As you know by now, Alabama WR Julio Jones had an impressive showing at the 2011 NFL Combine and he did it all on a bum foot. He has a broken foot that will require a screw to be inserted and the expected recovery time is around eight week, which happens to be about the same time as the 2011 NFL draft in late April.
Will Julio Jones Injury Affect His 2011 NFL Draft Stock?
A similar situation occurred with WR Michael Crabtree who was expected to be a high draft pick but an injury might have knocked his stock down slightly to the 10th pick. So how will this affect Jones’ draft stock? Pro Football Weeklysuggests it doesn’t have an impact at all.
He should be recovered from the injury by draft-time and PFW draft analyst Nolan Nawrocki doesn’t see this affecting his stock in the slightest. The only possible concern is this is another injury for Jones, who may have durability concerns at the next level, especially considering his physical style of play.
Jones’ Combine was likely pushing him up some draft boards but this injury may have taken away some of the momentum. If he’s not fully recovered until draft time, then he won’t be 100 percent when he takes various private visits to NFL teams leading up to the draft.
This will definitely affect how teams view him. It remains to be seen, though, if it affects them enough to pass on drafting him.
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