They’re two players that will be linked for a number of reasons, most notably the resounding difference of careers they had. Their names are Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf, the top two selections in the 1998 NFL Draft. We all know what happened. The Colts’ road to resurrection began with Manning, while the Chargers’ selection of Leaf set them back years. But what if the two selections were flip-flopped? What if the Colts went with Leaf’s arm strength and athleticism over Manning’s…well..Hall of Fame pedigree? Would things have turned out any different?

To fully understand each team’s situation, you need the look at the rosters. It was apparent that both the Colts and Chargers (who traded up to the 2nd overall pick) were in desperate need of a young quarterback. The Colts’ duo of Jim Harbaugh and Kelly Holcomb was mediocre complete ass, while San Diego’s Stan Humphries, Craig Whelihan and Jim Everett were even worse. Humphries’ brains had the consistency of scrambled eggs by that time, so the Chargers needed someone new.

Despite having a 3-13 record in 1997, the Colts appeared to be headed in the right direction, which is why the Manning pick made sense. Marshall Faulk was a budding superstar and the Colts had just hired a guy by the name of Jim Mora to be head coach. Meanwhile, the Chargers suffered through a year of Kevin Gilbride and Gary Brown at runningback. The Manning pick was safe and ultimately, it was the right one. There were some knocks on Leaf’s character, knocks that Manning didn’t have.

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Six years ago, the fortunes of two NFL franchises changed forever. Those two teams are the San Diego Chargers and the Atlanta Falcons. The Chargers were coming off of a 1-15 season and still trying to escape the tragedy of selecting Ryan Leaf 2nd overall back in 1998. The Falcons, just a couple years removed from the Super Bowl, were in a state of transition and finished 4-12. The Chargers were slated to have the first overall pick, while the Falcons had the 5th pick.

While Vick and Tomlinson weren’t traded for each other, the picks that were used to select them were swapped. There were a few reasons the Chargers were afraid of Vick. Signability was one of them, as was the Chargers’ need for additional picks. But it was also the influence of then Chargers offensive coordinator Norv Turner, who reportedly tested Vick on a number of drills. After being left unimpressed by Vick’s prowess in the pocket, the groundwork was laid for the deal. San Diego traded the rights to the 1st overall pick for the 5th pick (used to select Tomlinson), a 3rd round pick (Tay Cody), a 2002 second round pick (Reche Caldwell) and Tim Dwight. The rest, as they say, is history.

The Chargers made a number of great decisions on that fateful day in 2001. In the second round, they selected an undersized quarterback by the name of Drew Brees, who went on to become a Pro Bowler. However, Brees’ early struggles in San Diego caused the team’s fortunes to turn around even more, when they traded Eli Manning for Philip Rivers and a few draft picks, which ultimately became Shawne Merriman and Nate Kaeding.

So what if the Chargers ultimately chose Vick? There’s no doubt that he was one of the most electric talents to ever come into the league. Hell, he led the Falcons to a win at Lambeau Field back in the 2003 playoffs while Tomlinson was still gaining yards in near-secrecy for bad Charger teams. Could Vick’s problems have been alleviated if he was a Charger? I think it’s doubtful. While he may have been away from the dog fighting culture of the Deep South, Vick/Mexico would have been just miles away from the international border, where he’d be subjected to even more STDs, cockfighting, and even the occasional donkey show. Remember when Barrett Robbins disappeared into Tijuana a night before the Super Bowl? That would have been Vick every single Sunday.

As far as LT goes, it’s hard to say where he would have ended up. Between Tomlinson taken first and Vick taken fifth, there were two busts and one solid pro. Leonard Davis was selected by Arizona, Gerard Warren by Cleveland and Justin Smith by Cincinnati. Both Arizona and Cleveland could have used running backs at the time. The Cardinals split carries between Michael Pittman and Thomas Jones, while the Browns’ last-ranked offense were led by Errict Rhett and Travis Prentice. The Browns were this close to LT. Instead, they’ve given up 374 rushing yards to him in just three meetings.

