2021 NFL Draft: Each team’s last pick at their current position

We’re anxiously awaiting the 2021 NFL Draft but we should also look at history and what each team did previously when they picked at this spot. 

No NFL team or fan base goes into the NFL Draft thinking that their team is going to blow it. Even the most tortured fans still harbor hope and optimism that the team they support is going to turn it around by nailing their first selection, hopefully landing a game-changing talent. That’s true again for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Of course, franchises and their picks don’t always reward that — and sometimes they do. It’s a crapshoot time and again trying to find a great pick that will help turn the franchise around or take them to another level.

So as we’re two weeks away from the 2021 NFL Draft, it feels worthwhile to take a look at the last time each team picked at their current position in the first round (or in the second round for the Seahawks and Rams, third round for the Texans) and how that turned out.

Every team’s last pick at their current first-round position in the 2021 NFL Draft.

1. Jacksonville Jaguars: First Appearance

2. New York Jets: 1990 | Blair Thomas, RB, Penn State – Thomas lasted only three seasons with the Jets with a career-best of 728 yards and three touchdowns in 1991.

3. San Francisco 49ers: 2017 | Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford – People called Thomas a steal after the Niners traded down from No. 2 but he has failed to live up to expectations.

4. Atlanta Falcons: First Appearance

5. Cincinnati Bengals: 1993 | John Copeland, DL, Alabama – While Copeland did play eight years with the Bengals, his 24 career sacks highlighted a bit of a lackluster career for a top-five pick.

6. Miami Dolphins: First Appearance

7. Detroit Lions: 2004 | Roy Williams, WR, Texas – Williams never lived up to his draft billing but he did have an overall fine career with over 5,700 receiving yards and one 1,000-yard season.

8. Carolina Panthers: 2017 | Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford – NFL fans are likely familiar with Run CMC as the highest-paid running back in the league and a record-setter in Carolina.

9. Denver Broncos: 1973 | Otis Armstrong, RB, Purdue – Armstrong popped big with two 1,000-yard seasons but, overall, his eight NFL seasons were sporadic at best for Denver.

10. Dallas Cowboys: First Appearance

11. New York Giants: 2000 | Ron Dayne, RB, Wisconsin – Dayne never lived up to his record-breaking lore at Wisconsin in the NFL, never rushing for more than 773 yards in a season and struggling with the speed of the pro game.

12. Philadelphia Eagles: 2012 | Fletcher Cox, DL, Mississippi State – Cox hit the ground running in Philly and hasn’t looked back as one of the most dominant interior defensive linemen in the NFL.

13. Los Angeles Chargers: 1986 | James FitzPatrick, OT, USC – FitzPatrick was a project from Germany that simply didn’t work out as he proved to be nothing more than an NFL depth piece.

14. Minnesota Vikings: 1987 | D.J. Dozier, RB, Penn State – Swing and miss for the Vikings as Dozier only played five NFL seasons and never cracked 400 yards rushing, though he did play 25 games with the Mets — so there’s that.

15. New England Patriots: 1983 | Tony Eason, QB, Illinois – Eason is probably best remembered for being picked among a slew of Hall-of-Fame quarterbacks (Elway, Kelly, Marino). He led the Pats to a Super Bowl appearance in 1985 but his career was more frustrating than anything.

16. Arizona Cardinals: 2008 | Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tennessee State – DRC was a longtime productive cornerback but it should be noted that only three years of a long career were spent in the desert.

17. Las Vegas Raiders: 2002 | Phillip Buchanon, CB, Miami – He had 11 interceptions over three seasons with the Raiders but they got the best out of him as he had only nine more picks in his seven seasons elsewhere.

18. Miami Dolphins: 2020 | Austin Jackson, OT, USC – As expected, Jackson was a bit of a rollercoaster as a rookie but he gained valuable experience and showed enough upside to inspire optimism for the Dolphins.

19. Washington Football Team: First Appearance

20. Chicago Bears: 2013 | Kyle Long, OG, Oregon – Emerging from early retirement to join the Chiefs this offseason, Long was a superstar when healthy but that last part was a struggle for him over five seasons.

21. Indianapolis Colts: 1961 | Tom Gilburg, OT, Syracuse – The most notable thing about Gilburg, a backup tackle for only five seasons, was that he was also their punter. Let’s bring that back, please. 300-pounders deserve to kick too.

22. Tennessee Titans: 2019 | Rashaan Evans, LB, Alabama – Evans remains a great athlete and playmaker but the Titans are still hoping he can become more reliable entering year three.

23. New York Jets: 1982 | Bob Crable, LB, Notre Dame – Injuries derailed Crable’s career largely but he did show potential in his three seasons where he was able to be 100 percent and on the field.

24. Pittsburgh Steelers: 2012 | David DeCastro, OG, Stanford – One of the best value picks you’ll see here, DeCastro has been and continues to be one of the best guards in the league.

25. Jacksonville Jaguars: 1998 | Donovin Darius, S, Syracuse – Darius was a tone-setter as a hard-hitting safety and proved to be a quality pickup for Jacksonville over his career.

26. Cleveland Browns: 1964 | Billy Truax, TE, LSU – Cleveland whiffed hard here by trying to make Truax a linebacker and trading him before he ever played for the Browns. He then had 199 career catches with two other teams over 10 seasons.

27. Baltimore Ravens: 2011 | Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado – Smith has been a mainstay in the Ravens secondary and that remains the case heading into the 2021 season.

28. New Orleans Saints: 2011 | Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama – Quietly to some degree, Ingram has over 7,000 career rushing yards and 72 total touchdowns to his credit. He’s now a new member of the Texans.

29. Green Bay Packers: 2003 | Nick Barnett, LB, Oregon State – Never a superstar, Barnett was a quality man in the middle of the Green Bay defense for eight seasons and had a strong 11-year career overall.

30. Buffalo Bills: 1970 | Dennis Shaw, QB, San Diego State – Though Shaw did win Offensive Rookie of the Year, he was short-lived in Buffalo and had a pedestrian overall career.

31. Kansas City Chiefs: 1995 | Trezelle Jenkins, OT, Michigan – Jenkins was a certified bust as he played in only nine games over three seasons. Not a great selection there by Kansas City.

32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 1982 | Booker Reese, DE, Bethune-Cookman – Tampa traded up to get Reese but he lasted only two seasons with the Bucs; though he did end up with a 10-year stint in the NFL overall.

56. Seattle Seahawks: First Appearance

57. Los Angeles Rams: 2020 | Van Jefferson, WR, Florida – Jefferson flashed some as a rookie and could see a bigger role in his second NFL season.

67. Houston Texans: 2003 | Antwan Peek, LB, Cincinnati – Largely a backup over four seasons with the Texans, Peek was decisively not a great value pick.

Clearly there were some busts, some hits, and many picks that were somewhere in between. That’s the nature of the NFL Draft and, though every team looks at 2021 and thinks it could be their time to land a game-changer, history shows that it’s as much of a crap shoot as ever.