2011 NFL Draft Results: How Much Did Da'Quan Bowers' Free Fall Cost Him?

Da'Quan Bowers Falls to Tampa Bay Bucs at No. 51 in the 2011 NFL Draft

Who saw this coming?

Da'Quan Bowers was ranked No. 6 on Mel Kiper's Big Board. It's one thing to fall down the first round, maybe early second round at worst, but Bowers almost fell out of the second round.

How does this happen to somebody rated that highly?

It didn't really seem to make a lot of sense until Adam Schefter dropped the knowledge on us that Bowers is going to need major knee surgery in the next four years. "Major" as in he'll miss at least eight months when it happens.

So that's what teams had to weigh. Obviously, Bowers is a stud. When he plays, he's going to be a force. But how long will he play, how long til he needs that surgery, and what kind of a level can he play at after the surgery?

Without a new CBA, it's hard to say just how much money Bowers' free-fall cost him, but it's obviously millions of dollars. I mean, as early as six months ago people were talking about him being the No. 1 pick. That's a guaranteed long-term contract.

Now? He'll be lucky to get more than a couple of years at a time.

You gotta feel bad for the guy. Once you get the "unhealthy" stink on you, it's hard to get it off.

So he goes from somebody who was absolutely going to dominate in the NFL for years to come to somebody that teams are going to hem and haw over every time it comes time to pay the man.