I found this at wikipedia. Interesting. Olivea was drafted by the Chargers (209th overall) in the last round of the 2004 NFL Draft. Originally valued as a third rounder, Olivea strained his pectoral muscle lifting weights about a week before the draft and this scared away a lot of teams. One of which was the Miami Dolphins, who wanted to take Olivea in the first day, but called just before their 3rd round pick to tell Olivea that they took him off their draft board because they thought he would need surgery. A. J. Smith, excited at the fact Olivea was off many draft boards, took him with one of their final picks. Concerning Olivea's injury status, AJ said, “We checked him out, like a lot of clubs, but medical staffs vary. We rely heavily on our medical staff, and he checked out perfectly. We’re not going to take a chance if we think a player is damaged goods. We were doing other things (in earlier rounds), so selfishly we were kind of glad he took a ride (dropped in draft status) and he was still there. We kind of stole one in the seventh round Interesting read; didn't know. Lee2000
Didn't know that, doesn't it remind you Phillip Merling situation. Maybe not in the seventh round, but he did drop.
Actually it reminds me more of Rodrique Wright who was touted to be a first round pick but who was injured during his senior year and was finally drafted by us in the seventh round. A real bargain because he is healthy now.
Exactly who I thought of earlier, Rodrique. Let's hope Rodrique works out better (Olivea got cut). THere was questioning of his motor and heart coming out of college too.
Actually it reminds me of the incompatence of the medical staff who also thought Culpeppers knee was less of a risk than Brees shoulder...... Has Parcells fired those morons yet?
I think that Brees shoulder is still a big risk, he had an absolutely horrific injury which still may end his career prematurely. There is a reason the Saints signed him to the contract they did that season, it made it easy to offload him if something went wrong. Yeh I wish we had taken Brees as do most Dolphin fans, but the Doctors made the same call as most of the doctors in the league would have.
That medical team gave the right medical advice. Even in hindsight, a complete torn labrum is more of a risk for a QB than a torn knee. You will not find a medical team before either recovers, that will say otherwise. Huizenga stated they received independent opinions from different medical teams across the country, that gave them the exact same advice.
Exactly! I remember Wright being touted as anywhere from a late first rounder to an early third. I realized the extent of his injury when he so far. He was an absolute beast prior to the injury, if he could return to that form, could be a real gem indeed.
I would think it would be more complicated than that.....I would imagine its a case by case situation.
