The coronavirus pandemic has forced the NFL to make changes to its offseason schedule and plans, largely due to the travel restrictions that have been put in place. It will have a noticeable impact on the draft, which will no longer be held in Las Vegas as all 32 teams work through it remotely.
Prospects also can’t visit teams or work out for them ahead of time, which hurts late-round players who are just hoping to be drafted.
Rams cornerback David Long has been through the draft process after being selected in the third round last year, and he shared some advice for the incoming class of prospects given all the uncertainty surrounding the situation.
“I just tell guys, think about it like college, you know?” Long said via the Rams’ official site. “When you are leaving high school, you’ve got all these decorated players and everybody’s judging this and that, but the guys that are really focused on getting better and playing ball every day, those are the guys that meet expectations. You can’t control where you’re going to get drafted. I mean, you can’t even control the situation we’re in right now. Who knew at the combine that you wouldn’t have a pro day? I always tell guys to just try to control the things that they can control. It reduces your stress level and just allows you to be a lot more productive.
Long had to wait until the third round to hear his name called, which is when the Rams took him 91st overall. It wasn’t a terribly long wait for the Michigan product, who was projected to go sometime on Day 2, but it was still one that would stress any player out.
Long said he didn’t want anyone with him during the draft beyond his immediate family because he didn’t want anyone feeling sorry for him, but he had “a good deal of people there” when he was eventually selected in the third round.
He didn’t expect to be selected by the Rams, either, after talking to them just once during the pre-draft process.
“I didn’t really have any expectations, but in your mind, when you realistically think where you would go, that was definitely not one of the top five teams that I thought were going to pick me up,” he said.
Long is expected to become a starter in the secondary next season with Nickell Robey-Coleman gone. He was primarily a deep reserve as a rookie, even being inactive for many of the Rams’ games.
So after waiting to hear his name called on draft day, Long had to wait even longer to contribute. But now his opportunity will come soon, and he’s ready to capitalize on it.