Top 10 Biggest NFL Busts of All Time
This is one for those that were highly touted coming out of college and fell flat once they got the big money.
Ryan David Leaf is a former American football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League for four seasons. He was selected as the second overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft after only Peyton Manning. He played for the San Diego Chargers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys, and Seattle... read more About 85% of America thought HE was better than PEYTON MANNING. Well, let us look at what Manning did and what Leaf did. Manning went to three Super Bowls, has almost 70,000 passing yards, holds the single-season passing touchdown record, holds the career touchdown mark, and, well, isn't on this list.
Leaf? Well, the Chargers got a guy who had a 50 quarterback rating for his career, retired early, and became a jailbird.
Without a doubt, the biggest bust EVER. One-year wonder at Washington State, five-year blunder in the NFL.
I'm surprised that Cryin' Leaf doesn't have like 98% of the vote on this one. God, did he suck.
Just as bad on the field as Ryan Leaf, but the coaching staff kept wishing he would get better and kept giving him numerous additional chances even though he was a lost cause.
He's the only Top 5 pick from the 1989 draft who's not in the Hall of Fame. The others? Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders, Deion Sanders, and Derrick Thomas.
As a Packer, he was the biggest offensive line bust of all time. Though he DID become a decent guard for the Colts.
And Troy Aikman and Derrick Thomas. Boy, I'll bet the Packers feel stupid.
Big guy, big bust. Barry Sanders and Deion Sanders went in that draft.
In his defense, the Browns were an expansion team, but they faltered badly. He was recently released by the Jags.
He went to the '99 Browns. I don't know what you want from him.
This running back couldn't stay out of trouble. He was cut in the middle of his second season, spent a year in Spain, missed a block that ended Steve Young's career, wound up in Canada, and now he's rotting away in jail.
And to think the Rams gave up on Jerome Bettis! They passed on Eddie George and Ray Lewis for a criminal.
He kept getting sacked because of a weak offensive line. If Tony Boselli (who was a very good pass blocker) hadn't suffered a career-ending injury and had actually played for Houston, David Carr would be lower on this list.
He's a lot like Tim Couch. Both were expected to lead their new expansion teams to success.
Hey, everyone knows who Derek Carr is. Does anyone recognize David Carr anymore?
Same as Couch - four bad years and a ton of sacks, and for his troubles, he landed in Carolina.
Although, to be fair, he played for Matt Millen, and none of the other QBs from that draft went on to do anything spectacular.
Aw man, he never recorded a sack in his career. Pretty pathetic because he was a top-10 pick.
Played one TERRIBLE season, tested positive for cocaine, spent 33 months in jail for sexual assault, got banned from the NFL, and spent the rest of his days in the WLAF and Arena Football.
And to think the Eagles passed on Jerry Rice!
The Newcomers
Our most recent bust entry played a total of 10 games. I've seen his tape with the Lions, and he is terrible in man coverage, getting beat by the likes of Adams, Hopkins, Moore, and Samuel. Okudah has also had durability issues, suffering two different injuries, and now he has a tougher one to come back from.
The future certainly looks in doubt for being the highest corner taken in history. I would argue he is a bigger bust than Isaiah Wilson, knowing who was on the board after him that the Lions could have gone with instead.
Even when he played, he was a terrible QB and the most overrated one in the league. Now he's in prison, and if the Falcons had not traded their pick, they could've gotten LT and Drew Brees. Just a horrible move.
By the way, how is Mario Williams on this list? He's a great player. Way better than Reggie Bush, who is closer to a bust than Mario.
Vick was actually a spectacular athlete. He's possibly the reason why today's top passers are fast with cannon arms.
Just think that the Chargers had the No. 1 pick that year and traded it, getting LT and Drew Brees. Vick's next stop was the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
Never played a down with the Vikings, and mental issues killed his career.
Star running back for Ohio State. Never gained a single yard for the Vikings. Played for St. Louis for two years and had a grand total of 17 yards for his NFL career.
And the Texans passed on Reggie Bush.
Reginald Alfred "Reggie" Bush Jr. is an American football running back who is currently on the Buffalo Bills roster. He had a long, average career. More of a receiving back.
I was afraid that history would repeat itself when the Packers drafted Aaron Rodgers.
Trade to 30 for this guy? Jahvid Best was supposed to be the next Barry Sanders. Instead, he had like 2 100-yard games and could not be consistent enough to match what Barry had done in the '90s.
This pretty much marked the curse of finding a great quality running back for the Lions for quite some time.
Just think of the position the Bears would be in if they still had Thomas Jones. Benson never ran for any significant yards, and he's not even on the team anymore.
It's probably a good thing they got rid of him. We need Thomas Jones!
Wow! To think we could have just kept Thomas Jones and traded Benson. Where's Benson now? Oh yeah, taking a breathalyzer somewhere.