Our list of the top draft busts will focus on top 10 picks since they are considered to be the “sure fire picks”. We could just take the Bengals first round picks of Mike Brown era prior to Marvin Lewis with the likes of David Klingler, Dan Wilkinson, Ki-Jana Carter, Akili Smith, Peter Warrick and James Francis. However there were a few good productive ones like Willie Anderson, Takeo Spikes and Brian Simmons so we’ll let them off the hook. Quarterbacks and Running backs seem to dominate the draft bust list since they have cut and dry numbers to back it up but we will see a few offensive tackles and defensive players as well.

FIRST TEAM
1. Ryan Leaf, QB, Washington State, 1998, 2nd Pick, Chargers - No NFL bust list is complete without listing Ryan Leaf. Unlike some others it was not addiction, off field problems, steroids or career threatening injuries that held back Leaf. He was just plain bad. He was so bad that he was out of the league within four years. He played only 26 games completing 48.4% of his passes for 3666 yds, 14 TD and 36 Int. There was a time when it was a tough decision of who to take between Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf. Leaf was considered to have the higher upside but was rawer and would need more time to develop. The Colts needed a starter right now and opted for Manning or Leaf would have been an even larger bust! Leaf was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy in his junior year, was a first-team All-American and PAC-10 offensive player of the year. Adding insult to injury, Chargers GM Bobby Beathard gave up the No. 3 pick, a second-round selection, a first-round choice in 1999, and two players to Arizona to move up just one spot.

2. Art Schlichter, QB, Ohio State, 1982, 4th Pick, Colts - The only reason Schlichter was not placed above Leaf was that his career was destroyed largely by an addiction to gambling that led to various off field issues. He only played in 13 games, Completed 45.0% of his passes for 1006 yds, 3 TDs and 11 int’s. Schlichter was a standout player at Ohio State and almost lead the Buckeyes to the national title. In 1983, the league suspended him when it was discovered that he had $150,000 in gambling debt. The Colts released him in 1985. He played arena football for a few years in the 1990’s and has a long rap sheet that includes over 20 felonies such as fraud and forgery. He’s been in prison over 30 times. He is one of the saddest stories of wasted potential in sports history.

3. Tony Mandarich, OT, Michigan St, 1989, 2nd Pick, Packers - As stud offensive tackles often are, Mandarich was viewed by many to be the safest pick in the draft. Unfortunately, he never came close to living up to expectations, and after just three years, he was cut. Because of a drastic loss in weight upon entering the NFL, there was a lot of speculation that his success at the collegiate level was fueled by the use of steroids. He was drafted ahead of Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas and Deion Sanders which just make the pick that much more painful. A great senior year, where he was named a first-team All-American, Big Ten Lineman of the Year and Outland Award Finalist, he was touted as the best offensive line prospect ever. He played from 1996- 1998 for the Colts and was a bit better but not spectacular.

4. Penn State running backs - This is a scary trend of three sure fire picks falling flat on their face.

a. Curtis Enis, RB, Penn St, 1998, 5th pick, Bears- Games 34, RuYds 1497, Total TDs 6. He possessed the power of a big man and had the moves often attributed to smaller backs. Enis was considered to be like Randy Moss was that same year, a top prospect. To be fair, he did injure his ACL as a rookie, and pain in his knee forced him to hang it up by age 25, right after trying to resurrect his career with the Browns. What makes Enis even more frustrating is the other players available in the draft: RB’s Fred Taylor (Round 1) and Ahman Green (Round 3)

b. Ki-Jana Carter, RB, Penn St, 1995, 1st pick, Bengals- Games 57, RuYds 1127, Total TDs 21. The only things keeping him from being an overall top pick are his ACL tear on his first pro carry and the 21 touchdowns he did score (though many of them were vulture carries after Cory Dillon carried them down the field). At Penn State, the guy was amazing. He was built like a bulldog, but still had the explosion to act as a home run threat from anywhere on the field. Carter was a slam dunk for the No. 1 pick at the time. Unfortunately, the Ki-Jana Carter that played for the Bengals, Redskins, and Saints was never the same player after that preseason ACL tear. He was a standout player in college; in 1994 he had 27 carries for 227 yards and 5 touchdowns against Michigan State. That same year he played in the Rose Bowl, earning Co-MVP honors. In recent years, he has been an on-again, off-again backup player.

c. Blair Thomas, RB Penn St, 1990, 2nd pick, Jets - Games 64, RuYds 2236, Total TDs 9. He never showed the burst or creativity as a runner and the great package of skills needed in the NFL. A 40 time of 4.4 thrust Thomas to the forefront of the 1990 NFL Draft, far above a number of future NFL workhorses at his position. At only 5-foot-10, 195 pounds, Thomas never even developed into one of the top seven or eight most productive backs in his draft class, which is a monumental waste of the number two overall pick. In seven NFL seasons with the Jets, Cowboys, Patriots, and Panthers, Thomas rushed for only 2,236 yard and seven TDs. Of course later in this same draft, some guy by the name of Emmit Smith was drafted by the Cowboys.

