Name Some Great NFL Draft "Sleepers"
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I'll start it off with this Superbowl winner whose brother was drafted in the 2nd round the previous year. A real force in the Seattle D was an unsigned free agent in 2009. Michael Bennett DE Texas A&M.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Bennett_%28defensive_lineman%29
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Define sleeper first. Someone taken on day 3 (as it now is, rds 4-7) who went on to be great? Brady and Sherman spring to mind.
If you're looking for 'solid starters' then Gipson, Burfict and a load of others too.
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I would define it as someone showing "star" type play drafted only as high as 6th or 7th round if drafted at all. Bennett shined in the best defense in the NFL so clearly meets that standard. Sherman was 5th round so no on him, but Brady was 6th round compensatory so definite yes there.
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Define sleeper first. Someone taken on day 3 (as it now is, rds 4-7) who went on to be great? Brady and Sherman spring to mind.
If you're looking for 'solid starters' then Gipson, Burfict and a load of others too.
Define sleeper first. Someone taken on day 3 (as it now is, rds 4-7) who went on to be great? Brady and Sherman spring to mind.
If you're looking for 'solid starters' then Gipson, Burfict and a load of others too.
It's a long long list, thats for sure.......Ima do Browns only cause there are just so many.......
Leroy Kelly........HOF....8th round(udfa now)
Jim Marshall......HOF....4th round
Doug Deiken................6th
Brian Sipe....................13th (udfa now)
Ernest Byner................10th (udfa now)
Reggie Langhorne........7th
and lets add our current group of undrafted players we have who are out performing their "drafted" counterparts and could be future stars(ok...Gipson is already there)....
Kwan Williams
Tashaun Gipson
Craig Robertson
Taylor Gabriel
For the Nfl......Ill throw in Tony Romo and Kurt Warner......
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You can add to that list all the great UDFAs that have come through, like Romo, Cribbs, Warner and the like.
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Define sleeper first. Someone taken on day 3 (as it now is, rds 4-7) who went on to be great? Brady and Sherman spring to mind.
If you're looking for 'solid starters' then Gipson, Burfict and a load of others too.
It's a long long list, thats for sure.......Ima do Browns only cause there are just so many.......
Leroy Kelly........HOF....8th round(udfa now)
Jim Marshall......HOF....4th round
Doug Deiken................6th
Brian Sipe....................13th (udfa now)
Ernest Byner................10th (udfa now)
Reggie Langhorne........7th
and lets add our current group of undrafted players we have who are out performing their "drafted" counterparts and could be future stars(ok...Gipson is already there)....
Kwan Williams
Tashaun Gipson
Craig Robertson
Taylor Gabriel
For the Nfl......Ill throw in Tony Romo and Kurt Warner......
It's a long long list, thats for sure.......Ima do Browns only cause there are just so many.......
Leroy Kelly........HOF....8th round(udfa now)
Jim Marshall......HOF....4th round
Doug Deiken................6th
Brian Sipe....................13th (udfa now)
Ernest Byner................10th (udfa now)
Reggie Langhorne........7th
and lets add our current group of undrafted players we have who are out performing their "drafted" counterparts and could be future stars(ok...Gipson is already there)....
Kwan Williams
Tashaun Gipson
Craig Robertson
Taylor Gabriel
For the Nfl......Ill throw in Tony Romo and Kurt Warner......
Jim Marshall is not in the HOF.....but in my opinion should be.
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Eighth Round or lower players that are in the HOF
Eighth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1936 Wayne Millner 65 E Boston Redskins
1964 Leroy Kelly 110 RB Cleveland Browns
1983 Richard Dent 203 DE Chicago Bears Back to top
Ninth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1936 Dan Fortmann 78 G Chicago Bears
1941 Tony Canadeo 77 HB Green Bay Packers
1955 Johnny Unitas 102 QB Pittsburgh Steelers (Cut before start of 1955 and then signed as free agent with Baltimore Colts in 1956.)
