20 Ridiculously Bad NFL Draft Picks

Top 20 Ridiculously Bad NFL Draft Picks

Welcome to WatchMojo and today we’re counting down our picks for twenty biggest busts from the NFL draft. These players represent dreams dashed, hopes shattered, and wasted hype.

#20: Dion Jordan (2013)

Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins struck gold in 1983 with their draft pick of Dan Marino, one of the best quarterbacks in football history. They’ve had a mixed record ever since. Exactly thirty years later, the Dolphins thought they hit the jackpot again with defensive end Dion Jordan. The man was a tackling machine at Oregon, and despite a shoulder injury in his last year, Miami had high hopes. They drafted him at number three. After a lackluster rookie season with only twenty-six tackles, he struggled with performance-enhancing substances. He faced multiple suspensions over the following years and bounced around the league. His time in the NFL ended after the 2020 season.

#19: Kevin White (2015)

Chicago Bears

There was a lot of buzz around West Virginia wide receiver Kevin White before the 2015 draft. The Chicago Bears ultimately picked him up with the seventh overall draft pick in the first round. They were eager to see him racking up touchdowns and yardage, and signed White to a four-year, $15 million deal. Unfortunately, the Bears placed a bad bet: White ended up missing his entire rookie season. He spent his first three seasons hounded by leg and shoulder injuries. He moved first to the Cardinals, then to the 49ers and Saints. At the end of the 2022 season, the Saints cut White from their practice squad. He never caught a single touchdown in the NFL regular season.

#18: Vernon Gholston (2008)

New York Jets

After some modest success in the 2000s, the New York Jets have had a run of bad luck. As of 2023, they have the longest playoff drought - they haven’t made the playoffs since 2010. In 2008, they were hoping to build a tough defense around Vernon Gholston, a defensive end from Ohio State. In college, he was a sack factory, tying the school record twice. His stats at the combine impressed the heck out of the Jets, and they snagged him in the first round at number six. Gholston netted $21 million in guaranteed dollars. Unfortunately, he couldn’t adapt to the outside linebacker position in the Jets’ defensive scheme. He only played one whole season, recorded a handful of tackles, and didn’t get a single sack.

#17: Jason Smith (2009)

St. Louis Rams

At the 2009 draft, the St. Louis Rams were looking for a keystone player for their offensive line. After the combine, they set their eyes on Jason Smith out of Baylor. He was an All-Big 12 player and co-MVP for the Baylor Bears. His combine was impressive - Smith proved to be shockingly fast for a big man. The Rams grabbed Smith at number two. They gave him a massive deal: Smith’s six-year contract was worth around $61 million. Over half of that was guaranteed. In November, Smith suffered a terrible concussion. The following year, he lost his starter spot to a rookie. After a few less-than-memorable years, the Rams traded Smith away.

#16: Josh Rosen (2018)

Arizona Cardinals

Josh Rosen was the star QB for the UCLA Bruins. Rosen was an NCAA phenom, setting the UCLA single-season passing yard record. As a freshman, Rosen was both an All-American and a Pac-12 Freshman Offensive Player of the Year. His future looked bright, and in 2018, he was drafted tenth overall by the Arizona Cardinals. Unfortunately for Rosen, quarterback wasn’t Arizona’s only weak spot on offense. His squad’s performance was abysmal, and Rosen threw more interceptions than touchdowns. Between 2019 and 2023, Rosen floated through the league as a backup quarterback and a member of practice squads. He had pit stops in Miami, Tampa Bay, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Cleveland before getting cut by the Vikings in January 2023.

#15: Matt Leinart (2006)

Arizona Cardinals

Matt Leinart earned national prominence as one of the two great quarterbacks in the incredible 2005 Rose Bowl. He helmed the USC Trojans against Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns. Both were subsequently drafted into the NFL. Leinart was picked up at number 10 by the Arizona Cardinals. Their plan was to have him back up veteran Super Bowl champ Kurt Warner, to learn from a master. Leinart played with the Cardinals between 2006 and 2009, starting in only seventeen games. Of those, the Cardinals only won seven. When Warner left the Cards in 2010, the Heisman Trophy winner lost the job to Derek Anderson. Before retiring in 2013, Leinart played in only four more games, two for Houston and two for Oakland.

