It's Official--the Honey Badger is Heading to the NFL

This bit of news is classified in the "we knew it would happen; it was just a matter of when" category rather than the "OMG! Really?" one. After he was kicked of the LSU team earlier this year the world new that his next stop would be in the NFL; it was just a matter of him making it official.

The question going forward will be whether he actually goes in the draft. It may seem hard to believe about a player that was a legitimate Heisman trophy candidate last season--something that is pretty hard to do for a defensive player--but when you consider his long list of issues it is.

These days teams are starting to become concerned about image. They aren't as quick to jump at talented players that have questionable morals and have had numerous off-field issues. The honey badger, Tyrann Mathieu is definitely one of those guys.

I don't think the fact that he has had drug issues will be what makes teams nervous. Many players have and gone on to great careers in the NFL. It will be his inability to stay away from the stuff after getting caught several times and even getting kicked off the team for it.

Bad habits are bad habits, but when they control you like they appear to have controlled Mathieu at times it is hard to see someone as a reliable contributor to a team's success. When it comes to the amount of money that is involved in the NFL teams have become much more reluctant to take the plunge--at least not without some safeguards first.

However, even with safeguards in place there is no guarantee that a troubles player can produce. Should he fail not only will that player flop, but he's bound to have an effect on the fate of the team as well which in turn could affect everyone on the roster.

Then again, that's a gamble that teams take with every player that is drafted regardless of character issues, right Tim Tebow?

For now the big question is going to be how much of a chance a team wants to take on him. Had he entered the draft last year or had a comparable season this year he would have been a first-rounder easy. A season removed from the game and chock full of character issues is going to impact the round he goes in or if he gets drafted at all.