Here's the thing with the 2nd round gambles. When they're unavailable to contribute immediately, the team loses out on the cheap wage-scale years of their careers. I'd rather see the team spend resources on players we can evaluate and benefit from sooner rather than later. Gregory and Claiborne's injury issues were not obviously foreseen, so those don't really count. This is mostly referring to Jaylon Smith and Bruce Carter, and to a lesser extent Lee because the wage scale doesn't apply. I also wonder if this applies to Conner Williams. This is about choosing players who need additional time to physically transform into their prime playing health, shape, or weight, in the wage scale era, at a draft position with no fifth year option.
Let the other teams watch Jaylon heal. If it works out, spend in free agency for his second contract. We've essentially been out of a second-round talent for the last couple of years, and just when he truly gets to 100%, it's second contract time anyways. In the meantime, we've not had a second round linebacker.
