acheman
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I got this off of profootballweekly from the free inner circle stuff. If this is true, it could vastly change the way Parcells looks at this guy (Carpenter) in the draft.
Q: Hey, I am a huge Ohio State fan and saw you had Bobby Carpenter and Santonio Holmes as having character concerns (draft value depth chart, April 18) associated with them. In their four years at OSU, I have never heard of either being in any off-the-field issues and both of these kids were team leaders. What is up with this?
A: The concerns might not be as grave as others. There is not a detailed arrest history, and both players were pivotal to the Buckeyes’ success. That said, if anyone digs into Holmes’ background deeply enough — and I just got off the phone with an NFL team that could potentially pick Holmes that didn’t even have all the character info PFW does — he will find there are some inconsistencies and concerns in the background of both players. Some of them, you could find on your own. In an AP story published May 6, 2004, outlining the timeline of troubles since Jim Tressel arrived, the following was included:
Carpenter’s concerns stem from his personality, inability to get along with teammates and his inability to lead. For a player being projected by many teams to an ILB position that requires leadership capability, that is a concern. He is smart, will work hard and play hard on game day, but there are many elements to a player’s character, and teams have called him a "loose cannon", "very arrogant" and a "know-it-all" and made note of how difficult he was to deal with on his pro day, when he refused to take off his sweats to be weighed and forced teams to move the drills a number of times. Scouts who like Carpenter say no player at that pro day who was also at the Combine wanted to be weighed and that it is normal for players to request to move a drill due to slippery conditions.
I don’t think the concerns are serious enough that they will affect Carpenter’s stock drastically or even keep him out of the first round, nor do I expect Holmes to slip much, given the lack of quality in this year’s receiver class. But where a player is drafted and what type of pro he turns out to be are separate issues. If the character element was better on the part of both players, I think they would turn out to be much better pros. As it is, neither is viewed as a “safe pick” by many teams. In contrast, A.J. Hawk has all the intangibles and will likely be drafted in the top five, higher than where very similar players like Keith Brooking (12th, 1998) and Dan Morgan (11th, 2001) were drafted, because of the strength of his character. Teams know exactly what they are getting with Hawk and he is arguably the safest “can’t miss” pick in the draft.
Q: Hey, I am a huge Ohio State fan and saw you had Bobby Carpenter and Santonio Holmes as having character concerns (draft value depth chart, April 18) associated with them. In their four years at OSU, I have never heard of either being in any off-the-field issues and both of these kids were team leaders. What is up with this?
— R. Banks
A: The concerns might not be as grave as others. There is not a detailed arrest history, and both players were pivotal to the Buckeyes’ success. That said, if anyone digs into Holmes’ background deeply enough — and I just got off the phone with an NFL team that could potentially pick Holmes that didn’t even have all the character info PFW does — he will find there are some inconsistencies and concerns in the background of both players. Some of them, you could find on your own. In an AP story published May 6, 2004, outlining the timeline of troubles since Jim Tressel arrived, the following was included:
“Nov. 16, 2003 — At 3 a.m. after a win over Purdue and six days before the Michigan game, wide receiver Santonio Holmes and quarterback Troy Smith are charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct after a fight in a parking lot on campus. A window in a car is kicked out and one woman reported her jaw was broken. Holmes is held out of the starting lineup at Michigan but returns to play most of the game. Holmes also started in the Buckeyes' Fiesta Bowl game. He pleads innocent to the disorderly conduct after the team returns to Columbus. The disorderly conduct charge is dismissed against Holmes on March 30, 2004. Smith is found guilty of the charge.”
Where there is smoke, there is often fire, and the character questions run considerably deeper. I have not been able to verify what I have been told, and believe to be true, by some very trusted sources. It would not be appropriate to detail all I know about Holmes, but let me just say that any team that does its due diligence on Holmes will have concerns.Carpenter’s concerns stem from his personality, inability to get along with teammates and his inability to lead. For a player being projected by many teams to an ILB position that requires leadership capability, that is a concern. He is smart, will work hard and play hard on game day, but there are many elements to a player’s character, and teams have called him a "loose cannon", "very arrogant" and a "know-it-all" and made note of how difficult he was to deal with on his pro day, when he refused to take off his sweats to be weighed and forced teams to move the drills a number of times. Scouts who like Carpenter say no player at that pro day who was also at the Combine wanted to be weighed and that it is normal for players to request to move a drill due to slippery conditions.
I don’t think the concerns are serious enough that they will affect Carpenter’s stock drastically or even keep him out of the first round, nor do I expect Holmes to slip much, given the lack of quality in this year’s receiver class. But where a player is drafted and what type of pro he turns out to be are separate issues. If the character element was better on the part of both players, I think they would turn out to be much better pros. As it is, neither is viewed as a “safe pick” by many teams. In contrast, A.J. Hawk has all the intangibles and will likely be drafted in the top five, higher than where very similar players like Keith Brooking (12th, 1998) and Dan Morgan (11th, 2001) were drafted, because of the strength of his character. Teams know exactly what they are getting with Hawk and he is arguably the safest “can’t miss” pick in the draft.
