Quote Originally Posted by KYPack
DT Anttaj Hawthorne (Oakland, grade out of college: 89), from Wisconsin is the highest-rated player out of college who is no longer in the NFL.
Didn't Hawthorne have substance abuse issues and serious questions about his motor coming out of college? I can't imagine going to the Raiders helped with any of those things. He was drafted in the 6th round, which seems a much more accurate evaluation of his NFL potential and career than his grade of 89. He turned out to be a guy who should have been drafted in the 6th.

I think this just points to the problem with grading drafts and players. By and large, NFL GMs and their scouting departments are much better judges of players than the people who write personnel evaluations or grade drafts. If writers were better talent evaluators than actual scouts and GMs, you'd think they would get hired by an NFL team.

It's also interesting that almost every team's grade went down. I think this points to a systemic problem of draft "experts" overvaluing players coming out of college. I mean, the Reggie Bush at #2 pick was generally regarded to be the steal of the century (despite costing a #2 overall pick). I wonder how good that one is going to look a year from now.