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

While Eric Mangini was coaching the New York Jets, they selected Ohio State defensive end Vernon Gholston at No. 6 overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. He had an insane mix of speed and size and blew people away with his NFL Scouting Combine numbers.

However, that didn’t translate on the field for the Jets. And Gholston blamed some of that on the coach that followed Mangini. After he was let go, Rex Ryan was brought in to lead Gang Green. Gholston believed that Ryan wasn’t a fan of his.

"“I heard how he was perceiving me before the [2008] draft, before he knew me, and I was the same way — I wasn’t hoping for him to be [my] first coach of the Jets when I was there, either,” said Gholston via Bart Hubbuck of the New York Post"

Ryan, of course, later refuted these reports and even wished Gholston well. For what it’s worth, it wasn’t on Ryan. Gholston was supposed to be a premier edge rusher, but he never recorded a sack in three seasons with the Jets. His career-high in tackles during that span was just 15.

After he left the Jets, things didn’t get better for Gholston. He had a shot to make the Chicago Bears roster in 2011 and later the then-St. Louis Rams in 2012. He was unable to make either roster and finished his career with 45 total tackles.

That’s nowhere near what the Jets expected when they took him so high. It also can’t be blamed simply on coaching.