The 2024 NFL Draft is quickly approaching and teams are beginning to compile their draft boards. It’s not an exact science, as many highly-touted prospects bust while a number of late-round players end up leading their team to the Super Bowl. The first overall NFL Draft picks are meant to be the end-all, be-all and the bona fide best player in the class. Sometimes, that’s not the case for one reason or another.
For the 2024 NFL Draft, USC’s Caleb Williams is the odds-on favorite to have his name called first according to offshore sportsbooks. He could end up as a controversial pick due to his personality, play style, or any kind of dig someone could have against him. Since 2000, there have been several high profile controversial first overall NFL Draft picks.
Counting Down the Most Controversial First Overall NFL Draft Picks
Baker Mayfield
At the time, the Cleveland Browns selecting Baker Mayfield felt like the most Cleveland Browns move there could ever be. The team was coming off of its 0-16 season and was slated to pick first overall for the second consecutive year. They needed a spark. And they got the whole fire with Mayfield.
Coming out of college at Oklahoma, there was no denying that Mayfield had talent and a drive unmatched in the class. He started out at Texas Tech where he appeared in eight games as a freshman and accounted for 2,315 passing yards and 12 touchdowns. He then transferred out and elected to become a walk-on at Oklahoma.
After sitting and waiting for his chance, Mayfield took the college football world by storm in 2015, starting his impressive three-year run as the Sooners quarterback. In those three years, Mayfield threw for 12,292 yards and 119 touchdowns with only 21 interceptions. On the ground, he added 893 yards and 18 touchdowns.
He led the Sooners to three straight Big 12 titles and two College Football Playoff appearances. His ability to play quarterback was not the controversial part.
Minimally, his size put him at a disadvantage. Mayfield was a tad over six-foot but he played bigger. The real issue was his attitude.
Mayfield was known for being an antagonizer and had a few infamous moments against Kansas his senior year. He just wasn’t a guy many saw being able to lead an NFL franchise.
Looking back, Mayfield got the Browns back to the playoffs and even won once. After being dumped by the team for an infinitely more controversial quarterback, Mayfield bounced around a bit before landing in Tampa Bay for the 2023 season where he led the Buccaneers to an NFC South title and Wild Card win.
Clearly, Mayfield was a high profile bust amongst first overall NFL Draft picks since 2000.
Eli Manning
As with Mayfield, Eli Manning was an incredibly talented college quarterback. At Ole Miss, Manning was able to live up to the lofty expectations set by his older brother, Peyton and his time at Tennessee.
In four years at Ole Miss, Manning started three seasons and amassed a total of 10,119 yards and 81 touchdowns through the air. He was the 2003 SEC Offensive Player of the Year and was well worth the first-overall pick.
The controversy was what followed.
The San Diego Chargers were notorious within the business for a number of reason. The largest being how they deal with rookie contracts. Over the years, the Chargers have had the lion’s share of rookie hold-outs because they wouldn’t guarantee one thing or another. So, in the weeks leading up, Manning asked the Chargers in confidence to not draft them because he, himself, was not comfortable with the franchise.
The Chargers did not keep the secret and the Manning camp did not take kindly to it.
It’s not often that a player strong-arms their way out of a situation but that’s exactly what Manning did. He flat-out told the franchise and anyone who asked that he was not going to play football for the Chargers. After the selection, the Chargers reneged on their decision and managed to trade Manning to the Giants for their first-round selection, Philip Rivers.
Looking back, it seems to have worked out for both, for the most part. The Chargers got their franchise guy who led them for many, many years, albeit without a title. The Giants won two Super Bowls with Manning.
JaMarcus Russell
Perhaps the most controversial of first overall NFL Draft picks for a number of reasons has to have been the 2007 first-overall pick out of LSU, JaMarcus Russell.
At LSU, Russell was a good-not-great quarterback, throwing for 6,625 yards and 52 touchdowns in three years of action. He was an imposing figure and looked to have all of the tools an NFL franchise could want in their franchise quarterback.
It was not to be.
There were rumors of Russell’s work ethic coming out but the Oakland Raiders paid no mind and took him with the first-overall pick anyway.
The rest is history.
Russell has gone down as quite possibly the biggest NFL Draft bust of all time. He lasted just three seasons with the Raiders and managed just 4,083 yards and 18 touchdowns with 23 interceptions and a terrible 52.1% completion percentage.
The stories to come out of this debacle are timeless. The Raiders reportedly gave him blank tapes and told him to dissect them for a future opponent. When asked if he watched film, he answered that he had, thus tipping the Raiders off to the fact he did not put any work in.
Russell has the distinct honor of being one of, if not the worst first-overall pick in NFL Draft history. And that’s saying something, there have been some serious duds.