The All-Time Seventh Round NFL Draft Team
Includes three members of the NFL's 100th anniversary team
Bill Parcells photo courtesy of the New York Giants
The seventh round is the final round of the current NFL draft but it is by no means a throwaway round.
Not with a history that includes 10 all-decade selections, nine Hall of Famers and three members of the NFL’s 50th anniversary team. This round has also become a breeding ground for coaches, producing three who have taken teams to Super Bowls.
The Detroit Lions drafted tackle Bill Parcells in 1964 and the Chicago Bears selected both quarterback Jim Fassel in 1972 and safety Jeff Fisher in 1981. Parcells took both the New York Giants and the New England Patriots to Super Bowls and won twice with the Giants. Fisher took the Tennessee Titans to the Super Bowl in 2000 and Fassel the Giants in 2001.
Parcells is one of two Hall of Famers produced in the seventh round who never played a down in the NFL. The other was John Havlicek, who was drafted as a wide receiver by the Cleveland Browns in 1962. He went on to play in 13 NBA All-Star games and win eight championships with the Boston Celtics. He has been enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
The 27 members of this team went to a combined 113 Pro Bowls. The Dallas Cowboys found Hall of Famers at wide receiver (Bob Hayes) and offensive tackle (Rayfield Wright) plus two Pro Bowl defensive tackles (Leon Lett and Jay Ratliff) in the seventh round. All are included on the all-time seventh-round NFL draft team. Linebackers Bobby Bell and Joe Schmidt and safety Larry Wilson were all selected from this round to the NFL’s 100th anniversary team.
Interestingly, the all-time leading receivers of both the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints were seventh-round draft picks — Donald Driver by the Packers and Marques Colston of the Saints.
Here is the all-time seventh-round NFL draft team, including the franchise each was drafted by and the year:
QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, St. Louis Rams 2005, 17 seasons, 223 TD passes, won games with 7 teams
HB Bo Jackson, Los Angeles Raiders 1987, Pro Bowl, 4 seasons, 3 TDs of 88+ yards
RB Jamal Anderson, Atlanta 1994, Pro Bowl, 8 seasons, 4 1,000-yard seasons
WR Bobby Mitchell, Cleveland 1958, Hall of Fame, 4 Pro Bowls, 521 catches, 65 TDs
WR Bob Hayes, Dallas 1965, Hall of Fame, 3 Pro Bowls, 371 catches, 20-yard average
TE Shannon Sharpe, Denver 1990, Hall of Fame, 8 Pro Bowls, 3 Super Bowl rings
T Rayfield Wright, Dallas 1967, Hall of Fame, 6 Pro Bowls, 2 Super Bowl rings
T Cody Risien, Cleveland 1979, 2 Pro Bowls, 10 seasons, 140 starts
G Max Montoya, Cincinnati 1979, 4 Pro Bowls, 16 seasons, 195 starts
G Gene Hickerson, Cleveland 1957, Hall of Fame, 6 Pro Bowls, 183 starts
C Jim Ringo, Green Bay 1953, Hall of Fame, 10 Pro Bowls, 186 starts
DE Michael McCrary, Seattle 1993, 2 Pro Bowls, 10 seasons, 71 sacks
DE Carl Hairston, Philadelphia 1976, 15 seasons, 96 sacks
DT Leon Lett, Dallas 1991, 2 Pro Bowls, 11 seasons, 22 ½ sacks
DT Jay Ratliff, Dallas 2005, 4 Pro Bowls, 11 seasons, 35 sacks
OLB Bobby Bell, Kansas City 1963, Hall of Fame, NFL’s 100th anniversary team
MLB Joe Schmidt, Detroit 1953, Hall of Fame, NFL’s 100th anniversary team
OLB Joe Fortunato, Chicago 1952, 5 Pro Bowls, 1950s NFL all-decade team
CB Lemar Parrish, Cincinnati 1970, 8 Pro Bowls, 47 interceptions
CB Bobby Bryant, Minnesota 1967, 2 Pro Bowls, 51 interceptions
S Larry Wilson, St. Louis Cardinals 1960, Hall of Fame, NFL’s 100th anniversary team
S Eddie Meador, Los Angeles Rams 1959, 6 Pro Bowls, 1960s NFL all-decade team
K Gary Anderson, Los Angeles Rams 1982, 4 Pro Bowls, NFL’s #3 all-time scorer
P Brandon Fields, Miami 2007, Pro Bowl, 46.7-yard average 7th best all-time
KR Mike Nelms, Buffalo 1977, 4 Pro Bowls, 1980s NFL all-decade team
ST Mark Pike, Buffalo 1986, 12 seasons, 255 career special-teams tackles
LS Brian Jennings, San Francisco 2000, 2 Pro Bowls, 13 seasons, 208 games
You can read the All-Time Draft Teams here:
