Almost Mamula

It’s NFL “combine” time so ESPN covers the Father of All Combine Workouts, the Eagles very own Mike “Almost” Mamula (“almost” cause Mamula was always “almost” getting to the QB.)

 

The piece is actually a very interesting and comprehensive look at the Mamula story. Mamula was in the vanguard – was the vanguard – of the pre-draft workout that is now de rigeur. What I had forgotten was that the Eagles actually traded up with the Buccaneers to get Mamula, picks the Bucs used to take Warren Sapp and, yikes, Derrick Brooks – defensive pro bowlers that anchored their defense for a decade and won them a super bowl.

 

But what stands out as the biggest irony is that Mamula’s 6 sacks/season average would have been entirely acceptable to the Philadelphia fans had he been taken in the 2^nd or 3^rd round where he had initially been projected before the combine. But as a top 10 pick that production was simply inadequate. So Mamula’s combine practice landed him a big rookie contract, but set expectations that he could never fulfill. Had he been taken where he was originally slated, his 3^rd round contract wouldn’t have been nearly as lucrative but he would have been embraced as a solid starter and likely gotten a decent 2^nd contract/extension.

 

Mamula grabbed for the instant big bucks, but at the expense of a longer career and his reputation as a football player. What it did for the Eagles and Ray Rhodes’ career is already well-documented.