They’re often referred to as nobodies, camp bodies or practice squad dummies. Usually by the time these players are drafted, nobody is watching and nobody cares.
“They” are seventh round draft picks and chances are you’ve never heard of most of them.
Just glancing at the names of players chosen in the seventh round of the NFL draft over the past couple years, there’s truth to the thought that most of these players are going to be cut before the regular season starts. Some don’t even make it past the first round of cuts.
So why dedicate time to discussing seventh round picks? Well, there are some quality players that were taken in the final round and it’s fun to look back at past drafts and see how badly teams missed in grading certain prospects.
Below is a list of the top player chosen in the seventh round over the past 10 years. From these 10 players, all but one have been regular starters at some point during their careers and three have been selected to at least one Pro Bowl. Also notice that four of the 10 names are receivers, which gives backing to the notion that drafting wide outs in early rounds is a bit overrated. (But that’s a topic for another time.)
After viewing some of these names, maybe you’ll keep a closer eye on the seventh round when this year’s NFL draft takes place April 26-27. (Okay maybe not, but just have some fun and check out the damn names anyway.)
2007 Pick #250: Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, New York Giants
Bradshaw is the only player on this list that isn’t a regular starter, but anyone who followed the Giants’ Super Bowl run last year knows how much of an impact he had. Against the Packers in the NFC Championship Game, Bradshaw split carries with teammate Brandon Jacobs and rushed for 63 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. If not for a holding penalty, Bradshaw would have added a 52-yard touchdown scamper to his final totals. In the Super Bowl, Bradshaw again proved his worth, rushing for 45 yards on nine carries, good for a 5.0 YPC average.
2006 Pick #242: Marques Colston, WR, New Orleans Saints
One thing that was so special about the Saints’ run to the NFC Championship Game in 2006 was that they virtually came out of nowhere. Not many people expected New Orleans to even have a winning season, not to mention finish one win shy of playing in the Super Bowl. So it was fitting that Colston – a Division 1-AA receiver from Hofstra – also came out of nowhere to lead the Saints in receiving yards, YPC and touchdowns that year. He also placed third in voting for Offensive Rookie of the Year and holds the NFL record for most receptions by a player in his first two seasons (168).
2005 Pick #218: Reynaldo Hill, CB, Tennessee Titans
Hill isn’t a superstar by any means, but he arguably was the best seventh round gem in 2005. He had an uphill climb just to be drafted, as he didn’t get an invite to participate at the NFL Scouting Combine that year. And after he was drafted, he had to beat out a talented group of Titans’ cornerbacks that included Adam “Pacman Jones” and Andre Woolfolk just to make the team. Not only did he make the team, he also started midway through the season and was impressive. He led Tennessee in interceptions (3) and returned a 52-yard pick for a touchdown against the Raiders. While his interception total has dropped since his rookie campaign, Hill is still an above average nickel back.
2004 Pick #216: Patrick Crayton, WR, Dallas Cowboys
Crayton is coming off a career season in 2007, hauling in 50 passes for 697 yards and seven touchdowns for the Cowboys. He doesn’t have overly impressive numbers, but his receptions, yards and touchdown totals have increased every year since he was drafted. Playing alongside Terrell Owens, Tony Romo and Jason Witten has certainly given Crayton a chance to excel and one can only assume that even better things are on the horizon, although at 29 he isn’t exactly a spring chicken.
2003 Pick #222: Josh Brown, K, Seattle Seahawks
Tully Banta-Cain deserves mention for 2003, but there’s no denying how much of an impact Brown had in Seattle over the past five seasons. He’s made roughly 80% of his field goal attempts and has only missed one extra point (which was actually blocked) in 207 tries. His career-long field goal is 58 yards, which is just five yards shy of Jason Elam’s record. He also has a kickoff average length of 62.8 yards and a kickoff return average of 22.4 with 36 career touchbacks. Brown was so good in Seattle that he was arguably the most sought after free agent kicker this offseason. The Rams inked him to a five-year, $14.2 million contract and his numbers should only improve kicking indoors.
2002 Pick #242: Brett Keisel, DE, Pittsburgh Steelers/Raheem Brock, DE, Indianapolis Colts
It was hard to choose just one of these guys, so both Keisel and Brock get the nod for best seventh round picks in 2002. After missing the entire 2003 season while recovering from shoulder surgery, Keisel hasn’t missed a game in three consecutive seasons. He also totaled a career-high in sacks (5.5) and total tackles (56) in 2006, while also posting two sacks and 39 total tackles last year. He’s been a mainstay on the Steelers’ defensive line since Kimo von Oelhoffen signed with the Jets in the offseason of 2006…Playing opposite Dwight Freeney in the Colts’ 4-3 defense has certainly helped Brock, who has totaled 21.5 sacks in his six-year career. Since his rookie year, he’s also posted at least 30 tackles every season and had a career high 48 takedowns in 2006. He’s also shown his versatility, playing both defensive end and tackle over the course of his career.
2001 Pick #204: T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Perhaps the best seventh round pick over the past 10 years (although a fellow wide receiver listed below will have something to say about that), Houshmandzadeh was the ultimate steal in 2001. Housh had a breakout year in 2004, catching 73 passes for 978 yards and four touchdowns. Since then, his yards and touchdowns have increased every season and he was selected to his first Pro Bowl last year after hauling in a career high 112 receptions for 1,143 yards and 12 touchdowns. He was also tied for the league lead in receptions last year and is sure to put up more gaudy numbers in the Bengals’ high-powered passing attack in 2008.
2000 Pick #224 Mark Tauscher, OT, Green Bay Packers
2000 was a bit of a down year for seventh round gems, but it did produce one Pro Bowler in long snapper Brian Jennings (49ers). The underrated Tauscher, who began a starter midway through his rookie season, also came out of the 2000 seventh round draft class. He doesn’t stand out as one of the best tackles in the league, but he’s steady and consistent. He’s also durable, starting every game since 2003 after a torn ACL took away virtually his entire 2002 season.
1999 Pick #213: Donald Driver, WR, Green Bay Packers
Like human-interest stories? Driver certainly fits the bill. At various points during his childhood, Driver and his family had to live out of a moving truck. He also got mixed up with the wrong crowd and found plenty of trouble as an adolescent. Football and track eventually got him to straighten up and after the Packers made him their seventh round pick in 1999, he quickly blossomed into one of the most reliable receivers in the NFL and Brett Favre’s favorite target. Driver has been elected to three Pro Bowls (2002, 2006, 2007) and over his career he’s caught 503 passes for 6,977 yards and 38 touchdowns. He was also the Packers’ 2002 “Walter Payton Man of the Year” and has always demonstrated high moral character both on and off the field.
1998 Pick #226: Pat Tillman, S, Arizona Cardinals
Any man who gives his life to help defend this country deserves plenty of recognition. After playing four seasons from 1998 to 2001, Tillman was offered a three-year, $3.6 million contract to re-sign with the Cardinals. But he declined the offer and following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, he enlisted in the United States Army. His only explanation (at least publicly) was that it, “was just the right thing to do.” He was tragically killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004. Tillman defines what it means to be unselfish and is a true hero.
Photos courtesy of Flickr.
