Draft History: From Brown and Allen to Smith and Russell, Raiders dabble in extremes
The Las Vegas Raider (how strange is that to say?) have had their share of very good and very bad picks. On the one side, they have drafted stat leaders and Super Bowl stars, but on the other, some of their picks rank among the greatest draft busts in NFL history.
BEST
10. Greg Townsend, DE (Round 4, Pick 110 in 1983) – The Texas Christian product is the all-time franchise leader with 107½ sacks and ranks second with 13 forced fumbles. He spent all but one of his 13 seasons with the Raiders, posting double-digit sack totals seven times, leading the league with six forced fumbles in 1989 and being selected to a pair of Pro Bowls. Townsend had 4½ sacks in three games during the 1983 playoffs, including one in a 38-9 win over the Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII.
9. Lester Hayes, CB (Round 5, Pick 126 in 1977) – Another gem the Raiders found in the middle rounds, Hayes’ 39 interceptions are tied with Willie Brown for the most in team history. The five-time Pro Bowler also earned All-Pro and Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1980 after leading the NFL with 13 interceptions for 273 return yards. Hayes added eight picks in 13 career postseason contests, and he was a part of two title teams (the win against the Redskins and a 27-10 victory over the Eagles three years prior in Super Bowl XV). Overall, he returned six interceptions for touchdowns, four in the regular season and two in the playoffs.
8. Ken Stabler, QB (Round 2, Pick 52 in 1968) – “The Snake” may have seen Derek Carr pass him for the team passing yards record, but he remains at the top of the touchdown chart for the time being (he has 150 to Daryle Lamonica’s 148 and Carr’s 143). The Hall of Famer was the league MVP and an All-Pro in 1974 after throwing for 2,469 yards and leading the NFL with 26 scoring passes. The four-time Pro Bowler and 1976 Bert Bell Player of the Year Award winner threw for 180 yards and a touchdown in Oakland’s 32-14 win over Minnesota in Super Bowl XI.
7. Dave Casper, TE (Round 2, Pick 45 in 1974) – Although Casper had most of his team tight end records eclipsed by Todd Christensen, he was one of the league’s best at the position for the better part of a decade. The Hall of Famer posted 255 receptions, 3,294 yards, and 35 touchdowns. “Ghost” was selected to four straight All-Pro teams and Pro Bowls as a member of the Raiders, and he had 70 yards and a score in Oakland’s Super Bowl XI win.
6. (tie) Fred Biletnikoff, WR (round 2, Pick 11 in 1965) and Cliff Branch, WR (Round 4, Pick 98 in 1972) – Biletnikoff’s totals (589 receptions, 8,974 yards, and 76 touchdowns) all rank second in team history, and Branch ranks third in all three categories (501-8,685-67). Biletnikoff is a Hall of Famer who played in Super Bowl II against a dominant Green Bay squad. The Raiders went to the next (and final) three AFL Championship games. Although they were not victorious, Biletnikoff was not the problem, since he had 370 yards and four touchdowns in two playoff games in 1968 and also scored in the title game two years later. He had 79 yards in the Super Bowl XI win over the Vikings to earn game MVP honors. Overall, the Florida State product was a six-time Pro Bowler and a two-time All-Pro. You really can’t have Biletnikoff on the team without Branch, since they made up one of the most dangerous receiving tandems of the 1970s. Branch arguably should have a bust in Canton. He had two 1,000-yards seasons (including an NFL-high 1,092 in 1974) and he led the league in touchdowns twice. The four-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro also played in 22 playoff games and three Super Bowls. He was held in check against the Vikings, but had 67 yards and two scores against the Eagles and added 94 yards and a touchdown in a win over the Redskins.
5. Gene Upshaw, G (Round 1, Pick 17 in 1967) – The Hall of Famer missed just one game over his 15-year career, which was spent entirely with the Raiders. He was a seven-time Pro Bowler and a five-time All-Pro who ranks third in team history with 217 games in the silver and black. Among his 24 playoff games are six AFL/AFC Championship Games and two Super Bowls victories. After his playing career, “Uptown Gene” was the executive director of the NFL Players’ Association. He died in 2008 due to complications from pancreatic cancer.
