[Lefty Noob]

Yahoo! Sports has put together a fascinating list of the best first round draft picks ever. They ran them as an actual draft, meaning that guys were only considered at the position they were actually selected. John Elway was named the best #1 Draft Pick of All-Time, followed by Lawrence Taylor as the best #2, Barry Sanders as the best #3, Walter Payton as the best #4, and so forth.

Best all-time first-round picks - NFL - Yahoo! Sports

So what do you think of their list?

Personally, there's no way Richard Seymore beats out either Riggins or Brown as the best #6 ever. And Champ Bailey over Phil Simms at #7? Nope.

[ThePundit]

Lawrence Taylor beat out Ryan Leaf? Come on.

But seriously, Deiion over Tomlinson? If you were picking today, who would you pick out of those 2 guys? I would take Tomlinson.

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by ThePundit

Lawrence Taylor beat out Ryan Leaf? Come on.

But seriously, Deiion over Tomlinson? If you were picking today, who would you pick out of those 2 guys? I would take Tomlinson.

I remember reading the article and it really depends on need...Sanders could shut down his half of the field and was a dangerous, dangerous return man...you can argue that he is way harder to replace than Tomlinson...I hated Sanders when he was a 49er picking on the Cowboys...loved him in Dallas...

I once saw the guy stumble, fall behind Irvin on a pass play...the ball get thrown...he recovers...races past Irivn and picks it off...next to some Barry Sanders run, it was the most amazing thing I have seen on a football field...

I would take Sanders and all the headaches that come with him...no disrespect to Tomlinson.

[Gotham Dark Knight]

PS

Bet the Colts would take Manning over Elway any day in the 1st round...

[alex83]

if this was done in 10 years time where would Vince Young fall, providing of course he can pull of season after season of what he just did as a rookie? i mean he wouldnt be on the list now becuase most of these guys are legends but would he make it onto the list after his career is over or after it has matured some more?

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by alex83

if this was done in 10 years time where would Vince Young fall, providing of course he can pull of season after season of what he just did as a rookie? i mean he wouldnt be on the list now becuase most of these guys are legends but would he make it onto the list after his career is over or after it has matured some more?

at third over all, he would still have a tough time beating out Barry Sanders...

[raiders4life]

Richard Seymour over Tim Brown... haha... yea ryte...

[vincesanity82]

The Best per fox sports..


1. Chargers, 2004: I noticed that Sports Illustrated rated San Diego's 2001 draft a lot higher, which was the LaDainian Tomlinson and Drew Brees draft. And those picks are damn good because the late John Butler passed on Michael Vick, but this A.J. Smith draft had quality and unbelievable depth. This draft was the one in which the Giants caved on Eli Manning, and the Chargers ended up with Phillip Rivers, defensive tackle Igor Olshansky, kicker Nate Kaeding, center Nick Hardwick, outside linebacker Shaun Phillips, the best backup running back in the league in Michael Turner and starting right tackle Shane Olivea in the seventh round. That's six starters in all, plus the rights to take Shawne Merriman in 2005.
2. Bengals, 2001: Owner Mike Brown has taken a lot of grief for his recent run of bad boys in Cincinnati, but this draft gave the Bengals the nucleus of their playoff team. The first pick was Justin Smith, their best defensive linemen with 40½ sacks since then. Their second pick was Pro Bowl receiver Chad Johnson and the seventh-rounder was a receiver named T.J. Houshmandzadeh. They also grabbed their starting running back, Rudi Johnson, in the fourth round. They missed on their other three picks, but who really cares?
3. Eagles, 2005: I realize these guys have been playing only two seasons, but Andy Reid and Tom Heckert really had an amazing run in this draft. They selected five starters, including starting offensive tackle Todd Herremans with the 126th overall pick followed by defensive end Trent Cole with the 146th pick. Top picks Mike Patterson and Reggie Brown are both starting while Matt McCoy and Ryan Moats are decent reserves. Sean Considine, a fourth-rounder, made safety Michael Lewis expendable. You are supposed to find starters in the top two rounds, but the Eagles grabbed them later, too.
4. Panthers, 2001: I realize there are huge issues today with this draft, but the first three picks of this draft were linebacker Dan Morgan, defensive tackle Kris Jenkins and receiver Steve Smith. Those three players put Carolina in the Super Bowl and Smith, when healthy, is still the game's best playmaker. Carolina has been trying to trade Jenkins because he has gotten fat and lazy. But in 2003, when they lost to the Patriots on Super Sunday, Jenkins was the game's best defensive tackle.
5. Buffalo, 2001: The first three picks were cornerback Nate Clements, now the highest-paid player in San Francisco, underrated defensive end Aaron Schobel (14 sacks last season) and Travis Henry, a running back who has bounced around and will start for the Broncos this season. Third-round pick Ron Edwards played five seasons in a reserve role while offensive tackle Jonas Jennings received big money in 2005 from the 49ers. Basically, the Bills took all the right players; they simply didn't have enough money in free agency to keep them all.
Honorable Mention: 1998 Steelers: Alan Faneca, Deshea Townsend and Hines Ward late in the third round; 1997 Dolphins: Sam Madison in the second round and Defensive Player of the Year Jason Taylor with the 73rd overall pick; 2003 Patriots: Asante Samuel in the fourth round and Dan Koppen in the fifth round while top picks included Ty Warren, Eugene Wilson, Bethel Johnson and Dan Klecko.

[MJHMarc]

How about the New York Jets by drafting MLB, Jonathan Vilma?