2008 NFL Draft Class: Six Players Highlight a Class To Be Remembered

(Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)

It's still way too early to predict how the draft of 2008 will stack up when it's all said and done. But, it has gotten off to a great start, and could some day go down as one of the best classes in NFL history.

There were many great players in that draft, but six players highlight just how great that draft was.

Jake Long, OT, Michigan

With the first overall pick, the Miami Dolphins were up. In 2007, the "Fins" won just one game, beating the Baltimore Ravens at home, 22-16. After the year, there had to be a chance.

Immediately, the team hired Bill Parcells as executive vice president, who promptly fired most of the coaching staff, traded DE Jason Taylor, and released LB Zach Thomas.

In the 2008 draft, they had many choices. Since they had lost Taylor, they would need to add a guy to rush the passer, and Chris Long, a defensive end out of Virginia, was available.

They didn't really have a quarterback either, and Matt Ryan (Boston College) was also considered an elite prospect.

But instead, the Dolphins did what smart teams do: build on the offensive line. They say football games are won in the trenches, and in them, you'll need a big, dominant left tackle like Long.

Jake didn't turn around the Dolphins singlehandedly, but you can't argue he played a key role in the magical year, as the Dolphins went from a laughing stock (1 win, 15 losses) to one of the best teams in football during the 2009 season (11-5, AFC East champs). It was an outstanding pick for the Dolphins and continues to be one.

Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College

Before the draft, the buzz was that the Baltimore Ravens, fresh off a miserable 5-11 season, would trade up for Ryan. However, the Falcons refused, and insisted on drafting Ryan with the No. 3 overall pick. He got off to a perfect start.

His first regular season pass resulted in a touchdown to Michael Jenkins. He finished the season 11-5 as a starter. Besides Dan Marino's phenomenal season in 1983, Ryan had the best rookie season for any quarterback, with over 3,400 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He led his Falcons, who were disasterous in 2007, to an 11-5 record.

While the Ravens certainly won't complain with Joe Flacco, Atlanta hit a home run here in drafting Matt. He signed a six-year, $72M contract that looked ludicrous for any rookie, and even he will have trouble earning all that, but he's certainly living up to the hype.

Really, he turned around the franchise. After the Michael Vick dog-fighting saga and the tragedy that was Bobby Petrino's NFL coaching career, the franchise was in meltdown mode. But Ryan has been their savior.

Joe Flacco, QB, Delaware

Flacco went into the draft as the No. 2 quarterback prospect, but wasn't a sure bet to even get drafted in the first two rounds. Because he was at the University of Delaware, scouts questioned how much of his success had to do with a lack of competition.

After the Ravens couldn't get Ryan, they snagged Flacco, who threw for 4,263 yards, 23 touchdowns, and just five interceptions as a senior. Ravens fans had one question: who is Flacco?

But after the season came to an end, everyone had gotten familiar with the name. He started all 16 games, threw for nearly 3,000 yards and 14 touchdowns, and became the first rookie quarterback to win two playoff games.

He was signed to a five-year, $30M contract, and looks to be the Ravens' future and present offensively. He won over his teammates, the coaches, and the fans.

All of a sudden, the Ravens offense is dangerous and balanced, led by a slow, unathletic, 24-year-old quarterback who didn't play big time college football.

Chris Johnson, RB, East Carolina

The Titans were coming off a year in which they went 10-6 and even went to the playoffs, but the result was unsatisfactory at the very least. The team lost in the first round of the playoffs, quarterback Vince Young finished the year with nine touchdowns and 16 interceptions, and the team didn't have any playmakers. The 2008 draft would be an ideal place to find one. There were some receivers and game-breaking halfbacks.

At 24, where the Titans were picking, they had a lot to choose from. No receiver had yet been taken, so they could take anyone.

Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, DeSean Jackson, you name it. But the Titans made a marvelous pick, taking East Carolina running back Chris Johnson.

In the combine, Johnson ran a 4.24 in the 40, and he also had the elusiveness that gave Tennessee reason to believe that he'd be a good player. And boy, was he. As a rookie, he started 14 games, and on 251 carries, he had over 1,200 yards and nine touchdowns. All in all, he had 294 touches, over 1,400 yard, and ten touchdowns. Not a bad pick at 24.

Matt Forte, RB, Tulane

It perplexed me when Forte got drafted so low. Coming out of Tulane, he had a superlative college career. From 2004 to 2006, he didn't have a prominent role, so he didn't post eye-popping numbers, but he still combined for over 2,000 yards on just 448 carries in three seasons.

Then, as a senior, he exploded, with over 2,000 yards and 23 touchdowns. There was some fear of him being a one-hit wonder. After all, in the previous three years, his numbers weren't even in the neighborhood of what he posted as a senior. Also, of course, it's Tulane. It's not prime-time competition.

On top of that, he wasn't very fast nor slippery, the polar opposite of Johnson. Because of this, he was drafted in the second round (44th overall) by the Bears. People didn't expect him to make a major impact.

