The 2011 NFL Draft: 2nd Chances
By Jason McIntyre
Nevermind that Ellis has never been convicted of a crime.
Like many players in this weekend’s NFL draft, Ellis tumbled down everyone’s boards because of the dreaded C-word: Character. (Read this.) Ellis will stand out because of his size, the immediate impact the Jets will expect him to have replacing Kris Jenkins, and the fact that he’s facing felony charges for allegedly breaking the jaw and nose of a man who swung a baseball bat him. (Ellis, according to reports, was protecting a female.)
The draft-day tumble over character has been a staple for years. Randy Moss was kicked out of Notre Dame and Florida State. He turned out OK. Last year, Dez Bryant slipped due to off-the-field issues. He had a brilliant rookie year. The list is long and distinguished.
As Mike Freeman noted in that link above, Ellis is barely nearly the top of “risky” pick heap from the 2011 draft – that honor could go to Ryan Mallett (Patriots), Jimmy Smith (Ravens), or any number of other 21-ish year-olds who made a boneheaded decision (or three) in college.
The Jets need Ellis to be the gem of a strong 2011 draft class that hopefully will fortify its weakest link from last year’s team: defensive line. The Jets struggled to pressure the quarterback, and between Ellis in the middle and 1st round pick Muhammaed Wilkerson on the end, the Jets got younger and hopefully, better.
We’ll hopefully have draft grades for all the teams Monday and Tuesday.