5 Questions Part 2

Mike Whitney answers Mike Odom

Who has been the bigger bust, Reggie Bush or Matt Leinart?
Inconclusive to be honest. But if I had to answer, I’d say Reggie Bush. He was drafted 8 spots higher for one. It was a huge controversy that he wasn’t drafted #1. It cost a GM his job. He was so hyped he petitioned to allow #5 to be used for him as a running back. He also was drafted #2 only because of his financial demands. Bush was also given the starting role and ample packages and opportunities, and it resulted in failed results as a running back. 3.9 yards/carry for his career only helped by his higher average in less carries this year. 30 career touchdowns in 3 seasons and 9 games. Never more than 600 yards in a season rushing, that is awful for any running back, let alone drafted #2. Maurice Jones-Drew who was splitting time with Fred Taylor for 3 years has compiled 52 touchdowns in the same amount of time. He was drafted way after Bush.
Leinart hasn’t proved much, but he has been locked into the Cardinals and their misery to begin his career. Then you get a 2 time MVP in front of him. Not calling him the next Steve Young, but he’s basically in the same situation Young was at the beginning of his career. We know he lacks arm strength, but that isn’t new. Also, drafting Quarterbacks is a product of team need. The Saints had Deuce and didn’t need Reggie, the Cardinals needed Leinart, and so his true value wasn’t shown. Leinart probably would have been a late first round pick on talent and measurable alone, but that isn’t how the NFL works.

Who will be the first QB taken in the 2010 draft?
Going with recent trends, I see Jake Locker. He’s going to wow at the combine, and he’s a leader who can move and who can make all the throws. He’ll get an edge because scouts know he had success with subpar receivers and supporting cast. The only fallback he has is that he’s already signed a deal with the LA Angels as a fall-back option. Bradford has the shoulder and McCoy still doesn’t wow me. I think a better throwing, less athletic Vince Young. They both played out of the same offense, though.

With seemingly another rebuilding project coming in Buffalo, who is their best player currently?
I’m going to go with Lee Evans here. He’s a tremendous talent who can’t reach his potential as Trent Edwards is nothing but a stop-gap solution at quarterback. It didn’t help that his line suffered losses in free agency and injury, and weren’t that good to begin with. You could argue Fred Jackson or Jairus Byrd, but neither of them is proven over multiple seasons. That being said, I don’t see Evans sticking around for the whole rebuilding project, as he’ll end up being shipped out with his high price tag.

Bigger loss to their respective team, Michael Turner or Ronnie Brown?
Interesting, Turner means more than Brown does, but his loss is for much less time. However, its critical that the Falcons put up some wins. Matty Ice hit his sophomore slump in stride with more targets than he had last year. Now it will be even harder. It doesn’t help that the defensive secondary is a mess, either. The Dolphins are out of the playoff race this year, and Rickey Williams is a better backup than Stecker or Snelling. So I’ll go with Turner’s loss.

More impressive, Calvin Johnson's 2008 season or Steven Jackson's 2009?
Steven Jackson. He’s #1 in the NFL for RBs when it comes to DYAR and DVOA. He’s run tremendously with a terrible, terrible team. 5 100-yard games is tremendous. Only twice has he touched the ball more than 25 times in a game, too.
Calvin Johnson in 2008 was impressive, but 78 catches in 151 targets is bad. He got a lot of touchdowns on a god-awful team, but he’s had more than ample opportunities. He’s also the only target on that team. If they score, it has to go through him.