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National Football League
Draft King Analysis
June 22, 2009
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com
Reader feedback is always welcomed here. Send your thoughts to Draft King at LouPickney@gmail.com.
An update on the Marquies Gunn legal situation came this afternoon via this article from ProFootballTalk.com. Gunn was arrested in February and charged with three felony counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance, which investigators say was crack cocaine. PFT reports the following new information about the Gunn story:
-Gunn’s case isn’t scheduled to be heard by a grand jury until August.
-Gunn hasn't been scheduled for an arraignment.
-Gunn hasn't been assigned a court date.
Thanks to PFT for doing that legwork -- something that I'm rather surprised that the larger sports news outlets apparently opted not to do. I found it curious that PFT hadn't touched the story until today, but there is something to be said for putting in some due diligence to obtaining accurate details, even if it means a delay in presenting information on a topic.
Until this point, the only other sports outlet that I know of that mentioned the UFL drafting an accused crack cocaine dealer after I broke the story on here as a worldwide exclusive in the very early hours on Friday morning was TheBigLead.com. ESPN, Fox Sports, Yahoo! Sports, where are you at on this one?
As it was, I lucked into finding the story. I was grinding through the list of players who went in the UFL Draft, checking draft histories and height/weight for players, and on the final team in the list (UFL San Francisco) I stumbled upon Gunn's legal problems. Something tells me that we haven't heard the last of this one.
One of the more interesting positions to watch for the 2010 NFL Draft is at wide receiver. It was a bit easier for the 2009 Draft; I projected Michael Crabtree and Darrius Heyward-Bey as top ten picks for that draft in May 2008 (which held true thanks to the Oakland Raiders). This time around it's not so easy to sort through the wide receiver prospects for the 2010 Draft, and in some ways it reminds me of the 2006 Draft in how there aren't a large volume of breakout wide receiver prospects on the radar going into the season.
 | Alabama WR Julio Jones can't join the NFL until 2011. (Icon SMI)
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But, unlike 2006, we will probably see more than just one wide receiver taken with the first 35 picks of the draft. As always, it depends on who decides to turn pro early. Alabama sophomore WR Julio Jones might be the best prospect in the country, but due to the NFL's rules that prevent players who are less than three years removed from their high school's graduation from joining the league (using the NCAA as a de facto free minor league system), Jones can't declare for the NFL Draft until 2011 at the earliest.
So, who is the top wide receiver prospect among all potentially eligible players for the 2010 Draft? LSU WR Brandon LaFell has a large frame at 6'3" 210, he is a solid blocker, and his reported sub 4.5 40 speed arguably puts him at the top among senior wide receivers (though I've also seen him listed at 4.54). Other senior WR prospects worth watching including Texas' Jordan Shipley and Cincinnati's Mardy Gilyard.
Illinois wideout Arrelious Benn is a junior, but at 6'2" 220 and great athleticism he could end up as the top WR to go in 2010. Ron Zook is a great recruiter, but he's not exactly Mack Brown when it comes to talking players out of turning pro early.
Oklahoma State wideout Dez Bryant is another intriguing junior. At a glance he looks impressive: 6'2" 215, speedy, and skilled at going up to make difficult catches. In addition, USC WR Ronald Johnson (also a junior) was impressive in 2008 in his first season with the Trojans after transferring from Arkansas. If Johnson leaves Southern Cal early, the 6'1" 180 pounder could easily end up as a day one pick.
NFL Draft Prospect Profiles
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