Really, in the history of the NFL Draft, which picks were the greatest of all-time? Which prospects turned out to be the biggest home runs?
Which NFL Draft picks turned out to be the best selections of all-time? Which ones ended up becoming franchise-defining legends, and which ones turned into unbelievable value gets? Of course the superstar prospects taken high are usually going to be the stars, but finding the hidden gems is the real fun.
From the first NFL Draft in 1936 until now, which 32 picks were the greatest of all-time? Here’s the criteria.
1. Hall of Fame. If you don’t have a yellow jacket, or you’re not a sure-thing to get one when you’re done playing, move along.
2. The pick had to be made after the top five overall. Anyone can make a pick in the top five. Getting a legend after that fifth pick, though, usually means a call had to be made. The later the round the future Hall of Famer was selected, the better the value in the rankings.
3. The player had to be named a First Team All-Pro at least five times. Yeah, this knocks out some all-time value picks like Jason Taylor and Terrell Davis, but this is an elite of the elite list of all-time draft picks – these 32 players are at a whole other level.
Being an All-Pro is different than being named to the Pro Bowl – All-Pro is a much bigger deal. There are a few notable exceptions in this for obvious reasons, considering only one quarterback a year can be named First Team All-Pro. To make this list, though, a QB had to at least earn the honor at least twice or win a Super Bowl.
And the big key …
4. The player had to earn his Hall of Fame credentials for the team that drafted him. It’s not a great draft pick for your team if Drew Brees or Brett Favre ended up being an all-time great for someone else.
Again, remember … this is about value as well as greatness.
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32. DE Carl Eller, Minnesota
1964, 1st round, 6th pick overall, Minnesota
There was a fight with the AFL for talent at the time, and Minnesota was able to keep its defensive lineman close to home. Eller played in 225 games in his Hall of Fame career, being named All-Pro five times and going to six Pro Bowls. It was a great draft with Roger Staubach, Paul Warfield, and ten Hall of Famers being drafted overall. No one from this draft class played more games than Eller.
31. DE JJ Watt, Wisconsin
2011, 1st round, 11th pick overall, Houston
And to think, Jacksonville took Blaine Gabbert one pick before Houston snagged Watt. He’s still in the midst of a sure-thing Hall of Fame career, with the three-tine NFL Defensive Player of the Year coming up with 92 sacks so far with five All-Pro nods.
30. OG Gene Upshaw, Texas A&M-Kingsville
1967, 1st round, 17th pick overall, Oakland
There’s a whole lot to like in a 6-5, 255-pound guard who lasted 15 years and went seven Pro Bowls and was a five-time All-Pro. Best of all was his durability, starting every game until his final season in 1981.
29. DE Jack Youngblood, Florida
1971, 1st round, 20th pick overall, Los Angeles
The tough guy’s tough guy defensive end lasted 14 years, but he packed his biggest seasons in the middle of his Hall of Fame run, going to seven straight Pro Bowls and being named All-Pro in five of them. It was a strong draft with four Hall of Famers and several other big names like Joe Theismann, Jim Plunkett, and Archie Maning, but only Pittsburgh LB Jack Ham had a better overall career than Youngblood.
28. QB Dan Marino, Pitt
1983, 1st round, 27th pick overall, Miami
One of the all-time first round value picks, Marino did okay throwing for well over 61,000 yards and 420 touchdowns. He was a nine-time Pro Bowl passer, was a three-time All-Pro, and was the 1984 NFL MVP. Why isn’t he higher? He never won a Super Bowl – a killer part of the criteria to be a quarterback and get on this list. And yes, while he slid, he did go in the first round, unlike …
27. WR Terrell Owens, UT-Chattanooga
1996, 3rd round, 89th pick overall, San Francisco
He’s an 89th pick who went to the Hall of Fame after catching 1,078 passes for close to 16,000 yards with 153 touchdowns, so how is he not in the top ten? He was great for San Francisco, but two of his six Pro Bowl nods, and two of his five All-Pro honors came with other teams. Remember, the last seven years were with Philadelphia, Dallas, Buffalo and Cincinnati.
26. S Larry Wilson, Utah
1960, 7th round, 74th pick overall, St. Louis
This wasn’t bad for a seventh round pick. Wilson went to the Hall of Fame with 52 career interceptions for the Cardinals in his 13-year carer. One of the best defensive players in football for a long run, he was named All-Pro from 1966 to 1970, and he was an eight-time Pro Bowl performer.
