Jerry Rice, 1st Round, Pick 16. Emmitt Smith, 1st Round, Pick 17. Joe Montana, 3rd Round, Pick 82. Roger Staubach, 10th Round, Pick 129. Tom Brady, 6th Round, Pick 199.
They are considered among the greatest NFL players. But who is the Most Valuable Draft Pick?
In celebration of the 75th NFL Draft, which kicks off in primetime for the first time on Thursday, April 22, fans now can help choose the 75 Most Valuable Draft Picks of all time. Fans can vote for their choices at NFL.com now through April 18.
Following the conclusion of the fan vote, picks 11 – 75 will be announced from April 19 – April 22 on NFL.com and NFL Network. The top 10 greatest Draft picks then will be revealed during the 2010 NFL Draft, which begins Thursday, April 22 at 7:30 pm ET. The Second and Third Rounds of the Draft will be on Friday, April 23 at 6:00 PM ET followed by Rounds 4-7 on Saturday, April 24 at 10:00 AM ET.
The 10 Most Valuable Draft Picks will be announced during Round 1, when many of the Top 10 will be in attendance at Radio City Music Hall, the home of the 2010 NFL Draft. The order of the Top 10 will be revealed after the conclusion of the Second Round of the Draft on Friday night. Many of these players will be on hand for the announcement.
NFL.com editors narrowed down the first 74 Drafts to a list of the top 320 players, consisting of 10 players from each team. Fans begin the process of determining the Most Valuable Draft Pick by choosing between pairs of players randomly generated from the list of 320 greats. After selecting winners of 30 random matchups, fans will begin to build their own Top 10 list. Fans may continue to vote in order to make changes to their personal Top 10 list as well as the All-Time Top 10 announced at the Draft. Users then may share their lists and their head-to-head winners on Facebook.
NFL.com delivers comprehensive information on each of the 320 players, including the player’s draft information and career accomplishments to help the voters make educated selections in determining the Most Valuable Pick.
The following is a list of the 320 All-Time Most Valuable Draft Picks as chosen by NFL.com editors. Players are listed by the team that drafted them:
Arizona Cardinals: Anquan Boldin; Dan Dierdorf; Larry Fitzgerald; Roy Green; Tim McDonald; Jackie Smith; Charlie Trippi; Roger Wehrli; Aeneas Williams; Larry Wilson
Atlanta Falcons: Steve Bartkowski; Keith Brooking; Alge Crumpler; Brett Favre; Bill Fralic; Claude Humphrey; Mike Kenn; Deion Sanders; R.C. Thielemann; Jeff Van Note
Baltimore Ravens: Peter Boulware; Todd Heap; Jamal Lewis; Ray Lewis; Edwin Mulitalo; Jonathan Ogden; Ed Reed; Jamie Sharper; Terrell Suggs; Adalius Thomas
Buffalo Bills: Gary Anderson; Ruben Brown; Joe DeLamielleure; Jim Kelly; Reggie McKenzie; Andre Reed ; O.J. Simpson; Fred Smerlas; Bruce Smith; Thurman Thomas
Carolina Panthers: Jon Beason; Kerry Collins; Jordan Gross; Kris Jenkins; Mike Minter; Dan Morgan; Muhsin Muhammad; Julius Peppers; Mike Rucker; Steve Smith
Chicago Bears: Dick Butkus; Mike Ditka; Bill George; Stan Jones; Bobby Layne; Sid Luckman; Walter Payton; Gale Sayers; Mike Singletary; Brian Urlacher
Cincinnati Bengals: Ken Anderson; Willie Anderson; Bill Bergey; Boomer Esiason; Max Montoya; Anthony Munoz; Chad Ochocinco; Lemar Parrish; Ken Riley; Bob Trumpy
Cleveland Browns: Jim Brown; Willie Davis; Hanford Dixon; Gene Hickerson; Henry Jordan; Leroy Kelly; Ozzie Newsome; Dick Schafrath; Walt Sweeney; Paul Warfield
Dallas Cowboys: Troy Aikman; Larry Allen; Tony Dorsett; Bob Hayes; Michael Irvin; Bob Lilly; Emmitt Smith; Roger Staubach; Randy White; Darren Woodson