#14: David Klingler (1992)

Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals were briefly a force to be reckoned with at the end of the 1980s; they had recently lost to San Francisco in the Super Bowl. By the 1990s, the page had turned. An aging Boomer Esiason was struggling in the back half of his career. They won only three games in 1991, and the Bengals were looking to the future with their high draft pick. At the time, David Klingler was breaking records left and right at the University of Houston. He threw a record-breaking eleven touchdowns against Eastern Washington. Cincinnati eagerly burned their first round pick on the budding superstar. Unfortunately, of his twenty-four starts with the Bengals, they won only four games.

#13: Justin Gilbert (2014)

Cleveland Browns

The Cleveland Browns have a long, depressing history. Since they moved to Baltimore to become the Ravens and after they were reconstituted as a new team, the Browns have struggled. The new Browns have a long, sordid history of draft pick disappointments. In 2014, they burned their 8th overall pick on a cornerback named Justin Gilbert. Gilbert was the defensive MVP of the 2012 Fiesta Bowl and a solid kickoff returner for the OSU Cowboys. The guy was perceived to be both a defensive and special teams threat, two picks for the price of one. He netted exactly one interception and one defensive touchdown in his three years in the NFL. He was suspended for the 2017 season for substance abuse violations and never returned.

#12: Steve Emtman (1992)

Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts of the early 1990s desperately needed to shore up their porous defensive line. Enter Steve Emtman, a guy who won the Heisman as a junior. With Emtman anchoring their defense, the Washington Huskies secured a Rose Bowl victory. He seemed like the answer to all of Indy’s prayers, so they snatched him up in the 1992 draft. Unlike many draft busts, Emtman wasn’t a college titan turned professional dud. He was plagued by serious injuries. He blew out a knee in both of his first two seasons and suffered a serious neck injury in his third. Many football observers blamed the hard AstroTurf surface for his injuries. His career woes are credited with the NFL’s transition from turf to grass fields.

#11: Heath Shuler (1994)

Washington

Washington beat the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI. Facing a resurgent NFC East, they spent the next few years struggling to keep their team in fighting shape. They were searching for a new franchise quarterback in the 1994 Draft. Their gaze turned towards the Tennessee Volunteers. Young Heath Shuler was absolutely decimating records. Most analysts considered him a guaranteed game-changer, as did Schuler. After Washington eagerly snapped him up, Shuler was a training camp pain as his agent negotiated a hefty contract. When the season began, the college hotshot floundered in the pros. In his eight rookie starts, Schuler threw twelve interceptions and lost all but one game.

#10: Isaiah Wilson (2020)

Tennessee Titans

Unlike many infamous busts, Isaiah Wilson barely made the first round cut of the 2020 NFL Draft. He was a second-team All-SEC offensive tackle out of Georgia. Tennessee had high hopes for Wilson, but his rookie year was an absolute mess. First, he was arrested for a DUI in September of 2020. Then he spent most of the season oscillating between active status and the reserve/COVID-19 list. He also served a one-game suspension for violating team rules. He played exactly one snap in his rookie year before getting traded to the Dolphins. He was waived by Miami exactly three days later for missing a mandatory physical and skipping team workouts. The New York Giants also cut him from their practice squad in 2022.

#9: Lawrence Phillips (1996)

St. Louis Rams

The St. Louis Rams took a tremendous risk with Lawrence Phillips in the 1996 NFL Draft. On the one hand, the running back was a star. As a freshman, he came off the bench and ran for 137 yards against UCLA, the reigning Pac-10 champions. He also crested 180 yards in the 1994 Orange Bowl. But Phillips was also arrested for assault. In the pros, his numbers were lackluster. Phillips also bears the dubious honor of missing the block that may have saved the career of 49er legend Steve Young. After retirement, Phillips was arrested for running three people over with his car. He was sentenced to a thirty-one-year term for multiple assaults. He then killed a cellmate and ultimately died in prison.

#8: Andre Ware (1990)

Detroit Lions

One of the sad truths about the NFL is it took far too long to see Black quarterbacks every Sunday. In 1990, Andre Ware had a chance to follow in the footsteps of greats like Warren Moon and Randall Cunningham. Ware had a cannon for an arm. While a junior at Houston, he set twenty-seven NCAA records. There were concerns he was too unseasoned to handle the faster pace of the NFL. The Lions drafted Ware over the objections of their scouting coordinator, who resigned in protest. The coordinator was right. Over his brief time with the Lions, Ware only started six games. He stayed close to the game after his retirement from the pros. Today, Ware is a television fixture for college football fans.

