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NFL trades can see star players move from one franchise to another, while they can also see teams move NFL Draft picks around.
Throughout the modern history of the NFL, we’ve seen teams look to bolster their roster by moving future draft picks in exchange for established players, but just what becomes of those as yet nameless picks?
It’s rare that draft selections get a lot of attention when a future trade is made; however, history has taught us that they can turn into invaluable assets for a team who has the right scouting department.
In all the years of traded NFL Draft picks, just who are the 10 best players to ever be selected with traded picks?
10. Ryan Kalil: 2007 Pick #59 Traded by New York Jets to Carolina Panthers
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Darrelle Revis was one of the darlings of the 2007 NFL Draft, and the New York Jets were desperate to select him and move toward the Revis Island era at The Meadowlands.
They did just that with a trade involving the Carolina Panthers, who gained the Jets’ 25th overall selection in the 2007 NFL Draft, as well as their 59th overall selection and their 164th pick.
With the 59th overall pick, which came in the second-round, the Panthers used the selection the Jets had given them to secure Revis and turned it into Ryan Kalil.
Kalil became a cornerstone of the Panthers’ offensive line over the course of his career. He was selected to five Pro Bowls and became the highest-paid center in NFL history in 2011. He was an integral part of the Carolina team that reached the Super Bowl in 2016.
9. Steven Jackson: 2004 Pick #24 Traded by Denver Broncos to Cincinnati Bengals to St. Louis Rams
The Denver Broncos traded away Deltha O’Neal in April of 2004 with the Cincinnati Bengals happy to pick up the cornerback.
In addition to O’Neal, the Bengals received a first-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the same draft.
The first-round pick was the 26th overall selection in the 2004 NFL Draft, yet this was then traded away by the Bengals to the St. Louis Rams, who moved up two places to Pick #24 and drafted Steven Jackson.
While not strictly selected with the same pick that was traded, the Rams could never have gotten to this pick had the initial O’Neal deal not occurred, and the Oregon State running back developed into their best player for the better part of a decade.
Between 2005 and 2012, Jackson would rush for, at least, 1,000 yards in eight successive NFL seasons for the Rams, and he holds the franchise record for most career rushing yards with 10,138 yards.
2006 was a vintage year for Jackson, who became a true double-threat on the Rams offense, becoming the only player to ever record 1,400 rushing yards and 800 receiving yards in a single season.
8. Derrick Henry: 2016 Pick #45 Traded by Los Angeles Rams to Tennessee Titans
The Los Angeles Rams needed a franchise quarterback in 2016, with the pick vital in helping them sell tickets for their immediate return to Los Angeles.
Jared Goff was identified as the best quarterback in the NFL Draft class of 2016, and the Rams moved heaven and earth to get him.
The Tennessee Titans held the #1 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, yet traded the pick to the Rams in exchange for a first-round selection in 2016, two second-round selections in 2016, a third-round pick in 2016, as well as a first-round and a third-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft a year later.
One of the two second-round picks in 2016 would turn into one of the best players in the NFL, with the Titans selecting running back Derrick Henry with the 45th pick of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Henry has since established himself as a dominant offensive weapon in Tennessee, rushing for 1,540 yards in his breakout 2019 season, only to follow this with a superhuman effort in 2020 where he joined a very elite group of running backs to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a single season.
7. Kam Chancellor: 2010 Pick #133 Traded by Detroit Lions to Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks used the 2010 NFL Draft to build a defense that would win them the Super Bowl in 2014, yet one key member of the infamous ‘Legion of Boom’ came from a pick which wasn’t even initially theirs.
Rob Sims was the player that the Detroit Lions coveted in 2010, with the guard being seen as the perfect individual to solidify their offensive line and protect franchise quarterback Matthew Stafford.
So, when a trade was announced in April 2010 confirming that the Lions had secured Sims in exchange for a fifth-round selection in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft, most thought the Detroit franchise had pulled off a masterstroke.
That would prove not to be the case as the Lions continued to struggle, while the Seahawks would select powerful safety Kam Chancellor with the 133rd pick of the 2010 NFL Draft.
Chancellor was frightening in the Seattle backfield. He hit receivers hard and virtually marshaled the field for Pete Carroll’s team.
6. LaDainian Tomlinson: 2001 Pick #5 Traded by Atlanta Falcons to San Diego Chargers
Michael Vick was the preeminent quarterback talent in the 2001 NFL Draft, and the Atlanta Falcons wanted to move up five spots to select him with the first overall pick.
To do that, they would have to offer an acceptable trade to the San Diego Chargers, who also held a passing interest in Vick but wouldn’t commit to a sizable up-front signing bonus, as they did with Ryan Leaf as recently as the 1998 NFL Draft.
As such, the Chargers were amenable to a trade that saw them gain the fifth-overall pick in 2001, along with Tim Dwight and a third-round choice.
With the fifth-pick of the 2001 NFL Draft, the Chargers used the pick offered by the Falcons to select running back LaDainian Tomlinson.
It proved to be an astute move as Tomlinson would have a Hall of Fame career, rushing for, at least, 1,200 yards in each of his first eight seasons in the NFL with San Diego. His best season came in 2006 when he led the league in both rushing yards (1,815) and rushing touchdowns (28).
5. Earl Thomas: 2010 Pick #14 Traded by Denver Broncos to Seattle Seahawks
Josh McDaniels is about to embark on the 2022 NFL Draft as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, yet his time in the same role with the Denver Broncos isn’t remembered fondly at all.
