First wide receiver chosen in every NFL draft in Super Bowl era
Catching on
Finding a great wide receiver in the NFL draft isn’t as easy as it seems. Take a look at the first WRs selected during the Super Bowl era, and you realize a lot of the first off-the-board picks fizzled big time.
1967: Gene Washington
Taken eighth overall out of a powerhouse Michigan State program by the Minnesota Vikings, Gene Washington played six seasons with the Purple before finishing with Denver. He had 182 catches, 26 for touchdowns.
1968: Haven Moses
The ninth overall pick by the Buffalo Bills out of San Diego State, Haven Moses had a long career. He was in the league from 1968-81 and made 448 catches for more than 8,000 yards.
1969: Ron Sellers
The Boston Patriots made Ron Sellers the sixth overall pick out of Florida State. Sellers played three seasons with the Patriots, one with Dallas and a bit with Miami in 1973. He had 112 catches, 18 for TDs.
1970: Ken Burrough
A 10th overall selection out of Texas Southern, Ken Burrough played one year with New Orleans before moving on to the Houston Oilers. He made 408 catches in 11 seasons with the Oilers. Burrough passed away at the end of February, 2022.
1971: J.D. Hill
Arizona State’s J.D. Hill was a fourth overall choice by the Buffalo Bills. He spent five seasons in Western New York and two with the Detroit Lions.
1972: Ahmad Rashad
From Oregon, Ahmad Rashad went fourth overall to the St. Louis Cardinals. He spent two years with the Cardinals and one with Buffalo before finding a home with Minnesota. He had 400 catches in seven seasons as a Viking.
1973: Isaac Curtis
Another San Diego State wideout who caught the eye of pro scouts, Isaac Curtis was selected 15th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played his entire career with Cincinnati and made 416 catches for 7,101 yards. A star.
1974: Lynn Swann
Chosen 21st overall out of USC by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Lynn Swann made the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001.
1975: Larry Burton
A burner from Purdue, Larry Burton was the seventh overall pick by New Orleans. He didn’t work out, playing five years and making 44 total catches.
1976: Billy Brooks
Oklahoma’s Billy Brooks was an 11th overall choice by the Cincinnati Bengals. He lasted four years—making 93 catches—with Cincy. Brooks’ final season was split between Houston and San Diego with 3 grabs.
1977: Stanley Morgan
Stanley Morgan was taken 25th overall by the New England Patriots. They got 13 seasons and 534 catches out of the Tennessee star, who finished his career with a year in Indy.
1978: Wes Chandler
Wes Chandler went from the Florida Gators to the New Orleans Saints as a third overall choice. He made 182 catches with New Orleans before going to San Diego where he made 373 grabs in seven years. His final season saw him catch 4 passes in 4 games as a 49er.
1979: Jerry Butler
Clemson’s Jerry Butler went to the Buffalo Bills as the fifth overall pick. He missed the 1984 season with a knee injury but came back to play two more years. Overall, Butler had 278 receptions.
1980: Lam Jones
The New York Jets chose Texas speedster Lam Jones second overall. He didn’t pan out as they hoped, with only 138 receptions in five seasons.
1981: David Verser
Kansas’ David Verser was taken 10th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals. He became more of a return specialist and only had 23 catches in six seasons with three teams.
1982: Anthony Hancock
The Chiefs took Tennessee’s Anthony Hancock 11th overall. In four-plus years he made 73 catches.
1983: Willie Gault
The Bears went to Tennessee in 1983 and grabbed sprinter Willie Gault 18th overall. He had five seasons with Chicago and six with the Raiders, making 333 catches for 6,635 yards and 44 TDs.
1984: Irving Fryar
The first overall pick by the New England Patriots from Nebraska, Irving Fryar played through the 2000 season, a career that saw him with four teams. He made 851 catches for 12,875 yards and 84 touchdowns.
1985: Al Toon
Wisconsin’s Al Toon was the 10th overall pick by the New York Jets. He was a great receiver in a career cut short by numerous concussions. Toon had 517 catches for more than 6,600 yards.
1986: Mike Sherrard
If you are wondering why Mike Sherrard is pictured as a 49er and not a Dallas Cowboy—which drafted him 18th overall out of UCLA—it is because he lasted one season and 41 catches in Texas. He went on to play for the Niners, Giants, and Broncos.
1987: Haywood Jeffires
North Carolina State’s Haywood Jeffires was selected 20th overall by the Houston Oilers. He played nine seasons with the team that drafted him and one with the New Orleans Saints. He had 535 receptions.
1988: Tim Brown
The sixth overall pick by the Raiders, Notre Dame’s Tim Brown was a Heisman winner in college and Hall of Famer in the pros.
1989: Hart Lee Dykes
Hart Lee Dykes played college football at Oklahoma State before being taken 16th overall by the New England Patriots. He played two seasons and had 83 total catches.
1990: Alexander Wright
Auburn’s Alexander Wright went 26th overall to the Dallas Cowboys and did not work out. He had 21 catches in three seasons. He then went on to play for the Raiders and Rams, finishing his career with 101 catches.
1991: Herman Moore
Virginia’s Herman Moore was chosen 10th overall by the Detroit Lions. He had a prosperous career in 11 seasons with Detroit. Moore had 670 receptions for 9,174 yards., plus three targets (no catches) with the Giants in 2002.
1992: Desmond Howard
The fourth overall pick out of Washington was Heisman winner Desmond Howard. The Michigan Wolverine standout became a Super Bowl MVP for Green Bay in the pros.
