Randy Moss, however, fell all the way to No. 21, before the Vikings decided his talent was worth the risk.
Manning, who entered Tennessee four years ago with hopes of winning a Heisman Trophy and a national championship, did neither in college. But he was chosen first in the NFL draft on Saturday, picked by the Indianapolis Colts in a close call over fellow quarterback Ryan Leaf.
"I realize the pressure," said Manning, whose father, Archie, was taken No. 2 overall in 1971 and spent 12 of his 14 NFL seasons on a losing team in New Orleans. "But I think it's exciting to be a part of going in and trying to make a turnaround."
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| AP PHOTO Former Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson got the call Saturday from the Oakland Raiders, who made the all-everything standout the fourth player chosen in the draft. He can compare Heisman trophies with another former Wolverine and current Raider - Desmond Howard. |
Manning would have been first last year, had he come out then.
The rest of the top four went as expected: Leaf was chosen second by San Diego; Florida State defensive end Andre Wadsworth, third by Arizona; and cornerback Woodson, fourth by Oakland, as the 30 teams went through the first three rounds.
Moss, a 6-foot-5 wide receiver with a history of trouble off the field, originally was expected to go in the top five. Instead, he slid down to 21st, past New Orleans at 7 and Dallas at 8 until he was chosen by Minnesota.
Moss, who played two seasons at Marshall after having his scholarship revoked by Notre Dame and being kicked out of Florida State, got off to a dubious professional start Saturday: He failed to show up for a scheduled news conference in West Virginia.
Still, the Vikings expect him to mature under coach Dennis Green and fellow wide receiver Cris Carter, a team leader.
"This is a young man who is a great player who made some mistakes," Green said of Moss. "We think his life is ahead of him. The glass is full."
It was just the third time that quarterbacks have gone 1-2 in the draft. The last time was 1993, when Drew Bledsoe went first to New England, followed by Rick Mirer to Seattle.
The previous time was in 1971, when Archie Manning was chosen by the Saints with their second pick, after New England drafted Jim Plunkett. Houston then took QB Dan Pastorini with the third pick.
Even Polian conceded this year's choice was close. The deciding factor may have been Jim Mora, the Colts' new coach, who coached in New Orleans for a decade. Mora knows Archie Manning, and had Peyton work out with the Saints.
"If you put a grade point average on these players with 8 being the tops, you're talking about a 7.3 and a 7.4 on a scale of 8," Polian said. How do you choose between those two?"
Beathard eagerly snapped up the 6-foot-5, 254-pound Leaf - he likes big quarterbacks and had taken Jay Schroeder, Mark Rypien and Stan Humphries in Washington.
Leaf will replace Humphries, the Chargers' starter the past five years who is retiring because of concussions.
"I don't know that this is a surprise to anyone," Beathard said. "Bill Polian said he was going to keep it a secret. We stand by what we said at the beginning, that we'd be excited with either one.
"We're thrilled to get Ryan, and we're ready to get going."
Manning and Leaf, as expected, were the only quarterbacks chosen in the first round. The next one taken was Charlie Batch of Eastern Michigan, chosen by Detroit late in the second round with the 60th overall pick.
Scott Frost, Nebraska's quarterback, was chosen by the New York Jets in the third round but projected as a safety and John Quinn of Middle Tennessee, another quarterback, was taken by Jacksonville late in the third round.
04-20-98
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