Sometimes you win in the NFL Draft and sometimes you lose. One thing is sure there is nothing assured when you make a pick. Looking at the best and worst first-round picks for each team in the Super Bowl era. And, of course, only one of the Mannings (pictured below) fits the criteria.
New England Patriots
Kenneth Sims was the No. 1 overall pick out of Texas in 1982. The defensive lineman stuck around for eight seasons, but did not live up to being the top pick in the draft. Sims had 17 sacks in a career that saw him play in all 16 games once. In four seasons, he played in nine or fewer contests. There were plenty of solid picks by New England in Round One. Using recency logic, the pick here is Ty Law, a member of the 2019 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. The defensive back was chosen 23rd overall out of Michigan in 1995. Law was a three-time Super Bowl champ, five-time Pro Bowler and led the league in picks twice.
Buffalo Bills
The obvious choice is O.J. Simpson, however, the running back out of USC is going to be disqualified for obvious reasons. We’ll go with a quarterback Jim Kelly, who took a while to get to Buffalo after being drafted. Kelly went to the USFL before arriving in Buffalo. He was chosen 14th overall in 1983 and gets a nod over Bruce Smith, who was taken first overall in 1985. A quarterback also fits the worst pick. E.J. Manuel failed to live up to any billing when taken 16th overall in 2013. The Florida State star made 17 starts in four seasons with the Bills and went an ugly 6-11.
New York Jets
There are so many options when it comes to the worst pick the Jets have made in the first round. Blair Thomas? Jeff Lageman? Vernon Gholston? Thomas was taken second overall in 1990 and was a nightmare. He rushed for 2,009 yards and five — five! — touchdowns in four seasons with the Jets. The best pick came at the 14th spot in 2007 when the great Darrelle Revis was chosen out of Pittsburgh. A classic choice.
Miami Dolphins
Like with the Buffalo Bills, this one came out of the 1983 draft. Way, way down in the first round the Miami Dolphins found a gem out of Pitt, Dan Marino. He may not have won a Super Bowl but the quarterback did everything else. A slim edge over two-time Super Bowl champ Larry Csonka taken eighth overall out of Syracuse in 1968. On the down side, Sammie Smith was selected ninth out of Florida State in 1989. He averaged only 3.5 yards per carry over three seasons in Miami.
Baltimore Ravens
Gonna go with one Hurricane over another here. Ed Reed was taken 24th overall out of Miami and went on to a Hall of Fame career. He gets the edge over Ray Lewis, who was the Ravens’ second first-rounder in 1996 at 26th overall. Reed is class all the way through on and off the field. Kyle Boller out of Cal is the catastrophic selection. The quarterback taken 19th overall in 2003 — another second, first-rounder — was simply a journeyman.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Talk about a tough choice: Terry Bradshaw, Joe Greene, Lynn Swann, Franco Harris, Rod Woodson, Troy Polamalu ,.. on and on they go. Let’s give Joe Greene the honor. He was selected fourth overall out of North Texas State in 1969 and became the foundation for the Steel Curtain. Greene was one the four-time Super Bowl winners from the great Chuck Noll era. Mark Malone was one of the down choices. Selected out of Arizona State at 28 in 1980, he stuck around for seven years and has proven to be far better as an announcer than he was a quarterback.
Cleveland Browns
We’re going to limit this to the current incarnation of the Browns. Courtney Brown was the second straight No. 1 overall pick by Cleveland. Tim Couch suffered from being the first choice by an expansion team. Brown was chosen by the Browns out of Penn State and didn’t do much in his five years there. However, the worst was Trent Richardson, who was taken third overall out of Alabama and has gone on a wandering journey that has taken him to the AAF Birmingham Iron. Honorable mention goes to Johnny Manziel, a total flop at No. 22 in 2014. On the positive side, let’s go with the marvelous Joe Thomas. The offensive lineman out of Wisconsin was durable and dependable as a 10-time Pro Bowler after being chosen third overall in 2007.
Cincinnati Bengals
Kijana Carter was beset by injuries after taken first overall in 1995. Akili Smith simply didn’t deliver after being chosen third overall out of Oregon in 1999. A total miss. John Ross is getting into the picture unless he picks up his act. Anthony Munoz was a fantastic choice at No. 3 overall in 1980. The USC star became an 11-time Pro Bowler and was the definition of a great tackle.
Kansas City Chiefs
It’s early but we will presume the best is yet to come from Patrick Mahomes, selected 10th overall out of Texas Tech. Tony Gonzalez was also a stellar choice at 13 out of Cal in 1997. The downside comes from the vaunted 1983 draft when the Chiefs chose Todd Blackledge seventh overall out of Penn State. Oof.
