based on their talent (Yes positional value and need are part of it, but ultimately its about talent, ie if you want to fill a need at linebacker in the first the player you selected has more potential/talent than a linebacker in the fifth). The more players play, the more people, USUALLY, can find holes which to exploit that players game. This is important because of the all important B-word, Bust. If there is one thing that fans, draft addicts, GM's, coaches, etc hate it is busts. Logic is that if you really want to understand weakness you need to see it as many times in order to attack or fix it. So doesn't that apply to draft prospects. Isn't seeing how a player produces over the course of his full college career help determine his flaws and then see if and how much they will be exploited through out the. So yes while players returning can ultimately hurt their careers both on the field and financially, doesn't it actually improve the quality of NFL players entering the league? As fans we obviously want to see the best players on our team, so isnt having players return for their senior seasons in the best interest of the league? I'm not saying we have to witch hunt draft prospects to find flaws in prospects. But it seems that the more someone plays at the college level, the more accurate predictions of their NFL future will be Discuss, Feel Free to disagree which Im sure most of you will
I understand where you're coming from, but I'm not sure it really works when it comes to the NFL. Think about it, there's about what, 40 players a year that declare themselves for the NFL Draft. Of those 40, probably 30 leave because they are looked at as quality prospects (top 3 rds), and about half of that are going because they are guaranteed first round types. Now, these players could stay for another season and give NFL teams more tape to watch and dissect their game, but how much impact is that likely to have on their draft stock? Sure, by staying a player could see his stock drop, no question, but how often does one see a player go from top 20 to no chance of making the league? That player is still going to make it to the NFL, so there really isn't going to be any change to the quality of football. Now sure, there might be fewer busts if some of these players are analyzed for longer periods, but the players taken behind them that exceed expectations will still be drafted, and they'll still make up for the mistakes of their higher paid counterparts. Really, it all ends up balancing out. Plus, when it comes down to it, a lot of guys that end up staying just spend another season doing what they did as juniors, dominating lesser competition. Some guys can really improve by coming back, and most of the time we'll clarify that after we say it's smart to take the money. Others simply have nothing left to prove.
A young man in my home town was drafted into MLB as an 18 year old and signed a nice size contrct years ago. A local "sports reporter" seriously asked him "How dissapointed do you think your parents and fans are that you choose to ignore your education and go play baseball?" The Kid made the greatest answer I have ever heard in my life: "You really have no idea just how much money 2 million dollars is, do you?" I laughed so hard I alomst puissed my pants. Wish I could remember his name now. Long story short, if your not a dumbass with your money you can always pay to finish your degree at a later date if your choose. As MrE said, take the money and run.
Hmm you make good points. I agree with you that its rare that someone who is a projected first round prospect will have a huge fall off from pre season to the draft where they wont play in the NFL. That's not exactly what I was referring to. I'm just suggesting the more you see of a player the more you can determine their strengths and weaknesses, therefor you can get a better understanding of how one will perform at the next level. Its not about if they play on a team its about how they play in terms of where they are drafted Also I'm not trying to justify why returning to school for the player is good for the player, if I were in their shoes I would totally bolt for the money. I'm talking about how it is good for the league
What is the purpose of going to College?? IMO, to prepare you for a career and to maximize your earning's potential. I have a 4 year degree and if some came up to me in my Junior year and offered me millions of $...I take the cash.
I feel like no one is reading the full posts, I'm not talking about returning to school from how it affects a player aspect, I'm talking about it from how it affects the team aspect
Like I said before, it really doesn't do much of anything for the NFL teams. There are still plenty of busts that are seniors, and for a lot of juniors their game will not improve or diminish much in that extra year. For instance this year, besides a guy like George Selvie, I can't think of anyone else who staying has really hurt their stock.
The leagues best interest is having as many talented players enter the draft as possible, to build the talent of the league and obviously for promotional purposes as the draft is a huge TV event now. The players best interest should be to enter the draft when their stock has reached its maximum, or even in some cases soon as possible, so that their weaknesses wont get exposed. Look at Sam Bradford, this time last year while there were questions about his size and the system he was in , I think pretty much overall he was the number one QB on the board and would have went to Detroit 1st overall. Now even more questions have come including a big one on whether or not he is injury prone. The longer a player stays the longer he gives scouts a chance to critique his game and find out how good he really is. Also at the same time it gives a player the chance to improve their game on a level where expectations may not be as high.I see your argument on why we as fans would want players to come back, but that really only applies to college fans, not us. We as jets/nfl fans want to see as much talent go in so our team has a chance at picking up that talent. In all players should always leave early if they are in a position to be drafted high.
If I was lucky enough to be a top college player it would bar of getting an injury at a time when I am not making anything from playing that would kill my career before it began that would stop me going back.
Sucks Romeus didn't come out. I would have picked him in my mock, and he'd be battling with Hardy for the #1 DE spot.
I was very disappointed, I really like Romeus. He could have been one of the Jet's targets in late rd 1. He's got 3 days to change his mind. Romeus' Stats... 43 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, three forced fumbles. Next year I could see Romeus being a Top 5/10 player in the draft .GM could be the best defensive player in the Nation in 2010. I expect Pitt to be really good next year and win the Big East.
