Should the Detroit Lions decide to pass on Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford with the first pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the cannon-armed youngster could be in line for a major slide in draft position. We’ve seen it happen with Brady Quinn, Aaron Rodgers and Matt Leinart in recent drafts, and there doesn’t appear to be a definitive floor for Stafford’s draft position in the top 10. Even teams that look to be locks as a particular players’ worst-case scenario on draft day don’t always scoop up that player once they hit the clock. When Brady Quinn didn’t go number three to Cleveland in the 2007 NFL Draft, it seemed like a no-brainer for the Dolphins to select him with the ninth pick. Quinn ended up falling to 22.
If the Lions pass on Stafford, the first team to take a look will probably be the Seattle Seahawks at number four, but they’re probably in win-now mode too much to select Stafford. The Browns (fifth), Jaguars (eighth) and Niners (10th) could all consider the strong-armed signal caller, but they don’t qualify as extremely likely suitors. The most definitive floor for Stafford probably is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 19, as in there is no way this blogger can see him making it past that pick. He’d get very serious consideration from the Jets at 17 and the Bears at 18 as well.
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