Larry English done

[TTK]

I bolded the ones I felt were busts. Commented on the others.

2003 - Sammy Davis
2004 - Eli Manning/Philip Rivers - Awesome
2005 - Merriman/Castillo - Castillo was decent for a while
2006 - Cromartie Still playing, but Meh
2007 - Buster Davis
2008 - Antoine Cason Meh
2009 - Larry English
2010 - Ryan Mathews TBD
2011 - Corey Liuget Solid
2012 - Melvin Ingram TBD

Merriman isn't even close to the worst pick for me. Anyway just for fun, my AJ list:

AJ's Worst picks:

1) Trading up for Mathews (1st - 2010). It's bad enough to use a high pick on a running back but to also trade a 2nd round pick. Put all that pressure on him to follow in LT's footsteps and he turns out to be an average back at best. And I still think he did it as a big FU to LT.
2) Trading a 2nd round pick to move up and draft Hester (3rd - 2008).
3) Larry English (1st - 2009).

Honorable mention: Trading down to get Sammy Davis (1st - 2003), Buster Davis (1st - 2007), Antoine Cason (1st - 2008), Jonas Muton (2nd - 2011), Charlie Whitehurst (3rd - 2006), Kurt Smith (6th - 2006)

AJ's Best picks:

1) Eli/Rivers (1st - 2004)
2) Trading up to get Weddle. (2nd - 2007)
3) Hardwick (3rd - 2004)

Honorable Mention: Shaun Phillips (4th - 2004), Darren Sproles (4th - 2005), Vincent Jackson (2nd - 2005), Michael Turner (5th - 2004) - I almost didn't want to list those last three because they were allowed to walk for nothing.

Too many "worst" picks in his last five years and too many "best" picks in his first three years.

[Panama]

AJ's Worst picks:

Honorable mention: Trading down to get Sammy Davis (1st - 2003), Buster Davis (1st - 2007), Antoine Cason (1st - 2008), Jonas Muton (2nd - 2011), Charlie Whitehurst (3rd - 2006), Kurt Smith (6th - 2006)

Dude, CBJ was a great pick! He's been absolutely money for us! Sure, not as a player, but we didn't need him to be because we had Volek. And he is a competent backup. But the most important reason CBJ has been great is because he showed enough to get us that pick from Seattle.

[MakoShark]

Oh boy...1 seemingly benign question and the thread is turned into a good AJ vs bad AJ discussion. Why do some people have such a problem with moving on?

Oh crap I did it again!

[thelightningwill]

If Merriman is a busted pick, then Rodney Harrison is a fucking horror show. I'm sure the Patriots fans puke every time they see that cheater on television.

[SDFan]

If Merriman is a busted pick, then Rodney Harrison is a fucking horror show. I'm sure the Patriots fans puke every time they see that cheater on television.

different rules there: Patriots condone cheating to win and Rodney led them to a Super Bowl without running his mouf to the press.

[foreigner]

Who picked CVB?

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsBKR]

Too many "worst" picks in his last five years and too many "best" picks in his first three years.

As I was reading through your list, that's exactly what I was thinking. Was just about to post it LOL

[KYBoltsFan]

Merriman was a terrible pick for us, the worst of AJ's career here and the most damaging to this team because we counted on him to come back from his injury in 2007 when we were still in the window with our core talent. The guy was nothing once he had to go off the roids (yeah, he managed a half a season after his suspension but he was still benefiting from his prior use of them during that time). He managed to fool us into thinking he was salvageable so we kept counting on him (and the drafting of English was a hedge against that bet). and Buffalo into thinking the same but the guy was nothing when he could rely on meds.

During the "half a season" he "managed", he started 15 games and the playoffs. He had 12.5 sacks (+1 in the playoffs) and 54 solo tackles (his highest tackle total of his career). He had 2 forced fumbles/recoveries. He was 2nd Team All-Pro and made the Pro Bowl. Yes, he was "assisted". But he was "taken out" by the Titans and never ever recovered. Ignoring his devastating knee injury at the hands of Fisher/Swartz only supports the chosen narrative that he was all roids and nothing else. Its truly unfortunate on all levels, I thought he was a future HOF'er.

[sandiego17]

During the "half a season" he "managed", he started 15 games and the playoffs. He had 12.5 sacks (+1 in the playoffs) and 54 solo tackles (his highest tackle total of his career). He had 2 forced fumbles/recoveries. He was 2nd Team All-Pro and made the Pro Bowl. Yes, he was "assisted". But he was "taken out" by the Titans and never ever recovered. Ignoring his devastating knee injury at the hands of Fisher/Swartz only supports the chosen narrative that he was all roids and nothing else. Its truly unfortunate on all levels, I thought he was a future HOF'er.

Excellent post. Worst pick of AJ's career that included Sammy Davis, Buster Davis, Larry English, Ryan Mathews, etc. Hyperbole doesn't do that claim justice.

[BoltBalls]

Dude, CBJ was a great pick! He's been absolutely money for us! Sure, not as a player, but we didn't need him to be because we had Volek. And he is a competent backup. But the most important reason CBJ has been great is because he showed enough to get us that pick from Seattle.

Guess who we used that 2nd round pick from Seattle to trade up for... Mr. Mathews.

[TTK]

Dude, CBJ was a great pick! He's been absolutely money for us! Sure, not as a player, but we didn't need him to be because we had Volek. And he is a competent backup. But the most important reason CBJ has been great is because he showed enough to get us that pick from Seattle.

I hated that pick because there was no need to draft a QB that high at that time and it proved to be right because he never saw the field, Volek did. AJ did manage to get some compensation for him by trading him to Seattle but that was just breaking even but that compensation was wasted on trading up for Mathews. So basically we paid for trading up for Mathews four years in advance lol.

[Guy Lombardo]

Merriman isn't even close to the worst pick for me. Anyway just for fun, my AJ list:

AJ's Worst picks:

1) Trading up for Mathews (1st - 2010). It's bad enough to use a high pick on a running back but to also trade a 2nd round pick. Put all that pressure on him to follow in LT's footsteps and he turns out to be an average back at best. And I still think he did it as a big FU to LT.
2) Trading a 2nd round pick to move up and draft Hester (3rd - 2008).
3) Larry English (1st - 2009).

Honorable mention: Trading down to get Sammy Davis (1st - 2003), Buster Davis (1st - 2007), Antoine Cason (1st - 2008), Jonas Muton (2nd - 2011), Charlie Whitehurst (3rd - 2006), Kurt Smith (6th - 2006)

AJ's Best picks:

1) Eli/Rivers (1st - 2004)
2) Trading up to get Weddle. (2nd - 2007)
3) Hardwick (3rd - 2004)

Honorable Mention: Shaun Phillips (4th - 2004), Darren Sproles (4th - 2005), Vincent Jackson (2nd - 2005), Michael Turner (5th - 2004) - I almost didn't want to list those last three because they were allowed to walk for nothing.

Too many "worst" picks in his last five years and too many "best" picks in his first three years.

Don't forget that great Anthony Waters selection for the Drew Brees comp pick.

For all his obsession with getting comp picks, he sure squandered them.

Other than the Whitehurst trade, AJ failed to get decent compensation or leverage our talent we had to an absurd degree. Turner, Jackson, Sproles, Brees gone for absolutely nothing.