Michigan’s Tom Brady set the bar so high for late-round picks that no one will ever surpass it.
Right?
Sure, unless your name is Bart Starr.
Alabama’s quarterback was a 17th-round draft pick in 1956. There were much fewer NFL teams then, which led to many more rounds. Still, Starr was the 200th player selected. Brady, a sixth-round pick in 2000, went 199th overall to the Patriots.
Brady and Starr aren’t the only players to rise from draft afterthoughts to impact players.
Georgia’s Jake Scott was as a seventh-round pick in 1970 who became a five-time Pro Bowler and defensive force who helped the Miami Dolphins win consecutive Super Bowls in 1972 and 1973.
But we don’t need to go back that far to find five SEC standouts, all drafted in the sixth round or later, who made an impact in the NFL.
And, no, we’re not counting Bo Jackson, who was re-drafted in the seventh round in 1987 after going No. 1 overall and refusing to sign in 1986.
Bo knows better than to try to slide onto this list …
Terrell Davis, Georgia, 1995
Davis was a sixth-round pick (196th overall) who powered the Denver Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl titles in 1997 and 1998, winning one Super Bowl MVP along the way.
Davis was a three-time first-team All-Pro who became the fourth player in NFL history to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season.
Greg Hardy, Ole Miss, 2010
Hardy was a sixth-round pick who made the 2013 Pro Bowl. Off-field issues have threatened to ruin his career, but twice he’s had 11.0 or more sacks in a season.
Jay Ratliff, Auburn, 2005
Ratliff has a history of being overlooked. In 2004, his Tigers finished 13-0 but, in one of college football’s greatest snubs, weren’t selected to play in the BCS national championship game.
Months later, Ratliff was selected in the seventh round by the Dallas Cowboys, 224th overall. The defensive end made four Pro Bowls before injuries began to take a toll.
Steve Johnson, Kentucky, 2008
Johnson was Buffalo’s seventh-round pick, also 224th overall, who had three consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons from 2010-12.
Johnson led the SEC with 13 TD receptions in 2007, a key target for Andre Woodson, who set the SEC record with 40 touchdown throws.
Blair Walsh, Georgia, 2012
Kickers are real people, too, and Walsh was one of the best on the planet in 2012.
Drafted in the sixth round by Minnesota, he made the Pro Bowl and was named first-team All-Pro after leading the league with 35 field goals as a rookie.
Walsh led the NFL again in 2015 with 34 field goals, even though he missed a huge one in the playoffs.
Managing Editor
A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.
