The NFL Draft: The Great Unknown

Commissioner Roger Goodell walked to the podium to a chorus of boos, and then announced that Cam Newton was the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NFL draft. Peace and order was restored in the universe.

And with each pick came the over-analyzing and the perennial draft grades, who won and who lost.

The problem with the draft and the fans and experts is the lack of patience.

The NFL is a win-now league and what fans need to learn is that some things take time. Sure, getting a guy in the first round like Peyton Manning or Larry Fitzgerald is great and can make an immediate impact on their teams, but they are special players and some just take time.

And with this year’s draft there was even more unrest in the first round, more so than in past years.

It started with the Atlanta Falcons trading five picks to the Cleveland Browns for their No. 6 pick, who turned out to be wide receiver Julio Jones.

Then at pick eight, the Tennessee Titans took quarterback Jake Locker, who was expected to go in the second round.

And finally at pick 12 the Minnesota Vikings shocked everyone and took Christian Ponder, another player who wasn’t expected to go until round two.

To the average fan these picks might look like “losers,” but there are so many factors in making a selection, it is unfair to judge a pick until after he starts performing on the field.  

Sure, the Vikings might have separated their collective shoulder from reaching so far to get Ponder, but in a few years he might be a Pro Bowl quarterback who was worth the pick.

Sure, Locker was picked eighth overall, but remember that before the college football season even started, he was projected as a top pick. Could he have really regressed so much that he wasn’t worth a first-round pick?

Another factor fans have to remember is the spector of the great unknown. Will the person you really want still be there if you take another player?

The NFL draft is much like any fantasy draft you may participate in. You have this one player you really want and you plan on drafting him in the fifth round, but as the prior rounds go on, you start to worry more and more that somebody else is going to get him. So instead of waiting until the fifth round, you take him in the third.

It is all about who you want and when you have a pick.

The important thing for fans to remember is to have a bit of patience and refrain from over-reacting until there is a product on an NFL field to judge.

Observations for the week that was April 17-22:

There are reports that Fox is going to buy the rights to Padres game after this year and start a SoCal network. The price is reported to be somewhere around $70 million a year, which is a bit insane considering the Padres were looking for around $12 million…

Anybody that can explain what exactly is going on in regard to the NFL lockout/strike/decertified NFLPA/court case, please shoot me an email…

NFL commissioner Goodell was booed by fans when he first appeared on stage, and in an interview after the first round he said, “It’s the fans' frustration and I understand that." OK, now do something to resolve it… 

Fantasy Corner:

There is nobody drafted in the first round of the NFL draft worth taking in your fantasy draft, if there is a season of course.

Sports Tweet of the week:

If you watched the NFL draft with your computer open to twitter you were entertained. There were numerous funny and awesome tweets throughout the draft, though Reggie Bush (@reggie_bush) took the top prize after posting, “It’s been fun New Orleans” after the Saints drafted Mark Ingram with the 28th pick.

For the Record:

Kyle Blanks will be called up to play first base before Anthony Rizzo. Considering Jorge Cantu and Brad Hawpe’s current pace, Padres fans should be hoping Blanks gets completely healthy and fast.