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All charged up San Diego thrilled to have shot at draft Vick
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Some of the San Diego Chargers' offices are dark for hours at a time these days, and it has nothing to do with California's electricity crisis. Coaches of the NFL's worst team are watching videotape and evaluating hundreds of players eligible for the draft, in which they hold the top pick. Not surprisingly, the clips getting a lot of attention are the ones of Michael Vick throwing and running. "I don't think you want to be the Portland Trail Blazers of the NFL," said head coach Mike Riley, who grew up in Corvallis, Ore., rooting for the team that took Sam Bowie with the second pick of the 1984 NBA draft when it could have had Michael Jordan. Likewise, the Chargers could be judged for years based on how they use the opening pick in the draft on April 21-22. As San Diego bumbled to a 1-15 record last season, Riley said the club would consider trading the No. 1 selection to stockpile picks that could help address its many needs. The biggest disaster is at quarterback, where Ryan Leaf, with his bad attitude and errant arm, likely will be traded or cut. But there are several other gaping holes, including at running back, defensive end and cornerback. Then, in a week's span in January, the Chargers hired John Butler as general manager, and Vick announced he would leave Virginia Tech after just two seasons. That gave the draft a clear-cut top pick that it didn't have before, making the No. 1 selection that much more valuable. Trading the pick remains an option, "but that's not necessarily the priority," Riley says now. "The priority, as I gather it from John, is to do a very thorough evaluation on everybody, but obviously on Michael Vick." Riley said it almost goes without saying that Vick would need to sit out a year or two to develop. Regardless of what they do with Leaf and the No. 1 pick, the Chargers are expected to bring in a veteran QB. And just three years after giving Leaf an $11.25 million signing bonus, and getting mostly trouble in return, the Chargers would have to pay even bigger bucks to Vick. But then there's the theory that it would be a grievous error to trade away the chance to pick a 20-year-old with enormous potential who could become a superstar elsewhere. Thus, Riley's Trail Blazers comparison. "I think it's premature, but I think there appears to be, right down this hall and down that hall, a sense that this guy is very special," Riley said. One hall that Riley points to is lined with coaches' offices. The other leads to the draft room where Butler and his longtime associate, A.J. Smith, watch videotape, both of college players and NFL free agents. Riley has been in a darkened room, too, with clicker in hand. "I've watched enough tape to know this guy is different," Riley said of Vick. "He is very special. He's got a combination of skills that's really interesting." Butler is a little more restrained, at least publicly. "It's obvious that he's a talent. We'll do all the research on him that we can," the new GM said. Butler hasn't said how he's going to use the pick, and he likely won't until he has to, say those who know his ways. But Butler is likely to do all his homework on Vick, something the Chargers didn't seemingly do before taking Leaf with the second pick overall in 1998. "I'm sure he's scouted him carefully," said new Hall of Famer Marv Levy, who coached Buffalo for five of the eight seasons Butler was the Bills' GM. "It's a very momentous pick when you have the first one. John's going to make a good decision. "John is going to enter it confidently but certainly not arrogantly." Gil Brandt, the former personnel chief of the Dallas Cowboys, agrees. "He's a worker, not a talker," said Brandt, now a consultant. "I think that he will be as thorough as you can possibly be." Beyond what the Chargers do with the first pick, Butler will begin trying to rehab a roster devastated by ex-GM Bobby Beathard's gambling in the last six drafts. Of the 50 players picked by Beathard since the Chargers played in their only Super Bowl, only five started in the final game of 2000. Beathard used a first-round pick once in the last seven drafts -- on Leaf. These days, there's as many ex-Beathard draft picks playing in the XFL as starting for the Chargers. Butler inherits a team that has missed the playoffs for five straight seasons and is a whopping 27 games under .500 since its Super Bowl appearance. Before he was fired by the Bills in December, Butler kept them competitive in the salary cap era with his productive drafts and free agent signings. "I always believe every pick is very important, whether it be the first or the 31st pick -- that's the one I'd like to have from now on, to be right around there," Butler said, referring to the spot where the Super Bowl champion picks. "So is the second-round pick and the pick after that. That's how you build a football team. If you just look at one pick, being the franchise savior or the difference maker, I think you're missing the whole game." Butler, who's never had a first-round pick higher than 14th, isn't likely to leave fans puzzled on draft day like Beathard did. "I don't like to be looking for that sleeper all the time," he said. "I'll use someone else's statement: If you're always looking for sleepers, you're going to end up being a sleepy team."
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