10 Draft Busts Who Might Redeem Themselves in 2016
Redemption awaits draft busts every year.
Sometimes it's a slow burn, like a legendary receiver by the name of Cris Carter. Other times it's a change of scenery, like Alex Smith or Reggie Bush. And as a more recent example, sometimes it's an instance of sheer opportunity, like Bismack Biyombo.
Many reasons for redemption exist, and many examples pop up each year. Given the heavy emphasis of the draft in the NFL and NBA, leagues without notable minors systems and with grand expectations of each rookie, the two produce the most examples.
Such a theme in mind, let's break down 10 players who look as if they could turn the corner away from the realm of the busts and forge ahead toward lengthy, successful careers.
Justin Gilbert, CB, Pittsburgh Steelers
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It's never good when a former top-10 pick gets traded for a sixth-round pick.
Even worse? The former elite prospect has only spent two years at the pro level.
Maybe even worse and the biggest sin of all? The two-year player gets traded to a division rival.
Such is the situation surrounding new Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Justin Gilbert, who entered the league via the eighth pick in the 2014 NFL draft with the Cleveland Browns. With a new head coach in place, the Browns saw fit to give away Gilbert.
It can't be a good feeling for Gilbert himself, as it's almost like his old team hopes the new team puts him on the field twice a year.
All hope isn't lost for Gilbert, though. Pittsburgh's starting two corners are William Gay and Ross Cockrell. The latter was considered a bust before joining the Steelers last year and playing a big role.
Gilbert still has the talent, and he might now reside in the proper environment.
Terrelle Pryor, WR, Cleveland Browns
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Not that the Browns can't rehab a former draft bust.
Remember when Terrelle Pryor entered the NFL via the supplemental draft and was an intriguing project for the Oakland Raiders?
Right. The experiment didn't work out, to say the least, and now Pryor looks like one of those rare cases of a gifted athlete humbling his pride and taking up another position.
Pryor now holds the No. 2 wideout job in Cleveland, at least until Josh Gordon returns. He's already turned heads over the preseason, even scoring a 50-yard touchdown. Head coach Hue Jackson hasn't been shy about publicly praising Pryor, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.
"Terrelle Pryor continues to make strides at the WR position, going to continue to work at it," Jackson said.
Maybe Pryor doesn't wind up as one of the best wideouts in the league, but he's certainly carving out a nice career for himself.
Cameron Erving, C, Cleveland Browns
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Sometimes a simple position change is all it takes to turn a bust into an every-down, effective starter.
It's never fun to label a guy a bust after one season, but the globe seemed ready to head that route with Cameron Erving, the No. 19 pick by the Browns in 2015. The Florida State product entered the league as a center and fell on his face at guard when injuries forced him into the lineup.
Cabot's colleague, Tom Reed, explained it best:
"The Browns made a mistake last spring by teaching Erving every offensive line position instead of narrowing his focus. (He played tackle and center at Florida State after converting from defensive line.) One Browns starter privately said the kid was "clearly mentally taxed." …
It's not enough, however, to explain his bewildering performances. At times, he looked more like a Division III player than a two-time Jacobs Blocking Trophy winner (presented to the ACC's best lineman).
"
The new coaching staff in Cleveland has taken a different approach, though, and slapped Erving at center where he belongs. Next to talent such as Joel Bitonio and Joe Thomas, this could be an instant turnaround instead of a continued downward spiral like the one Gilbert suffered.
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Anthony Bennett, F, Brooklyn Nets
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Anthony Bennett always winds up on lists like this for a few reasons.
For one, he was the top pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Two, he's just 23 years old, and the talent the Cavaliers saw in him might still exist if he lands in the right situation.
Bennett's first season saw him receive an average of 12.8 minutes and score 4.2 points. In Minnesota the next year, he went for 15.7 and 5.2 in those same categories. Last year, he spent just 19 games with Toronto and went for 4.4 and 1.5.
Now with the Brooklyn Nets, Bennett may have finally landed in the right spot. A rebuilding team won't be afraid to trot out the former No. 1 pick and see what he can do with little risk to hurting the team in the long run.
Bennett merely has to spar with the likes of Luis Scola and Trevor Booker for playing time, if not hope for a Brook Lopez trade. If Bennett can get on the court often, his legacy might take a turn for the better.
Barkevious Mingo, LB, New England Patriots
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Incredible how many names on a list like this have a link to the Browns, right?
Barkevious Mingo was the sixth pick in the 2013 draft by Cleveland and floundered for three years there before the team traded him to the New England Patriots.
Going from Cleveland to New England—talk about winning the bust lottery.
