How did Rams S Adam Archuleta handle draft day drama?

In 2001, then Arizona State Sun Devils safety Adam Archuleta had a good feeling about his chances in the upcoming 2001 NFL Draft. The 6-foot-0, 210-pound safety made scouts gasp at his outstanding NFL Scouting Combine when he put up  31 bench reps of 225 pounds, ran a 4.42-second 40-yard dash, and recorded a vertical jump of 39 inches.

He felt good about his performance, but there is always the non-knowing that eats away like a termite at the back of the brain. But he was prepared to hear his name called at New York City’s Madison Square Garden’s stage.

Before the NFL converted the draft into a three-day primetime televised event, they held the draft over two days. The first day of the 2001 NFL Draft began at 9:00 am PT, Saturday, April 21, 2001 (Rounds 1-3). The second day of the 2001 NFL Draft began at 8:00 am PT, Sunday, April 22, 2001 (Rounds 4-7).

In a recent interview, Adam Archuleta shared his draft day experience. In Ryan Phillips’ article for The Big Lead, NFL Media Members Remember Their Draft Day Experiences, Archuleta shared that he had a hunch that he would be the Rams pick. No, not some palm-reader or fortune-teller, he was told by the then Saint Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz that the team was working on trading then quarterback Trent Green to the Kansas City Chiefs. If the deal went down, Archuleta was told that the Rams would select him in the first round of the draft.