Donnie Avery vs Desean Jackson vs 2008 2nd Round WR Class

[RamFan_Til_I_Die]

So I know what your thinking, another thread bashing the decision of the Rams front office for picking Avery instead of Jackson? Wrong. This always seems to surface in any discussion about the Rams WRs, and it's plain foolishness. Of course hindsight is 20/20, and because Jackson is the cream of the 2008 WR draft crop, everyone assumes that the Rams should have somehow magically been able to know this would happen. Well what about the 6 other teams that passed on him when choosing a WR in the 2nd round? Are they foolish as well? The Redskins, Packers, Bills, Broncos & Bengals all chose another WR.

Here are the first 10 WR picks of the 2008 draft:

Round/Pick/Name/Pos/School/Draft Team

2 33 Donnie Avery WR Houston St. Louis Rams
2 34 Devin Thomas WR Michigan State Washington Redskins
2 36 Jordy Nelson WR Kansas State Green Bay Packers
2 41 James Hardy WR Indiana Buffalo Bills
2 42 Eddie Royal WR Virginia Tech Denver Broncos
2 46 Jerome Simpson WR Coastal Carolina Cincinnati Bengals
2 49 DeSean Jackson WR California Philadelphia Eagles
2 51 Malcolm Kelly WR Oklahoma Washington Redskins
2 53 Limas Sweed WR Texas Pittsburgh Steelers
2 58 Dexter Jackson WR Appalachian State Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Most draft "experts" had Thomas, Sweed, and Hardy ranked at the top of the class and none went in round 1, and all went after Avery. I personally, along with a lot of Rams fans, wanted Devin Thomas, the near concensus #1 WR in the draft when he fell to the Rams. I'm not wishing we did, just saying who it was I wanted.

Let's take a look at those 10 in detail and see how they are doing.

To make this simple let's list these stats:
Games/////Catches/Yards/TDs/////Kick Returns/KR yards/////PRs/PRYards/Return TDs

Donnie Avery - Currently on IR, was Rams #1 rec prior to injury.
31/////100/1263/8/////2/40/////0/0/0

Devin Thomas - So far in 2010 he is a KO returner and nothing more...for the lowly Panthers who are desperate at WR.
34/////40/445/3/////32/775/////0/0/0

Jordy Nelson - Currently the #3 receiver behind Greg Jennings and Donald Driver for the Packers.
38/////81/967/4/////58/1339/////17/90/0

James Hardy - Released in preseason this year by the Bills and picked up by no one.
16/////10/96/2/////0/0/////0/0/0

Eddie Royal - Starting #2 receiver for the Broncos.
38/////171/1791/7/////50/1254/////60/657/2

Jerome Simpson - Currently the #4 receiver behind Ochocinco, TO and their 2008 3rd round pick Caldwell for the Bengals.
10/////1/2/0/////1/8/////0/0/0

DeSean Jackson - Starting #2 receiver for the Eagles.
39/////153/2681/16/////2/12/9////1/975/4

Malcolm Kelly - Currently on IR for Redskins.
21/////28/365/0/////0/0/////0/0/0

Limas Sweed - Currently on IR for Steelers.
20/////7/69/4/////0/0/////1/0/0

Dexter Jackson - Cut by Bucs after 1st year. Signed & cut by the Panthers the next year & signed by no one. The definiton of a bust.
7/////0/0/0/////14/327/////20/97/0

So why did I waste the time to post all that? Not sur really other than to show that the majority of the "experts" as well as every other NFL team were wrong about Jackson too. If he was such a lock pre-draft why did everyone pass on him once int the 1st round, and 17 teams do it in the 2nd? Because THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PRE-DRAFT LOCK. GET THAT IN YOUR HEADS AND QUIT JUDGING IN HINDSIGHT PEOPLE.

Avery ranks 3rd out of all the recievers taken in the draft in 2008 based on stats alone, which is good considering he could've been a true bust like several of the others taken in the 2nd round.

[RamsInfiniti]

The comparison of Avery to Jackson is ridiculous anyway ...

