2014 NFL Draft Preview
The NFL Draft is here and it is time for an entirely new group of young men get the chance to achieve a dream they have had for most of their lives. Many of these players have been in football since Pop Warner and have had dreams of being the superstars of the NFL. As they moved on in their careers more and more players dropped off and pursue other dreams. For the players sitting in their homes and at Radio City Music Hall would all never give up on that dream. These are the players that had the talent but more importantly the drive to make their dreams a reality. Now the work has been finished to this point and many are hoping that the work will continue with an NFL team and a new dream of becoming one of the best players in the league takes over. The testing and the prodding is done and there is not a lot left for any of these players to do in order to convince teams that they are the right fit. There is plenty of stress for the players awaiting the verdict on where they, or if they, will be moving on to continue their dream. The stress is also high for teams as this is the time where General Managers and team scouts make their money. Massive chunks of team budgets are used on scouts and on getting this one event right in the NFL calendar. Although some teams take free agency as the best way to build a team more often than not the draft is the way to become a solid team for years to come. That is only if teams can get it right though as draft busts and passing on the right player can mean the difference between team officials being employed or looking for a new job. In 2014 the job will not be very easy for many of the top drafting teams this year as there is no easy pick at the top of the draft. In past years there has been a pattern of clearly defined needs and players to fill those needs. This year the needs are much less clear and the players that can fill them are being debated up until the day of the draft. The top of the draft sees the Houston Texans deciding whether they want to take the Texas kid that lit up the NCAA but has some off field issues in QB Johnny Manziel or a dominating defensive end that disappeared in 2013 in Jadeveon Clowney. The debate doesn’t stop there as the question of Manziel being a top pick continue with Blake Bortels being the other option that many are saying is the top QB in the draft. Bortles and Manziel are not the only QBs in the draft as many are wondering where preseason favourite Teddy Bridgewater will land while two-time National Champion AJ McCarron is also looking for a home. The QBs are not the concentration of the draft this year though as the wide receiver class is one of the best in recent history and every teams can always use a top receiver. Meanwhile teams will still be looking for that offensive tackle that can protect the most valuable asset on any team while the running back position may be fading away in the draft as there are few if any top flight running backs available this year. Every team will be looking for that piece of the team that they are missing in order to begin the long march towards the Super Bowl and for many teams it may very well start at Radio Music Hall as the new NFL stars will begin their NFL careers.
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