Monday Is the deadline for early entrants to declare for the 2017 NFL Draft, and as the dust continues to settle, we have 95 players announcing their intentions to stop playing on Saturdays and give Sundays a try instead.
Now, every team in the country deals with roster turnover on an annual basis. Players graduate and move on and then new players from high school come in to replace them. That's how it has always worked and will continue to do so. What some teams have to cope with more than their counterparts, however, are the early departures.
You know a guy is going to leave after he runs out of eligibility, but players leaving with eligibility remaining can throw off a team's plans. Even though coaches are smart enough to prepare for early departures -- it's not too hard to figure out which of your players will likely leave early -- they can still have a major impact on your roster when combining them with all the seniors you're already losing.
So which teams are most affected by early departures this year? Plenty, and we'll start with the reigning champions.
It's not just that Clemson is losing four players early -- there are three teams losing more -- it's the players that Clemson is losing. Quarterback Deshaun Watson, running back Wayne Gallman, and wide receivers Mike Williams and Artavis Scott.
While we all know how amazing and important Watson was for the Tigers this season -- oversimplification being no Deshaun, no natty -- we can't underestimate the impact losing Gallman, Williams and Scott will have. Those three combined were responsible for 41.1 percent of Clemson's total yards on offense last season, and they scored 42.3 percent of Clemson's touchdowns.
So when the 2017 preseason polls come out next season, and you see that Clemson isn't at No. 1 and may not even be in the top five or 10, the fact these four guys are leaving will be the reason why.
Another one of our playoff participants will have a lot to replace next season. Like Clemson, the Huskies are losing four key players early to the draft. Unlike Clemson, the majority of them come on defense.
The Huskies will lose safety Budda Baker, cornerback Sidney Jones and defensive lineman Elijah Qualls early. Joining those three is wide receiver John Ross. Combine their departures with those of other guys graduating, and there are definitely some questions about Washington that we won't be able to answer until we see the Huskies on the field again next season.
Also, it's important to remember that while Chris Petersen is a fantastic coach and has recruited well at Washington, it still isn't recruiting on the same level as places like its playoff counterparts Clemson, Alabama and Ohio State. So losing guys early is a bigger deal for Washington right now as far as impacting it in the future.
Speaking of Ohio State, as is becoming a tradition with the Buckeyes, they're losing a bunch of players early. This year there will be six players suddenly saying goodbye, tied with Florida and Miami (we'll get to them in a bit) for most in the country.
The five players bidding farewell are running back/receiver Curtis Samuel, wide receiver Noah Brown, cornerback Gareon Conley, safety Malik Hooker, corner Marshon Lattimore and linebacker Raekwon McMillan. So, as you can see, the majority of the losses are coming on defense, with the secondary impacted more than anything else.
I don't think Ohio State got enough credit this year for getting back to the College Football Playoff despite all the players it lost last year, and heading into 2017, even though it recruits as well as anybody in the country, I have to think that such a mass exodus over the previous two seasons will have an impact.
The Gators are in a position like the Buckeyes in that they're losing five players and four of them are on defense. Linebacker Alex Anzalone, defensive lineman Caleb Brantley, and corners Teez Tabor and Quincy Wilson are joined by offensive lineman David Sharpe.
Now, these are key departures for Florida, because anybody who watched the Gators this season knows they weren't winning games with their offense. If not for one of the best defenses in the country, this team isn't winning the SEC East, and now that defense will have to replace quite a few key parts, including two of the best corners in the country in Tabor and Wilson.
The Canes are losing five players early as well, none bigger than quarterback Brad Kaaya. I'm sure Mark Richt would have loved another year with him, but he won't get it, and he'll begin the second season of his tenure at Miami working in a new quarterback. That new signal caller will be working without useful allies such as running back Joseph Yearby and tight end David Njoku as well.
Losing Leonard Fournette seems like the biggest hit, but the truth is that with Derrius Guice coming back, Fournette's departure doesn't sting too badly. Replacing guys like safety Jamal Adams, defensive lineman Davon Godchaux and receiver Malachi Dupre may prove to be more difficult.
The Seminoles won't be the only ones who will miss watching Dalvin Cook running wild, I will too. Oh sure, he'll be just fine in the NFL, but it won't be the same. Not unless I get him on my fantasy team anyway. Cook is joined by offensive tackle Roderick Johnson and receiver Travis Rudolph, which means the Noles' offense will have some holes to fill.
Oklahoma rushed for 3,078 yards and 30 touchdowns as a team last season. Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon will be taking 2,334 of those yards and 22 of those touchdowns with them out the door, as the Sooners lose their two leading rushers early, along with defensive lineman Charles Walker.
It's not the number of players, but the impact of them. The Hokies lose quarterback Jerod Evans (somewhat surprisingly), receiver Isaiah Ford and tight end Bucky Hodges. Aside from being the quarterback, Evans was also the team's leading rusher. Ford was its leading receiver, and Hodges was one of the best tight ends in the country. That's a lot of offense to lose.
I'm putting Alabama on the list because the three players it's losing -- offensive tackle Cam Robinson, corner Marlon Humphrey and receiver ArDarius Stewart -- are all really good, but I'm not going to pretend I'm worried about it as far as Alabama's future. Losing only three players early to the NFL Draft is a good year for Alabama, and this happens every season, but it seldom matters because Alabama grows five-star players in a laboratory under Nick Saban's office.