FanPost

2007 NFL Draft


Draft-less in Seattle

With the 2013 NFL Draft approaching I thought it would be interesting to look back at the 2007 NFL Draft when the SEAHAWKS also did not have a number one selection. They had traded it to New England for Deon Branch. In 2006 Tim Ruskell the GM of the SEAHAWKS had played games and lost franchise LG Steve Hutchinson to Minnesota and by trading for Deon Branch had lost the team’s first round pick in 2007. In 2007 draft Minnesota selected AP to run behind Hutch and a WR now with Seattle, Sidney Rice. 2006 was Rick Spielman’s first year in charge of personnel.

Perhaps all draft years are like this one in 2007 with some winners and some losers. But the magnitude of the extremes in this year are striking. I have highlighted the triumphs in red. That is quite a group. Then we have the legendary busts led by the two QBs taken in that first round. Besides a lot of good players being taken just as many journey-man under-achievers were selected. Sadly one in the top five is dead.

One important thing stands out in retrospect, the triumphs have remained with their teams except for Lynch and perhaps now Revis. Of the others, non-superstars, only half a dozen have remained with the team that drafted them as they joined the year to year FA churn of players. Revis seems to be an anomaly, if he is healthy and the Jets don’t know something no one else does, then they are acting like amateurs. When handling financial assets pros sell losers and ride the winners, amateurs sell the winners and ride the losers way too long. And then there is Lynch? Well Lynch is Lynch, we all know that.

By the way Percy Harvin is another anomaly of a superstar being traded. Minnesota is riding Ponder and let Harvin go. The Minnesota and Seattle trains seem to be moving now in different directions from 2007.

They say the draft is a crap shoot. But as Russell Wilson explains the separation is in the preparation.

2007 NFL DRAFT

http://football.about.com/od/nfldrafthistory/a/2007draftresult.htm

1 JAMARCUS RUSSELL BY OAKLAND (well known bust)

2 CALVIN JOHNSON DETROIT (Mega Hit)

3 JOE THOMAS CLEVELAND (Pro Bowl Badger )

4 GAINES ADAMS TB (traded to Chi and died of heart condition in 2010)

5 LEVI BROWN ARIZONA (not now nor ever can be considered an elite LT)

6 LARON LANDRY WA (been to Jets and now with IND)

7 ADRIAN PETERSON MINNESOTA (MINN had quite the draft w/ Sidney Rice and AP in rounds 1 and 2)

8 JAMAAL ANDERSON ATL (been to Cincinnati and IND since)

9 TED GINN JR MIAMI (been to SF and now Carolina)

10 OMOBI OKOYE HOUSTON (youngest player ever drafted in 1st round, been to CHI now with TB)

11 PATRICK WILLIS SF (one of two HRs for SF)

12 MARSHAWN LYNCH BUFFALO (did not know what they got did they?)

13 ADAM CARRIKER STL (now with WA)

14 DARELLE REVIS NYJ (now being traded since the Jets suck)

15 LAWRENCE TIMMONS PITT (still with PITT)

16 JUSTIN HARRELL GB (FA been with GB since)

17 JARVIS MOSS DENVER (played for OAK now FA)

18 LEON HALL CINCINNATI (still with team)

19 MICHAEL GRIFFIN TENN (still with team)

20 AARON ROSS NYG (been to Jacksonville and back now to NYG)

21 REGGIE NELSON JACKSONVILLE (now with Cincinnati)

22 BRADY QUINN CLEVELAND (McFly award winner)

23 DWAYNE BOWE KC (rocky journey but still with team)

24 BRANDON MERIWEATHER NWP (been to CHI now with WA)

25 JON BEASON CAROLINA (still with team)

26 ANTHONY SPENCER DALLAS (still with team)

27 ROBERT MEACHEM NO (now with SD)

28 JOE STALEY SF (second HR)

29 BEN GRUBBS BALT (now with NO)

30 CRAIG DAVIS SD (went to Buffalo and now is out of the league)

31 GREG OLSEN CHI (now with Carolina)

32 ANTHONY GONZALEZ IND (went to NWP and is now out of the league)

2ND RD - #33 ALAN BRANCH ARIZONA

ZACH MILLER OAKLAND

SIDNEY RICE MINNESOTA

STEVE SMITH NYG

#55 JOSH WILSON SEATTLE (my guess is that the #56 pick this year for Seattle will weigh a lot more than Josh does)