Remembering the Biggest Draft Busts in NFL History

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Matt Leinart

2006 Draft: Arizona Cardinals; First Round, 10th Pick

Matt Leinart was a superstar in college, quarterbacking the USC Trojans during one of the most dominant runs in college football history. However, Leinart’s college success didn’t transfer to the pros. He spent his time in the pros as a journeyman backup, and left the Cardinals wondering what else they could have done with that first round pick.

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Marcus Mariota

2015 Draft: Tennessee Titans; First Round, 2nd Pick

Heading into the 2015 NFL draft, the debate among most NFL experts was who would go first: Florida State QB Jameis Winston or Oregon QB Marcus Mariota. In the end, Winston was chosen first by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which in-turn led to the Tennessee Titans taking Mariota second. The quarterback wasn’t terrible over the course of his first four seasons, but he wasn’t spectacular either. In 2019, Mariota was benched for former Dolphins signal caller Ryan Tannehill.

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Maurice Clarett

2005 Draft: Denver Broncos; Third Round, 101st Pick

While Maurice Clarett wasn’t drafted all that high, he belongs on this list thanks to his initial college career. In 2002, a then-freshman Clarett led the Ohio State Buckeyes to a 14-0 record and National Championship, tallying 1,237 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns. Clarett’s year was so good that some were already prognosticating that he would go on to be a first round draft pick. However, a series of incidents – including alleged academic improprieties – ended Clarett’s Ohio State career in 2003. Denver took a chance on drafting Clarett in 2005, however he was cut before the preseason began. Clarett never played a snap for the Broncos, or any other NFL team. Clarett would encounter problems with the law following his aborted football career, before turning his life around.

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Paxton Lynch

2016 Draft: Denver Broncos; First Round, 26th Pick

Coming into the 2016 NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos were defending Super Bowl Champions and looking to replace the just-retired Peyton Manning. Their solution was to select Memphis QB Paxton Lynch with the 26th overall pick. The choice, to put it nicely, didn’t work out. Lynch started a grand total of four games in two years for the Broncos. He was released in 2018, and has served as practice squad player and backup for the Seahawks and Steelers since.

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Mark Sanchez

2009 Draft: New York Jets; First Round, 5th Pick

Mark Sanchez’s career in the NFL is truly a tale of two careers. If one only looks at his first two years in the league, they’d be hard-pressed to call him a bust. The former USC QB led the Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship games in 2009 and 2010 (for just the second and third times in their history), defeating Phillip Rivers, Peyton Manning, and Tom Brady in playoff games. However, Sanchez’s career took a dramatic turn in the following years. He was hampered by injuries and erratic play, and became the butt of national jokes thanks to a rather awkward fumble in a Thanksgiving Day game against the Patriots in 2012. The Jets released Sanchez in 2014, and he bounced between the Eagles, Cowboys, Broncos, Bears, and Redskins over the next five years before retiring in 2019.

[liftsiron]

Some guys just don't seem to be able to make the transition.

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Christian Hackenberg

2016 Draft: New York Jets; Second Round, 50th Pick

Despite all we said about Mark Sanchez’s later tenure with the Jets, at least he actually played for the team. In 2016, the Jets selected Christian Hackenberg with the 50th overall pick in the draft, played him in the preseason… and proceeded to not play him a single snap in 2016. The following season Hackenberg played in the preseason again, and was technically active for several games as the team’s backup QB, but once again never made it into a game. The Jets then drafted Sam Darnold and traded Hackenberg to the Raiders. Hackenberg never played a down for Oakland, or Philadelphia, or Cincinnati (each of whom had him on the practice squad) and is currently out of the NFL.

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Art Schlichter

1982 Draft: Baltimore Colts Round 1, Pick 4

Art Schlichter was selected by the Baltimore Colts as the fourth overall pick of the 1982 draft. By 1987, he was banned from the NFL after involvement in a multi-million dollar sports betting operation.

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Reggie Bush

2006 Draft: Houston Passes On Bush

After Bush finished his stellar career at USC, he was expected to be the first pick in the 2006 NFL draft. Houston passed on Bush with the first pick in a controversial decision that’s worked out perfectly. The Texans got All-Pro defensive end Mario Williams and Bush earned eight times as many millions this season than touchdowns.

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Blair Thomas

1990 Draft: New York Jets, Round 1, Pick 2

Blair Thomas was one of the best players in Penn State history. After being selected with the second overall pick in 1990, Thomas would rush for only 2,000 yards and five touchdowns in his career and leave the league by 1995.

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Bruce Pickens

1991 Draft: Atlanta Falcons, Round 1, Pick 3

Bruce Pickens played for Nebraska and was the top cornerback in the nation. NFL scouts were convinced he was a star in the making. He would record just two career interceptions and duck out of the league for good by the end of the 1995 season.