1957 Don Maynard 109 WR-HB New York Giants
1967 Ken Houston 214 S Houston Oilers Back to top
Tenth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1963 Jackie Smith 129 TE St. Louis Cardinals
1964 Roger Staubach 129 QB Dallas Cowboys (Drafted as a future selection. Also drafted as a future selection in 16th round -122nd overall- of 1964 AFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.) Back to top
Eleventh Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1945 Tom Fears 103 E Cleveland Rams (Drafted as a future selection.) Back to top
Twelfth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1947 Dante Lavelli 103 E Los Angeles Rams
1949 George Blanda 119 QB Chicago Bears (Also drafted in 2nd round - 9th overall- of 1949 AAFC Draft by the Chicago Hornets.) Back to top
Thirteenth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1962 AFL Nick Buoniconti 102 LB Boston Patriots Back to top
Fourteenth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1961 David "Deacon" Jones 186 DE Los Angeles Rams Back to top
Fifteenth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1956 Willie Davis 181 DE Cleveland Browns Back to top
Seventeeth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1945 Arnie Weinmeister 166 E Brooklyn Tigers
1956 Bart Starr 200 QB Green Bay Packers Back to top
Eighteenth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1965 Chris Hanburger 245 LB Washington Redskins Back to top
Nineteeth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1951 Andy Robustelli 228 DE Los Angeles Rams Back to top
Twentieth Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1954 Raymond Berry 232 E Baltimore Colts (Drafted as a future selection.) Back to top
Twenty-First Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1958 John Madden 244 T Philadelphia Eagles Back to top
Twenty-Seventh Round Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1953 Roosevelt Brown 321 T New York Giants Back to top
Special NFL Selections,
1950 Year Player Pos. Team
1950 Lou Creekmur T Detroit Lions (Selected by the Lions in the second round of a special draft in 1950. Originally drafted in 1948 by the Philadelphia Eagles in 26th round - 243rd overall - and the AAFC's Los Angeles Dons in 28th round - 197th overall. He opted to complete his college eligibility.
1950 Art Donovan DT Baltimore Colts (Selected by Baltimore Colts in 3rd round of special selection draft in 1950. A year later, after Colts disbanded, he was selected by Cleveland Browns in 4th round - 50th overall - but was traded to New York Yanks before the 1951 season began. Also selected in 22nd round - 204th overall- of 1947 NFL Draft by the New York Giants and in the 17th round - 131st overall - in the 1949 AAFC Draft by the Buffalo Bills.) Back to top Special AFL Selections,
1960 Year Player Overall Pos. Team
1960 AFL Jim Otto n/a C Oakland Raiders (Drafted among 33 players selected by the Raiders in the first round of the player pool selection process before the AFL's first season.) Back to top
Undrafted Free Agents Year Player Pos. Team
1946 Frank Gatski G Cleveland Browns (AAFC) 1946 Lou Groza T-K Cleveland Browns (AAFC) 1946 Marion Motley FB Cleveland Browns (AAFC) 1946 Bill Willis MG Cleveland Browns (AAFC)
1948 Joe Perry FB San Francisco 49ers (AAFC) 1948 Emlen Tunnell DB New York Giants
1951 Jack Butler CB Pittsburgh Steelers
1952 Dick "Night Train" Lane DB Los Angeles Rams
1960 Willie Wood DB Green Bay Packers
1963 Willie Brown DB Houston Oilers (Cut during training camp by Oilers and then signed by Denver Broncos.)
1966 Emmitt Thomas DB Kansas City Chiefs
1967 Larry Little G San Diego Chargers
1970 Jim Langer C Cleveland Browns (Cut by Browns during training camp and then signed by Miami Dolphins.)
1984 Warren Moon QB Houston Oilers
1990 John Randle DT Minnesota Vikings Back to top
Kurt Warner will Join that last list.
Note this also: In today's 7 round draft plus compensatory, I understand that there will be 256 choices taken.
Note the "number selected" above. Even a person selected in the 20th round in the "old" days could fall into a 256 person draft as it is held now.
Wayne Millner, taken at #65 was an eigth round pick then. Today he would be the first person taken in the third round.....considered a pretty high pick now.
Bart Starr....17th round pick then...was #200. Tom Brady at #199 was taken in round 6.
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It's a long long list, thats for sure.......Ima do Browns only cause there are just so many.......
Leroy Kelly........HOF....8th round(udfa now)
Jim Marshall......HOF....4th round
Doug Deiken................6th
Brian Sipe....................13th (udfa now)
Ernest Byner................10th (udfa now)
Reggie Langhorne........7th
and lets add our current group of undrafted players we have who are out performing their "drafted" counterparts and could be future stars(ok...Gipson is already there)....
Kwan Williams
Tashaun Gipson
Craig Robertson
Taylor Gabriel
For the Nfl......Ill throw in Tony Romo and Kurt Warner......
Jim Marshall is not in the HOF.....but in my opinion should be.
Jim Marshall is not in the HOF.....but in my opinion should be.
Wow....really?.....I didn't know that, but it's a crime if he's not in there.......
What about Marion Motley?.....I think he was undrafted too...
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Undrafted 1952 Dick "Night Train" Lane DB Los Angeles Rams. Now that is a really super WOW!-but he came out of Austin back in the days when segregation was at it's worst here.
Great story of a "foundling" infant who just about walked on with the Rams after 4 years in the military. Worth reading his history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Lane_%28American_football%29
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What is amazing is how many Hall of Famers the Browns let slip through their fingers: Art Donovan, Doug Atkins, Henry Jordan, Willie Davis, Dick Lebeau, Jim Langer
(but I don't think Brady Quinn, Colt McCoy, Brandon Weeden will be joining that list)
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