CFB: Jake Locker Spurns NFL for Senior Season
University of Washington quarterback Jake Locker announced Monday that he will be returning for his senior season rather than enter the NFL draft. It is definitely an interesting decision given where the experts all think he would go in the draft.
A lot of the draft experts had Locker pegged as shoo-in to be a first round selection, possibly the first quarterback taken, and quite possibly the top pick in the whole draft had he decided to leave school a year early.
What makes this truly interesting is not that he is passing up a ton of money to come back and hone his skills another year before trying his wares in the NFL, but, rather, that there very well could be a lock out after next season. On top of the impending work stoppage there has been a lot of chatter about the owners and the commissioner wanting to negotiate a rookie salary cap in the next collective bargaining agreement. This would bring an end to the exorbitant $30 and $40 million signing bonuses and guaranteed money the league’s top picks enjoy today.
The commissioner is said to favor a rookie salary structure similar to that of the NBA’s where draft picks are allotted a certain amount of money based on where they are selected for the first several years they are in the league meaning Locker could be leaving upwards of $30 million on the table it such a structure is in place when he enters the draft.
Financially speaking this is a huge gamble for Locker, but, for his overall success as a football player in the NFL it is the right move. I have never understood all of the hype around Locker. Sure he is a great athlete that runs around and makes plays and has a strong arm, but, his accuracy is highly questionable. He completed just over 58% of his passes this season which is not stellar for a big time quarterback prospect. The numbers get worse when one looks at his games against the better defenses in the Pac-10.
He failed to complete more than 52.3% of his passes against Stanford, Arizona, and Oregon. For the season he completed 60% or more of his passes in just four of the Huskies 12 contests. Nobody was even thinking about Locker as a pro quarterback until the Huskies upset USC and one wonders if that is a big reason for him being rated as high as he is.
If I were a NFL GM I would probably stay away from a Locker if I am in the market for a franchise QB. Teams are not willing to wait on quarterbacks any more like they have been in the past and Locker is clearly another year or two away from being ready to compete in the NFL. Locker is a great talent, but, I want to see him show more consistency and complete over 60% of his passes next season before claiming he is a blue chip quarterback prospect.
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