GAINESVILLE – The NFL’s deadline for underclassmen to enter the draft has come and gone. Four Florida players chose to enter the draft, and one elected to return. Did they make the correct decisions? Amazingly enough, it seems they all did.

Unlike last year, when cornerback Dee Webb thought he’d be picked in the first round and fell to the seventh, these Florida players seem more educated and more realistic about their chances. Today, we’ll break down each player’s decision and why it was correct.

Going

DE Jarvis Moss: Sure, Moss – who has played only a season and half of college ball after more than two years spent fighting a staph infection – can get a lot better with another year at Florida. And sure, opposing offenses will run directly at him because of his size (255 pounds, though probably 270 by the time he takes an NFL snap). But remember this: Moss will wow scouts at the combine. His combination of strength, speed, athleticism and leaping ability will push him into the first round. Moss surely saw how N.C. State’s Mario Williams cashed in last year. He’d be crazy to risk injury in college when he has a whopping signing bonus waiting for him.

S Reggie Nelson: Nelson is one of the best instinctual football players available in the draft. He’s at worst a mid-first rounder. He wasn’t going to get any better in college, because he was already light years ahead of most college safeties.

LB Brandon Siler: Siler is the only one who may have benefited from another year, but then again, that could have backfired. Teams have three years worth of video on Siler, and another year may have given scouts more time to pick out flaws. Siler will do well at the combine, especially on the Wonderlic test and in the interview rooms with coaches. Also, knowing how smart Siler is, I can’t imagine this was an impulsive decision. He clearly gave this a lot of thought. As long as he got good advice, he’ll be fine.
CB Ryan Smith: The undersized Smith likely will be a late-round choice – if he’s drafted at all. That fact wasn’t going to change whether he came out this year or next, but at least this year he can say he led the Southeastern Conference in interceptions and one of the lynchpins of a national title winner.



Staying
WR Andre Caldwell: Normally, I’m all for players leaving. College athletic programs like Florida’s make a fortune off these guys and give very little in return. But in Caldwell’s case, he made the right choice by staying. This is the deepest receiver class in at least 10 years, and Caldwell didn’t produce like Georgia Tech’s Calvin Johnson, South Carolina’s Sidney Rice or Southern California’s Dwayne Jarrett. Next year, he and Vanderbilt receiver Earl Bennett can duke it out to become a first-rounder.