Useless stiffs clutter Class of
'97
Paul Zimmerman has covered the
NFL for Sports Illustrated since 1979. His exclusive online
column appears each
Friday.
Posted: Fri November 7,
1997
I was checking the first round of the 1997 draft the other
day, and all of a sudden it dawned on me: Hey, where is the
quarterback who quickens the pulse? Once you get past
Warrick Dunn, is there a running back that excites you? How
about wideouts?
Knock, knock, anyone
home? Sorry, no answer. A defensive stud? A can't miss
O-lineman, linebacker, kicker, punter, moocher, schnorer .
. .
anything? Sorry, but I can't find one, except, of course, Dunn,
probably the smallest guy picked in the draft and a guy all
the superscouts warned Bucs coach Tony Dungy off
of.
Never hold up, too little, he'll be available lower
down, all the blah blah that scouts come up with to protect
their jobs. And yet, he's one of the few first-round picks
that's made any impact in what seems like, at this point,
one of the more dismal NFL drafts. Let's look at that first
round, going down
the
line.
Top pick on the board, Rams OT Orlando Pace. Four sacks
given up in three games as a starter. They're saying
something about a weak left hand. Yeah, from counting all
that
cash.
Raiders DE Darrell Russell. He starts, that's all. Just
another guy. Ditto Seattle CB Shawn Springs. Linebacker
Peter Boulware, the Ravens' pick at the No. 4 spot, is a
different case. He looks serious. Nice burst to the ball.
At the five and six spots,
CB Bryant Westbrook (Detroit) and OT Walter Jones
(Seattle). Starters.
Hurray!
Wideout Ike Hilliard, grabbed by the Giants at No. 7. Down
for the season. The Jets traded down twice to get
LB James Farrior at No. 8. He's a starter, the
reason why the Jets are in a 3-4. Hardly a superstar, but
functional. Cornerback Tom
Knight at No. 9. Injured off and on. In and out of the
Cardinals' lineup. Guard Chris Naeole for the Saints. Out
for the year. A questionable pick at best for a team that
needed help everywhere. Dunn was still available. Why
didn't they pick him? Sorry,
finer minds than mine have worked this
out.
The Falcons, at No. 11, got Michael Booker, who plays in
their nickel package. Wow! Dunn for Tampa Bay at No. 12,
the best pick in the draft. Tony Gonzalez, TE for K.C., not
the super-stud people predicted, but he'll see more action
now that the
starter, Ted Popson, is hurt. LB Reinard Wilson, lost in the maze
of the Bengals' zone-blitz mishmosh and benched. Wideout
Yatil Green, Dolphins. Out for the year. Wideout Reidel
Anthony for the Bucs, at No. 16, yeah, OK, a starter,
pretty decent.
Defensive end Kenny Holmes, Oilers. A situational pass
rusher, and pretty decent at it. Tarik Glenn, rushed in as
a starter on that mess of an O-line at Indy. Part of the
mess. Dwayne Rudd, LB, Vikings. Plays in the nickel. Coming
on. Someday he might
be the best of this year's rookie LBs in all phases of the
game. Repeat:
someday.
Renaldo Wynn, DT. A sub for the Jaguars. Tight end David
LaFleur, Cowboys. They traded up to get him. A stiff.
Where are we now? OK, No. 23, Antowain Smith, No. 2 in
Buffalo's one-two running back punch. Fairly productive but
not as good as Thurman Thomas. Chad Scott, part of the
Steelers' nickel package. Might be decent down the road. DE
Jon Harris, Eagles. No
one knows why they picked him. They still don't know.
Another stiff, which pretty much describes the Eagles'
entire draft.
Jim Druckenmiller, QB, at No. 26. The only quarterback
selected in the first round. Rushed into action early when
the top two 49ers QBs went down. Seriously overmatched by
NFL-style defenses. Rae Carruth, WR, Carolina. A starter.
Catch one, drop one. He
terrorizes no one downfield. Trevor Pryce, DT-DE, Denver.
Way down on the depth chart. The last two guys picked are
starters—CB Chris Canty, active and fairly decent for the
Patriots, and Ross Verba, a tough-guy type who was rushed
into service at
LT when the Packers gave up on last year's No. 1, John Michels.
Hardly a ringing endorsement for the first round of the
1997 draft.
As usual, I see a lot more action in the lower rounds—i.e.
QB Jake the
Snake Plummer (second, Arizona), RB Fred Lane (free agent,
Carolina), LB Dexter Coakley (second, Dallas), DE Jason
Taylor and LB Derrick Rodgers (both third, Miami),
RB Tiki Barber
and safety Sam Garnes (second and fifth, respectively,
Giants), and TE Greg Clark (third, 49ers). But is there
anyone you can point to anywhere in the draft who really
shows superstar qualities—except, of course, for Warrick
Dunn, whom I seem to have
mentioned already? Just musing here, but it seems to me that
the 1997 draft is, across the board, OK but rather
dull.
Speaking of disappointments, here are this week's
selections from the genius who predicted a Raiders win last
Sunday. Honestly, folks, how was I to know they'd go in the
tank two straight
weeks?
Buffalo over New
England. I'm getting very creepy feelings about these Pats and
coach Pete Carroll, one of my favorite people. Why did they
waste plays running at the heart of the Vikings defense
last week when Minnesota loaded up with eight in the box,
and why did it take
them almost the entire game to figure out that the way to run
at the Vikes was out of a three- and four-wideout set?
Where's the fire on defense? Nope, the Bills are on a
mission, and Rich Stadium is a very nasty place in
November.
Niners to squeak one out in
Philly. Yeah, I know, Veterans Stadium will be a zoo on Monday
night, but the Eagles' QB situation is more screwed-up than
it's ever been. Two insecure guys and a loony coach. A
formula pick. Go with the more secure organization. (I just
made up that
formula.)
Barry Sanders running at that Washington defense is like
Michael Jordan shooting jump shots against Princeton. But
the Redskins will run, too, now that Terry Allen is back.
The Lions are 0-18 against Washington on the road, going
back to 1939.
The Redskins in a nod to
tradition.
Indy to get its first win of the season against
Cincinnati. Two poorly coached teams, but the Colts have showed heart
all
year.
K.C. at Jacksonville is one of the more interesting picks
on the board. The Chiefs can win on the road, and Marty
Schottenheimer really seems to have given his offensive
guy, Paul Hackett, his say in opening up the attack. Plus,
the defense has turned
up the throttle. After all that
I still like Jacksonville for no logical
reason except that Elvis Grbac has a busted collarbone and the
Jags' defense usually gets it going at
home.
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