Sowing wild oats no help to draft stock
Draft day is one of hope for many NFL fans as they pray their team makes that one selection that will help propel their beloved franchise to a championship level.
But for every Peyton Manning, there is a Ryan Leaf. Sure, the Denver Broncos got star running back Terrell Davis in the sixth round of the 1995 draft, the same year the Cincinnati Bengals took Ki-Jana Carter No. 1 overall.
You get the point.
Anyway, you never know who in this draft will be the next Tom Brady. We have a pretty good idea who the next Antonio Cromartie will be, though.
North Alabama cornerback Janoris Jenkins, a Florida transfer, is a talented player whose draft stock has taken a hit.
Two arrests for marijuana possession and another for a bar fight have a tendency to do that. But that's not the only reason some teams might be hesitant to take a chance on Jenkins.
The 23-year-old has four children with three women, or five children and five women short of the Jets' Cromartie.
Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports spoke with several league coaches and executives who said the issue is a concern.
One NFC executive said while a player such as Jenkins might be able to convince a franchise he has a course of action for dealing with such an off-field situation, it's not likely.
"I wouldn't expect it to be real high," he told Cole. "Most of these guys don't know what to do with the first dollar they make. If this kid could follow a plan, he wouldn't be in this situation in the first place. I know this movie. It usually doesn't end well."
Jenkins defended his family situation in a Palm Beach (Fla.) Post story this week.
"It's weird because I had those kids while I was playing college football and it didn't affect me, not once," Jenkins said. "I'm proud to have my four kids. If they want to throw that in my face, so be it.
"Everybody has kids. Where in the book do it say you can't have kids? It doesn't say that in the law. I'm a great father. I'm there whenever they need me."
Well, unless there's a bar fight somewhere to jump into.
■ DECENT PROPOSAL - Notorious cheating website AshleyMadison.com has offered $1 million to anyone who can prove they had sex with Jets quarterback Tim Tebow, a reputed virgin.
Ironically enough, $1 million is just about what his new teammate Cromartie pays in child support each month as a penalty for all the sex he has had.
■ RIDING LESSONS - The unfortunate loser in the hiring of John L. Smith as the coach at Arkansas is the Weber State football team.
Smith had been hired at the Football Championship Subdivision school five months ago but jumped ship to take over for the disgraced Bobby Petrino at Arkansas.
At least one Weber State player, tight end Brian Jankowski, believes the whole mess could have been avoided.
"Too bad petrino didnt know how to ride a motorcycle," the senior-to-be tweeted.
The former Arkansas and Atlanta Falcons coach probably is thinking the same thing every waking second.
COMPILED BY ADAM HILL
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
