NFL draft offers hope but threatens despair
When the annual begins in New York on Thursday, the get a chance to make the first selection from the leading college players in the United States.
While that can be an enviable position to be in - particularly when the draft class is as strong as it is this season - it can also be a risky one. Despite having scouted prospective players for literally hundreds of hours, NFL teams never quite know what they're getting until their new signings step onto the field and play for the first time at the highest level.
For a perfect example let's travel back to . Media speculation ahead of that selection process was dominated by two quarterbacks - Peyton Manning of the University of Tennessee and Ryan Leaf, who enjoyed a stellar college career at Washington State.
Experts were divided over who should be the first overall selection of the Indianapolis Colts. Both young men appeared to have all the physical tools needed to be successful in the NFL and, at first glance, there seemed to be little between the pair.
Hello, I'm Neil Reynolds. I commentate and write about the NFL. I've followed the NFL since 1983 and covered the league as a journalist and broadcaster since 1991. I also played for 10 years in the British American Football League.