Denver Broncos: Lyle Alzado; Steve Atwater; Terrell Davis; Randy Gradishar; Tom Jackson; Karl Mecklenburg; Tom Nalen; Shannon Sharpe; Rick Upchurch; Louis Wright
Detroit Lions: Jerry Ball; Lem Barney; Lomas Brown; Jack Christiansen; Yale Lary; Alex Karras; Barry Sanders; Charlie Sanders; Joe Schmidt; Wayne H. Walker
Green Bay Packers: Herb Adderley; LeRoy Butler; Forrest Gregg; Paul Hornung; Jerry Kramer; James Lofton; Ray Nitschke; Jim Ringo; Darren Sharper; Bart Starr
Houston Texans: David Carr; Owen Daniels; Jabar Gaffney; Andre Johnson; Travis Johnson; Jerome Mathis; Chester Pitts; Dunta Robinson; DeMeco Ryans; Mario Williams
Indianapolis Colts: Raymond Berry; Mike Curtis; Ray Donaldson; Marshall Faulk; Dwight Freeney; Marvin Harrison; John Mackey; Peyton Manning; Lenny Moore; Jim Parker
Jacksonville Jaguars: Tony Boselli; Fernando Bryant; Donovin Darius; Kevin Hardy; John Henderson; Rashean Mathis; Brad Meester; Marcus Stroud; Fred Taylor; Renaldo Wynn
Kansas City Chiefs: Jared Allen; Bobby Bell; Tony Gonzalez; Willie Lanier; Albert Lewis; Will Shields; Neil Smith; Otis Taylor; Derrick Thomas; Jim Tyrer
Miami Dolphins: Dick Anderson; Larry Csonka; Leon Gray; Bob Griese; Sam Madison; Dan Marino; Jake Scott; Dwight Stephenson; Jason Taylor; Zach Thomas
Minnesota Vikings: Joey Browner; Chris Doleman; Carl Eller; Steve Jordan; Randall McDaniel; Randy Moss; Alan Page; Fran Tarkenton; Kevin Williams; Ron Yary
New England Patriots: Tom Brady; Nick Buoniconti; John Hannah; Mike Haynes; Lee Roy Jordan; Ty Law; Curtis Martin; Lawyer Milloy; Richard Seymour; Andre Tippett
New Orleans Saints: Morten Andersen; Wes Chandler; John Gilliam; Rickey Jackson; Archie Manning; Chuck Muncie; Lorenzo Neal; Willie Roaf; Pat Swilling; Dave Waymer
New York Giants: Harry Carson; George Connor; Art Donovan; Frank Gifford; Sam Huff; Don Maynard; Phil Simms; Michael Strahan; Lawrence Taylor; Brad Van Pelt
New York Jets: Joe Fields; Mark Gastineau; Craig Hentrich; Keyshawn Johnson; Joe Klecko; Mo Lewis; Joe Namath; Marvin Powell; John Riggins; Wesley Walker
Oakland Raiders: Marcus Allen; Lance Alworth; Fred Biletnikoff; Cliff Branch; Dave Casper; La’Roi Glover; Shane Lechler; Howie Long; Art Shell; Gene Upshaw
Philadelphia Eagles: Eric Allen; Maxie Baughan; Bob Brown; Chuck Bednarik; Brian Dawkins; Sonny Jurgensen; Tommy McDonald; Pete Pihos; Clyde Simmons; Steve Van Buren
Pittsburgh Steelers: Mel Blount; Terry Bradshaw; Dermontti Dawson; Joe Greene; L.C. Greenwood; Jack Ham; Franco Harris; Jack Lambert; Mike Webster; Rod Woodson
St. Louis Rams:Jerome Bettis; Nolan Cromwell; Eric Dickerson; Kevin Greene; Harold Jackson; Deacon Jones; Jackie Slater; Norm Van Brocklin; Bob Waterfield; Jack Youngblood
San Diego Chargers: Drew Brees; Fred Dean; Dan Fouts; John Hadl; Rodney Harrison; John Jefferson; Gary Johnson; Junior Seau; LaDainian Tomlinson; Kellen Winslow
San Francisco 49ers: Charles Haley; Jimmy Johnson; Ronnie Lott; Hugh McElhenny; Joe Montana; Leo Nomellini; Terrell Owens; Jerry Rice; Gene A. Washington; Dave Wilcox
Seattle Seahawks: Sam Adams; Shaun Alexander; Kenny Easley; Ahman Green; Steve Hutchinson; Walter Jones; Cortez Kennedy; Kevin Mawae; Lofa Tatupu; Fredd Young
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mike Alstott; Ronde Barber; Derrick Brooks; Mark Carrier; Warrick Dunn; John Lynch; Tony Mayberry; Warren Sapp; Lee Roy Selmon; Vinny Testaverde
Tennessee Titans: Robert Brazile; Earl Campbell; Ray Childress; Eddie George; Albert Haynesworth; Ken Houston; Charlie Joiner; Derrick Mason; Bruce Matthews; Mike Munchak
Washington Redskins: Champ Bailey; Sammy Baugh; Larry Brown; Darrell Green; Russ Grimm; Chris Hanburger; Paul Krause; Art Monk; Jerry Smith; Charley Taylor