Best and Worst of the NFL Draft: 40-30

40.  Justin Tuck                     DE                  New York Giants                  74 overall (3rd round) 2005
Tuck wasn’t even on the radar for this list until February 3rd, but after turning Tom Brady’s fourth Super Bowl an utter nightmare, he deserved to be mentioned.  Of course, putting Tuck here is partially based on potential, because it looks inevitable that the he’ll turn into a perennial all-pro.

39.  Grady Jackson               DT      Tampa Bay Buccaneers        193 overall (6th round) 1997
There’s a fine line between being fat and being good.  Jackson is straddling that line— and it’s not pretty.

38.  DeMeco Ryans   LB       Houston Texans                     33 overall (2nd round) 2006
The 2006 Defensive Rookie of the Year followed up a season in which he led the NFL in tackles by being named All-Pro in 2007.  Not bad for a 236-lb middle linebacker who was thought to be too small to play in the pros. 

37.  Shaun Phillips     LB       San Diego Chargers              98 overall (4th round) 2004
Phillips may not be the most famous Shaun in the San Diego linebacking corps, but he has been a huge part of the Chargers defense since joining the team four years ago.  He is yet to make a Pro Bowl, but aided pass rushing extraordinaire Shawne Merrimane with 8.5 sacks of his own this past season. 

36.  Devin Hester       KR                  Chicago Bears           57 overall (2nd round) 2006
Hester was drafted to be a cornerback.   He turned out to the most dominant kick returner in NFL history.  In his first two seasons, Hester has run back 11 kicks (both punts and kickoffs) to the house.  Eventually teams will start to realize that Hester is the only chance the Bears have at scoring and just kick the ball out of bounds, but until then, he remains one of the most dangerous weapons in the league. 

35.  Mario Williams   DE                  Houston Texans                     1 overall (1st round) 200
On Draft Day 2006, all we heard was how Williams will forever follow in the shadows of future game-changers Reggie Bush and Vince Young.

But what a difference a two years makes.  After racking up 11 ½ sacks in 2007, Williams was named AP Defensive Lineman of the Year (I didn’t know that was an award either) and even got votes for Defensive Player of the Year.  Bush, whose longest run of his NFL career is just 22 yards— 16 yards fewer than Williams’ fumble recovery touchdown dash— proved that he may never be anything more than an explosive third-down back.  Young passed for 9 touchdowns and 17 interceptions and was limited to 395 rushing yards while operating one of the NFL’s most anemic offenses.

 All of the sudden, it appears that Bush and Young are now chasing the legacy of Williams.  Hats off to Charlie Casserly for making that pick.  And by the way, hats back on to Casserly for resigning immediately after the draft.

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