re: NFL Bust

I think that is very dependent on what round the player was drafted in. The expectations obviously are going to be different for a guy like Clowney versus a guy who was drafted in say the third round. In both cases, you expect the player to make the team and contribute. A third rounder would probably be a situational player/borderline starter while a guy like Clowney should be expected to contribute from Day 1.

I am going to assume you were talking about first round players. For a first round player, I think a reasonable expectation for a rookie season is that he should be a starter by the end of the year. The learning curve from college football to the NFL is pretty steep and takes some time. By year 2, they should be a full time starter and starting to separate themselves from others in their draft class. By years 3 and 4, they should be someone the opposing coaches have to take into account on every play and be challenging for a place in the top 10 players at their position. The team they play for should choose to exercise their 5th year option on them.

I think the expectations are a bit higher on guys in the top 10 who you expect to make a Pro Bowl in about 3 to 5 years. I also don't think it is fair to label a guy a bust until about year 3 when he should have had plenty of time to adjust to the NFL and the system he is in, however there should be signs of improvement in year 2.