25. LB Derrick Brooks, Florida State
19955, 1st round, 28th pick overall, Tampa Bay
It wasn’t a bad run for Tampa Bay, taking Warren Sapp with the 12th pick, and grabbing Brooks for way too easy a price. The college superstar slipped all the way to the 28th pick, but turned in one of the all-time greatest careers by any linebacker, starting every game but three – all in his rookie year – over his 14 year career, making 1,710 tackles with 25 picks. The five-time All-Pro and 2002 Defensive Player of the Year also was named to 11 Pro Bowls.
24. TE Tony Gonzalez, Cal
1997, 1st round, 13th pick overall, Kansas City
You had a pretty good career when Jerry Rice is the only guy who caught more passes than you did. The 14-time Pro Bowl and six-time All-Pro Hall of Famer came up with a few amazing years with Atlanta – he didn’t fade or slip a bit, even into his late 30s – finishing with 1,325 catches for 15,127 yards and 111 touchdowns. The only reason he’s not higher – along with being a 13th pick – was because his last five seasons were with the Falcons.
23. S Ronnie Lott, USC
1981, 1st round, 8th pick overall, San Francisco
Yeah, oooooh, real tough trying to get a good player at the 8, but there were some big misses before Lott went – welcome to Green Bay, QB Rich Campbell – and there were some huge mistakes soon after he went.
Try this for an all-time draft season for the defensive side – linebackers Lawrence Taylor, Mike Singletary and Rickey Jackson, Howie Long and Dexter Manley for the line, and Lott, Dennis Smith, Kenny Easley and Hanford Dixon for the secondary. Only Taylor and Singletary were named to the All-Pro team more than Lott, a six-time honoree.
22. QB Aaron Rodgers, Cal
2005, 1st round, 24th pick overall, Green Bay
Remember, it’s hard for a quarterback to be named First Team All-Pro. Rogers is a two-time NFL MVP, and he’s just a two-time All-Pro. However, he’s a seven-time Pro Bowl producer with a Super Bowl win and close to 43,000 yards with 338 touchdowns. The pick worked out fine after a run of Travis Johnson, David Pollack, Erasmus James, Alex Barron, Marcus Spears, Matt Jones, Mark Clayton, and Fabian Washington.
21. DT Alan Page, Notre Dame
1967, 1st round, 16th pick overall, Minnesota
Imagine a 6-4, 245-pound defensive tackle in today’s NFL. Page was one of the quickest interior defensive linemen of all-time, heading the great Viking line on the way to six All-Pro teams and making the Pro Bowl nine times. The strongest part of his resumé? He was the 1971 NFL MVP – and not just on the defensive side.
In a draft class of eight Hall of Famers, no one had a better career. Page started in 135 games. The six picks who went before him combined for 131.
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20. CB Rod Woodson, Purdue
1987, 1st round, 10th pick overall, Pittsburgh
It seems so obvious now, but the pick of Woodson was a great one considering the 1987 class was loaded with busts. How mediocre was it? Woodson was the only Hall of Famer. The 1993 Defensive Player of the Year was a five-time All-Pro for Pittsburgh and a seven-time Pro Bowler before keeping it all going for Baltimore late in his career.
19. DT Bob Lilly, TCU
1961, 1st round, 16th pick overall, Dallas
One of the all-time greatest all-around defensive linemen, Lilly played all 14 of his seasons in Dallas and was named to the Pro Bowl 11 times. He started every game in his career, and went to six straight All-Pro teams and seven in all. Talk about nailing the pick, the next five players drafted after him combined to start 19 seasons.
18. C Dermontti Dawson, Kentucky
1988, 2nd round, 44th pick overall, Pittsburgh
Yawwwwwwwn, a center ahead of all those other amazing players? In terms of value, yeah, considering Dawson was a 44th pick overall, started for the Steelers for 13 years, and was named to the All-Pro team six straight seasons and was a seven-time Pro Bowl talent.
17. OG Bruce Matthews, USC
1983, 1st round, 9th pick overall, Houston
It’s hard to call the ninth overall pick a good value selection, but the Houston Oiler/Tennessee Titan franchise managed to start 293 of his 296 games as a mainstay for the line over his 19-year career. Most amazingly, his production didn’t slip, with three of his seven All-Pro honors coming in his last four years, while retiring on a run of 14 straight Pro Bowl nods.
16. LB Jack Lambert, Kent State
1974, 2nd round, 46th pick overall, Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh did okay in 1974 with four Hall of Fame draft picks, but Lambert was the only one for the defensive side. The nasty tone-setter for the Steeler D went on an amazing run of five straight All-Pro seasons before it all ended abruptly in 1984. In all, the amazing second round value pick went to nine straight Pro Bowls with a total of six All-Pro seasons to go along with four Super Bowl rings.
