The NFL has had a long standing rule in place that all college players must be three years removed from high school before they are allowed to enter the NFL draft. That rule was great and all because most kids stayed the full 4 years anyway and got their degree then entered the NFL. That just isn't the case anymore as of yesterday the NFL has received over a 100 underclassmen declaring for the NFL draft this season. That crushes last years record and this number will continue to grow every year.
Now more than ever kids are more prepared for the college game. They are strong, faster and smarter when it comes to football. Players like Maurice Clarett who opted to try and beat the system are far and few between. But now more and more players seem to be ready at a younger age.
In 2007 the NFL allowed for a 19 year old kid to be drafted into the league. He was a full year and a half younger than Clarett who they disallowed in 2004 and same for Larry Fitzgerald who petitioned to be allowed in after just two years (more on that later). Clarett was the first ever freshmen running back to start for the Ohio State Buckeyes and while he did have durability issues, he was able to compete amongst the best competition and thrive. He returned to Ohio State his sophomore season on to be suspended for the year and later removed from the school for miniscule reasons. He tried entering the draft but was disallowed because of this rule.
In 2004 Larry Fitzgerald a sophomore at Pittsburgh at the time decided he wanted to enter the NFL draft. He petitioned the league to allow him to enter because he did a year of military school after high school which meant he was 3 years removed and his appeal won. That year he was drafted #3 overall to the Arizona Cardinals.
In 2007 Amobi Okoye graduated from Louisville where he started attending when he was 15 years old. Okoye was only 19 and would be the only player to ever be drafted while still a teenager. He went #7 to the Houston Texans. Clearly, age in this case was not a deterrent for Houston and in the Larry Fitzgerald the two years of college football wasn't a deterrent for the Arizona Cardinals.
In 2013 NFL draft a highly touted underclassmen was being mentioned as a possible #1 overall pick, but he wasn't eligible. The problem for Jadeveon Clowney was that he was not out of high school long enough and therefore had to wait one more year even though most viewed him as an unanimous top draft choice. This year in the 2014 NFL draft another underclassmen is being highly touted as a potential #1 draft choice if he was eligible to enter the draft (Jameis Winston).
The two biggest concerns that are mentioned when talking about early entree players are, will they be fiscally savy enough to not spend all their money as 19 and 20 year old kids like to do and will that young of a person who hasn't experienced college football for that long be ready to take on the brutality of the NFL game.
My two thoughts on the matter are this, if a player decides he wants to enter the draft at an earlier age than most the NFL should provide more of a financial education program than it currently has. These early entry players most enroll and attend all of the meetings so that they get a better understanding of how they should be spending, investing and saving their money. And as for the 2nd reason, no NFL team will give a good draft grade (what they give young players entering to help them decide if they should enter or not) if they feel the player isn't ready for the game. If a early entry player gets a grade value of lower than a 3rd round choice it should be mandatory that they return to college for one more season.
The NFL likes to use the NCAA as its minor league system and they get to pluck from the crops whenever they want. If Roger Goodell is concerned about the health of these athletes than he should be recommending preventive steps for the NCAA like he does for the NFL. Up and coming freshmen know the value of longevity and how short careers in the NFL can be. Most feel that the earlier they enter the better it'll be for them come pay day and the NFL needs to do a better job of correcting that thinking and also providing the opportunity to help these young men out. A stronger financial program would be a start but at some point this three year rule will have to be removed, but it isn't happening this year and won't be happening for years to come.
No comments:
Post a Comment