1993: Sean Dawkins
Sean Dawkins played college ball at Cal and went 16th overall to the Indianapolis Colts. He had 251 catches in five years with them, and then bounced to New Orleans, Seattle and Jacksonville.
1994: Charles Johnson
Colorado’s Charles Johnson was taken 17th by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played five years and made 247 catches for them. After that, he had brief stops in Philly, Buffalo and New England.
1995: Michael Westbrook
Another Colorado WR, Michael Westbrook went fourth overall to Washington. He spent seven years with Washington before finishing his career in Cincinnati.
1996: Terry Glenn
Ohio State WR Terry Glenn was drafted seventh overall by New England. He spent six seasons with the Patriots, one with Green Bay, and five with Dallas. Glenn had 593 catches for 8,823 yards in his career.
1997: Ike Hilliard
The New York Giants went Gator hunting with the seventh overall pick and grabbed Florida’s Ike Hilliard. He spent eight seasons with Big Blue before returning to the Sunshine State for four years with Tampa Bay.
1998: Kevin Dyson
Utah’s Kevin Dyson went to Tennessee 16th overall. He came up a yard short against the Rams in the Super Bowl but did score on the Music City Miracle against the Buffalo Bills.
1999: Torry Holt
Torry Holt excelled at North Carolina State before the Rams took him sixth. He made 869 catches for St. Louis before spending his final season with the Jaguars, adding 51 grabs for his career.
2000: Peter Warrick
Selected fourth overall by the Cincinnati Bengals out of Florida State, Peter Warrick played five seasons in Ohio before moving on to Seattle for a campaign.
2001: David Terrell
The eighth overall pick by the Chicago Bears, Michigan’s David Terrell had 128 catches in four years as a Bear. He appeared in one game with Denver and had no stats.
2002: Donte' Stallworth
Tennessee’s Donte’ Stallworth went 13th overall to New Orleans. He played for 10 seasons with six teams and made 321 catches for 4,837 yards.
2003: Charles Rogers
The second overall pick out of Michigan State by the Detroit Lions, Charles Rogers’ NFL career was rocked by trouble, turbulence and turmoil.
2004: Larry Fitzgerald
The Arizona Cardinals went third in 2004 and drafted Pitt’s Larry Fitzgerald. He proved to be one of the best at the position and is a surefire Hall of Famer.
2005: Braylon Edwards
Another Michigan wideout, Braylon Edwards went third overall to the Cleveland Browns. He played for four teams and made 359 catches, averaging almost 16 yards per reception.
2006: Santonio Holmes
The 25th overall choice by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Santonio Holmes will be forever remembered for his game-winning TD catch against Arizona in the Super Bowl.
2007: Calvin Johnson
Georgia Tech’s Calvin Johnson was a second overall choice of the Detroit Lions. Megatron is a Hall of Famer.
2008: Donnie Avery
Houston’s Donnie Avery went 33rd overall to the St. Louis Rams. He played for four teams and made 218 catches.
2009: Michael Crabtree
Michael Crabtree starred at Texas Tech before being chosen10th overall by the San Francisco 49ers. The WR wound up with 637 catches for 7,499 yards in his career.
2010: Dez Bryant
Controversial and colorful Dez Bryant was taken 24th overall by the Dallas Cowboys after a career as an Oklahoma State Cowboy. He grabbed passes and headlines while spending eight seasons in Dallas.
2011: A.J. Green
Georgia’ A.J. Green was taken fourth overall by the Cincinnati Bengals. He spent nine seasons in the AFC North and made 649 catches for 9,430 yards. He spent last year as an Arizona Cardinal.
2012: Justin Blackmon
The fifth overall pick out of Oklahoma State by the Jacksonville Jaguars, Justin Blackmon found trouble at every turn and quickly was gone from the NFL.
2013: Tavon Austin
Speed led to Tavon Austin becoming the eighth overall pick by the St. Louis Rams out of West Virginia. He is on his fourth team now in Jacksonville.
2014: Sammy Watkins
Another fourth overall choice, Clemson’s Sammy Watkins went to the Buffalo Bills. Staying healthy has been a challenge, though he did win a Super Bowl ring with the Chiefs. He just added another team to his resume, signing with the Green Bay Packers.
2015: Amari Cooper
Amari Cooper went fourth overall to the Oakland Raiders from Alabama. He has also played for Dallas and now Cleveland.
2016: Corey Coleman
The 15th overall pick out of Baylor by the Cleveland Browns was a bust— no matter how you try and frame it.
2017: Corey Davis
Corey Davis impressed in MACtion out of Western Michigan and became the fifth overall by the Tennessee Titans. After four seasons in the AFC South, he joined the Jets last year.
2018: D.J. Moore
D.J. Moore went to Maryland and with the 24th overall pick, he landed in Carolina as a Panther. He has 301 catches in four seasons, including 93 last year.
2019: Marquise Brown
The Baltimore Ravens took Marquise Brown out of Oklahoma with the 25th overall pick. He has been a deep threat for Lamar Jackson.
2020: Henry Ruggs III
The 12th overall choice out of Alabama by the Las Vegas Raiders, Henry Ruggs is out of the league after a fatal auto accident.
2021: Ja'Marr Chase
Ja’Marr Chase had a spectacular rookie season after being drafted fifth overall out of LSU by the Bengals.
2022: Drake London
USC’s Drake London went No. 8 to Atlanta in 2022 and, considering the Falcons’ offensive attack the past two years, has provided some spark at the position.
2023: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
The Buckeyes talent was the 20th pick in the 2023 draft, which sent Jaxon Smith-Njigba to the Seattle Seahawks. He had a decent rookie season, totaling 63 receptions for 628 yards and four touchdowns.
