Curtis Lofton now a 1st round pick

[BoulderSooner79]

Interesting article on the sports illustrated website about the 2008 draft. The author goes through a draft redo given the performance of the rookie players this season. He has Curtis Lofton moving up to the first round and still taken by the Falcons at #21. They don't show the Falcons much here in the Denver area, so I didn't know how he was doing. I did see the Broncos/Falcon game and didn't hear his name much, but he made a few plays.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/don_banks/12/10/re-do-draft-2008/index.html?bcnn=yes

[Curly Bill]

"When Cedric Benson is your leading rusher, you need help in the running game." :D

[stoopified]

I Lofton had hung around we would be 13-0 right now AND Curtis would be a 2009 1st round pick.

[BoulderSooner79]

I agree that if Lofton had stayed OU would likely be 13-0 with the media labeling us one of the best teams ever. But Curtis is obviously doing well and OU gets to go into the title game as underdog, so maybe it the way it should be.

[primetime43]

He made the right choice. That could have been his knee against Texas. Where would he be then?

[SoonerStormchaser]

Lofton, Smith AND Kelly were all fools for coming out last year.

[BoulderSooner79]

Can't argue about Kelly; haven't heard much about Smith. But 2nd round $$ ain't bad and Lofton is starting as a rookie, so it's hard to call him a fool. If he really is playing up to first round standards as the writer says, he is likely to get his contract renegotiated early by the Falcons.

[Sherpa]

How in the world did OU only get 1 year out of Curtis Lofton. Almost as bad as OSU only getting 1 year out of Barry Sanders. I think the coach's underestimated his talent -- he should have started the previous year.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

He made the right choice. That could have been his knee against Texas. Where would he be then?

this attitude has always cracked me up. not because its wrong, but because most of the people who have a conniption when the position doesn't play as well the next year.

the two most common responses are to blame the new player (poor eric bassey), or blame the position coach (our linebackers this year).

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

How in the world did OU only get 1 year out of Curtis Lofton. Almost as bad as OSU only getting 1 year out of Barry Sanders. I think the coach's underestimated his talent -- he should have started the previous year.

over rufus? or over latimer?

[Sooner04]

Lofton, Smith AND Kelly were all fools for coming out last year.
How does a guy like Curtis Lofton, who gets drafted in the 2nd round and is inserted as a starter almost immediately, get branded a fool? He's starting, and playing his way to an even bigger contract a couple of years down the line.

If he comes out this year he may go higher, and he may get a little more guaranteed money, but what if the situation is different? What if he's buried?

If you leave and you're a starter from day 1 in the NFL, then you not only made the right choice, you made a GREAT choice. The NFL is Not For Long, so you get that money whenever you can because it's fleeting.

[BoulderSooner79]

I can see both points of view. As an old geezer, I can look back and identify life experiences that were much more important than dollars. I really admire kids that come back their senior year in hopes of playing for the championship. That 2002 tOSU team had a couple of players that did that. The '86 PSU team that lost to OU in '85 had several players pass on early NFL entrance to get another title shot. (Strangely, both those teams won it all in *huge* upsets of Miami). But there are no guarantees - a couple of those dominating defensive players on this years USC team came back for a shot at the title and it effectively died in Sept. in Corvallis. Lofton certainly made the right $$ choice, but I could see him having regrets at missing that title game.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Lofton probably would have went in a similar spot this year. THey are saying what they said based on a year in the NFL. In fact he might have slipped some, because the MLB's coming out this year are a pretty impressive group. Lofton's measurables wouldn't have changed much in a year's time.

Kelly, Smith, and Lofton all probably made the right decisions for themselves.

[OUMallen]

Lofton, Smith AND Kelly were all fools for coming out last year.

Dude, Lofton is starting and Malcolm Kelly has been given a LOT of attention and chances in DC. I think your post is erroneous at least to a small degree.