Biggest Andy Reid Draft Bust?

Which player has been the biggest draft bust of the Andy Reid era? The four players below are the primary contenders. By their very nature, a bust has to have been a high draft pick. So while Billy McMullen, Bobbie Williams, and Matt Ware never panned out, as 3^rd round picks they were mere disappointments for not being able to crack a starting lineup. Picks in the first two rounds, however, should become contributing starters (not mere role players), especially those picked in the first round. And more specifically, one would hope players picked in the top 15 would see at least one Pro Bowl.

Vote for who you think is the biggest Andy Reid draft bust in the comments section of this blog.

Meet the candidates (or add your own nominee):

Quinton Caver, LB, 2^nd round (55^th overall), 2001 – in my opinion, this pick had significant long-term repercussions on the defense. In theory, Caver could and should have replaced Trotter at MLB. He didn’t. And this pick was worse than the Gardner pick if for no other reason than the Eagles were already in damage-control mode after realizing, "holy crap, Gardner's never going to start for us." They took a second shot at getting Trotter's heir apparent and missed again, resulting in an increasingly desperate attempt to fill the gaping hole in the middle of their defense that developed when Trotter left (a hole never filled till Trotter returned to the team). Not sure what Caver’s problem was – intelligence? Discipline? He appeared to have physical ability but was never able to pull it all together. He gets points for still being in the league, and playing for KC and now Dallas.

Barry Gardner, LB, 2^nd round (35 overall), 1999 – undersized LB from Northwestern was neither big nor fast. His inability to fill the void left by Jeremiah Trotter left the Eagles annually scrambling and in search of stop-gap solutions such as the mammoth Levon Kirkland.

Freddie Mitchell, WR, 1^st round (25^th overall), 2001 – neither fast nor physical and with unsteady hands, Mitchell was a glorified possession receiver who talked like he was Randy Moss. Of course, he did haul in the pass that converted the 4^th and 26 vs. the Packers in the divisional playoffs. Oddly enough, he also caught the other most famous pass of Donovan McNabb's career -- the 14 second, 60 yard scramble against Dallas on MNF. Then again, his lack of development/ability forced us to endure more Todd Pinkston and James Thrash than is healthy for any fan. Maybe if he had gotten open more often, Trash and Stinkston wouldn’t have been manhandled in the Panthers championship game.

Jerome McDougle, DE, 1^st round (15^th overall), 2003 – Only the Eagles could pick the one edge rusher from a major Florida University (Miami, FSU, UFla) that wasn’t incredibly sleek and quick and strong. Moreover, McDougle’s been star-crossed since his start here. He endured serious hip, knee, and ankle injuries in the final preseason game of his rookie year that kept him off the field for half the season. Then, of course, he got shot leading up to another Eagles’ training camp. After recuperating from that, he developed appendicitis. He’s the only player on the team that could conceivably have an acme safe fall on his head. I would be surprised if he made the 2007 opening day roster. He loses additional points cause the Eagles traded up to get him. Fortunately, the emergence of Trent Cole and the opportunity the Eagles had to get LJ Smith in the 2^nd round (who they had projected as a 1^st rounder) helped avoid this pick/player from being a total disaster.