Taken with the seventh pick in the 2009 Draft, a pick that many of us (including myself) thought was reserved for Michael Crabtree, it seems like the Oakland Organization (i.e. Al Davis) saw something in him that seemingly no one else did.
As a Seminole fan, I have watched my 'Noles take on some of the greatest defenders, hardest hitters, and quickest people to make the jump to the NFL.
From Jacoby Ford and CJ Spiller at Clemson to Ed Reed, Sean Taylor, Santana Moss, Mike Rumph, and Phillip Buchanon at Miami to Darrius Heyward-Bey in Maryland, I have seen 'em all.
Heyward-Bey is as everyone says; a speed demon. He has incredible speed but less than incredible hands, which is why he is constantly put on the spot for being a wasted draft pick.
But is he really?
Stay with me here, don't trail off just yet. As I've said many times in comments for different articles in the Raider Community, I'm not a fan who lives life with black and silver lenses over my eyes.
I can admit fault, failure, and bad talents when I see them but in the case of DHB, I don't think he's as bad as people make him out to be.
He has not had the season that is expected from a first-round receiver but nobody expected him to be taken, outside of probably Amy Trask and Mark Allen that early in the draft.
Heyward-Bey's speed is amazing; nobody can take that away from him. He has had issues with catching passes and has worked on drills to improve his hands this past off-season and progress had been made.
There is a different reason why Heyward-Bey is not at the level most Oakland fans would like him to be at (including myself) but the biggest by far is the lack of passes thrown to him per game.
Can you ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
