Well, it was actually Roger Goodell who got the lift when 339-pound DT Danny Shelton of Washington bear-hugged him and elevated the commissioner about a foot off the ground.
Winston and Mariota, who each had a year of eligibility remaining, will meet in the season opener in Tampa Bay.
Neither quarterback was in Chicago, choosing to watch — and celebrate — at home with their families. It was the sixth time since 1967 that quarterbacks went 1-2, and this was no surprise.
"He's a talented young man who has a very good feel for the position and how to process those things," Whisenhunt said,Jerseys NFL Wholesale, "and we're excited to get a chance to work with him."
After Scherff, the Jets, normally heavily cheered when the draft was held in New York — it's in Chicago for the first time in 51 years — were loudly booed when they went on the clock. And when they went for Southern Cal DT Leonard Williams, rated by some as the best overall player in this crop, the jeers increased exponentially.
Nebraska linebacker Randy Gregory, who failed a marijuana test at the NFL combine, was not chosen.
Washington led with three choices: Shelton, Peters and LB Shaq Thompson to Carolina. The Pac-12 had nine choices, as did the ACC.
Eighteen underclassmen were picked among the first 32.
Each of those teams went 2-14 in 2014, but coaches Smith and Whisenhunt, in their first seasons in charge, survived the awful record. Now, they presumably have the main building tool.
"The challenge is just being an NFL player, period. I'm not worried about any off-the-field situations or even on-the-field situations," Winston said.
"He's got to keep his emotions in check and I think he'll do that," coach Andy Reid said. "He's not a troublemaker off the field,Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys, that's not what he is. He's not a problem in the locker room, that's not what he is. Just those competitive juices, you have to know how to control those."
You don't pass up a potential franchise quarterback in today's pass-happy NFL.
Seventeen offensive players went in Round 1, which ended with DT Malcom Brown of Texas going to New England.
"I'm just worried about living this new lifestyle and just developing into a great man for the Tampa Bay community for my teammates, because it's all for them and it's all for the success of this franchise."
While Mariota has been a model citizen, some questioned his having barely taken any snaps behind center in Oregon's quick-tempo attack. But Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt, who has done big things with such veteran quarterbacks as Ben Roethlisberger, Kurt Warner and Philip Rivers, clearly isn't concerned.
So Florida State's Winston is headed to Tampa Bay and Oregon's Mariota goes to Tennessee at No. 2. They'll take their Heisman Trophies (Winston in 2013, Mariota last year) and try to turn two downtrodden franchises into contenders,Jerseys NFL Wholesale, maybe even champions.
Naturally, Mariota isn't worried about the doubters, either.
Finally, a trade was made, with San Diego moving up two spots to 15 to get another running back, Wisconsin's record-setting Melvin Gordon. San Francisco got the Chargers' first-rounder, a fourth-rounder and next year's fifth-rounder.
Peters was kicked off the Huskies after several arguments with coaches.
CHICAGO (AP) — Even with significant off-field baggage, Jameis Winston was the first pick in the NFL draft Thursday night.
Following the quarterbacks were two more underclassmen: linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. of Florida headed upstate a bit to Jacksonville, then Oakland grabbed Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper.
With no such issues, Marcus Mariota went second.
Shelton, dressed in Samoan garb, was chosen by Cleveland, then the Saints got Stanford OT Andrus Peat and the Dolphins bolstered their receiving group with Louisville's DeVante Parker.
Minnesota took the first defensive back, Michigan State's Trae Waynes, and then the proceedings got a big lift.
It wasn't a surprise to see Washington CB Marcus Peters or Missouri DE Shane Ray go in the opening round, although both bring questions about personal behavior to the NFL that dropped them a bit. Peters went 18th to Kansas City, Ray 23rd to Denver, which traded up five slots to get him.
Tampa has the receivers to help Winston in Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans, both of whom went over 1,000 yards last year despite shoddy quarterbacking. Tennessee can't make the same claim.
Still, the local team was cheered as if Jay Cutler had just thrown for a TD when it grabbed West Virginia's game-breaking receiv