Mingo wasn't going to make the final 53-man roster in Cleveland until New England swooped in and offered a fifth-round pick, so it's clear head coach Bill Belichick and others have some sort of plan in mind for the former LSU star.
Thanks to an injury-riddled front seven, Mingo might see notable snaps with his new team at some point in 2016. If the Patriots can find a way to use him to his strengths, the 25-year-old linebacker's career will be just getting underway.
Otto Porter, Washington Wizards
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Remember when the Washington Wizards selected Otto Porter with the third pick in the 2013 NBA draft?
Most don't, in large part because the Georgetown product didn't crack an average of 20 minutes per game until his third season. Last year, Porter went for 30.3 minutes and managed 11.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
If he's lucky, it's all uphill from here. After spending a bit of time getting mentored by a veteran such as Paul Pierce, it seems like Porter will now move into a starting role, and those around him have high hopes. Wizards head coach Scott Brooks even said in a video at The Vertical that he believes Porter can be a premier defensive wing player.
A premier defender isn't as glamorous as a scorer, especially not after being taken as high as third. But it's a much better place for Porter than the last three years. This season could be a breakout for the quiet former top-three pick.
Nelson Agholor, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
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Struggling to do a core concept of the job description tends to get a player in any league labeled as a bust in a hurry.
Such is the case with the Philadelphia Eagles' No. 20 pick in 2015, Nelson Agholor. While he wasn't the only one to struggle with the problem last season, Agholor took a lot of heat for dropped passes.
So much so, in fact, he went out and bought a JUGS machine, according to fellow wideout Jordan Matthews, who spoke with NJ.com's Matt Lombardo.
"Nelson [Agholor] took some of that first-round pay check and he bought a JUGS machine. He's invited the guys over to his house to work on it, make catches on it and do whatever they want to do," Matthews said.
Agholor's rookie stat line? Just 23 catches on 33 targets for 283 yards and a score.
Now facing pressure from Dorial Green-Beckham, a guy the Eagles traded for over the summer, Agholor's facing a now-or-never season and might just explode onto the scene if he's improved.
Derrick Williams, F, Miami Heat
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Derrick Williams is another one of those players who shows up on a list like this often because of draft placement (No. 2, 2011 by Minnesota) and clear talent.
Williams spent three years in Minnesota doing little to nothing as a rotational player before having the third season abruptly ended when he joined the Sacramento Kings. There, Williams' role was much of the same until he played in a career-high 80 games with the New York Knicks last season.
Now a journeyman, Williams joined the Miami Heat over the summer as an insurance policy that might just work out. After averaging 9.3 points and 3.7 rebounds with the Knicks and shooting a career-high 45 percent from the floor, Williams might have earned himself some time.
Call it an interesting situation in Miami, where Josh McRoberts popped up in trade rumors back in June, according to Ethan J. Skolnick of the Miami Herald. It's also hard to tell what will happen with Chris Bosh due to health concerns.
In other words, Williams could find himself with more playing time than ever and shed the bust label in a hurry.
Tavon Austin, WR, Los Angeles Rams
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Some wideouts go for more than 1,133 receiving yards in a single season.
That number is the total yardage accrued by Los Angeles Rams wideout Tavon Austin over the course of his three-year career so far after being selected eighth in 2013.
It seems the Rams haven't fully figured out how to use Austin yet, getting him 86 targets last year, of which he caught 52, scored five times and only averaged 9.1 yards per catch.
The Rams have something up their sleeve, though, because the team hit him with an extension worth $42 million in August. With running back Todd Gurley stealing attention, quarterbacks such as Case Keenum and rookie Jared Goff might have more time than usual to go up over the top.
It doesn't look like Austin will wash out of the league as a bust anytime soon after the extension. If the Rams keep improving around him, he might even free himself of the label.
Robert Griffin III, QB, Cleveland Browns
10 of 10Somewhere within Cleveland quarterback Robert Griffin III is the guy who threw for 3,200 yards and 20 scores on a 65.6 completion percentage with another 815 yards and seven scores on the ground as a rookie.
By now, most stand familiar with the story of Griffin, the oft-injured No. 2 pick by Washington in 2012 who fell out of favor with the organization and eventually left.
This is about the present, where Griffin will team up with the aforementioned Pryor, high-profile rookie Corey Coleman and Gordon when he returns from suspension—all under the supervision of a coach in Jackson who squeezed the most out of Andy Dalton while acting as offensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals.
It all sounds too good to be true, and maybe it is. But the guy who fizzled as the face of a dysfunctional organization (the guy it drafted in the fourth round of Griffin's draft is now the starter, come on) now has a chance at redemption and the chance to rip off the bust label like Superman for a city hurting for a winning football team.
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