Skip to main content
Advertising

Jaguars News | Jacksonville Jaguars - jaguars.com

Dickerson workout wonder

Join jaguars.com Senior Editor Vic Ketchman as he tackles the fans' tough questions.

Dan from Neptune Beach, FL:
On "Jaguars This Week," you stated that one of the reasons you don't like Sam Bradford is that he's a Big 12 quarterback. Didn't you say you scout the player, not the school when people questioned the Derek Cox selection? So how is this any different?

Vic: You're absolutely right, it is no different.

Ron from Stowe, VT:
The Steelers of the 1970's produced great drafts. What changed that they went from having great to poor drafts?

Vic: They drafted too low too long. The system is designed to even the field by making the best pick last and the worst pick first, and the system was much more successful in achieving that intent back then because teams weren't afraid to pay top-10 money. The Steelers' long Super Bowl run was largely the result of having selected Terry Bradshaw with the first overall pick in 1970.

Ryan from Las Vegas, NV:
Out of all the teams left that have never won a Super Bowl, could you venture a guess as to who you think could be next?

Vic: I'm doing this off the top of my head because I don't have access to my books at work, but I believe there are 14 teams that have never won a Super Bowl: Jags, Texans, Titans, Bills, Bengals, Browns, Chargers, Eagles, Falcons, Panthers, Lions, Vikings, Seahawks and Cardinals. From that group, the Texans, Chargers and Falcons seem to be best-positioned at the critical quarterback position. I think the Cardinals are building a championship-caliber roster, but they've got to start over at quarterback and that could be a problem. The Chargers would be my pick to be the next to win a Super Bowl among the haven't-won-one crowd.

Jimmy from Jacksonville:
How many players are in this year's draft?

Vic: Every person in the world who is at least four years removed from high school graduation, has completed their college eligibility and hadn't previously been draft eligible in a year, or is at least three years removed from high school graduation and has applied for and been granted draft eligibility, is in this year's draft. In other words, every person in the world is eligible for the draft in one year and one year only in their life.

Chris from St. Augustine, FL:
I read a report that stated that Myron Rolle is being looked upon as an iffy pick by many because he is also a Rhodes scholar. According to the report, many people around the NFL are saying they would be scared to take a chance on him because when he comes up against a wall in football he may shut down because he knows he has other options. Wouldn't you think that a guy who has shown he can play good football and become a Rhodes scholar at the same time would be a good addition because it means he has a strong work ethic?

Vic: The theory is that someone as bright as Rolle doesn't need football, and there are a lot of personnel people who subscribe to that theory. There are also those personnel people who don't like guys to be too smart because they believe they have a tendency to overanalyze everything. I covered a head coach who had a player who was going to law school in the evenings and in the offseason, which meant he was spending his after-hours time studying law briefs, not football plays, and the coach said to me, "That's why you don't want them to be too smart." I'm not sure I want to buy into that thinking. It sounds archaic. I think you have to evaluate each player individually and avoid stereotypes. This is where the interview becomes important. You have to ask the right questions, look him in the eye when he answers and know whether he truly loves the game and needs it for self-fulfillment, or is trying to con you out of tuition money, so to speak. If Rolle truly loves football and needs it for self-fulfillment, you'd be getting a player with rare intelligence and that can translate into wins. I will also say this: Rolle doesn't have to play hurt and he doesn't have to risk his post-football health to carve out a career. He has other options and a possible lack of desperation to succeed in football is a legitimate reason for concern.

Kelly from Windsor, CA:
"To get help, you have to give help." In general, how closely do coaches and general managers work with their former teams on draft day? Are the Jaguars more likely to get a trade worked out with Atlanta, for instance, because of familiarity with Mike Smith?

Vic: Yes, they probably are. Everybody has friends and general managers are no different. If you look back through teams' trade histories, you'll see that they have favorite teams with whom they have worked draft-day trade-ups and trade-downs. When I covered the Steelers, they did a lot of such deals with the Colts, who had some Pittsburgh guys in their personnel department. The Saints have a college scouting director who was formerly the Jaguars' personnel director and that's one of the reasons you see ex-Jags on the Saints' roster. Gene Smith and Mike Smith are friends and I have no doubt they have each other's number on their speed dials, so to speak, for when each wants to move up or down in the order on draft day. It's the way of the league. The phone rings constantly in every team's draft room. Every team is manic to move their pick to fit the player they want. It's all about value.

Patrick from Harrogate, England:
According to sources, the NFL is considering new overtime rules in the playoffs. The first team with the ball must score a touchdown. I suggested this awhile back and your response mocked me greatly. You compared it to the college football overtime, which I was not suggesting at all. Should I feel vindicated or, in your opinion, is this still a bad idea?

Vic: I still think it's a bad idea, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't feel vindicated. As soon as I heard about this new overtime proposal, I thought to myself, man, this sure vindicates Patrick from Harrogate.

Levi from Bloomington, IN:
Welcome to Indiana, Vic. Wanted to know, do you see any top-rated players free-falling, as Crabtree did? I'd like to see how many flips Jack Del Rio would do if Suh fell to us.

Vic: Forget about that guy falling much more than a spot or two. Suh is the real thing and if there's one team dumb enough not to pick him, there won't be two. What I'm not seeing so far this year is an Andre Smith, who bugged out of last year's combine and immediately created a panic among the top 10 teams. We haven't had such dramatics this year. The most dramatic thing so far has been the performance of tight end Dorin Dickerson, who ran a blazing 4.4 on Saturday, which highlighted a workout that included an eye-popping 42-inch vertical jump, a 10-5 broad jump, 24 reps on the bench and solid pass-catching. Dickerson immediately became one of the most intriguing prospects in this draft. He's a guy with the size of a smallish tight end, the speed of a wide receiver and the athletic ability of a cornerback. The crazy part is he didn't find a position he could play in college until his senior season. He has literally gone from a forgotten player to a second-round prospect in the NFL draft. Dickerson is this year's workout wonder.

Bo from Orlando, FL:
Would you mind talking about the interviews that teams have with the players at the combine. Certainly all 32 teams can't interview every player, or even every player they would like to interview. How does that work?

Vic: They interview every player in whom they have interest. As I said, find out who they interviewed and you have a pretty good idea who they might draft. That's why the process is very, very guarded.

Michael from Jacksonville:
I'm at the "Monster Truck Show" and I can't help but feel disappointed seeing all of these seats full.

Vic: Instead of a fly-by, maybe the Jaguars should have a drive-by of monster trucks at the end of the national anthem.

This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be missing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an issue.

Related Content

Advertising