Draftmageddon 2016: The Return of the Drunk Hooker, Part III

We are now into Week 3 of our ongoing draft preparation series of Draftmageddon 2016: The Return of the Drunk Hooker. In case you missed them or want to review them, here are the previous installments:

Week One

Week Two

With the 2016 NFL Combine officially starting on February 24 with player media interviews (following an arrival and check-in day on the 23rd), we were going to lead off this third edition of The Return of the Drunk Hooker with some new and interesting bits and pieces about the Scouting Combine history and legacy, then detail and review all the Saints' non-draft player acquisitions from 2008, and close with the Roster Round-Up for the week.

But since that research turned up quite a bit of interesting information, I have decided to put that all into a separate post to be published later and just focus this piece on the 2008 non-draft acquisitions.

So why not get right into it?

2008 Non-Draft Player Acqusitions

Best of the Best

None.

Good Get

Jonathan Vilma qualifies as a VERY GOOD GET at LB for the Saints (which is slightly better than PT's GOOD GET-PLUS). He took over a poor defense and excelled for five seasons as a playmaking MLB and leader of the squad, and even though his productivity was curtailed and the end of his career hastened by knee and groin injuries, he still enjoyed a great run with the Saints. He started 68 out of 70 games from 2008-1013, earning two Pro Bowl berths while recording 313 tackles with 126 assists, 6 INTs, 22 pass break ups, 6 forced fumbles, 8 fumble recoveries, 8 sacks and 2 TDs. He also became the poster boy for FINISHING STRONG during the Bounty Scandal in 2012, fighting his original year-long "overreach" suspension by Goodell until former Commissioner Tagliabue eventually overturned it.

LB Jo-Lonn Dunbar is a GOOD GET because worked his way up from UDFA to starting linebacker in his four years with the Saints, and his career highlights include a sweet block on a MNF Reggie Bush punt return in 2008. From 2008-2011 (and in 3 games in 2015) he made 27 starts in 56 appearances and recorded 104 tackles, 46 assists, 10 pass break-ups, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 2 sacks.

Meh...He's a JAG

Randall Gay started 20 games in 32 appearances at corner for the Saints from 2008-2010 and gave them a bit of decent play as a both starter and nickel back before recurring leg injuries and concussions drove him from the game. He recorded 83 tackles, 11 assists, 1 INT, and 20 pass break-ups. Since they got a bit of decent play out of him in 2008 and 2009, but he couldn't stay healthy and then was done by the age of 28, he hovers above DISAPPOINTMENT and lands in the MEH category.

DT Remi Ayodele took a while (and an injury to Kendrick Clancy) to catch on as a starter with JAG stats. After only 6 appearances in 2008, he started 29 of 31 games in 2009 and 2010 with marginal stats before the Vikings wooed him away.

WR/KR Courtney Roby joined the team during the 2008 regular season and served as a decent kickoff returner from 2008-2010, including a second half TD return that kept the Rams at bay in the Saints' win over them in 2009.

CB Leigh Torrence bounced on and off the Saints roster, appearing in 38 games from 2008-2011. He recorded a pair of INTs and a TD, along with seven pass break-ups, 2.5 sacks, 59 tackles, and 7 assists.

RB Mike "Meh" Bell was signed late in 2008, and even though injured regularly in 2009, he was a substantial part of that team's rushing attack. In 17 games over those two seasons, he rushed 185 times for 696 yards and 6 TDs. But he's doomed to his legacy as the guy who wore the wrong cleats early in the Super Bowl. F****** figures.

Disappointment

DE Bobby McCray was brought in as a hopeful rising star at age 26 to reinforce the pass rush, and started 8 games in 2008 when Chuckwagon got hurt, and notched 6 sacks with 25 tackles and a forced fumble as a situational pass rusher/starter that year. Then he fizzled in 2009 with only 8 tackles, 1.5 sacks, a pass break-up and got a DUI with speeding, careless operation, and driving without registration in late December. The team admitted defeat and cut him in June of 2010 to lock up his fate as a total DISAPPOINTMENT.

The second of the March 11, 2008 total DISAPPOINTMENT defensive acquisitions was former Panters star LB Dan Morgan, the effing tease. Here's his stat line for the Saints: signed March 11, 2008; retired May 19, 2008; reinstated from retired list 2/12/2009, and placed on reserve/retired list 6/10/2009. Never played again. Screw him.

TE Jeremy Shockey - THIS DISAPPOINTING GUY. Oh, man were we all sooo excited for THIS GUY to come into the fold. THIS GUY was going to be the big, powerful pass- and TD-catching TE Sean Payton always needed to complete his plan to control the universe! Well, they sent New York two draft picks for him and he arrived with a bunch of bluster and promise and then played like a dinged-up JAG for his three years with the Saints after making four pro bowls in his first five years in the league with the Giants. He appeared in 38 games (34 starts) from 2008-2010 and caught 139 passes for 1460 yards and 6 TDs. Screw him, too.

Bad Idea - Who's the Drunk Hooker Who Green-Lit This Move or What Did the Drunk Hooker Do to This Guy After They Signed Him?

None.

* * *

Roster Round-Up (February 16-21)

No official roster moves announced, so that means Brandon Browner's still here.

Rams have cut ties with LB James Laurinaitis and DE Chris Long - should either of them be in the Saints' sights?

Dave's added a sweet pie chart infographic to his mock draft database! DT A'Shawn Robinson from Bama still leads the way, followed by a cluster of "OTHERS" and then Louisville DT Sheldon Rankins,