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Draft Stocks & Cash [04-04-10 - 7:15pm EST]

With the draft approaching (it is only a few weeks away), talks about who the St. Louis Rams will take with the first pick have been heating up. Two months ago, it was Ndamukong Suh with no questions, but now it would look foolish for the Rams to draft anyone but Sam Bradford. This time last year, the Lions were going to draft Matthew Stafford, because they needed a franchise quarterback and he was the clear-cut number one after Bradford decided to stay for his senior year at Oklahoma. Now, there is nothing wrong with staying your full stay in college, and despite a shoulder injury it is working out well for Bradford, but some players aren't so lucky.

Now, just because you are a high draft pick, it doesn't mean you're going to be a star; for every Peyton Manning, there are five or six of Tim Couch. However, it does mean a big paycheck, no matter how you pan out. David Carr made a ton of money after being the Houston Texan's first ever pick, and now he;s the back-up quarterback on the 49ers (yes, I needed to look that up) behind another former first overall pick, Alex Smith, who also was close to being labeled a bust before a ressurgence last season.

I know everyone wants to romanticize a player going back to school because of the love of the game, but this is a business. This is what they're going to do for a living for the next (hopefully for them) 10-15 years. While they won't make anything of themselves without loving the game or dedication, this is a job just as much, if not more, than it is a game. A job that any one of us would like to have, but a job nonetheless. So when a player leaves college early to cash-in, can you blame him?

Think back a few years, when the Oakland Raiders had the first overall pick. There was a toss-up between Brady Quinn and JaMarcus Russell for the first overall pick, but had a certain player come out after his junior year, there would've been no controversy. This player, who would have been a unanimous first-overall pick, was Brian Brohm, a quarterback from Louisville. However, he decided to go back for his senior year to finish his great college career before beginning anew in the NFL. The result? He was drafted in the second round by the Green Bay Packers as insurance for newly-named starter Aaron Rodgers, because Brohm was considered "NFL-ready". However, by the end of training camp he was the third-string quarterback behind Rodgers and fellow rookie Matt Flynn. He eventually was waived, signed to the practice squad, then signed by the Buffalo Bills, where he will compete for the starting job next season. However, he is not competing because he is regarded as a future star (though there is always that potential with a young player), but rather out of desperation because Trent Edwards hasn't proved anything and Ryan Fitzpatrick is a career back-up. So by staying for his senior season, he cost himself millions of dollars, but at least he won't be labeled a bust.

So Sam Bradford, consider yourself lucky. Brohm had a better season his senior year than his junior year, but still cost himself a ton of money. Brohm's rookie deal with the Packers was a four-year, $3.5 million contract. JaMarcus Russell, who was selected first overall the previous year where Brohm very well would have been taken, got a contract for 6 years, $61 million with incentives that could have escalated it to $68 million, not to mention $32 million in his pocket before he even started training camp. Luckily, Bradford saved himself from that kind of loss with luck, but also pure ability and potential.

Next time you hear about a player leaving school early to enter the draft, such as most college basketball players, remember before you judge them to consider this: would you rather have $3.5 million, or $68 million?

Yeah, that's what I thought.

Tags:     NFL Draft 2010, Brian Brohm, Sam Bradford, JaMarcus Russell, Brady Quinn, St. Louis Rams, Oakland Raiders, Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Oklahoma Sooners, Louisville Cardinalls