Found this site: http://www.drafthistory.com/index.php For those interested, check out the site and share with us your most interesting or unusual find.
Shannon Sharpe in the late 7th round was a shocker. I remember hearing a story that he tried to quit in his first pre season but they were playing a game in Japan (I think Japan) and he couldn't get a ticket home because of the language barrier. That next game he absolutley crushed someone on special teams returning the ball and solidified a spot on the roster. The rest is history. But is there any HOF'er or future HOF'er drafted as late as him?
I checked on Johnny Unitas because I know he was originally drafted and cut by Pittsburgh. He was drafted in the 9th in '55. While I was on the QB page I also found Bart Starr was drafted in the 17th round in '56, George Blanda was drafted in the 12th round in '49 and Roger Staubach was drafted in the 10th round in '64, but I'm assuming his commitment to the Navy scared everyone off as he WAS a Heisman winner.
I think Stauback had a 4-year Navy commitment that he had to fulfill. One thing to keep in mind, these late round draft picks also occured in an era when there were only 14 or 18 teams, so a 7th round pick back then translates to a 4th round pick in this era. That's a great site-- a real stroll down memory lane.
Here are a few late rounders that caught my eye: Rocket Ismail with the 100th pick in 1991. I would have thought his name and rep at Notre Dame would have gotten him an earlier selection. Keenan McCardell with the 20th pick of the 12th round by WAS in 1991. Jamal Anderson with the 201st pick in the 1994 draft. Bill Goldberg (the wrestler) with the 301st pick of 1990 draft.
My memory tells me the Rocket went to play football in Canada for alot more money than he could get in the NFL at the time. When he returned he played for the Cowboys but wasn't anything special. Feel free to correct me if i'm wrong. I didn't bother looking up his stats.
Google is my friend: Article about a re-drafting of 1991 Draft "Originally, Jerry and Jimmy traded up (New England originally had the first pick) to take Rocket Ismail, but the Irish star couldn't come to terms with Dallas and bolted for Canada before the draft."
Wow... that is a fun site! I love to see re-cast drafts. In that one, only 9 of 27 picks would, in one man's retrospective, been worthy of a first-round pick. Round 2: 5 move up Round 3: 4 move up Round 4: 1 moves up Round 5: 2 move up Round 6: 2 move up Round 7: 1 moves up Round 8: 1 moves up Round 9: 1 moves up ( Round 12: 1 moves up (Keenan McCardell) This is a good argument for trading down for multiple Round 3 through Round 6 or 7 picks.
