Malcolm Mitchell avoids NFL Draft embarrassment by staying at Georgia
Malcolm Mitchell’s decision to stay at Georgia for the 2015 instead of leaving early for the NFL was one that he and his family probably thought about deeply, but they needn’t have. Because if Mitchell HAD gone to the NFL, it would have been a tragic mistake.
Why? Because if he had gone in his junior year, he would have earned money – but he would have only made it in the second day of the draft….if at all.
Look, there’s no doubt of Mitchell’s skill. He’s caught 1,466 yards and 11 TDs for the Bulldogs, and he’s a converted cornerback. He’s got blazing speed, and would scare anyone as a long threat or slot receiver.
He can also play both ways, although we think Georgia will concentrate on him being a wide receiver in 2015, unless the Bulldogs secondary is all in jail, like they seem to be for most off-seasons.
Mitchell is doubtless extremely talented, but thanks to his horrible injury history, we doubt Kevin Costner would be fighting off other NFL GMs to land this guy in a 2015 real-life version of “Draft Day”.
Here’s the breakdown:
2011: Misses Vanderbilt, New Mexico State and Florida games with hamstring injury.
2012: Misses Buffalo game with ankle injury. Also hurt in Capital One Bowl at end of season on special teams play against Nebraska.
2013: Torn ACL at Clemson on opening Saturday. Misses season.
2014: Injury-hampered problems lead to delayed start in 2014 season.
If you’re a NFL team, why would you draft a player who’s got so much injury history? Why wouldn’t you wait, take him on as an undrafted free agent, invite him to camp, and see how he holds up then?
So if you’re Malcolm Mitchell, who’s only had seven games of health in 1-1/2 seasons due to injuring yourself at Clemson celebrating a touchdown (yes, we’re serious) , why would you be stupid/arrogant enough to think that you’ll easily be part of a NFL team’s plans, especially considering the talent that’s gone the year before into the NFL, and the talent that already exists in the league. Of course, every team’s looking for more wide receiving talent to stockpile, but a year more for Mitchell can only mean two good things: More touchdowns, and more money.