With the NFL Draft in full swing, fans and analysts alike will go back and forth as to which players and will boom and which ones will bust at the next level. While the excitement of the draft is sure to capture the headlines this week, a former third overall pick is rapidly making his case as one of the biggest draft busts ever.
In the 2013 NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins traded up from 12th to third to snag Oregon defensive end Dion Jordan. It was unclear whether Jordan would play end or outside linebacker, but his sheer potential led some to compare the Ducks’ star to Miami’s all-time leader in sacks, Jason Taylor.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Jordan would be suspended for the entire 2015 season after a drug test was shown to be diluted. Jordan missed six games in 2014 due to two separate suspensions for using performance-enhancers and speculation is that his days with Miami could be numbered.
For what will be his third season in the NFL, Jordan now has as many career suspensions as sacks. In his first two seasons with the Dolphins, Jordan totaled a combined 46 tackles and three sacks including one in his first career game. When the 2015 regular season comes to a close, Miami will have gotten a grand total of two sacks out of Jordan in the team’s last 47 games.
Odds are that Jordan will get another chance at the NFL level even if it’s not with the Miami Dolphins, but whoever lands Jordan will be dealing with a player who had only appeared in 10 games over two seasons.
Though there is still time for a dramatic turnaround, Jordan wouldn’t be the first highly-selected pass-rusher out of college to fail at the NFL level, but he is making a strong case to be one of the biggest.
Other defensive ends like Courtney Brown, Andre Wadsworth and Steve Emtman were all taken in the top 3 and all are regarded as historic busts. But compare their production through three NFL seasons to Jordan’s and they’re much, much better.
While Jordan’s lack of production would be enough to discourage any team willing to take him third overall, it’s been particularly troubling for Miami. The Dolphins have been in the thick of the playoff race in December in each of the last two years, but floundered over the final weeks of the season. For a franchise so close to taking the next step, having a guy like Lane Johnson or Sheldon Richardson could have made a big difference late in the year where Jordan has been noticeably absent.
One can only speculate as to what Jordan or the Miami Dolphins for that matter, may do in the years to come, but the second-coming of Jason Taylor so far, Jordan is not. With the draft in progress, teams including Miami will be looking for the right guys to lead them into the future and perhaps even make history. Former third overall pick Dion Jordan is on the verge of making history himself but for all the wrong reasons.
