The Oakland Raiders shocked everyone (even their fans) when they selected Darrius Heyward-Bey No. 7 overall in last year's draft. Heyward-Bey possesses a set of physical skills that compare favorably to many of the top wide receivers in the game. Naturally, Al Davis didn't pass on the potential.
The irony of the situation was that Davis had most likely drafted a more gifted wide receiver with Oakland's previous pick - the season before.
Chaz Schilens was the 226th pick of the 2008 draft and the Raiders' final pick.
Schilens had a very average college career at San Diego State - the school best known for producing Marshall Faulk. In his three full seasons in San Diego, he never had more than 35 receptions.
In fact, in his senior season he wasn't even close to leading his team in receptions or yards. He battled injuries and was 23 receptions behind the team leader.
Going into the final three games of his senior season, San Diego State's leading receiver had 701 yards. Schilens had 184. What he did in the next three games is what landed him in a Raiders uniform. In three losses, he put up 495 yards on only 20 receptions - more than each of his previous two seasons.
Somewhere on a golf cart not all that far away he had Davis' undivided attention.
To most NFL scouts, those games were swallowed up by his pedestrian college career. Luckily for Schilens and Heyward-Bey, the Raiders don't care about stats. They care about measurements and stop watches.
At 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, he has the size to be a real red zone threat, but thats not what sold the team. His 4.38 speed at the combine compares with any draft prospect in memory. His size reminds us of former Miami receiver Andre Johnson. Andre was 6-foot-3and 222 pounds coming out of college and did not run at the combine. He was clocked all over the place, but ran an average of around 4.40 at the Miam...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
