When I asked the actual NFL scouts about how their teams will view Lyerla I got similar, indirect answers. One advised me that “my report will be that he’s never going to be worth the headaches. I can’t see us considering him after this quitting.” He pointed out that his team removed Mike Williams of Syracuse and Marquess Wilson of Washington State completely from their draft consideration when those players left their respective schools in recent years.
The other scout gave me a very interesting answer. He said he was sure his team would pass on Lyerla but he brought up two other franchises which might find his story appealing as a sort of feel-good reclamation story. When I asked if he thought Lyerla would be drafted I got this response:
“Drafted? Absolutely. He’s a second round talent at worst on the field. If he can piss clean (pass drug tests) and explain his issues, coaches will look over the bad issues.”
I asked him to speculate on which round Lyerla might wind up being drafted.
“Like I said, he’s got to piss clean. (We) won’t touch him if he’s left the team and is doing drugs. No way. If he pisses clean I think he can go in the fourth or fifth round. I would be surprised if we let him fall past that”, he told me. ”I’ll tell you this too, his agent is going to really have to earn his money. Up front damage control.”