By D. W. O'Dell
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The NFL draft is over, and, as predicted, former number-one-pick-hopeful Matt Leinart fell to the number 10 slot, chosen by the Arizona Cardinals. This is an amazing development for a quarterback who, had he opted to leave college a year ago, would have gone much higher, probably ‘numero uno’ (although one more year of college - taking courses in ballroom dancing - had to be more enjoyable than playing for the San Francisco 49ers last year would have been). The Oakland Raiders, picking at number 7, passed on Leinart and chose instead Michael Huff of Texas, a safety who supposedly could also play cornerback. The Raiders did this despite the fact that they don’t have a decent quarterback.
I have written previously on this site of the folly of picking a quarterback in the first round. Ryan Leaf, Akili Smith, and Eric Crouch are cautionary tales sufficient to discourage any NFL front office denizen. And I still believe that it is folly to bet the farm on a first round quarterback pick.
But… If any team was in position to draft a quarterback, it was the Raiders. After deciding to mercifully end the Kerry Collins era, they picked up Aaron Brooks, who had led the New Orleans Saints to several losing seasons. Brooks is a decent quarterback, even if he has never had a season passing rating over 90 (and has been below 80 the past two years). He would have been an excellent caretaker QB, manning the position competently while a young QB with greater physical skills entered the league and learned what he could from Brooks’ experience.
But the Raiders passed on Leinart, who won the Heisman trophy in 2004 and who would have led USC to three straight championships if his defensive teammates could have done a slightly better job of tackling Vince Young. Leinart was probably the SAFEST first round pick of a QB ever, with proven leadership skills and known play-making ability (check out the end of the noted USC/Notre Dame game).
But the Raiders chose a safety, because the reason they sucked last year was due to their pass defense. Right. This is the team that acquired Randy Moss, the most electric receiver in the NFL, and then gave him a career low number of catches for a full season. The talent of a receiver like Randy Moss is wasted without a quarterback who can deliver the ball to him. Brooks is not that QB, and neither is Raiders back-up QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
I think the Raiders passed on Leinart because of his image. Leinart is an up-standing, well-liked guy who works hard and plays by the rules. That’s not a Raider! I’m shocked the Raiders didn’t draft Marcus Vick, who is up on weapons charges and was taped intentionally stomping on an opposing player’s leg during a game. That’s the sort of move that would make former Raider Bill Romanowski proud.
The Raiders made a huge mistake, not because they didn’t draft a quarterback but because they thought they didn’t need one. They need a higher-quality passer than Aaron Brooks if they are going to return to their glory days of the vertical game; by anointing Brooks as their quarterback of the future, the Raiders assure themselves of more high draft picks in the next few years.
