We're going to build through the draft.
Have you ever heard a more repeated phrase about NFL team building? It is the public goal of every owner and general manager, even those whose teams routinely participate in veteran free agency. Young players are cheaper and healthier and can be bound to their initial team for at least four years. Here's a better question: How closely have teams actually followed that practice? The graph at the bottom of this post offers one, albeit imperfect, way to measure that commitment. The number associated with each team is the total original draft picks remaining on the roster as of late last week, via ESPN Stats & Information data. You will see most teams are bunched in the 20s, and as is often the case, the most illuminating revelations sit on the fringes. The Green Bay Packers have an NFL-leading 33 players they drafted currently on their roster, more than twice that of the Chicago Bears (15) and nearly twice the Jacksonville Jaguars (17) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (17). There are ...