The $17 Million Slide:
It's really hard to do this, but I feel like I have to throw an educated number out there. Brady Quinn lost $17 million on Saturday as a result of being taken by Cleveland with the No. 22 pick instead of being taken by the Browns at the No. 3 slot that everyone else thought he would be taken at.
As Quinn was falling, I was concerned about how I was going to do the math. Last year, I calculated that Matt Leinart lost $10 million in guaranteed money by going No. 10 to the Cardinals, assuming that he would have been taken with the first pick of the 2005 Draft if he didn't return to USC for his senior season.
When Leinart signed four months later, he got $14 million in guarantees -- meaning I hit it right on the head. Alex Smith the year before got a $24 million signing bonus.
I think it was pretty much concluded that Leinart would have gone No. 1 in 2005, but it was tougher with Quinn because, last year, he wouldn't have gone before Vince Young at No. 3 and Matt Leinart at 10. Cleveland trading up to take Quinn made it much easier to calculate because it's clearly an apples-to-apples comparison.
So here's how I come up with the number. At the No. 3 pick, I project Cleveland would have signed Quinn to a six-year deal worth as much as $60 million, about $27 million of which would be guaranteed -- that includes the quarterback premium. At No. 22, Quinn will sign a six-year deal closer to $30 million, with $10 million guaranteed. That's a $17 million loss.
Draft Day News & Notes:
If you showed up at 8 a.m. to try to get in to watch the draft live in person at Radio City Music Hall, you were too late. Amazingly, all the tickets were given out by then. The league fit 4,987 people inside and 15,000 fans attended the Draft Fan Central event on the street. Burger King was the sponsor -- they passed out 3,000, $25 coupons by 11 a.m....
One of Quinn's deals is with Hummer. Draft picks beware -- there seems to be a Hummer jinx going on. Everyone was sure Quinn was going to go No. 3, but everyone thought Reggie Bush was going to go No. 1 last year. He signed a Hummer deal and then went No. 2 to the New Orleans Saints...
Word on the street is that Nike paid Quinn about $750,000. If that's on, that means Under Armour paid both their endorsers Joe Thomas and Patrick Wills and made their commercial for less than Nike paid Quinn.
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