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Colts OL Ryan Diem
at the Senior Bowl
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The second in a six-part series
On the second day of the draft, sports agent Cliff Brady, director of Sports Planning,
gathered with his wife, several employees and friends at his country club home. Brady has
a system in place for the draft every year. He has one employee keep a running list of
every player drafted, one charts each team’s selections and another charts how many
players are selected at each position. The information becomes valuable when Brady seeks
the best situation for his undrafted clients, negotiates with teams and needs to inform
clients how they are faring against others at their position.
In the fourth round, ESPN went to a commercial break after the 116th
selection. When it returned to the air, two new selections were announced. When the 118th
pick was read, Brady jumped out of his chair. Hoots and hollers echoed throughout his
house. Brady’s client, Northern Illinois OL Ryan Diem, was selected by the
Indianapolis Colts to help protect QB Peyton Manning.
NFL LB Bryan Cox, another client, called to congratulate Brady and inform him of the
great situation that Diem would find in Indianapolis. Having played with the New York
Jets, Cox competed against Indianapolis twice a year in the AFC East. He was familiar with
the Colts’ offensive line and said he thought Diem would stand a great chance to earn
a starting role.
As Brady talked to Cox, Diem’s former NIU teammate and Brady client Justin
McCareins was selected by the Tennessee Titans with the 124th pick. The house
erupted with more joy and excitement as those gathered started chanting, "One more
guy, one more guy," in reference to Brady’s last client available in the draft,
Texas Christian OG Michael Keathley.
Twenty picks later, after nine offensive tackles had been selected, the Buffalo Bills
selected Sullivan in the fifth round, with the 144th selection. While many
draft experts projected Sullivan to be drafted earlier, Zucker said scouts thought
Sullivan’s performance dropped off between his junior and senior seasons.
"The disappointment is there now, but for some reason it happened, and he went to
the right team for him because Buffalo has John Fina at left tackle," Zucker said.
"He’s about 32. A lifetime for a left tackle is about 34-35. Marques could go
play on the right side for a couple of years and then hopefully switch over and be the
left tackle for years to come. So it’s not a bad situation."
Back at the Brady residence, anticipation was growing to hear Keathley’s name read
in New York. With Brady’s two NIU clients placed in jobs, Brady’s focus shifted
to Keathley. Brady had expected Keathley to be drafted near the fourth round. However, the
seventh round began, and Keathley was still on the market.
Teams began calling to express interest in Keathley. A representative from the
Indianapolis Colts called and said they had other needs to fill with their last pick in
the final round, but they were very interested in Keathley as a free-agent offensive
lineman. With the 220th pick, the Colts selected Idaho OG Rick DeMulling.
"(Indianapolis) just told me they couldn’t draft an offensive lineman!"
Brady exclaimed. "That’s classic NFL stuff right there — classic. They tell
you one thing and do another."
Brady found an explanation why teams were shying away from his client as the draft came
to a close.
Arizona had the 246th and final pick of the draft. With 10 picks remaining
in the draft, Brady tried using his influence to ensure his client got drafted. Based on
NFL statistics, he knew Keathley would receive a higher paycheck and a better chance of
securing a roster spot if he were drafted rather than signed as a free agent. Arizona had
expressed a lot of interest in Keathley in the weeks leading up to the draft. In fact,
Arizona TE coach Pete Hoener was the offensive coordinator and OL coach at TCU for
Keathley’s first couple of years of college. Brady contacted Hoener with several
picks remaining but found out that Arizona was hesitant to risk a draft pick on a player
with a history of injuries.
While Keathley had started his last 24 games at TCU, he sat out several games his
sophomore year because of a back injury. In an MRI exam at the Indianapolis Combine, the
test revealed a weakness in Keathley’s back. Further problems were detected at the
Blue-Gray All-Star Game with Keathley’s knee.
"I talked to Arizona, and they said (head coach) Dave (McGinnis) won’t take
Keathley because he has two dots next to his name," Brady told his staff.
The dots signal a serious college injury. When San Diego called to express interest in
his client as a free agent, Brady informed the team of Arizona’s interest in his
client, hoping to force San Diego to use its 244th pick. He also phoned a
representative from the St. Louis Rams, but the Rams too were hesitant about injuries.
With 600 healthy players available, the Rams said, it was not worth the risk to draft a
player with a dotted history of injuries.
Next: Negotiating a contract for a rookie free agent
Part I: Uncertaintly clouds Day One of the
NFL draf
Part III: Negotiating a contract for a rookie free agent t |
