Vontaze Burfict hurt draft stock with play this season
Nov 28, 2011, 11:55 PM | Updated: Nov 29, 2011, 12:21 am
Vontaze Burfict heard all season that his play and
attitude would affect his draft potential. Now that the
regular season is over, he will only hear more of it as
the 2012 draft gets closer.
Sports Illustrated’s Tony Pauline
compiled a list of defensive players whose draft stock was
hurt after poor play this season, and Burfict was the
first player named.
Vontaze Burfict, LB, Arizona State*: Possibly
no player has dropped down draft boards faster this season
than Burfict. He entered the campaign ranked as a
potential
top five pick, but his immaturity has cost him at least
half
a round, if not more. He’s been consistently flagged for
unsportsmanlike penalties, and it has cost his team
dearly.
Scouts say Burfict shows little in the way of controlling
his temper, which has NFL decision-makers concerned.
The junior middle linebacker entered this season with high
expectations and finished as an afterthought, much like
the Sun Devils football team as a whole.
Burfict finished the season with 68 tackles, five sacks
and one interception. He was also named as one of the 12
finalists for the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s best
linebacker.
It was Burfict’s attitude and lack of on-field discipline
that brought out the biggest critics, however.
If Burfict does decide to declare for the NFL draft, he
will finally find out what the pro teams really think of
him.
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