Check out every draft since 1936 alphabetically, by round, by pick, by school, by year, by team, by position. Elway to marino and the greatest nfl draft in history. Looking back at the best draft class of alltime, the 1983 nfl draft duration. The broncos have been searching for the next elway since his retirement. Dan marino was the sixth quarterback taken in the first round of the 1983 draft and is the third quarterback john elway and jim kelly are the others from that round to be enshrined in the pro football hall of fame. The bears hit a pair of home runs in the very first nfl draft in 1936, landing a pair of hall of famers in joe stydahar in the first round and danny fortmann in the. Quarterback class of 1983 pro football hall of fame. Former indianapolis colts great eric dickerson has been. The new york jets selected obrien as the 24th pick in the first round of the 1983 nfl draft, amazing observers who expected the team to choose fellow quarterback dan marino, a future member of the pro football hall of fame who was selected three picks later. Lynn swann and john stallworth were a dominant duo at the wide receiver position. The 1983 nhl draft is probably best remembered for two reasons. Future hall of famers john elway, eric dickerson, bruce matthews. That being the case, lets take a look at some of what the 1983 nfl draft had produced by 1988. Jim kelly left and dan marino right are both hall of famers from the 1983 nfl draft class.
Of the 67 players selected to the nfl hall of fame since 2000, four were the no. The 10 nfl draft years that yielded the most hall of famers. Bears class the class of the heralded 1983 nfl draft. The 1983 nfl draft class is widely considered the best draft class ever, but its not just because of the star quarterbacks, the posts george willis writes. Rnd, pick, tm, player, pos, age, to, ap1, pb, st, carav, drav, g, cmp, att, yds, td, int. Elliot harrison revisits the 1983 nfl draft, where seven eventual hall of famers were selected. The baltimore colts chose quarterback john elway from stanford as the first pick in the draft. Of course, the class of 83 will be forever known as the year of the quarterback, because of the six signalcallers chosen in round 1 elway, marino, kelly, eason, ken obrien and todd blackledge.
Teams in this years nfl draft can only hope to one day land on a list such as this. In a lifetime filled with nfl draft experiences, the longest and most anxious wait for bill tobin came in 1983 when the bears were without a pick from the. Bruce smith 1985, troy aikman 1989, john elway 1983 and ron yary 1968 follow. Marino was drafted in the first round, 27th overall, in the 1983 nfl draft. Click the college for players drafted from that college. Redrafting the first 20 picks of the legendary 1983 nfl draft. Looking back at the best draft class of alltime, the 1983 nfl draft elliot harrison revisits the 1983 nfl draft, where seven eventual hall of. The 1984 nfl draft followed up the stunning qb class of 83 with, well, a weaker class in terms of quality and depth. Louis blues were owned by the ralstonpurina company in 1983, and the company wanted to sell the team. The nfl s threeday extravaganza ushers in a new wave of talent from college ranks, and debuts new stars not only to the gridiron, but to the world as wel.
If you live in new jersey, they also have a special offer for just for you. The destination for all national football league related video on the web. Of course, the class of 83 will be forever known as the year of the quarterback, because of the six signalcallers chosen in round 1 elway, marino, kelly, eason. This years quarterback class might produce as many first rounders as the 1983 nfl draft did, but its doubtful it will. The nfl draft returns to primetime in 2018, with the first round taking place thursday, followed by the second and third rounds on friday. Urlacher was the face of the franchise for more than a decade, earning eight trips to the pro bowl and the 2005 nfl defensive player of the year award. Blessing and curse of historic 1983 nfl draft qb class.
Kenny easley, ronnie lott claim 1981 draft class as best ever. The 1982 nfl draft was the procedure by which national football league teams selected amateur college football players. An indepth examination of the 1983 nfl draft that was highlighted by a record six quarterbacks being taken in the first round, including future hall of famers john elway and dan marino. The draft was also the first to be held after the 1982 campaign that was abbreviated because of a player strike, which resulted in the regular season being shortened from 16 games to 9. The draft is frequently referred to as the quarterback class of 1983, because six quarterbacks were taken in the first round john elway, todd blackledge, jim kelly, tony eason, ken obrien, and dan marino the highest number of first round picks for the position. The 1983 nfl draft is undoubtedly the best in history, but the posts george willis went deeper to look at other notable drafts 1957 former giants general manager ernie accorsi calls this the. Is patrick mahomes a good bet to win super bowl mvp. The 1983 nfl draft was the procedure by which national football league teams selected amateur college football players.
