NFL Draft.
The NFL draft snuck up on Base10 this year unfortunately he could not stay glued to the TV to watch the first day. Base10 had a family commitment on Saturday. Why must the catholic Church schedule first communions on Draft Day? Is nothing sacred? First, no football since January. And now the only spring lifeline for football thrown to us during the off-season shot because of some Papist Conspiracy. Is John Paul II a baseball fan? Is it mere coincidence that the device used to burn incense in church strongly resembles a small soccer ball? (OK, that's a reach). The Church may have met its match in today's NFL. (There's a mental image here somewhere of Al Davis doing battle with the Archangel Gabriel and being cast down, but maybe I'm overdoing a metaphor).

There is some sanity coming out of this draft--the sideshow of Maurice Clarett appears to be over. (Base10 is not sure how he feels about Mike Williams, but more on that in a moment). The Supreme Court announced that it would not overturn the reversal of the District Courts decision to allow Maurice Clarett in the draft. For the non-lawyer, the trial court issued an injunction in Clarett's favor directing the NFL to let him in the Draft. The NFL appealed. The first level appellate court sided with the NFL--not on the merits specifically--but instead vacating the injunction. Part of this calculus is a consideration of whether Clarett was likely to be successful on the merits. So the Circuit Court sided with the NFL. The Supreme Court decided it would not hear the injunction issue. The ruling is somewhat limited. It is possible but unlikely that the Clarett was correct in his antitrust allegations and he would then be place in a supplemental draft. But the present ruling makes this outcome unlikely. (One of Base10's law professors once pointed out that judges often refuse to completely foreclose a claim and often use language that seems to allow a claimant to go forward under a different theory. But in Clarett's case, fully litigating the issue might cause him to hit retirement before his first game).

Base10 does not feel the same way about Mike Williams. Mike Williams may be the sophomore phenom that could make it in the NFL. Base10 doesn't like the fact that Clarett tried to change the rules for his own benefit after his other disciplinary problems kept him off the NCAA field, but Williams is a different case. He only did what he did because the law at the time said he could declare. Now you could argue that he must have known this might happen, but I still don't feel he should be penalized. Williams (and maybe even Clarett) should be allowed to regain their NCAA eligibility.

The Jets seemed to do okay. They picked up a linebacker in the first round, Jonathan Vilma, who seems to get good grades. They had no second round pick, and took Derrick Strait, a CB in the third. The fourth round selection was a WR, Jericho Cotchery. I was glad they stockpiled some defensive help.

Nothing the Jets could do though could possible match the major move made by the Giants in acquiring Eli Manning. Base10 didn't really care for the Archie Manning soap opera that was going on all week. There was no reason to expect that San Diego was not going to pick him without some major compensation. But in the end, the Giants were willing to fork it over. The Giants drafted Philip Rivers, a promising QB then traded him and a third-round pick this year, in addition to a first and fifth-rounders in 2005 for Manning. I suspect that San Diego made out better on this deal.

This also means that Kerry Collins career with the Giants is over. Press reports indicate that Collins will likely be released today after Collins refused to restructure his contract. This will be especially troubling if Manning struggles this year. Collins is on the tail end of his career and should realize he may not have many starting years left, and it would have nice if the Giants could have made some kind of deal to keep Collins and let Manning sit his first year.

Base10 will miss Collins. He was a good example of a player who made some mistakes but proved that he could still play the game. Base10 is a Jets fan but likes the Giants, too. At the very least, New York football will be fun to watch.
- posted by Base10 @ 6:50 PM