15. OG Randall McDaniel, Arizona State
1988, 1st round, 19th pick overall, Minnesota
A rock for the interior of the Minnesota line for 12 years, McDaniel had a strong rookie year, and then ripped off 11 straight Pro Bowl runs with seven All-Pro seasons including five in a row. Okay, that’s all good, but why is a guard this high? Minnesota really, really hit the pick at the 19. The next nine players selected after him combined to play for just 21 years.
14. LB Jack Ham, Penn State
1971, 2nd round, 34th pick overall, Pittsburgh
Sort of the lost star in the mix of all the amazing Pittsburgh players, Ham played 12 years for the Steelers with six straight All-Pro seasons and going to eight straight Pro Bowls. One of the great pass defending linebackers, he finished his career with 32 picks. The value part of this isn’t bad, either – the next eight players combined to play for 21 seasons with no Pro Bowl appearances.
13. S Ed Reed, Miami
2002, 1st round, 24th pick overall, Baltimore
Yeah, there was a time when safeties weren’t value all that highly. Reed might have been an all-time college great at Miami, but he slid all the way to the 24th spot. The eight players taken before him combined for a grand total of zero All-Pro nods and one Pro Bowl, and 25 of the next 28 picks failed to make a Pro Bowl.
All the 2004 NFL Defensive Player of the Year did was finish his career with 643 tackles and 64 interceptions as a five-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowler.
12. RB Emmitt Smith, Florida
1990, 1st round, 17th pick overall, Dallas
Supposedly too small and too slow, he slipped after a run of seven players who combined to start for 31 seasons.
The NFL’s all-time leading rusher gets a pass for being named a First Team All-Pro only four times. He made up for it with 18,355 yards, 164 rushing scores, eight Pro Bowls, three Super Bowls, and the 1993 NFL MVP.
No, really, how cold did Jimmy Johnson nail this pick at the 17, especially considering the running backs who went soon after? Two spots later, Darrell Thompson went to Green Bay. Three spots later, Steve Broussard went to Atlanta. Rodney Hampton wasn’t bad, and Dexter Carter went in the first round, too.
11. OT Larry Allen, Sonoma State
1994, 2nd round, 46th pick overall, Dallas
One of the stars on a team full of mega-watt all-timer personalities and players, Allen was one of the greatest power blockers of all-time – at least for a six-year run – with six straight All-Pro seasons and 11 Pro Bowl seasons overall. You want value at the 46? The next 41 players drafted after him combined for two Pro Bowl appearances.
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10. LB Mike Singletary, Baylor
1981, 2nd round, 38th pick overall, Chicago
It seems sort of crazy now, but one of college football’s greatest tacklers slid all the way to 38th pick – taken one spot after Cris Collinsworth. It wasn’t a bad round for value, with Howie Long taken with the 48 and Rickey Jackson going with the 51, Singletary was a bit more decorated with seven All-Pro seasons, ten Pro Bowls, and the 1985 and 1988 NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors in his 12-year run.
9. OT Forrest Gregg, SMU
1956, 2nd round, 20th pick overall, Green Bay
Even at under 250 pounds, Gregg was one of the nastiest and toughest run blockers in the history of the NFL. There might have been a whole slew of stars on the Packer teams of the 1960s, and Gregg was a key cog with seven straight All-Pro seasons – eight in all – and nine Pro Bowl campaigns. The draft was hardly a thing back in 1956, but for what it’s worth, the next three players selected after Gregg combined to start 54 games.
8. C Mike Webster, Wisconsin
1974, 5th round, 125th pick overall, Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Steeler 1974 draft was epic with four Hall of Famers, and a key part of it was the value of getting a 15-year starting center in the fifth round. Before finishing his career at Kansas City, Webster went to nine Pro Bowls and and was a five-time All-Pro. A rock, it took two years to get up to speed, and then he missed just 12 games over the next 14 years.
How huge was this pick in the fifth round? The next 42 picks combined to play 29 seasons, and four of the five players selected before Webster never played.
7. LB Bobby Bell, Minnesota
1963, 7th round, 56th pick overall, Kansas City
There are late round value picks, and there’s getting a 12-year Hall of Fame defensive star in the seventh round. Granted, the AFL Draft was way different, but most of the players selected by the league after Bell – the draft went 29 rounds – never played. He was the 56th overall pick, but still, he was a relatively late pick for the time who was a six-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowl performer.
