Is Vontaze Burfict Destined for Bosworth-Like Bust?

Supremely talented Arizona State linebacker Vontaze Burfict set his Facebook status to draft.

Per SBNation Arizona, Burfict made the declaration on his Facebook account Tuesday. Scouts and pundits have salivated over Burfict’s potential for awhile now, and he could be a rather high selection. There’s no doubt he has the potential to become something special. I tabbed Jesse Bartolis, editor of the Fansided Network’s NFL Draft analysis site NFLMocks.com, for some insight into Burfict’s NFL potential. He compared Burfict to a most complimentary name for the Sun Devils’ ceiling.

“Best case scenario for Burfict is being a Ray Lewis type of player,” he said via email correspondence. “But he has to play so much smarter. WAY too many personal foul penalties.”

“But.” It’s become the obligatory word in any Burfict discussion.

It’s become nearly impossible to discuss Burfict’s bone-rattling hits and many achievements without also delving into his problems on the field. He was less discussed for his career of finding opposing rushers in the backfield and terrorizing quarterbacks via the blitz than he is moments like this:

Discussion leading into a 2011 loaded with expectations was of Burfict maturing, but less than a month before Week 1, Sports By Brooks gleefully reported details of Burfict’s training camp fight with a teammate. That was his season’s lead-in, and the enduring exit image is of Burfict benched vs. Cal. It was the regular season finale, and ultimately his last game at Sun Devil Stadium. After drawing two personal fouls on a single drive in the third quarter he was pulled, and remained on the sidelines with a disinterested gaze.

His 6-foot-3, 260-pound frame comes with a bright, visible BUYER BEWARE sticker. Teams will certainly gamble on him, and some perhaps earlier than others depending on Burfict’s Combine performance. All there the pieces are there, but putting them together and not is the difference in becoming the next Ray Lewis, or the next Brian Bosworth.

Brian Bosworth had all the tools to become an NFL All-Pro. He was big and mean, with a nose for the ball demonstrated via team highs in tackles his last two years at Oklahoma. The Boz even had a game of 22 tackles against national powerhouse Miami that declared authoritatively he could excel against top talent.

Bosworth left the collegiate ranks under a cloud, having failed the NCAA’s more stringent drug testing policies in the wake of Len Bias’s death in 1986. But his failure of a steroid test that cost him an appearance in the Orange Bowl didn’t stop the Seattle Seahawks from snatching him in the 1987 supplemental draft.

Boz was brash, bold, talented — and his NFL career was most notable for Bo Jackson dragging him into the end zone.

Even Bosworth’s college career seems to be more remembered for his calling the NCAA a communist organization than it is his winning consecutive Dick Butkus Awards — much like Burfict’s career to date is always discussed with the problems at the forefront.

Bartolis points out an important difference between Burfict and Bosworth, saying: “Burfict, though, doesn’t have a lot of troublesome off the field problems, which is a plus.”

His troubles have been relegated to the field. Problematic, yes. But the difference between a player having a temper and being in legal hot water is comparing a stubbed toe to a broken leg. The right guidance in the pros will go a long way to helping mold Burfict into the talent he can be.

“The best case scenario would be to go to a team that has a good coach and a team that has done a good job absorbing players who have some concerns,” Bartolis said. “A team that immediate jumps to mind is the New York GIants. They need his abilities on the field, but they also have done a tremendous job of taking malcontents … and turning it into something positive.”

There is a flip-side, though. Bosworth was drafted into a Seattle Seahawk organization that had struggled through difficult times. His name recognition and talent were meant to bring some attention to any otherwise forgettable franchise. That’s a lot of pressure to heap onto a player dealing with other issues.

“What would not be good for Burfict is if he ended up on a team like the Detroit Lions [that] are young and still figuring these things out,” Bartolis said. “Worst case scenario [for Burfict] is [he becomes] a guy who bounces around the league because teams can’t trust him on the field. One of those guys who gets 4th, 5th, 6th chances because every coach thinks he can make something out of him, but he never learns.”