I Fear We're Drifting Apart

An interesting thing happened on the way to the draft. Two talented quarterbacks started moving in opposite directions on draft boards due to a little something called red flags.

The dreaded red flag. No football prospect wants to see one slapped on them. It means that something is wrong with them. Often, it is a medical issue. There is not much a player can do except prove to the teams that they are recovered from an injury, prove that it won't affect their career now or later. The other cause for a red flag is often for off the field issues. It is unfortunate and often unfair. People quickly forget that these guys aren't too far from childhood, aren't too far from stupid kid mistakes. Often, these mistakes may label them for the rest of their lives, let alone their football careers. It can certainly cost them millions in the draft.

Auburn's Cam Newton and Arkansas' Ryan Mallet are two of the top QBs in the upcoming draft. In case you missed it in an earlier Flicker, Newton found himself in possession of a stolen laptop and cheated on some tests while at Florida. The greater problem for me was that Newton was more concerned with the punishment than the crime. As if it was only wrong because he was punished for cheating and stealing. More recently, Newton's father was caught trying to get $180,000 from Mississippi St if his son went to the school. You can't really fault Cam for the actions of his father, but it paints a little picture of the Newton household. Ryan Mallet has some issues of his own. A couple of years ago he was arrested for public intoxication, which can actually be translated as walking about town with an open beer. There are also some rumors of drug use from about the same time period. Mallet has never tested positive for any drugs. Unless the rumors blossom into something else entirely, it sounds more like Mallet was a college student. Newton's transgressions seem to be far more serious to me, yet his draft prospects are soaring. Some even think that he could be the first pick in the draft. Mallet, the typical college student, is watching his draft stock drop. Some even think that he might drop into the 2nd round. On the field, it is near unanimous that Mallet is the more pro-ready of the two. Newton, while supremely talented is considered a project. He needs some training and adjustments to his game before he is ready for the NFL.

The NFL Draft is a crazy process. Off the field issues sometimes grow unchecked, often become far more than they truly are. Often, mistakes are simply being a college student. Sometimes, they can be much more.