Five success stories and five failures from last year's NFL Draft
Monday 18 April 2016 18:02, UK
With the NFL Draft coming up on April 28, we thought it was an important time to review the Draft from 2015.
So here's Alex Ferguson, our resident US sportswriter, to talk about his top five picks from last year… and the top five failures.
Last year's draft was a mixed bag, and we know that we're giving these rookies just one year in the NFL. And for each and every one of them, we hope they don't flame out and become Johnny Manziel. That won't be a good look.
Top five success stories
Amari Cooper (Oakland Raiders)
Wide receiver out of Alabama picked in fourth. I had no qualms with Oakland's pick of Cooper. He was one of the greatest wide receivers in recent college football history, tearing up one of the toughest conferences while he was doing it. And after 72 receptions, 1,072 yards and six TDs, nor did the Raiders fans.
Todd Gurley (St Louis Rams)
He only started on September 27, after NFL physicians had given him the go-ahead for a torn-up knee after he practised without pads and without injury. Gurley - who was a fantastic running back at Georgia with a style that seemed to go after defenders rather than go around them - shone. He posted 1,106 yards and 10 TDs and got a Pro Bowl selection. Not bad, sir.
Jameis Winston (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Winston was picked first and I worried about his off-field antics. Well, there were none this season, and Winston acted like the leader Tampa wanted. Throwing for 4,042 yards and 22 TDs was an excellent result. The 15 INTs? Not so great. He was also elected to his first Pro Bowl after Tom Brady decided not to play.
Leonard Williams (New York Jets)
Williams was a monster coming out of USC, and a lot of people were talking about his selection as the No 1 pick. The 6ft 4ins, 302lb defensive end shone out for the Jets, finishing the season with 63 tackles and three sacks. I can't wait to see what this guy's future is like.
Brandon Scherff (Washington Redskins)
I was considering Scherff or New York's Ereck Flowers for the fifth position, but I went with Scherff because - and this was despite the fact he was moved to an alien position in right guard at the start of the season - he started every game of the season and quietened a lot of very, very good players.
Top five failures
Dante Fowler (Jacksonville Jaguars)
Picked third overall and was the first non-quarterback to be picked in the 2015 Draft. His speed and nose for the ball excited me a lot at Florida, and the Jaguars ownership saw the same thing. He tore his ACL on his first day in mini-camp and was out for the year… and still signed a four-year, $23.5m contract with $15m guaranteed a few days after. If this was Britain, you'd be hearing the chanting "What a waste of money!"
Kevin White (Chicago Bears)
Did White even start a game before he had a shin injury that prevented him playing for the rest of the season? Needless to say, Bears fans weren't happy.
DeVante Parker (Miami Dolphins)
I was ecstatic for Dolphins fans about getting Parker, who was a top wide receiver at Louisville. When he sustained his foot injury that put him out for the year in October, I wanted to give Fins fans a hug.
Melvin Gordon (San Diego Chargers)
Gordon wasn't a straight-up flop for the Chargers but when you talk to their fans, they are hardly happy with their 15th selection. In 16 games he failed to produce a touchdown over 650 total yards rushing… but did produce five fumbles. That meant that he was second in line to Danny Woodhead by the end of it.
Phillip Dorsett (Indianapolis Colts)
Maybe it was because Andrew Luck was out for most of the year. Maybe it was because he wasn't good enough in game or practice. Either way, we can't really remember Dorsett from this season - and looking at his numbers (18 receptions, 225 yards, one TD in 11 games), we can see why. Was this a brutal failure? No. But it certainly wasn't great.
