Gators In The NFL Draft

How often do you see a player drafted 15-20 spots ahead of where he is projected? That's what happened when Gators DE Derrick Harvey was drafted by Jacksonville with the 8th pick in the draft. But think of it this way; Jacksonville was originally at 26, with a few teams in front of them who wanted Harvey. It seems they were willing to spend a little more (in cash and picks) to get Harvey and only Baltimore (after Matt Ryan was off the board) was willing to move. It just happened that eighth was the highest they could go to prevent anyone else from getting him.

(I loved Mel Kiper's analysis, which was basically, "I DON'T see the EXPLOSiveness." Then they showed clips of Harvey being held four times. They forgot clips of games where he was double teamed, which was every freaking game this season. ESPN could have shown his three sacks in the BCS title game, but federal law prevents that from being seen during daylight hours since children might see it.)

Bubba Caldwell going to Cincy is good because they will throw the ball and with Chad Johnson playing the part of attention whore, Bubba could be a legit number two behind T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Plus if Johnson holds out (the financials prevent him from being traded), Bubba will be the one getting the extra reps in practice. The question now will be, can Bubba stay healthy?

(One more thing about the Gators and ESPN's analysis; ESPNews had Pat Forde and Merrill Hodge. The anchor asked Forde if guys in spread offenses could play in the NFL. Forde said there would be some adjustment, but Bubba would be fine since he was able to run every type of route in four years. They go to Hodge, who disagrees and says, "You know, I've watched some of Steve Spurrier's offenses..." I swear on my life he said this. I guess it is too much to ask that an analyst actually looks at current game tape. Hodge was probably too busy hating Vince Young.)

Drew Miller was signed by the Jags after the draft, to contribute to their Gator Club (Harvey and Miller make the 5th and 6th Gators for Jacksonville). Carlton Medder signed with Arizona and Tony Joiner will be getting towed in Tennessee.