NFL Draft: The Worst Players by Top 15 Selection Since 1990

If there's one thing the NFL Draft is good for, it's reflection on the past and laughing at some of the terrible picks that have been made. And unlike Eddie Murphy, the last 20 years of the Draft have had no shortage of funny material. Here's a list of the worst player taken by each overall selection since 1990.

1. JaMarcus Russell (2007-Oakland Raiders QB)

Remember when there was a big debate between who should be taken first overall between Brady Quinn and JaMarcus Russell? Wow, what bozos we were. Granted, there have only been a handful of players taken first overall since 1990 that actually deserved that spot, but Russell was the worst of the worst. The Raiders could have taken Calvin Johnson, Joe Thomas, LaRon Landry, Adrian Peterson, or even Patrick Willis. Whoops.

Dishonorable Mention: David Carr, Courtney Brown, Tim Couch, Ki-Jana Carter, Steve Emtman, and Jeff George

2. Ryan Leaf (1998-San Diego Chargers QB)

The bust of all busts. Unlike the 2007 Quinn-Russell debate, the 1998 Manning-Leaf debate had a loser AND a winner. It's hard to believe that the Colts actually had to think about this one. With a 50.0 QB rating and a total of 14 Touchdowns compared to 36 picks, Leaf may be the worst draft pick of all time.

Dishonorable Mention: Charles Rogers, Darrell Russell, and Rick Mirer

3. Heath Shuler (1994-Washington Redskins QB)

I have been a Redskins fan my entire life, and even I can remember joining the chorus of boos that demanded Shuler's benching. If you can make an entire fanbase happy that you were being benched for Gus Frerotte, then you know it might be time to hang it up. His stats were an eyelash better than Leaf's, and that's not very good.

Dishonorable Mention: Joey Harrington and Akili Smith

4. Desmond Howard (1992-Washington Redskins WR)

Using a Fourth Pick on a kick returner would be alright if he was as talented as Devin Hester. Desmond Howard, unfortunately, was no Devin Hester. Everyone seems to remember Desmond as the Super Bowl MVP for the Packers in 1996-97 and a Heisman Trophy in 1991, but between those two accomplishments, he was a wasted pick for the Redskins. He amassed just 92 catches in his first four NFL seasons.

Dishonorable Mention: Dewayne Robertson, Peter Warrick, Michael Westbrook

5. Curtis Enis (1998-Chicago Bears RB)

The 5th Pick overall has seen quite a bit of talent in the last 20 years (Eric Berry, Mark Sanchez, Sean Taylor, LaDanian Tomlinson, Jamal Lewis), but the Bears were the last team to take a true bust at fifth overall. Enis averaged just 3.3 yards per carry in his seemingly long three year career with the Bears. To think, they passed on Fred Taylor for Enis. Yikes.

Dishonorable Mention: Trev Alberts and John Copeland

6. Lawrence Phillips (1996-St. Louis Rams RB)

Phillips was the epitome of wasted potential. He had so much potential, it made Dick Vermeil cry (literally). After spending just two years with the Rams, he moved on to the Dolphins for a year and played just one more NFL season after that, playing most of his career in Canada and Europe. He averaged just 3.4 yards per carry in his short career. Don't cry for Vermeil though, he acquired Marshall Faulk to replace Phillips and won Super Bowl XXXIV.

Dishonorable Mention: Pacman Jones, Vernon Gholston, Ryan Sims, and David Klingler

7. Andre Ware (1990-Detroit Lions QB)

1990 wasn't exactly the greatest draft, but the Lions took the biggest bust with their selection of Andre Ware. Another example of why Heisman does not equal NFL Hall of Fame, Ware threw just five touchdowns in the NFL and the Lions are still trying to recover from it.

Dishonorable Mention: Mike Mamula, Troy Williamson, Darrius Heyward-Bey (jury's still out)

8. David Terrell (2001-Chicago Bears WR)

Terrell was supposed to be quite the stud coming out of Michigan in 2001 and the Bears (being the great skill-position drafters that they are) selected him 8th overall. He had a total of just 1,602 yards in his NFL career. Santana Moss had 1,483 yards in 2005 alone, a Wide Receiver that the Bears passed on.

Dishonorable Mention: Tim Biakabutuka

9. Tom Knight (1997-Arizona Cardinals CB)

The 10th overall pick has seen mediocrity run rampant. Tom Knight wasn't the worst player in the world, but picked off just three passes in his seven-year career with the Cardinals, Ravens, and Rams.

Dishonorable Mention: Reggie Williams, Koren Robinson

10. Matt Leinart (2006-Arizona Cardinals QB)

Leinart was one of the most exciting prospects in recent memory. After leading USC to a National Championship and a Heisman Trophy award, it looked like he was destined for greatness. The Cardinals replaced Leinart with Kurt Warner in 2008 and went on to a Super Bowl appearance. Warner was never even drafted out of college. The next two picks after Leinart? Jay Cutler and Haloti Ngata. Ouch.

Dishonorable Mention: Mike Williams, Levi Jones, Jamal Reynolds

11. Pat Harlow (1991-New England Patriots OT)

Who? Exactly. Here's a link to his Wikipedia page, SPOILER ALERT: There's not much information http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Harlow

12. Cade McNown (1999-Chicago Bears QB)

If I had a dollar for every bad pick the Bears and Redskins have made in my lifetime, I'd be eating a nice dinner tonight. Such as Frerotte was to Shuler, Jim Miller was to Cade McNown. The fans angrily ran McNown out of town after just two seasons in the Windy City.

13. Troy Edwards (1999-Pittsburgh Steelers WR)

I'm sure the Steelers would have liked to have gotten more than three seasons out of their first round Wide Receiver, but the Biletnikoff Winner out of Louisiana Tech struggled for Pittsburgh, and his career ended in 2007 when he was cut by the Grand Rapids Rampage in Michigan. By the way, the Rampage is an Arena Team.

14. Derek Brown (1992-NY Giants TE)

If you're going to draft a Tight End this early, you better make sure he's going to be extremely productive. In his career, Derek Brown totaled just 400 yards and 1 touchdown. I will cut him a break though, he had to spend a couple weeks in a wheelchair thanks to a preseason hit he took against Denver.

15. Yatil Green (1997-Miami Dolphins WR)

Our countdown ends with a Wide Receiver that had just 18 catches for 234 yards in his NFL career with the Dolphins (and practice squad stints with the Jets and Raiders). Green was a local product out of "The U" that never took off even with Marino at Quarterback.