The bears hit backtoback home runs in the first two rounds of the 2000 draft when they selected hall of fame middle linebacker brian urlacher at no. Elway traded to broncos by colts the new york times. In 1985, he was the highest rated quarterback in the nfl, finishing the season with a rating of 96. The famous quarterback draft class of 1983, but it was also the best number one draft class of all time. Could this be the best college qb class in history. The draft is frequently referred to as the quarterback class of 1983, because six quarterbacks were taken in the first roundjohn elway, todd blackledge, jim. The 1983 class edged the 1993 class for the most, followed by the 1990, 1976 and 1988 classes. Each year leading up to the draft, we will provide you frequently updated nfl mock draft, player profiles and videos, traded draft picks, prospect lists, and. The nfl has seen some great draft classes over the years but only one can lay claim to being the best ever.
Most bronco fans know that the 1983 nfl draft brought the city of denver its most notable sports figure and arguably the greatest quarterback to ever lace up a pair of cleats. Elway is widely considered one of the finer quarterbacks to come out of any draft, and with denver, which finished at 27 in the strikeshortened 1982 season, he will have a good chance of winning. Visit our draft finder tool to search all drafts from 1947 until 2019 using custom criteria. The top pick, john elway, was selected by the colts but ended up in denver after refusing to play for the team that drafted him. Players chosen by the san francisco 49ers during the 1983 nfl draft. It is officially known as the nfl annual player selection meeting.
The pittsburgh steelers had a historic and downright ridiculous draft class in 74, leading to the steelers becoming the nfl team of the decade. The event also stood out because it is the only draft in nfl history to have six quarterbacks. It would be hyperbole to declare in the throes of august that the quarterback crop headed to the 2018 nfl draft will rival the fabled quarterback collection of 1983. The deal of the century and how john elway became a bronco. Jimbo covert, willie gault, mike richardson, dave duerson, tom thayer. The 1983 nfl draft is one of the most famous in the games history, for one key reason. The 6 qbs from the 1st round of the 1983 nfl draft business insider. Five greatest draft classes since 1967 nfc west espn. This is my all time favorite class of guys who would trans end the game as they would tons of great names i felt 2007 was an underrated year in terms of football, and video games in my eyes back then, but now beloved by fans here are those great players who ended up being drafted the likes of calvin johnson. For complete results of every nba draft beginning in 1947, click the following links. If our stats are more your speed, subscribe to our stathead newsletter. The class featured seven hall of famers, led by first overall pick john elway.
Former seattle seahawks safety kenny easley believes that he was a member of the best. Its now been 20 years since the 1983 draft, and there is enough evidence in hindsight to call it perhaps the greatest draft class in nfl history. Elway refused to play for the colts and threatened to play baseball for the yankees. Thirty years ago, the draft in 1983 changed the nfl. The 1983 nfl draft produced six quarterbacks chosen in the first round. Nfl draft results for each year can be found in the left side navigation. The 1983 nfl draft produced some of the most prolific passers to ever play the game. There is little debate over what nfl draft class was the best ever for the quarterback position. Obrien played quarterback for over a decade in the national football league.
The 1983 nfl draft is perhaps the best in history for quarterbacks, with six going in the first round and three future hall of famers at the position. The draft was held april 2728, 1982, at the new york sheraton hotel in new york city, new york. Drafted by the broncos in the 12th round of the 1983 nfl draft with the 310thoverall pick, karl mecklenburg was a 10year starter in the nfl who made six pro bowls, had three firstteam allpro selections and was inducted into the ring of fame. In the third of a fivepart series counting down the best drafts in bears history, ive ranked the 1936 crop at no. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Qbs in 1983 nfl draft overshadow talent in 1984s group. The best of the best draft picks in broncos history. No teams elected to claim any players in the supplemental draft that year. Greatest nfl draft class ever isnt just about quarterbacks. These are the greatest draft classes in nfl history.
During marinos 17year career in the nfl, all with the miami dolphins, he completed 4,967 of 8,358 passes for 61,361. Irrelevant was first awarded to the player who was selected last overall. He also led the nfl with the lowest rate of interceptions in 1985, 1987, and 1988. Nfl teams drafted six quarterbacks in the first round of that draft, a record which still stands today.