But Forte was the Bears offense as a rookie, plain and simple. He came to compete with Adrian Peterson (not the Adrian Peterson, of course) and Cedric Benson. Benson was released because of legal troubles, and he managed to beat AP2.

In his first game, he made a statement, rushing for 123 yards in a surprising 29-13 win over the Colts. He didn't look back, rushing for 1,238 yards on the season. He also excelled in the passing game, as he caught a whopping 63 passes for 477 yards and four touchdowns. He combined for 1,715 yards as a rookie.

It was third in the league, and it demolished Gale Sayers' team record of 1,374 in 1965.

DeSean Jackson, WR, California

At the University of California, the athletic Jackson excelled. After he left Cal for the draft, he ranked third in school history in receiving yards (2,423) and touchdowns (22), sixth in receptions (165), and over 20 percent of his plays totaled 20 yards or more.

But scouts questioned his attitude. He was coachable, but cocky. That was evident as a rookie, but that’s not what stuck out the most.

Because of his 5'10", 175 pound stature, he slipped all the way to the second round, where the Eagles, in need of some playmakers to help Donovan McNabb, drafted him. He had an embarrassing play in Week 2, where he celebrated a touchdown prematurely, flipping the ball behind his back at the one-yard line.

However, not many remember that after the season he had. He caught just two touchdowns, but he had 62 catches, 941 yards, and 8.8 yards per punt return.

But that's not it: Every draft has it's fair share of gems, and if those six were all this year's version had to show, I would consider this class very much weak. But those are just six names in practically a roster full of good picks.

LB Jerod Mayo (Patriots), the 10th overall pick, won Rookie DPOY, and figures to be one of the best linebackers in the game for years to come. The 23-year-old compiled 128 tackles and four pass deflections in 2008. And forget his blunder on Monday night.

Leodis McKelvin was a good pick at 11 for the Bills. He had 32 tackles, two interceptions, and a touchdown as a rookie. He looks to me like a future Pro Bowl corner. Then, the Broncos selected Ryan Clady. Amidst all the craziness in Denver, one thing "experts" can't criticize is this pick.

In 2008, he started every game, committed just three penalties, and allowed ½ of a sack. Sporting News rated him as the No. 1 offensive tackle in the NFL, and they'd be foolish not to. Then, the Panthers took Jonathan Stewart, who backed up one of the best running backs in football in DeAngelo Williams, and still ran for 836 yards and ten touchdowns.

At pick 22, the Cowboys took Arkansas RB Felix Jones, who is a joy to watch. He can score at any given time, and before he got hurt last season, he was averaging a 8.9 yards per run. He's the Cowboys No. 2 back, and a player any NFL fan should appreciate.

Then there's Dustin Keller, the tight end out of Purdue. With the 30th pick, the Jets nabbed him, and he responded. Dustin had 48 catches, 535 yards, and three touchdowns, and you have to figure he'll be even better with Mark Sanchez, a hypothesis with a similar conclusion that was Week 1, when he had 94 yards on four catches. And there were late-round steals.

I mentioned Jackson and Forte, but other second round picks that look to be selections to remember include John Carlson, Eddie Royal, and Ray Rice.

Carlson was taken 38th by Seattle, and is one of the premier tight ends in football for the future, and he proved that last year. He had 627 yards and five touchdowns with Seneca Wallace throwing to him last year, and 96 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1 this year. Royal, taken 42nd by Denver, is ironic.

He wasn't a No. 1 in college, but he exploded for Denver, with 91 receptions, 980 yards, and five touchdowns. Rice, the 55th overall pick, is crucial to the future of the Ravens offense. He's small, but quick, and he compiled over 700 yards of offense as a rookie—and he was a third stringer. Now, he's a starter, and ran for 108 yards in Week 1.

There were more good picks. In the third round, Houston picked up Steve Slaton, who surprisingly led all rookies in rushing yards, with 1,282. There's also Tavares Gooden, the Miami linebacker taken by the Baltimore Ravens, who now takes over for the departed Bart Scott, and is certain to break out.

Only one name jumps out for me in the fourth round, but it's a big one: Tashard Choice. You don't know him now, but trust me - you will. He really came on late in the season when Marion Barber began to slip. In a very dangerous Dallas backfield, he found playing time, and averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 92 carries, running for 472 yards and two touchdowns.

The next round, there are two more good players; cornerback Orlando Scandrick was taken 143rd by the Cowboys out of Boise State, and Cowboys coaches like him. They like him so much that he was able to find good playing time as a rookie, impressive for a fifth rounder. He'll even start this week against the Giants.

Who can forget Tim Hightower, taken 149th overall by the Arizona Cardinals? Nobody realizes it, but he was a bruising goal-line back last year, scoring ten touchdowns.

Then in the seventh round, there's another steal. Peyton Hillis is a very sound football player. The running back for the Broncos starred as a blocking back for Darren McFadden and Felix Jones at Arkansas, and had some fun running the ball with Denver last year, with 343 yards and five touchdowns on just 68 carries.

You heard it here first. This draft will be remembered as one of the best ever for years to come.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?