NFL Draft: 30 worst first-round picks of the 21st century

2002 simply wasn’t the year for quarterbacks in the NFL Draft. The first round saw Derek Carr out of Fresno State join the expansion Houston Texans at No. 1 and Patrick Ramsey from Tulane landed with the Washington Redskins at No. 32. Then, there was Joey Harrington as the other pick in that round.

He was taken third overall by the Detroit Lions after putting up 6,911 yards with 59 touchdowns and 23 picks in four seasons at Oregon. Those numbers don’t jump off the page, but Harrington did show great progression each season and was really good as a senior. He just never developed into a good starter for Detroit.

As a rookie, he was 3-9 as a starter while completing just 50.1 percent of his passes. Even worse was his inability to protect the ball. Harrington finished that year with 16 picks and just 12 touchdowns. The following year he was worse with 22 interceptions against 17 touchdowns.

Harrington lasted just four seasons with the Lions and was 18-37 as a starter. He ended up trying his hand with the Miami Dolphins and Atlanta Falcons the following seasons, but was never able to improve upon his ball security issues.

For his career, Harrington completed just 56.1 percent of his passes and had 79 touchdowns against 85 interceptions. His record with all three franchises was 26-50. It’s safe to say that’s not what Detroit expected when they took him at No. 3 overall.