With the Broncos having given Bill Belichick’s protégé full control over roster decisions, he immediately set about ripping up the depth chart and replacing anyone who didn’t fit into his offense.
One of the more bizarre moves, which was difficult to understand at the time, was agreeing to trade Denver’s first-round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft for the Seattle Seahawks’ second-round pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
Alphonso Smith was the chosen one for McDaniels and the Broncos, yet a dismal season in Colorado would then see Seattle get to pick 14th in 2010.
With that selection in the 2010 NFL Draft, Pete Carroll worked his magic once more by drafting Earl Thomas, a free safety out of the University of Texas at Austin.
Thomas became another of the defensive lynchpins that carried the Seahawks to two successive Super Bowl appearances. His hard-hitting style perfectly fit the Seahawks’ modus-operandi at the time, while his ability to read the game saw him become one of the best in his position.
4. Marvin Harrison: 1996 Pick #19 Traded by Atlanta Falcons to Indianapolis Colts
In the 1990 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts selected Jeff George to be their quarterback. To get into that position, the Colts worked on a trade with the Atlanta Falcons.
So there was a lot of irony in the fact that, ahead of the 1994 NFL Draft, the Falcons made a move to trade for George, the player they could have drafted four years earlier.
The Colts were more than happy to get rid of the quarterback and received a 1994 first-round pick, a third-round pick in 1994 and a conditional selection for the 1996 NFL Draft if George played 75% of snaps in nine victories in the 1995 season.
This is where things get interesting. George would, indeed, hit that clause with the Falcons, meaning that the conditional selection headed to Indianapolis was, indeed, the 19th pick in the 1996 NFL Draft, which the Colts used to select future Hall of Fame wide receiver Marvin Harrison.
Harrison would spend an entire 13-year NFL career with the Colts, racking up 14,580 receiving yards and 128 career touchdowns.
In the eight seasons played between 1999 and 2006, Harrison would be selected to the Pro Bowl in every single campaign.
3. Ray Lewis: 1996 Pick #26 Traded by San Francisco 49ers to Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens
The words "Ray Lewis" and "the Baltimore Ravens" still send a shudder down the spine of football fans in Cleveland.
In 1995, the Ravens were not yet in existence, with Art Modell merely in the process of moving the Browns to Baltimore at the time.
A certain Bill Belichick was head coach, and he worked with Ozzie Newsome on plans for the 1996 NFL Draft in Cleveland.
The Browns, though, wouldn’t exist by the time the NFL Draft came around, but a trade they made in 1995 as the Browns would carry over to the Ravens.
The Browns traded their 10th overall selection in the 1995 NFL Draft to the 49ers, and they would receive a 1995 first-rounder, a 1995 third-rounder, a 1995 fourth-rounder and the 49ers’ first-round selection in the 1996 NFL Draft.
This pick would be the 26th overall selection, and the Ravens would make the pick Belichick and the Browns would have made, too, selecting linebacker Ray Lewis.
Lewis won two Super Bowl championships in Baltimore and holds the NFL records for career solo tackles, career combined tackles and solo tackles in a single season.
He is widely regarded as one of, if not the, greatest defensive player of all-time and is part of the Hall of Fame.
2. Emmitt Smith: 1990 Pick #17 Traded by Pittsburgh Steelers to Dallas Cowboys
The Minnesota Vikings would wish to forget the Herschel Walker trade ever occurred, yet it set into motion a chain of events that saw the Dallas Cowboys draft arguably the greatest running back ever to play the game.
Walker was traded by the Cowboys to the Vikings in October 1989, and a number of picks went in the opposite direction, including a first-round choice in the 1990 NFL Draft.
This selection would go on to be the 21st pick in the aforementioned draft, which Jerry Jones would then trade to the Pittsburgh Steelers to move to pick #17.
It was at this position that the Cowboys drafted Emmitt Smith.
Smith would spend 12 years in Dallas, winning three Super Bowl titles, a Super Bowl MVP award, an NFL MVP award, as well as breaking the all-time record for rushing yards (18,355), rushing touchdowns (164) and rushing attempts (4,409).
1. Joe Montana: 1979 Pick #82 Traded by Seattle Seahawks to San Francisco 49ers
The 1979 NFL Draft saw a lot of quality players drop down draft boards, yet one would stand out above all others.
To track the lineage of the 82nd pick of the 1979 NFL Draft back to its origin, we must address a particular trade which took place in August of 1978.
The Seattle Seahawks traded their third and sixth-round choices in 1979 to the Dallas Cowboys, receiving Bill Gregory and a 1979 third-round pick in exchange.
Seattle would then move this pick to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for the #57 pick, used to select Michael Jackson.
After multiple trades, the 49ers had emerged with the 82nd pick in the 1979 NFL Draft and defensive back Bob Jury.
With that pick, the Niners would select a quarterback out of Notre Dame who would surpass all expectations. They selected none other than Joe Montana.
The original "Joe Cool" is widely considered to be the greatest player to ever play in the NFL.
His career in San Francisco was extraordinary. He teamed up with Bill Walsh to win four Super Bowl championships, three Super Bowl MVP awards and two NFL MVP awards.
Montana would throw a total of 122 passes across four Super Bowls, and not once did he throw an interception in the big game, nor would he ever taste defeat in a Super Bowl, something even Tom Brady can’t claim.