4. Art Shell, T (Round 3, Pick 80 in 1968) – Shell paired with Upshaw for 199 games on Oakland’s offensive line. The Hall of Famer was selected to eight Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams, and he appeared in four AFL/AFC title games and two Super Bowl wins. After his career, Shell was the team’s offensive line coach before replacing the fired Mike Shanahan as head coach during the 1989 season. The following year, he led Los Angeles to the first of three playoff appearances in his tenure, winning Coach of the Year in the process. Shell returned to coach the team in 2006, but was fired after a 2-14 record.
3. Howie Long, DE (Round2, Pick 48 in 1981) – Before he became a staple of Fox’s NFL gameday coverage, Long was one of the most intimidating players in the NFL. The Hall of Famer ranks second in team history with 84 sacks, including three straight seasons in double-figures. Long was selected to eight Pro Bowls, two All-Pro teams, and was the 1985 Defensive Player of the Year. He also played in the Super Bowl XVIII win against Washington. The former action film actor has three sons, with two playing in the NFL (Chris, a Super Bowl-winning defensive end with the Patriots and Eagles, and Kyle, a former Bears guard).
2. Tim Brown, WR (Round 1, Pick 6 in 1988) – The Hall of Famer and nine-time Pro Bowler holds team records with 1,070 receptions, 14,734 yards, and 99 touchdowns. Brown had nine seasons with at least 80 catches and 1,000 yards, and he led the NFL with 104 receptions in 1997. He played in three AFC Championship Games (a thrashing at the hands of the Bills in 1990, a dominant defensive performance by the Ravens in 2000 and a win over the Titans two years later). He was held to one catch for nine yards in Super Bowl XXXVII, but the Raiders lost to the Buccaneers, 48-21. In addition to his receiving records, Brown tops the franchise list with 3,272 punt return yards.
1. Marcus Allen, RB (Round 1, Pick 10 in 1982) – Very few players were more hyped coming out of college than Allen, who won the Heisman Trophy and was the Pac-10 Player of the Year after rushing for 2,342 yards as a senior at USC. Allen lived up to those expectations, setting franchise rushing marks (8,545 yards and 79 touchdowns) by a wide margin. He started strong, earning Rookie of the Year, All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors after leading the league with 11 scores in nine games during the strike-shortened 1982 season. Three straight 1,000-yard seasons followed (surprisingly, the only three of his storied career), and he was named MVP and Offensive Player of the Year in 1985 after topping the NFL with 1,759 yards. Allen went to five Pro Bowls and was selected to a pair of All-Pro teams with Los Angeles, but his greatest achievement was in the playoffs. In three games in the 1983 postseason, he ran for 466 yards and four scores, including an MVP performance of 191 yards and two scores (with a 74-yard run that stood as a game record for 22 years) in a 38-9 win over the Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII. His later Raiders tenure was marred by a feud with the mercurial owner, Al Davis, who Allen said tried to misuse him to prevent him from getting to the Hall of Fame. If there was a conspiracy, it didn’t work, since Allen earned his bust in Canton in 2003.
WORST
10. John Clay, T (Round 1, Pick 15 in 1987) – Clay was an All-American at Missouri in 1986, but that success did not translate to the NFL level. He started nine games with the Raiders as a rookie, but was traded to the AFC West-rival Chargers for tackle Jim Lachey, who was coming off a Pro Bowl season. The trade didn’t work out for either side. Clay played just two games with San Diego before he was out of the NFL, and Lachey lasted one game with the Raiders before being traded to the Redskins, where he won a title and was selected as an All-Pro three times.
9. Matt Stinchcomb, G (Round 1, Pick 18 in 1999) – The two-time All-American at Georgia was done in by injuries in the NFL. He lost his entire rookie season due to shoulder surgery, then knee and shoulder injuries cost him eight games in the 2000 season. He played in 49 games with the Raiders, starting 20, before enjoying his only fully healthy season with the Buccaneers in 2004. He missed the following season due to a back injury, and was forced to retire after surgery led to blood clots and a heart condition. Stinchcomb is currently an analyst for ESPNU and the SEC Network.
8. Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR (Round 1, Pick 7 in 2009) – The Raiders selected Heyward-Bey instead of Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin, who ended up having much better NFL careers. After two inconsistent, injury-plagued seasons, the Maryland product had his best year in 2011, when he totaled 64 catches for 975 yards and four touchdowns. Heyward-Bey had another good campaign the following year, despite being knocked out by Pittsburgh’s Ryan Mundy during a game. He was released by the Raiders after the season and had just 62 receptions in six seasons with the Colts and Steelers.
