Felix Anudike-Uzomah is a former first-round pick, so it comes with the territory, but the narratives have become quite familiar.
Either a first-round pick is a boom or a bust. There's little room for nuance in NFL circles when it comes to discussions of such great investments—and that's true of high-priced free agent acquisitions as well. Even if a first-rounder like Anudike-Uzomah settles into a comfortable contributing role, he's still frowned upon for not having altered the direction of his respective franchise.
That's not unfair, to be clear. A first-round pick is a first-round pick—a team's best stab at importing a prospect with game-changing potential.