SI’s Peter King has an interesting nugget in his Monday Morning Quarterback column today. He breaks down the risks involved with taking a safety high in the draft.
Chiefs GM Not High On Eric Berry With The Fifth Pick?
Eric Berry out of Tennessee is commonly associated with the Chiefs at the fifth pick in the draft. That’s higher than a safety is generally drafted and King passes along a story from Chiefs GM Scott Pioli’s good friend and former colleague, Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff.
Atlanta GM Thomas Dimitroff calls the safety-at-the-top-of-the-draft debate a conundrum. "It's been on my mind a lot lately," he said, "and I realize I'm speaking out of both sides of my mouth here, but Berry's a really good player. It's been on my mind quite a bit recently. You want the good hitter with hip movement, able to turn and run, but then reality sets in.
I was talking to [Kansas City GM] Scott Pioli about Berry, and I said, 'Scott, this guy's your pick.' And he said, 'You know how I feel about safeties that early.' And I understand.''
The NFL draft is a time for smoke screens but if Pioli was telling the truth to Dimitroff, then Berry doesn’t appear to be the Chiefs guy with the fifth pick.
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