You’ll often hear the adage that the NFL Draft is more of an art than a science. After all, you have to combine a bunch of empirical data (like a player’s height, weight, speed, and strength) with a lot of totally subjective observations (game film, playing style, college scheme), and then use all of that to determine how that player will fare several years from now. That’s why guys like Carlos Rogers somehow end up being drafted ahead of guys like Aaron Rodgers (2005 NFL Draft).
So we decided that we’d go back and look through each NFL Draft and determine every team’s most painful draft regret — the guys that NFL teams went all in on, and totally missed on that pick.
Let’s get started with the Dallas Cowboys…
Dallas Cowboys Drafted: Greg Ellis (1998)
One of the best stories in recent NFL history for anyone who hates the Dallas Cowboys (and there are plenty such people). After owner Jerry Jones promised Randy Moss that the Cowboys would pick him if he were available in the 1998 NFL Draft, the Cowboys got spooked by Moss’ checkered past (talk about irony), and instead took defensive end Greg Ellis from North Carolina. Ellis was a fine defensive end for a number of years for the Cowboys, even being named to the Pro Bowl once.
Could Have Drafted: Randy Moss
But to compare him to Randy Moss is a total joke, considering Moss will go down as the second greatest wide receiver in NFL history, next to only Jerry Rice.