VOD Not Available
This video is not available.
10 Best Ohio State NFL Draft Picks Of All-Time
Which Ohio State players turned out to be the best NFL draft picks? Who are the ten greatest selections in the school’s history?
March 25, 2016
Which Ohio State players turned out to be the best NFL draft picks? Who are the ten best selections in the school’s history?
It’s not just about who the best pro prospects were, or even who had the best NFL careers. It’s about which former Buckeyes were the best draft picks for the teams that drafted them – or in some rare cases, were the top undrafted free agent gets.
It doesn’t really help an NFL team to take a player and then see him rock – or spend a key part of his career – doing big things for someone else – Cris Carter being OSU’s prime example, crushing it for Minnesota, not Philadelphia.
Dick LeBeau is in the Hall of Fame as a Detroit Lion – but he was cut in camp after being drafted by Cleveland. That’s a bad draft pick.
Offensive linemen were the stars over the years when it came to turning into tremendous pro players. The running backs were strong, and the linebackers were relatively solid. The problem? The defensive backs were stunningly okay, the defensive linemen were puzzlingly awful, and the quarterbacks? None of them were within 78 miles of making the top ten cut.
Compared to most schools, though, OSU has its share of Hall of Famers who were no-brainers, and a few that deserve to have a bust in Canton, but don’t.
The ten best Ohio State Buckeye NFL draft picks were …
10. OT Bob Vogel, Baltimore
1963, 1st round, 5th pick overall
Pick Before: G Ed Budde, Michigan State by Philadelphia
Pick After: GLB Lee Roy Jordan, Alabama by Dallas
The 6-5, 250-pound offensive tackle didn’t get into the Hall of Fame, but he was really close after a fantastic career as a star blocker for Johnny Unitas. The blindside protector was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and was named to the 1969 All-Pro team.
9. WR Dante Lavelli, Cleveland
1946, 12th round, 103rd pick overall
Pick Before: C Jerry D’Arcy, Tulsa by Philadelphia
Pick After: LB Hardy Brown, Tulsa by New York Giants
Cleveland did just fine getting a Hall of Famer in the tenth round. For his time, he was a dangerous deep threat catching 386 passes for 6,488 yards and 62 touchdowns averaging close to 17 yards per grab during the fun era of Cleveland football. A key part of seven championship teams in his 11 year career, he went to three Pro Bowls.
8. C Nick Mangold, New York Jets
2006, 1st round, 29th pick overall
Pick Before: TE Marcedes Lewis, UCLA by Jacksonville
Pick After: RB Joseph Addai, LSU by Indianapolis
Yawwwwwwwn. It’s boring taking a center in the first round. However, Mangold turned out to be one of the best players in the 2006 draft, becoming the anchor of the line over his first ten years. A starter for every game but three, he’s already been named to two All-Pro teams with seven Pro Bowl selections.
7. WR Paul Warfield, Cleveland
1964, 1st round, 11th pick overall
Pick Before: QB Paul Martha, Pitt by Pittsburgh
Pick After: HB Joe Don Looney, Oklahoma by New York Giants
Warfield would be much, much higher, but he went from being a great draft pick by Cleveland to a Hall of Fame talent with Miami. He earned two All-Pro nods as a Dolphin on a few historic teams, but he was hardly mediocre for the Browns going to three Pro Bowls and catching 271 passes averaging 19.2 yards per grab with 52 touchdowns in his eight-year Cleveland career.
6. OT Jim Tyrer, Dallas Texans
1961, 3rd round, 22nd pick overall
Pick Before: T Tom Gilburg, Syracuse by Buffalo
Pick After: LB Marlin McKeever, USC by San Diego
The Dallas Texans turned into the Kansas City Chiefs, which is why Tyrer will always be known as one of the greatest blockers in KC history, despite being drafted by Dallas. It took a year to become a regular starter, and then he became Hall of Fame dominant – even though he’s not in yet. A 13-year star for the franchise, he was a key part of the historic Super Bowl IV champion earned All-Pro honors for six straight seasons and going to nine Pro Bowls.
5. RB Eddie George, Houston
1996, 1st round, 14th pick overall
Pick Before: DB Walt Harris, Mississippi State by Chicago
Pick After: LB John Mobley, Kutztown by Denver
4. LB Randy Gradishar, Denver
1974, 1st round, 14th pick overall
Pick Before: LB Rick Middleton, Ohio State to New Orleans
Pick After: LB Don Goode, Kansas by San Diego
Ohio State linebackers went with back-to-back picks in the first round of the 1974 NFL Draft. New Orleans took Rick Middleton, who played five indistinguishable years in the league for the Saints and San Diego with the 13th pick, and Denver took Gradishar with the 14.
Not in the Hall of Fame for some strange reason, Gradishar went to seven Pro Bowls and was named to two All-Pro teams in his terrific ten-year career. With over 2,000 tackles, 20 picks and 20 sacks, he was a machine – give the guy a gold jacket already.
3. PK/OT Lou Groza, Cleveland
1946, Undrafted
He wasn’t drafted coming out of Ohio State, but there was a decent reason – he was too busy fighting in World War II. When stationed overseas, he signed a contract to play for the Browns upon his return, and the rest is history.
Over a 22-year span with Cleveland, he played offensive tackle and kicker before serving as solely a placekicker from 1961 on through the final seven years of his career. Along the way to a Hall of Fame career, he was a four-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowl performer.
2. OT Orlando Pace, St. Louis
1997, 1st round, 1st pick overall
Pick Before: None
Pick After: DT Darrell Russell, USC by Oakland
There wasn’t any “bust” talk after two okay years, but there was some concern that he might not be worthy of the No. 1 overall pick. And then the 2016 Hall of Fame selection became one of the NFL’s most dominant blocking forces, earning his way to three All-Pro teams and seven Pro Bowls as the anchor for the Greatest Show on Turf. It’s still debatable whether or not he was responsible for the term Pancake Block, but he helped perfect it as a Buckeye and it carrier over to the Rams.
1. OT Jim Parker, Baltimore
1957, 1st round, 8th pick overall
Pick Before: FB Clarence Peaks, Michigan State by Philadelphia
Pick After: FB Don Bosseler, Miami by Washington
An all-timer of an All-Pro blocker – named to the team eight times – as both a left tackle and later in his career at left guard – he was the anchor for some of the greatest teams of pro football history. Helping keep Johnny Unitas in one piece, Parker became the prototype for an era, with 6-3, 273-pound size with the feet to be an impenetrable pass blocker.
