Pryor's Draft

I'm a little puzzled by the indecision of Roger Goodell regarding former Ohio St. quarterback Terrelle Pryor's inclusion in the Supplemental Draft. It's really fouling up the possible NFL careers of the five players already set for the draft. Maybe waffling is just the thing to do this year. The Supplemental Draft is set up for those players whose college eligibility has changed since the regular draft. Usually the reasons involve the player being kicked off his college for something stupid. Academic failings and various legal issues are the most common. Every now and then something nice like an early graduation catapults the player into this special draft. Pryor's issues are relatively minor compared to the violence, destruction and general stupidity of most that seek salvation in the NFL when their colleges no longer want them. Terrelle Pryor traded Ohio St. memorabilia for tattoos and possibly money. It's an interesting barter system. It eventually led to the demise of his coach and possibly the Ohio St. program. The NFL's contention is that Pryor should have entered the regular draft since he knew then what he knows now. The young QB changing his mind doesn't qualify as a change in his eligibility in the eyes of the NFL. He's known for a while that he was going to be suspended for Ohio St's first five games. I've guessed that the growing scandal and the media storm that will be following Ohio St. and Pryor forced him to rethink his decision to return to school. It has the makings of a nightmare season. It's a nightmate that he helped create, but it really isn't much different than the disasters that many of the players that populate the Supplemental Draft create. In a ridiculous effort to remain in the good graces of the NCAA (joke!), Goodell and the NFL decided that suspending Pryor for the first five games of his professional career would be fine thing to do. That may seem trivial seeing as Pryor is joining a team at such a late date that little will be expected of him this year. For a rookie QB, five weeks away from the team you joined two weeks earlier is an eternity.

If the NFL wants to stand by the strictest interpretation of it's own rules, they should tell Pryor that he has to wait until the 2012 Draft, but Pryor's collegiate status has changed. The size of the whole Ohio St. mess has grown. It grows with each new scandal with Oregon, Miami etc. It's ridiculous to allow him to enter the draft and then suspend him. His crime is minor compared to some of the assaults and DUI's that we see in college. Enforcing the college suspension is a joke. Will the NFL suspend the Miami players for their decade of college fun? Reggie Bush served no college suspension during his time in New Orleans. Enforcing the suspension to bring smiles to the corrupt NCAA is simply pointless. I'm no particular fan of Terrelle Pryor. I just think that the NFL is creating a mess when there really is no issue. Waffling on that issue just makes it worse.