Players Entering the NFL Draft Lose.   ESPN with its misleading head lines is at it again.  This time with a head line with Nick Saban saying that players that go to the draft early are the big losers in this.  This makes it sound like Saban is against all players leaving early for the NFL draft.  Deep down that may be true.  Of course it is in his best interest for the players to stay as long as possible.  Saban is in the business of winning games at Alabama.  Sending players to the NFL helps his cause but Saban and other coaches are not in the business of getting players ready for the NFL.  It helps them to recruit if they do get players to the NFL but that is not their primary job.

So when you see a head line like that it makes you think that is what the article is going to be about.  It is going to be Nick Saban complaining about how all these players should just stay in college as long as they can.  So they can get the experience they need to make it later in life.  The headline makes it sound like he is saying that no matter your skill level if you leave for the NFL the player is hurting themselves.  For many of them he is not wrong.

First or Second Round Picks Cant Blame them for leaving

If you are projected to be a first or second round draft pick then I would say you should more than likely go.  If you are projected to be a third trough seventh round then you have a lot of thinking to do.  If you are not projected to get drafted then there is no upside to declaring for the draft.   That is really what Saban was saying.  He is not wrong there.  Does he want all of his players to stay for all their eligibility.  Most if not all coaches would.  They do understand that for the players that are going to get drafted.  Especially in the first few rounds.  It is for most of them not worth coming back to play in college for their last year(s).  While the experience would help most of the.  The chance of getting a serious injury out weighs that experience.  If you are that good you are going to get better experience playing with the best.  Which you can only do playing at the Pro level.

I am no huge fan of Nick Saban and he complains about a lot of stuff.  He complains enough that he could give Stephen A. Smith a run for the money.  They both actually make about the same each year so they may be on to something.

Saban is completely on point about the people that are not going to get drafted at all.  Un Drafted Free Agents(UDFA) can make from $15,000 to $50,000.  That is not a lot of money.  Especially when you figure in living, moving and traveling expenses.  Even if the team helps out with some of  those you are not making a great living at that point.  You would more than likely be better off staying in school then.  If you are going in the third through the seventh round you will get signed for substantially more money.  It will of course still not be enough to put some away.

Once you declare you cannot go back.  So for those players it does hurt them to come out at that point.  So for those the headline is correct.   Even though Saban would of course want everyone to stay as long as they could.  The headline is not correct.  Saban siad if you are a first or second round pick he fully understands why they would go.

Read last weeks post here

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