5. Akili Smith, QB, Oregon, 1999, 3rd pick, Bengals- Games 21, Yds 2212, TDs 5, int's 13. The second bust QB taken by Mike Brown’s staff in the 90’s after David Klingler, Smith started just 17 games over four years with Cincinnati. He played only two games during the 2001 season and was cut in 2002. In 2003, he was again cut, this time by the Packers. And in 2005, he failed in a stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Like Leaf, Smith had nothing holding him back outside of the fact that he is just a bad NFL quarterback. Blessed with one of the strongest arms you’ll ever see, he was never able to find the other tools necessary to put it all together. Fortunately the Browns did not do much better taking Tim Couch with the first overall pick. Edgerrin James, Champ Bailey, Dante Culpepper and others were drafted later which and all would have been available if the Bengals had made a deal with the Saints that would have netted them the Saints entire draft including the 5th overall pick and some future picks.

SECOND TEAM
6. Lawrence Phillips, RB, Nebraska, 1996, 6th Pick, Rams - Games 35, RuYds 1453, Total TDs 15. Phillips appeared to have all the potential to be a future star in the NFL. In today’s NFL, he would have slid much further due to off field issues. In the pros, he proved to be a major distraction and an under-performer. He missed team meetings, was arrested for assault and domestic abuse and was often cut from teams due to his argumentative nature. In the NFL, he played too upright and couldn't make people miss. He was handed chance after chance to make it with the Rams, Dolphins, NFL Europe, 49ers, Arena League, and CFL. He was drafted ahead of Eddie George.

7. Heath Shuler, QB, Tennessee, 1994, 3rd Pick, Redskins - Games 29, Yds 3691, TDs 15, int’s 33. As with many of our draft busts he was a holdout, and not being in camp hurt him immediately. Then Gus Frerotte, another '94 draft pick, seized control of the team. Shuler never caught up. He also wasn't the pure passer he needed to be. Shuler quarterbacked the Vols of Tennessee where he set numerous passing records and came in second in Heisman voting in 1993. He was considered to be one of the SEC’s top QBs and his athleticism made him a real commodity. His potential never translated to NFL success.

8. Kelly Stouffer, QB, Colorado State, 1987, 6th Pick, Cardinals - Games 22, Yds 2333, TDs 7, int’s 19. Stouffer had a good college career putting up big numbers at Colorado State in the old pass-happy WAC. He would belong near the top of this list but most felt he wasn’t worth the 6th overall pick anyways. Stouffer played for Seattle from 1988- 1992. He performed well in a limited capacity and in 1992 and earned the starting job. He did not win one game and was injured and sidelined near the end of the season. In 1993 the Hawks picked Rick Mirer and Stouffer’s career was over.

9. Brian Bosworth, LB, Oklahoma 1987, supplemental, Seahawks - Winner of the first two Butkus Awards, Bosworth was kicked off the Oklahoma squad because of steroid use, which fueled his entry into the 1987 supplemental draft, where he was selected by the Seahawks in the first round. Bosworth was perhaps the most over-hyped player to exit the collegiate ranks, recording just four sacks through three seasons.

10. Bruce Pickens, CB, Nebraska, 1991, 3rd, Falcons - In his five seasons with the club, he recorded a very modest total of two interceptions.

THIRD TEAM
11. Andre Ware, QB, Houston, 1990, 7th, Lions - Games 14, Yds 1112, TDs 5 int’s 8. Ware spent four seasons with the Lions before heading to the Raiders, and then the CFL.

12. Tim Biakabutuka, RB, Michigan, 1996, 8th, Panthers - Games 49, RuYds 2530, Total TDs 17. He was drafted ahead of Eddie George as well.

13. Bo Matthews, RB, Colorado, 1974, 2nd, Chargers - In eight NFL seasons, he gained only 1,566 yards rushing, and caught 75 passes, before spending time with the USFL's Denver Gold.

14. Leroy Keyes, RB, 3rd, 1969, Eagles - Keyes played both ways from the get go, rushing for 361 yards as a rookie. After injuring his leg, Keyes focused primarily on defense, and would rush for only eight more yards. Keyes would go down in the record books as one of the least productive NFL running backs ever drafted in the top five finishing with 369 career rushing yards. His eight interceptions save him from being higher on this list.

15. Todd Blackledge, QB, 7th, 1983, Chiefs - Games 46, Yds 5286, TDs 29 int’s 38. The only reason Blackledge makes the list is because he was taken over Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Tony Eason and Ken O'Brien

HONORABLE MENTIONS
16. Steve Emtman, DT, Washington (1st overall, Colts, 1992)
17. Tom Cousineau, MLB, Ohio State (1st overall, Bills, 1979)
18. David Klingler, QB, Houston (6th overall, Bengals, 1992)
19. Dan Wilkinson, DT, Ohio State (1st overall, Bengals, 1994)
20. Rick Mirer, QB, Notre Dame (2nd overall, Seahawks, 1993)

from the GetSportsInfo.com archives (by Dan Hoerst):