Let's be honest here, we're all in FA mode and draft mode, and why not this is the time of the year where we can sit here and say I can't wait for next year and it's the year to turn it around. One thing I've yet to really so discussed when it comes the guy that choose to play vs the guy the choose to opt-out of the 2020 season. It's been an unprecedented year in how guys approached in and opted out vs playing, and on that subject to each his own.
Let's get down to brass tax on this though, is a team going to view the opt-out guy better or grade him out better than a guy who choose to play?? These are guys that by the time training camp starts haven't seen real football competition for over a year and a half, I don't care what type of training they've done there's nothing that can simulate game play. Also these guys will have a year less film on them, which leads a team to have to gauge solely off film from the previous season and not seeing that growth or development from year to the next. A great example is D. Smith, if he opted out there's no way we're talking about a top 5 guy but he played and showed everyone his growth.
Most will remember years ago Maurice Clarrett challenging the ruling and trying to enter the draft because he had gotten into trouble and didn't want to wait it out at OSU. For as good as Clarrett was it never worked out for him in the NFL, now he was out 2 years, but let's not forget Mike Williams from USC regarded as the #1 WR in the country at the time also tried to follow suit and enter the draft only to be denied. He was still drafted that following year at #10 overall and he would matchup with exactly what these guys are doing in terms of not seeing live football. Williams was an absolute stud in college:
Awards and honors
- Second-team All-Pac-10 (2002)
- Pac-10 Freshman of the Year (2002)
- First-team Sporting News Freshman All-American (2002)
- Honorable mention All-American (2002)
- First-team All-Pac-10 (2003)
- Consensus First-team All-American (2003)
- Biletnikoff Award finalist (2003)
- Heisman Trophy finalist (2003)
- CBS Sportsline.com National Player of the Year (2003)
- Sporting News National Player of the Year (2003)