First round NFL Draft prospects were allowed for the first time last night to select their own walk-out music for when they were selected. Other than showing how irrelevant Jay Z is with today’s youth, that fueled the bombast over what amounts to a televised personal meeting.
It's ironic, as the Draft becomes more stylized, to see teams shift away from the traditional glamour positions like quarterback and wide receiver and towards positions like linemen and defensive backs. After decades of draft mishaps, teams have finally clued in that the path to championships lies in protecting the quarterback and attacking the opponent's.
Here are five takeaways from the first round:
1) Maybe you shouldn't try out for running back
Last night marked the second year in a row when a running back was not selected in the first round. As pro football is now a passing game, the worth of backs has plummeted. In addition to the altered game, pesky things like the regularity of snapping ACLs and MCLs furthers the decline. It’s not worth the investment, either in draft picks or money.
The draft's best back, Arizona's Ka’Deem Carrey, said it best: "Nowadays, they’re like, ‘You’ve got to go second, third round,’ and I’m like, ‘Why in the hell didn’t you tell me this a couple of years ago, that running backs are going extinct?’" Carey went on: "I definitely would have went to corner[back] or something else."
Carey's not wrong. His position claimed zero first round selections while five cornerbacks were selected. We live in an age when a cornerback is the most-watched player in the game.
2) No one gets fleeced in the NFL Draft like the Buffalo Bills
It's hard to evaluate wide receivers and quarterbacks who play in college hurry-up offenses because you're never sure how they will perform in the pros. Clemson's Sammy Watkins threw school-record numbers, but a lot of those numbers were put up in his sensational rookie year. He was inconsistent sharing pass catching duties later in his career. Watkins aside, the Bills' gravest sin was giving up a possible top-ten pick next year to trade up, when this year's draft was already ripe with great receivers.
3) Only two teams could have selected Johnny Football without controversy and Cleveland is not one of them.
Wherever Johnny Football landed, his cult of personality alone would have fans clamoring for him to play right away. Of the league's 32 teams, I think only Green Bay and New Orleans could have picked Manziel and let him sit without outside pressure to force coaches to dabble in Money magic. Cleveland may have intriguing pieces on both sides of the ball, but we won't know if Kevin Costner will unleash Johnny Football right away or have him ride the pine. I'm firmly in the camp that believes Johnny Manziel can be a solid player, but he needs some serious seasoning, on and off the field, before you let him be Johnny.
For now, let's just laugh how winter in Cleveland will give Drake an actual reason to look so mopey.
4) Thank the Redskins when the Rams win the 2015 Super Bowl
The #2 pick would have been the Redskins' had it not been for the Rams’ utter pantsing of Washington. St. Louis was able to land the best line prospects on both sides of the ball, guys who will likely be the bedrock for an already talented team. Auburn's Greg Robinson is an absolute animal.
Pittsburgh's Aaron Donald will gobble up blockers and runners all by himself.
Championships are won on the line.
At least RG3 can say he won a championship for one team.
