The Baltimore Ravens hit it rich by drafting Lamar Jackson with the 32nd overall pick in 2018. The NFL Draft can be hit-and-miss. How have other teams done with players taken in the same slot since 1987?
1987: Gregg Rakoczy
Gregg Rakoczy played for the Cleveland Browns from 1987-90 and then spent two seasons with New England. The center made 44 of his career 48 starts with the Browns.
1988: Pat Carter
Pat Carter was taken by the Detroit Lions after a college career at Florida State. He played in the NFL from 1988-97 and the tight end wound up with 107 catches, nine going for touchdowns.
1989: Mike Elkins
Mike Elkins came to the Chiefs from North Carolina State. The quarterback threw two passes in the NFL, completing one for five yards.
1990: Fred Washington
Drafted out of TCU by the Chicago Bears, Fred Washington was killed in a car accident during his rookie season.
1991: Mike Jones
Mike Jones played college ball at North Carolina State and was drafted by the Cardinals, one pick behind Brett Favre overall. He spent three seasons in the desert before moving on to New England, St. Louis and Tennessee. Jones made 74 starts.
1992: Greg Skrepenak
Greg Skrepenak played college ball at Michigan and was drafted by the Raiders. He played three seasons with them before playing two years for the Panthers. He started all 32 games as a Panther.
1993: Ben Coleman
Ben Coleman played for four teams in a career that spanned 1993-2001. He started 104 games, including 48 in a three-year span with the Jaguars.
1994: Eric Mahlum
Eric Mahlum played college ball at Cal. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts and spent three seasons with them. Mahlum made 18 starts out of the 36 games he played.
1995: Craig Newsome
Craig Newsome played college ball at Arizona State and was then chosen by the Green Bay Packers. Newsome started all 32 games in his first two seasons. The cornerback had a forced fumble and an interception in Super Bowl XXXI. He finished his career with one season as a 49er.
1996: Leeland McElroy
Leeland McElroy played for two seasons with Cardinals. The Texas A&M RB rushed for 729 yards and three touchdowns.
1997: Nathan Davis
Nathan Davis was a Hoosier in college and a Falcon and Cowboy in the NFL. The defensive end played in a total of six games, never making a start. He had three solo tackles and one assist with Dallas.
1998: Jerome Pathon
Jerome Pathon was born in South Africa and made his way to the NFL after playing college ball at Acadia and Washington. The wide receiver had 260 catches for 3,350 yards while playing for the Colts, Saints and Falcons over eight seasons.
1999: Kevin Johnson
Kevin Johnson was drafted by Cleveland out of Syracuse. The wideout made 315 of his 384 career catches with the Browns. He also played for Jacksonville, Baltimore and Detroit.
2000: Dennis Northcutt
Another wide receiver taken by the Browns with the 32nd overall pick was Dennis Northcutt from Arizona. He spent seven seasons in Cleveland, making 276 catches, before moving on to Jacksonville and Detroit.
2001: Drew Brees
The San Diego Chargers drafted Drew Brees out of Purdue. He wound up in New Orleans via free agency and has gone on to a record-setting, sure-to-be, Hall-of-Fame career.
2002: Patrick Ramsey
Patrick Ramsey came to Washington from Tulane. In 24 career starts, he was 10-14. Ramsey also played for the Jets and Broncos.
2003: Tyler Brayton
Tyler Brayton played for the Raiders, Panthers and Colts in a nine-year career. The defensive lineman from Colorado made 17.5 sacks.
2004: Ben Watson
Ben Watson is one of the most respected players in the league by his peers. The tight end is back in New England in 2019. He has played for four teams oveall and made more than 540 catches.
2005: Logan Mankins
Logan Mankins was drafted by the Patriots out of Fresno State and spent nine seasons in New England. He moved on to Tampa Bay, where he started all 31 games he appeared in over two seasons.
2006: Mathias Kiwanuka
Drafted out of Boston College by the New York Giants, Mathias Kiwanuka spent all nine seasons with Big Blue. The DE had 38.5 sacks, including a career-high eight in 2008.
2007: Anthony Gonzalez
Anthony Gonzalez likely will be a bigger name after football than during his NFL career. The wide receiver from Ohio State drafted by the Indianapolis Colts has gone on to be elected to Congress. In five seasons with Indy, he played in 40 games and had 99 catches. He currently represents Ohio’s 16th Congressional district.
2008: Phillip Merling
Phillip Merling spent four seasons in Miami after being drafted out of Clemson. The DE also played for Green Bay and Washington and had 3.5 sacks in his NFL career.
2009: Evander Hood
Evander Hood was chosen by Pittsburgh out of Missouri. He had his greatest success as a Steeler, notching 11.5 of his career 14 sacks in five seasons.
2010: Patrick Robinson
Patrick Robinson was drafted by the Saints and is on his second run with the team. The former Florida State DB has 14 career picks, including one returned for a TD.
2011: Derek Sherrod
Derek Sherrod was a Packer for four seasons after being selected from Misissippi State. The OL made one start in a career that ended in 2014 and played in 20 games.
2012: David Wilson
David Wilson suffered a career-ending neck injury in his second season after being drafted from Virginia Tech by the Giants. Most recently, he was trying to make a go of it as a triple-jumper.
2013: Matt Elam
Matt Elam came to the Ravens from Florida and played three seasons. The DB had one interception in his career. He recently was picked up by the DC Defenders in one of the XFL drafts.
2014: Teddy Bridgewater
Teddy Bridgewater was taken by the Vikings out of Louisville. He was on his way to a great career until a knee injury in practice derailed him for the better part of two seasons. Bridgewater currently is on the Saints, backing up Drew Brees, another 32nd overall pick.
2015: Malcom Brown
Malcom Brown is a New Orleans Saint in 2019 after spending his first four seasons in New England. He started 51 games and appeared in 60 for the Pats, notching 8.5 sacks.
2016: Emmanuel Ogbah
Emmanuel Ogbah played college ball at Oklahoma State. “The Nigerian Nightmare” was drafted by the Cleveland Browns. He played three seasons for them before being traded to Kansas City. He tore a pec in Week 10 and is done for the season.
2017: Ryan Ramczyk
The Saints took Ryan Ramczyk out of Wisconsin. The big tackle has been a fixture on their offensive line for two-plus seasons since starting his NFL career.
2018: Lamar Jackson
Superstar in the making in his second year. The Baltimore Ravens have a special quarterback in Lamar Jackson. He was the fifth QB selected in his draft.
2019: N’Keal Harry
The Patriots looked to get Tom Brady a wideout and chosen N’Keal Harry out of Arizona State. He has been injured and only recently made his NFL debut. Harry made four catches in his first two games.
