Jp's Xs & Os Blog

A surprise pick in the NFL isn’t something that i’d say is rare, but it never ceases to amaze fanbases every time it happens. A surprise pick is essentially when a team selects an athlete that people wouldn’t generally expect or go for. This doesn’t mean the athlete isn’t good or wouldn’t fit the team’s system; it’s just not what the fans expected. These picks either go really bad or really good, and I think everyone can think of a couple that have gone extremely well. With that being said, here are the biggest draft surprises and how to tell!

One thing about Draft night that’s really interesting is that you never truly know what’ll happen next, and that’s exactly why people tune in every year. With so many great athletes, you can never truly know who’s going next, and that’s where we see the real surprises. Players that don’t really fit the mold and then later you realize, “Ah, that’s why he was picked” is the best feeling as a fan. One way to tell if a player is a surprise is to check pre-draft big boards. On these big boards analysts go through and mark every team and what their needs are. With this you’re able to break down what will most likely occur throughout the process. For example, this year the Philadelphia Eagles had one of the craziest draft experiences. They start off by snatching players from other teams and then later on selecting a player who has never even played an organized down of football. Uar Benard is an NFL draft prospect from Nigeria who was discovered through the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program. This program allows players from other countries a chance at the NFL without actually being part of a team. 

Finding a player who a few months ago was never expected to be on the radar, let alone be drafted, is probably one of the biggest draft day surprises in the history of the NFL. What Benard holds, though, is extreme athletic ability, standing at 6’4″ and 300-plus pounds while running a 4.6 40-yard dash. Such talent is something you don’t see every day, and the eagles knew this. So they took the risk and selected him purely off his athletic ability, which is quite crazy if you ask most fanbases. You can tell a pick is a surprise when it goes against expectations, whether that’s drafting a player too early, ignoring team needs, or choosing someone most fans have never heard of.