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Slippery slope Many players are doing the pre-draft slide
Updated: Wednesday April 11, 2001 9:11 PM
Every year players perceived as top 10 picks in February slide down draft boards come April. This is music to the ears of the clubs sitting at the bottom of the first round. Purdue's Drew Brees has been under the microscope for so long that talent evaluators have found a laundry list of things wrong with him. At one time I didn't think there was a chance he would last past Atlanta at the fifth pick. Now, there are people who feel he will slide all the way into the second round and the Cowboys at No. 37. At any rate, teams in search of a quarterback picking late in the first round will apparently get a shot at Brees. That's a pleasant surprise for Carolina, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Miami and Oakland. Brees is the same height as Michael Vick, weighs 213 pounds, ran 4.84 in the 40 at the combine, is mature and wins games. It wasn't too long ago that Cal's Andre Carter was every scout's top prospect at defensive end. A top-8 pick for sure. Then he weighed in at 249 pounds and started to slide. The kid has great character, plays hard every down and can rush the passer. I'm sure the 49ers at No. 9, the Jaguars at 13, the Bills at 14 and the Rams at 20 are going to tell anyone who'll listen that Carter is too light. Jevon Kearse was too light, Chuck Smith was too small and Jason Taylor looked like a college basketball player. Carter is going to fall right into the lap of some team later than he should in this draft. Miami's Santana Moss was the top receiver in this draft until the underclassmen invaded it. After Michigan's David Terrell and N.C. State's Koren Robinson announced they had had enough of college football, Moss became the third guy on most boards. Then, Moss went to the combine and measured in at 5-foot-9 1/2 -- that deemed him a little small. As other receivers pass Moss by, the Redskins at 15, the Saints at 23 and the Eagles at 25 will get pretty excited. Andre Rison, Terry Glenn, Joey Galloway, Jacquez Green and Wayne Chrebet are pretty good NFL receivers at about the same height. Moss runs very good routes, is as dangerous as you can find after the catch and has great hands. Failed drug tests, bad performances at personal workouts and various other reasons will cause teams to pass on players. The teams picking in the second half of the round generally do so because they have a good team and won a bunch of games the previous season. Players who shouldn't ever get near these clubs are going to fall right to them. The strong just keeps getting stronger. Pat Kirwan, who spent 12 years as a pro football coach, scout and personnel administrator, is an NFL analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Chat with Pat at 1 p.m. EDT Wednesdays.
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