Los Angeles Chargers
The nod in the best pick goes to the late, great USC linebacker Junior Seau. An amazing career saw him a 12-time Pro Bowler. He was chosen fifth overall in 1990. LaDainian Tomlinson was far from a slouch, too, at five in 2001 out of TCU. Impossible to avoid Ryan Leaf at No. 2 in 1998 as the worst choice.
Oakland Raiders
Going to give the slimmest of edges to Tim Brown, chosen sixth overall out of Notre Dame, over Marcus Allen a 10th choice out of USC. Honestly, can’t go wrong with either player. The worst, sadly, is JaMarcus Russell. Taken first out of LSU, he was a complete and utter miss. Going first overall makes him light years worse of a pick than another QB, Todd Marinovich, whose career spiraled rather than him throwing spirals.
Denver Broncos
The dubious distinction goes to a quarterback … and it is not Tim Tebow. The Broncos took a swing and missed big time with a big quarterback in Paxton Lynch. Drafted out of Memphis in 206, he defines bust in Denver. And is gone, gone, gone already to Seattle. Let’s go with a sleeper who turned into a gem for the top selection: Steve Atwater was chosen 20th overall out of Arkansas in 1989 and went on to be an eight-time Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl champ. Von Miller could usurp Atwater by the time he is done.
Houston Texans
For a franchise that has not been around that long, compared to others in the league, the Texans have had some amazing picks: J.J. Watt, Andre Johnson, DeAndre Hopkins and Deshaun Watson for starters. Watt is simply in a class by himself at this point. That is no knock on any of the others. Travis Johnson simply did not pan out as a lineman out of Florida State. He was taken 16th overall in 2005.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Leonard Fournette is well on his way to playing himself into this dishonor role, especially if the Jags part with the running back. However, a troubled player definitely earns this slot. Justin Blackmon came out of Oklahoma State with all sorts of hype. Unfortunately, the headlines he was associated with were mostly negative. Another athlete whose struggles got the better of him. In a rare moment, the first pick of a franchise actually panned out nicely. Tony Boselli was a five-time Pro Bowler after being chosen second overall out of USC. Injuries cut his career short but he was a perfect choice when selected.
Indianapolis Colts
Going to keep this to Indy, which eliminates the lost pick of John Elway, who wound up in Denver and had an incredible career there. The top choice is going to be the legendary Peyton Manning. Name speaks for itself. As for busts, how about Trev Alberts. He was grabbed fifth overall out of Nebraska in 1994. Alberts played in all of 29 games, making seven starts and was gone by 1997.
Tennessee Titans
As with other franchises, the picks made in Tennessee will be the ones that we consider. The bust has to go to a quarterback who was incredible at Texas in his college career. Vince Young simply did not pan out in any form for the Titans. We’ll give Chris Johnson the nod on the positive side. The running back from East Carolina rushed for nearly 8,000 yards in six seasons with the Titans. In 2009, he ran for 2,006 yards and 14 TDs. He also caught 50 passes.
New York Giants
The Giants appear to have a lucky No. 2 when it comes to draft picks. They grabbed Saquon Barkley in the slot in 2018. His rookie season signals one of a generational talent. However, the best second pick overall was legendary Lawrence Taylor, drafted out of North Carolina in 1981. Jarrod Bunch was taken 27th overall out of Michigan. His career was ruled by injuries and he was only with Big Blue from 1991-93.
Philadelphia Eagles
In 1995, the Eagles traded with Tampa Bay to move from 12 to seven. Drafting Combine “freak” Mike Mamula did not work out as planned. The person who tops Mamula is Leroy Keyes, drafted out of Purdue at No. 3 overall in 1969. He started as an RB and wound up a DB and was gone from Philly by 1973. The best goes to Donovan McNabb. No Super Bowl titles for the quarterback from Syracuse. However, he delivered as the second overall pick in 1999 and sets a high bar.
Washington Redskins
The Redskins had three first-round picks from 1969-90. They made good use of them with Art Monk, Mark May and Darrell Green as the choices. Green rules as the best of them. On the short side, the Redskins used a first-round pick to draft a kicker, Charlie Gogolak, out of Princeton. He barely slips in under the Super Bowl era timeline we are using here as his rookie season led into the first championship game between the NFL and then-AFL.
Dallas Cowboys
Talk about a tough decision. This is a team that drafted Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith in consecutive seasons. Then there was Randy White and Too Tall Jones. Gonna tap Smith here as he was a 17th pick and not an obvious superstar. The worst goes with someone who should have had a far better career, Duane Thomas. The enigmatic running back was chosen 23rd overall out of West Texas State in 1970 and was out of Dallas in 1972.