6. RB Jim Brown, Syracuse
1957, 1st round, 6th pick overall, Cleveland
Paul Hornung, Jon Arnes, John Brodie, Ron Kramer, Len Dawson. Those were the five players taken before Brown, and out of that group were two Hall of Famers and a solid longtime starting quarterback in Brodie.
It’s a little hard to sell the idea of Brown being a great value at the six, but … nine years, eight All-Pro seasons, nine Pro Bowls, four MVPs, the all-time rushing record with 12,312 yards, 106 rushing scores, and the general belief that he might just be the greatest NFL player of all-time.
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5. LB Ray Lewis, Miami
1996, 1st round, 26th pick overall, Baltimore
In his 17 years, Lewis was a key star for two Super Bowl champions – with a Super Bowl MVP – cranked out seven All-Pro seasons, was a 13-time Pro Bowler, was a two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and finished up as one of the greatest tackling linebackers and leaders of all-time.
Hall of Fame WR Marvin Harrison was selected at the 19. The next six players selected before the Ravens took Lewis were … Daryl Gardener, Pete Kendall, Marcus Jones, Jeff Hartings, Eric Moulds, and Jermane Mayberry. After Lewis, the next eight picks combined to go to two Pro Bowls.
4. QB Joe Montana, Notre Dame
1979, 3rd round, 82nd pick overall, San Francisco
Rick Berns and Mike Wellman. They were taken by Tampa Bay and the Los Angeles Rams, respectively.
And then San Francisco was up.
The next 52 players selected after Joe Montana combined to go to Pro Bowls – both by St. Louis WR Roy Green.
A national champion at Notre Dame, Montana was a bit undersized and hardly the prototype when taken by Bill Walsh and the 49ers with the 82nd overall pick. Montana went on to win four Super Bowls, earn a spot on three All-Pro teams, and was named to eight Pro Bowls – one with Kansas City.
Arguably the greatest quarterback of all-time until that Brady guy came along, Montana was a two-time NFL MVP, a three-time Super Bowl MVP, and was forever known as the one who put the West Coast offense into hyperdrive.
3. DE Deacon Jones, Mississippi Valley State
1961, 14th round, 186th pick overall, Los Angeles
Well that’s not bad. All the Rams did was get the Godfather of the Pass Rush – and the head slap – with the 186th overall selection. Jones rewarded the faiths with an 11-year career in LA with five straight All-Pro seasons and seven straight Pro Bowls.
There were a whole lot of good players in the 1961 draft, but just five players ended up in the Hall of Fame. However, just 26 of the 96 players taken after Jones ever saw a professional football game time.
2. WR Jerry Rice, Mississippi Valley State
1985, 1st round, 16h pick overall, San Francisco
Ethan Horton. The North Carolina tight end went with the 15th pick in the 1985 NFL Draft.
The New York Jets took Wisconsin WR Al Toon with the ten, and Cincinnati selected Miami speedster Eddie Brown at the 13. There at the 16 was Jerry Rice, a statistical superstar from the high-octane Mississippi Valley State passing game.
The numbers are still mind-boggling. In his 16 years at San Francisco, Rice caught 1,549 passes for 22,895 yards and 197 touchdowns. He was named to ten All-Pro teams in 11 seasons, went to 11 straight Pro Bowls, and 12 in all in the Niner O.
With that 16th pick, San Francisco got the 1987 NFL MVP, the 1988 Super Bowl MVP, a two-time NFL Offensive Player of the Year, and, arguably, the greatest football player ever.
1. QB Tom Brady, Michigan
2000, 6th round, 199th pick overall, New England
It’s the all-timer of a trivia question. Who went 198th?
It was Iowa defensive back-turned-scouting star Matt Bowen.
Eight of the next nine players taken after 199 played in five games or fewer, and only San Francisco TE-turned-long snapper Brian Jennings – taken in the seventh round – managed to go to a Pro Bowl out of the 55 remaining picks after 199.
It’s okay to say it. The New England Patriots came up with the biggest dumb-luck draft pick of all-time, and it will forever be the one that gives NFL Draft die-hards a reason to watch until the end and dream the impossible to come true.
In terms of value, talent, and production, getting the greatest quarterback of all-time – with 70,514 yards, 517 touchdowns, six Super Bowls, four Super Bowl MVPs, three NFL MVPs, three All-Pro honors, and 14 Pro Bowl selections – is just plain silly.
But as long as there is an NFL, it will always be the greatest draft pick of all-time.
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