Completely different situations. Jackson would not be known as the playmaker he is had he played here the past two seasons ...

Nice writeup though! Surprised to see all the information ....

[AlphaRam]

I am sending a figure to Donnie Avery that will hopefully represent a common activity for him.

[swatter555]

If Avery can show some durability, he might change the trajectory of his career. At the same time, the Rams should at best consider him the #2 or #3 reciever and hope to be proved wrong.

More to the topic of the post, I am a little surprised how many wash outs there were. Jackson seems to be the only WR in the bunch with extremely bright prospects.

[fliptalianstallion]

I'd like to give Avery another chance next season, if he can still run that speedy vertical, then Bradford's numbers will look even more amazing than it currently is.

[First Call Roger]

So I know what your thinking, another thread bashing the decision of the Rams front office for picking Avery instead of Jackson? Wrong. This always seems to surface in any discussion about the Rams WRs, and it's plain foolishness. Of course hindsight is 20/20, and because Jackson is the cream of the 2008 WR draft crop, everyone assumes that the Rams should have somehow magically been able to know this would happen. Well what about the 6 other teams that passed on him when choosing a WR in the 2nd round? Are they foolish as well? The Redskins, Packers, Bills, Broncos & Bengals all chose another WR.

Here are the first 10 WR picks of the 2008 draft:

Round/Pick/Name/Pos/School/Draft Team

2 33 Donnie Avery WR Houston St. Louis Rams
2 34 Devin Thomas WR Michigan State Washington Redskins
2 36 Jordy Nelson WR Kansas State Green Bay Packers
2 41 James Hardy WR Indiana Buffalo Bills
2 42 Eddie Royal WR Virginia Tech Denver Broncos
2 46 Jerome Simpson WR Coastal Carolina Cincinnati Bengals
2 49 DeSean Jackson WR California Philadelphia Eagles
2 51 Malcolm Kelly WR Oklahoma Washington Redskins
2 53 Limas Sweed WR Texas Pittsburgh Steelers
2 58 Dexter Jackson WR Appalachian State Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Most draft "experts" had Thomas, Sweed, and Hardy ranked at the top of the class and none went in round 1, and all went after Avery. I personally, along with a lot of Rams fans, wanted Devin Thomas, the near concensus #1 WR in the draft when he fell to the Rams. I'm not wishing we did, just saying who it was I wanted.

Let's take a look at the 6 guys drafted before the beloved Desean Jackson and see how they are doing.

To make this simple let's list these stats:
Games/Catches/Yards/TDs/Kick Returns/KR yards/PRs/PRYards/Return TDs

Donnie Avery - Currently on IR, was Rams #1 rec prior to injury.
31/100/1263/8/2/40/0/0/0

Devin Thomas - So far in 2010 he is a KO returner and nothing more...for the lowly Panthers who are desperate at WR.
34/40/445/3/32/775/0/0/0

Jordy Nelson - Currently the #3 receiver behind Greg Jennings and Donald Driver for the Packers.
38/81/967/4/58/1339/17/90/0

James Hardy - Released in preseason this year by the Bills and picked up by no one.
16/10/96/2/0/0/0/0/0

Eddie Royal - Starting #2 receiver for the Broncos.
38/171/1791/7/50/1254/60/657/2

Jerome Simpson - Currently the #4 receiver behind Ochocinco, TO and their 2008 3rd round pick Caldwell for the Bengals.
10/1/2/1/8/0/0/0

DeSean Jackson - Starting #2 receiver for the Eagles.
39/153/2681/16/2/12/91/975/4

Malcolm Kelly - Currently on IR for Redskins.
21/28/365/0/0/0/0/0/0

Limas Sweed - Currently on IR for Steelers.
20/7/69/4/0/0/1/0/0

Dexter "The Other" Jackson - Cut by Bucs after 1st year. Signed and cut by the Panthers the next year. Been a FA for a year. The definiton of a bust.
7/0/0/0/14/327/20/97/0

So why did I waste the time to post all that? Not sur really other than to show that the majority of the "experts" as well as every other NFL team were wrong about Jackson too. If he was such a lock pre-draft why did everyone pass on him once int the 1st round, and 17 teams do it in the 2nd? Because THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PRE-DRAFT LOCK. GET THAT IN YOUR HEADS AND QUIT JUDGING IN HINDSIGHT PEOPLE.

