February 18, 2005 TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Akili Smith has signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Smith was the third player selected in the 1999 draft, but only appeared in 22 games -- with 17 starts -- in four disappointing seasons with the Bengals. He signed with Green Bay before the 2003 season, but did not make the team.
With Cincinnati, Smith completed 215 of 461 passes for 2,212 yards, five touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Smith already had agreed to play in NFL Europe although he was not affiliated with any NFL team. The Bucs said Friday he will play for the Frankfurt Galaxy.
It might be instructive if someone (with a lot of time and patience) went through the list of 1st round QB's drafted in the last ten years, and ticked off the ones who made it and those who flopped.
Here we have, just to name the most notable "can't miss" guys:
- Akili Smith
- Eric Couch
- Ryan Leaf (lurking...)
- Joey Harrington (iffy)
Who else?
Then compare the round in which the solid starters were drafted.