Minnesota Vikings
Not going with the obvious here. Randall McDaniel edges Adrian Peterson. The offensive lineman out of Arizona State was a 12-time Pro Bowler after being chosen 19th overall in 1988. He barely tops the fantastic Peterson, who was chosen seventh overall out of Oklahoma in 2007. On the sour side, let’s go with Christian Ponder. Drafted 12th overall out of Florida State in 2011, he never became the franchise quarterback the team hoped. Ponder’s career wandered throughout the league and he never lived up to the college headlines.
Green Bay Packers
When you select one of the all-time greats at 24, it is impossible to pick anyone but Aaron Rodgers as the best first-round choice in Packers history. And it is also impossible to go beyond Tony Mandarich, the No. 2 overall selection out of Michigan State in 1989, as the team’s worst first-round draft decision.
Detroit Lions
A pair of threes make up the Lions’ best and worst. In 1989, they chose Barry Sanders out of Oklahoma State in the third slot. He went on to an historic career in sky blue. Thirteen years later, the Lions used the same position to take Joey Harrington out of Oregon. The decision did not work on any level.
Chicago Bears
Would love to have to choose between a draft that gave Chicago both Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus. However, it is out of our time frame. Hard to go beyond the wonderful Walter Payton, chosen fourth overall out of Jackson State in 1975. Kevin White was drafted seventh overall in 2015 and was a total whiff. Injury after injury derailed the West Virginia star and the Bears only got 25 catches out of him.
San Francisco 49ers
Jerry Rice. Nothing more needs to be said. Jim Druckenmiller would fit the role of a disappointment. He was selected out of Virginia Tech 26th in 1997. The time in SF was short and by 1999 he was shipped to Miami.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams test the boundaries. Los Angeles, St. Louis back to Los Angeles. We’ll start with Eric Dickerson taken out of SMU in 1983. South of the border when it comes to picks we will go north of the border when the Rams chose Mike Schad out of Queen’s in Canada at 23 in 1986. He was also the fourth choice that year in the CFL Draft. Schad did not pan out and played only 62 games in the NFL.
Seattle Seahawks
In 1991, the Seahawks went for a home run, drafting Dan McGwire, brother of MLB slugger Mark, at 16. The pick did not work out. Has to sting more when you realize Brett Favre went in the second round that year. The late Cortez Kennedy fits the bill as a sensational pick. The DL out of Miami played his entire career with Seattle after being chosen in 1990 third overall. Kenny Easley and Shaun Alexander also were smart selections.
Arizona Cardinals
Another team that has moved around. Chicago to St. Louis to Arizona. The Chicago years don’t factor in here. Gonna go with the amazing Larry Fitzgerald, who catches anything and everything thrown his way. A surefire Hall of Famer, Fitzgerald was drafted out of Pitt in 2004. Kelly Stouffer was a terrible decision when you consider he opted to sit out his rookie season rather than play with the Cardinals, who used the sixth overall pick to choose him out of Colorado State in 1987. That had to hurt.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Hard to imagine but Bo Jackson, yes the Heisman Trophy winner and two-sport star fills the negative slot for the Bucs. That is what happens when you choose someone first overall and you can’t get his name on a contract. That is what it takes to top choosing Trent Dilfer with the sixth overall pick in 1994. The Bucs found a gem with the 28th pick in the first round in 1995. They stayed in-state and grabbed Derrick Brooks, a linebacker from FSU. All he turned out to be was a Hall of Famer.
Carolina Panthers
The worst pick: Rae Carruth. No explanation needed. Gonna go with the more experienced player for now as Thomas Davis has been stand-up and strong since being chosen 14th overall out of Georgia in 2005. In the long run, Luke Kuechly could pass his fellow LB. For now, though, the nod goes to Davis.
Atlanta Falcons
USAT Images
The Falcons did not get what they hoped when they chose Aundray Bruce first overall in 1988 out of Auburn. He moved on to the Raiders by 1992, never fitting or delivering what a top of the draft pick should. The best pick is all-world receiver Julio Jones, who has been brilliant from the git-go in the ATL.
New Orleans Saints
The worst first pick was the first player the Saints selected in franchise history. Lesley Kelley was a fullback/LB out of Alabama. He stayed with the Saints for 30 games, starting none of them. Not an auspicious debut to the picking process. The best came from an in-stat selection in 1993. The Saints drafted offensive lineman Willie Roaf out of Louisiana Tech. Roaf went on to earn himself a spot in Canton in 2012.