Avery ranks 3rd out of all the recievers taken in the draft in 2008 based on stats alone, which is good considering he could've been a true bust like several of the others taken in the 2nd round.

Can you also provide us with punt return comparisons?

[RamFan_Til_I_Die]

Can you also provide us with punt return comparisons, too, or does that slant it even further in favor of Jackson? Really good GMs pick the players who end up performing the best. That is kind of what makes them really good GMs. DeSean Jackson was rated above Avery on all the pre-draft boards. Thanks.

Since every GM in the NFL passed on him once, and half twice, I fail to see your point. They really should rename it the NFL Lottery. Sure you can make the odds better in your favor, but it's still a crap shoot. Anyone who doesn't realize that is blind. How does a 6th rounder like Tom Brady turn into one of the best QBs in modern football? Who knows. Are the Patriots draft gods because they knew how good he would be when no one else did? Nope. They got lucky.

Oh and the return stats were in there already, made it a bit easier to read. No one on this board is questioning how good Desean Jackson is. We're questioning the intelligence of those that think "really good GMs" should have known he'd be the best WR in the draft. On almost every board Thomas, Sweed, and Hardy were rated above Desean Jackson. So how'd tht work out for the guys that drafted them?

[RamsInfiniti]

Since every GM in the NFL passed on him once, and half twice, I fail to see your point. They really should rename it the NFL Lottery. Sure you can make the odds better in your favor, but it's still a crap shoot. Anyone who doesn't realize that is blind. How does a 6th rounder like Tom Brady turn into one of the best QBs in modern football? Who knows. Are the Patriots draft gods because they knew how good he would be when no one else did? Nope. They got lucky.

Oh and the return stats were in there already, made it a bit easier to read. No one on this board is questioning how good Desean Jackson is. We're questioning the intelligence of those that think "really good GMs" should have known he'd be the best WR in the draft. On almost every board Thomas, Sweed, and Hardy were rated above Desean Jackson. So how'd tht work out for the guys that drafted them?

This poster First Call Roger is clearly smarter than all of us, and should probably immediately take over for Devaney as GM. I will make the call ...

[RockinRam]

I'm a big fan of Avery, and I believe that if he can stay healthy, he will be a big weapon for Bradford.

Especially if he plays in the slot where his speed can be utilized fully.

[shower beers]

Can you also provide us with punt return comparisons, too, or does that slant it even further in favor of Jackson? Really good GMs pick the players who end up performing the best. That is kind of what makes them really good GMs. DeSean Jackson was rated above Avery on all the pre-draft boards. Thanks.

Swiiiiiing and a miss!

[First Call Roger]

Swiiiiiing and a miss!

Was it his 15.2 yards per punt return in 2009 or his 2 punt returns for TD in 2009 (1 more in 2008) that swung and missed?

[RamsInfiniti]

Was it his 15.2 yards per punt return in 2009 or his 2 punt returns for TD in 2009 (1 more in 2008) that swung and missed?

No, it you making yourself look stupid ....

[First Call Roger]

No, it you making yourself look stupid ....

We will interpret that to mean the facts are not on your side.

[1980RAMS]

Avery has been hurt the last 2 seasons. A player who gets hurt every season is a ..... not very good.

We need a #1 solid WR

[First Call Roger]

Avery has been hurt the last 2 seasons. A player who gets hurt every season is a ..... not very good.

We need a #1 solid WR

Excellent point. A WR who has a history of being injury prone cannot be counted on. I hope he returns next season and performs well. Unfortunately, Devaney has picked Burton (cut), Foster (cut), and Gilyard who has not performed up to expectations yet.