Teddy Bridgewater, Second-Round Pick?

Maybe the National Football League should consider holding the draft in April next season. It’s obvious that draftniks, armchair scouts, real scouts and possibly even some NFL organizations have let the extra few weeks get to them. 

We wouldn’t make such a claim without evidence to back it up. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr, who had long been considered one of the foremost armchair scouts out there, has lost some of that distinction over the past few years. With that said, he’s still among the most respected guys in the business.

Which leads us to our original point of this piece.

The ESPN insider has former Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater falling to the Houston Texans in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft. Kiper did support this claim with some solid reasoning (subscription required).

Let me be clear: This is the top-rated quarterback on my Big Board, a player I have rated higher than Bortles, Manziel or Carr…But my reading of the tea leaves in speaking with many evaluators around the league is that Bridgewater could drop if he slides past a couple of points early on.

If I could project trades, I’d have someone taking him later in Round 1 having moved up. Obviously, he’s a steal at this point.

While it’s true that a quarterback or two from the top of the class might fall to the bottom of the first round or top of the second round, Bridgewater won’t be one of them. He’s considered the consensus No. 1 quarterback in the draft class and is heads and shoulders above the likes of Blake Bortles, Johnny Manziel and Derek Carr. This has been the long-running belief around the scouting community and recent events don’t change that.

Suggesting that he’s in for a Geno Smith-type fall is beyond ridiculous, especially considering Teddy is a much better overall quarterback prospect than Smith was coming out of West Virginia last season.

In any event, let’s check in on what some “experts” had to say about Kiper’s most recent bombshell, which seems to be nothing more than a ploy by ESPN to keep readers engaged in its paid insider subscription at a time when so many other outlets are providing more in-depth analysis for free.

Just so you know, Kiper’s last mock was just over a month ago. Not exactly sure how the perception of those he has talked to has changed that much in a short period of time.

Photo: David Manning, USA Today