Chief;2040362 said:
I've always liked Kiper. He was a breath of fresh air when they trotted him out way back in the early 1980s. He was one of us ... a draftnick. But he took it a step further and created a business for himself, working out of his parents' basement and eventually drawing the interest from Baltimore Colts GM (at the time) Ernie Accorsi.
I can see how his authoritative manner can grate on people, but I still like the guy. He's a genuinely nice guy.
As for my busts, I'm with Thumper on Cade McNown. I totally missed on him. And I also missed big on J.J. Stokes. Must be something about UCLA.
I'm sure there have been others.
tyke1doe;2040379 said:
Agreed.
Kiper is smart. He had enough foresight to understand that draft analysis would be the wave of the future and carved a professional/career niche for himself.
He's good because he loves what he does.
And truth be told, Kiper is about as accurate as any scout for any club. And they (the clubs) only have to be right with respect to who they pick. Kiper has to be "right" about all his evaluations, which increase his rate of "busts."
I like him, but that's because I take him for what he is ... a guy trying to predict a guy's professional talent and how he translate into the NFL.
I respect those opinions of Kiper, but I have to say that I don't share the same. He may present himself as authoritative to some, but I would have to describe him as dogmatic.
He may be as accurate as an NFL scout, but he doesn't take a scout's perspective when applying his knowledge of players. A scout will evaluate players' strengths and weaknesses. He will then seek to take the best players and rationalize how they could best upgrade his team's roster.
That's not what I get from Kiper. Kiper
assimilates tons of player data, like a scout. He will pick his best candidates from the top of the barrel, like a scout, but the similarities stop there.
Kiper takes his best-of-the-best and shouts from his ESPN pulpit that, IF a team doesn't choose from his elite offering, that team is deemed 'clueless'. The man exhibits some of the most bewildering facial expressions when a team does a 180 degree from his select choices. While I expect someone like Chris Berman to look like a lost soul, I don't expect it from a supposed draft guru during a draft show.
I have a high regard for his extensive player knowledge on draft day, but not so much in his application of it during the show sometimes. JMO.