On May 24th, 2007 I was lucky enough to watch Ryan Braun’s Major League debut at Petco Park. I knew Braun had tremendous power and talent just from his stint in the minors. Through the minors Braun was given the nickname “The Hebrew Hammer” due to his Jewish background. Now, as Braun settles in with the Brewers, the young third basemen is reaching totals that only Albert Pujols has touched before.

Ryan Braun doesn’t appear to have the physical tools that would allow him to hit home runs at this pace. In fact, the first time I saw him up close, he appeared to be a skinny kid from California that more or less looked like a twig. Comparing him to Albert Pujols, the Cardinals first baseman has him beat on muscular strength. Or does he? Pujols hit his 15th career home run in his 49th game. Braun did it in his 50th! And would you believe Braun has a slugging percentage of .665 through July 27th, which makes him number one overall in that category? That is the first time a rookie, yet alone a 23 year old, has led that stat since Pujols and the great Willie Mays.

The Hebrew Hammer is definitely making a name for himself. Braun now has 18 home runs in 56 games since being called up in late May. The kid is also batting over .350 and already has 49 rbi’s. Not to take anything away from Met’s third baseman and All-Star David Wright, but Braun might be better. Wright played in 160 games in his rookie year. He hit 27 home runs. In 2007, Wright has 18 home runs in 101 games. Braun has that same exact total in about 50 less games played.

Simply put, Ryan Braun is a beast. It’s down right scary for other teams to face him. Prince Fielder is the huge emerging marketing star in Milwaukee but Ryan Braun will certainly give him a run for his money in the Miller Park clubhouse. If you’re reading this article and are opening up another window to pick Ryan Braun up in your fantasy league, it’s probably too late. Also, if Ryan Braun doesn’t win Rookie of the Year for some reason, look for the entire city of Milwaukee to riot. Honestly, even if Hunter Pence was healthy, Braun would have him beat in every statistical category. I guess I have just one thing left to say. What if more people know about Ryan Braun?

Imagine somewhere around the famed Yankee Stadium locker room an unwritten rule about contract talks is posted. It reads, “Contracts will be discussed at the end of the season.” What if the season is already over in New York? What if Alex Rodriguez was already looking forward to opt out of a deal that is currently earning him $25 million?

If the Yankees decide to keep their word about contract negotiations and Alex Rodriguez continues to hit home runs at a record pace, the New York club could see their All-Star walk. Alex has one friend who he can relate his statistics to when it’s all said and done, but just imagine if he could repeat what one Giant will do this year. What if Alex Rodriguez became a San Francisco Giant?

As part of our new set of features, every Saturday we will examine a ‘what if’ scenario that pits sports history against imagination. It could be anything from improbable championship runs to player movement.

What if Randy Johnson would have stayed with the Montreal Expos? The Big Unit is about as sure fire of a hall of famer as it gets and has had an illustrious 19 year career with the Mariners, Diamondbacks, Yankees, and yes, the Montreal Expos. Unit was drafted by the Expos out of USC. He made his debut with the team in 1988 but his stay with the Expos was hardly extensive. The wild child was traded from the Expos to the Mariners in 1989 for Mark Langston, a move that only kept Langston in Expos blue until the end of the season before he went on to California to play for the Angels. Great trade? Not so much. I’d catergorize it as awful.

Say Expos management wasn’t walking around with their heads up their asses. Say Langston, who to his credit was good at the time, hadn’t been dealt and the Expos had stuck with the hard throwing and often wild Johnson. We may have been looking at one of the best rotations in the National League. Chew on this. Randy Johnson (who would win a CY Young in 1995) is the number one starter. Pedro Martinez, who won a CY Young for the Expos in 1997 and was part of that unbelieveable 1994 team, would have been the number two starter. And throw in Ken Hill who posted 16 win seasons in both 1992 and 1994 and Jeff Fassero (yes, I just did a Jeff Fassero name drop on you) into the mix after he came up with the Expos in ‘91, and you would have had a pretty solid front end of the rotation. Would it have rivaled the Braves headliners? Maybe. Who’s to say that it couldn’t have been as good.

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