Auburn quarterback Cam Newton drew an unflattering comparison today from ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper today. Kiper mentioned Newton in the same breath as former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback bust Akili Smith. “He was a one-year wonder," Kiper said during a conference call. "Akili Smith was a one-year wonder.†Kiper said he doesn't think Newton will wind up going to the Buffalo Bills, praising Bills starter Ryan Fitzpatrick. Kiper actually has Newton going to the Bengals, who probably don't want a repeat of their mistake with Smith. Smith was awful with the Bengals after one terrific season at Oregon. “If you hit on him, you could have a sensational quarterback for ten years," Kiper said of Newton. "If you miss, it sets you back three, four, five years.†Newton is a great athlete, but skeptics wonder about the offense he played in at Auburn and his tendency to overthrow receivers. Source: National Football Post
Crap, and there was me thinking Newton was ESPN's designated guy to manipulate the draft with. Very surprised.
Mel could have expounded and called him a "One Year, and Only One Year, Wonder. Hard to believe that any team will invest 1st round money on any player who's played a grand total of 14 games in preparation of the speed in the NFL. His inexperience may drop him to the 2nd round.
