Raiders Draft Heyward-Bey: Boom or Bust?

Well, it's been nearly 10 hours since the Oakland Raiders shocked the NFL world and selected Maryland wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey with the seventh overall selection in the 2009 NFL Draft.

As the draft unfolded, the Raider fan in me was going nuts at the idea that Texas Tech wide receiver Michael Crabtree slipped beyond teams who were rumored to be interested in him.  After the Cincinnati Bengals took Alabama tackle Andre Smith with the sixth pick, I was downright giddy.

The thought of pairing up Crabtree with quarterback JaMarcus Russell and the three-pronged rushing attack of Darren McFadden, Michael Bush, and Justin Fargas would have created havoc for AFC West defensive coordinators for years to come.

Unfortunately for me and the rest of Raider Nation, when Roger Goodell stepped up to the podium he didn't call out the name of Crabtree, but instead Heyward-Bey.

What followed from my mouth was my favorite 12 letter word along with numerous text messages from friends laughing at Al Davis for not selecting what multiple scouts and analysts labelled as one of the draft's "can't miss prospects."

Instead, the Raiders took DHB, who was projected to to go somewhere in the middle to late first round.

The pick is classic Al Davis—DHB has the speed, upside, and goes against conventional wisdom.

No doubt the Raiders could've had DHB by trading down with anyone outside of the top 15.  Trading down would've allowed the Raiders to pick up an extra pick or two to fill other needs as well as still get their guy.

"This is the guy we wanted all along," said Raiders head coach Tom Cable.  "This is the choice that we thought we had to make to take the next step."

If I were at the press conference I would've asked Cable to define the "next step."  Is it winning more than six games in a year, something they haven't done since the 2002 season?  Or is the next step to turn the worst six year run in pro football to the worst seven year run?

The Raiders needed someone who could help JaMarcus Russell's lack of a viable receiving corps.  Javon Walker flamed out last year after signing his six-year $55 million deal.  Ronald Curry struggled before being benched and ultimately released this offseason.  Johnnie Lee Higgins showed potential in the second half of the season, but he only managed 22 receptions for the whole year.

Only time will tell if Davis was right in drafting DHB, and for my sake I hope he is right and DHB becomes the type of player that Al Davis thinks he can be.

Until then, I'll be watching Michael Crabtree from across the Bay.