Friday, April 11, 2008

The Case Against Jonathan Stewart

by: Michael Steffes

It has nothing to do with Jonathan the man, Jonathan the person, or even Jonathan the player. It has to do with his position. One of the NFL mantras that many of you have heard, is that good running backs get plucked from the later rounds.

Obviously, good players at any position can be found in the late rounds. My guess is it is at the same rate as running backs are found too. However, the reason teams shy away from 1st round running backs is that they don't have a sterling record for working out. This topic is being explored by the guys over at NFL DRAFT SCOUT.. Check it out. The success rate isn't very high.

Now, while I think part of this is bad scouting, and what teams look at, it is still disconcerting. I believe, the traits that make the case for Jonathan Stewart are his work ethic and his desire to be special player. It oozes out of him when he speaks. No man is 5'11", 235 lbs with only 6% body fat, without a tremendous amount of dedication to themselves, their team, and their career. The one roadblock that could hold him back are injuries. And if you also notice in that article, their are guys on that list who by all accounts would have been big successes, had injuries not sapped their abilities. RB in the first round is a tricky situation. END