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Back in 2003, the Arizona Cardinals had the sixth pick in the NFL Draft and needed a pass rusher in the worst way. There was a local star in Terrell Suggs who starred in high school as a running back and then became the best pass rusher in the country at ASU. More than that, he wanted to play for the local team. He thought that he would be taken by the Cardinals at number six and most of the fans and media thought the same thing.
What happened? Naturally, they traded down. They didn't take Suggs and instead drafted receiver Bryant Johnson and linebacker Calvin Pace. neither made much of an impact here, although Pace did have a nice season before leaving in free agency.
Suggs? He of course became one of the NFL's best sack artists.
Now he is in the Super Bowl, and he is thanking Arizona for passing him up.
This is Suggs in New Orleans talking about his career,as noted on XTRA910.com.
Talking to Ray Lewis on a commercial shoot he was doing before the draft, Lewis suggested that he and Suggs could end up as teammates.
He's like, ‘we pick 10th,' and I was like, "No way I'm going that far down the line.' Lo and behold, the Arizona Cardinals traded out of the pick. Thank y'all for that, I appreciate that. With all my heart, thank you. The Arizona Cardinals traded out of the pick and when the ninth pick came, I was just like, ‘Wait a minute.' Then, my phone started ringing. Lo and behold, it was Art Modell and then Ozzie Newsome.
Then, I got a call, probably about 20 minutes after they mentioned my name, from the great (No.) 5-2. He said, ‘I told you rook. I can't wait to see you in camp.' The rest is history."
Huge mistake on the Cardinals' part? Probably. But then again, Suggs likely would have left in free agency anyway, so it isn't like he would still be around leading the team to the Super Bowl.
But isn't it wonderful to remember things like this? I love to give myself face palms.
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