#7: Akili Smith (1999)

Cincinnati Bengals

Akili Smith is an interesting figure in football history. Six years before entering the NFL, Smith was actually drafted by MLB’s Pittsburgh Pirates. He spent three years with their farm teams before heading to Oregon for college. As a senior, he averaged almost three touchdowns per game. His per-attempt passing yards were the best in the NCAA. Still, 1999 was a big draft year for quarterbacks, and analysts had their doubts. He only really had one season as a starter under his belt. The Bengals rolled the dice and paid the price. Literally. Smith held out for weeks until he got a signing bonus of almost eleven million dollars. In four seasons, Smith only started in seventeen games and fumbled in most of them.

#6: Brian Bosworth (1987)

Seattle Seahawks

Any Boomers and Gen-Xers out there know all about the Boz. As a linebacker with Oklahoma, Brian Bosworth won the Dick Butkus Award and was a twice-named unanimous All-American. But that success came with a large serving of controversy. The Boz was a nationally known bad boy who also tested positive for steroids. The Seahawks needed a tougher defense, so they gave him a shot, despite his “letter of disinterest.” His career started off well enough, but a shoulder injury ended it in less than three seasons. Bosworth spent the nineties starring in cheesy action films.

#5: Charles Rogers (2003)

Detroit Lions

There are few draft picks regretted more deeply by Lions fans than Charles Rogers. A local Michigan boy, Rogers flew like a lightning bolt as a receiver for the Spartans. He was poised to be the best offensive weapon wielded by the Lions since Barry Sanders. He had an amazing start in his first five games as a rookie. He looked like he could eventually become the next Randy Moss. It all came crashing down when a hit during practice broke his clavicle. The following year, he broke his clavicle again only three games into the season. He played one final and lackluster season before being released and retiring.

#4: Tony Mandarich (1989)

Green Bay Packers

In the NFL, a truly great offensive lineman is worth his weight in gold. Michigan State’s offensive tackle Tony Mandarich was valued at more than a few bricks. Sports Illustrated called Mandarich “The Incredible Bulk.” He was a tremendous block of muscle and shockingly quick on his feet. A few hyperbolic scouts called him “the best offensive line prospect ever.” The Packers grabbed him at number two overall. What didn’t go wrong? He was a problem on and off the field, with a bad attitude and substance use disorder. After taking two years off to get sober, he finished his career with three halfway decent seasons with the Indianapolis Colts.

#3: Johnny Manziel (2014)

Cleveland Browns

Where to begin with Johnny Football? At Texas A&M, the baby-faced quarterback reached unusual levels of fame for a college player. He was a Heisman winner with impressive numbers. Still, sports fans were a little shocked when he announced he would go pro two years early. The buzz around Manziel was as electric as it was ubiquitous. Every sports prognosticator from coast to coast saw him as a top five pick. His fame-seeking left the league unimpressed, with his stock dropping to number twenty-two on draft day. His play, when he saw any field time, was as atrocious as his attitude. A nagging elbow injury and domestic violence allegations ended his NFL career after only two seasons.

#2: Ryan Leaf (1998)

San Diego Chargers

The Chargers never won a Super Bowl while in San Diego. In the late 1990s, they hoped to change that. They and the Colts were both vying for the number one draft pick in 1998. They each saw a future in a young Tennessee Volunteer named Peyton Manning. The Colts lost their final game in 1997, so Manning was theirs. The rest is history. The Chargers placed their hopes in Ryan Leaf. The media barely saw a difference between the two, so the Chargers were confident that Leaf would give them a bold new future. What they got was a quarterback who threw two touchdowns and fifteen interceptions his rookie year. He faded into obscurity after playing in only three seasons.

#1: JaMarcus Russell (2007)

Oakland Raiders

Close observers of the NFL will tell you that JaMarcus Russell is a cautionary tale about how character matters. There’s no doubt at all that the man had talent. At 6’6”, two hundred-sixty pounds, he was a big, athletic quarterback with thunder in his arm. Analyst Mel Kiper once compared the LSU star to John Elway. The Raiders nabbed him at number one, paid him over $31 million guaranteed, and then the troubles began. He came into camp thirty pounds overweight. He clearly cared more about the money than the job. His partying and laziness got in the way of his talent. In a meager twenty five starts, he threw more interceptions than touchdowns and fumbled more than both.

Did we fumble the ball with any of our picks? Tackle the problem with your worst draft picks in the comments below.