04-26-2004, 04:10 PM
Apparently no one wanted to touch this on the MAC board, so I'll kick it out here....
Big Ben was told point-blank by Tom Coughlin that he would be their pick @ #4 the night before the draft. He was flat out lied to. He's not the only one. Kellen Winslow apparently had been told that he would be the Redskins pick @ #5. He was bypassed for Sean Taylor.
The NFL is a business, and the NFL draft is subject to change at any time. The teams will do whatever they think they need to do up until their allotted pick time has expired. We all know that and seem to accept it.
So why is it such a horrendous crime for a potential draftee to use the leverage they have to dictate who they play for? The teams don't mind lying and manipulating players and agents, why shouldn't the players try it? (and I'm all for manipulating the agents! )
I'm all for what Eli Manning did. I applaud him. He tried to do so in secret, but the Chargers have been working this draft through the media and they continued to do so. They made sure that Manning looked like a prick despite the fact that they didn't even want him. Why make him a villian if you don't want him anyways? What do you accomplish by making it public, since you'd think that would naturally be Manning's play, not the teams' play.
I don't understand why people call Manning a whiny baby while not bringing up the constant manipulation of the process that goes on by the teams. The entire process is about putting yourself in the best position, and that should include the players if they can do so. In reality, the only time incoming rookies have a choice is when they're a top choice or a free agent - only then can they affect where they go.
Big Ben was told point-blank by Tom Coughlin that he would be their pick @ #4 the night before the draft. He was flat out lied to. He's not the only one. Kellen Winslow apparently had been told that he would be the Redskins pick @ #5. He was bypassed for Sean Taylor.
The NFL is a business, and the NFL draft is subject to change at any time. The teams will do whatever they think they need to do up until their allotted pick time has expired. We all know that and seem to accept it.
So why is it such a horrendous crime for a potential draftee to use the leverage they have to dictate who they play for? The teams don't mind lying and manipulating players and agents, why shouldn't the players try it? (and I'm all for manipulating the agents! )
I'm all for what Eli Manning did. I applaud him. He tried to do so in secret, but the Chargers have been working this draft through the media and they continued to do so. They made sure that Manning looked like a prick despite the fact that they didn't even want him. Why make him a villian if you don't want him anyways? What do you accomplish by making it public, since you'd think that would naturally be Manning's play, not the teams' play.
I don't understand why people call Manning a whiny baby while not bringing up the constant manipulation of the process that goes on by the teams. The entire process is about putting yourself in the best position, and that should include the players if they can do so. In reality, the only time incoming rookies have a choice is when they're a top choice or a free agent - only then can they affect where they go.