7. Patrick Bates, S (Round 1, Pick 12 in 1993) – Owner Al Davis saw the Texas A&M product having similar skills to three-time Pro Bowler Jack Tatum, a star with the team in the 1970s. Instead, Bates totaled 84 tackles and an interception in 29 games with Los Angeles. After being traded, he played 15 games with the Falcons in 1996, but that was his season in the NFL.
6. Robert Gallery, T (Round 1, Pick 2 in 2005) – In the 2004 Draft, seven of the top eight picks were Pro Bowlers at some point in their careers (even Kellen Winslow II, who is labeled a draft bust in some circles). Selected in between Eli Manning and Larry Fitzgerald was Gallery, an All-American, the Outland Trophy winner and the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2003 with Iowa. He was billed as the “best lineman to come out of college in years,” and instead he struggled, first as a right tackle, then at his natural position on the left side. Gallery performed better as a left guard, and he played in 92 games over seven seasons in Oakland. He ended up being a serviceable NFL player, just not one worth all the hype of the second overall pick.
5. Rolando McClain, LB (Round 1, Pick 8 in 2010) – McClain was the SEC Defensive Player of the Year and an All-American in Alabama’s National Championship season in 2009. He was drafted by the Raiders hoping that he would improve on their terrible run defense, but he posted just 246 tackles and 6½ sacks in three seasons before he was released due to off-field issues and “poor decision making.” Given his upbringing, it was surprising McClain made it as far as he did. His bipolar mother intimidated him with a knife and threatened his entire school, causing a lockdown. He was arrested multiple times (assault, firearms, drugs and providing a false name to police). He was also suspended twice for substance abuse violations.
4. (tie) Darrell Russell, DT (Round 1, Pick 2 in 1997) and Bob Buczkowski, DE (Round 1, Pick 24 in 1986) – This spot features two players who had promise as defensive linemen but had several off-the-field issues. Even though he was a two-time Pro Bowler and an All-Pro, Russell is just another fall from grace for a Raiders draft pick. He was a High School All-American and a force at USC before signing a seven-year, $22 million deal, which was the most for a rookie in league history at the time. Russell had 10 sacks in his All-Pro sophomore season in 1998 and followed that with 9½ more. However, his seven-year career featured SEVEN violations of the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, including an indefinite ban in 2004. Russell and former USC teammate Michael Bastianelli both passed away in Los Angeles in late 2005 when their car veered out of control, hit several items including a tree, a newsstand, and a fire hydrant before plowing into a parked bus. He was just 29 years old. Buczkowski’s NFL career lasted three seasons, and he played just two games in 1987 with the Raiders, recording one sack. He was arrested in 2005 for many legal actions such, some of which were possession and delivery of a controlled substance and criminal conspiracy (which earned him 90 days of house arrest and parole instead of jail time), among others. He passed away at his Pennsylvania home in 2018.
3. Todd Marinovich, QB (Round 1, Pick 24 in 1991) – Drugs ruined a career that had so much potential. Marinovich was a high school All-American who practically ruined his college career after an arrest for cocaine possession, and could not get a footing in the NFL. He threw three touchdowns in the final game of his rookie season after starter Jay Schroeder got injured, but he tossed four interceptions in a playoff loss to the Chiefs and smashed a mirror in the locker room with his helmet after the game. Marinovich went 3-4 in 1992, but never got on the field in the NFL again after Schroeder returned. The drug issue played a part in his benching, with Marinovich getting caught using teammates’ urine samples to pass drug tests. Many drug usages led to a full-season suspension in 1993. He had no fewer than six drug-related arrests through the years before finally getting clean.
2. JaMarcus Russell, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 2007) – The history of poor top NFL picks usually involves a quarterback, and Russell is no exception. His draft video showed his arm strength as he threw the ball 70 yards from his knees, but his three-year totals with the Raiders are uninspiring: a 7-18 record, 4,083 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 23 interceptions. Multiple comeback attempts failed to materialize after Oakland released him early in 2010. He had problems with codeine, testing positive after he was drafted and being arrested for possessing the drug in syrup form in 2010.
1. Anthony Smith, DE (Round 1, Pick 11 in 1990) – In terms of football careers, Smith’s was actually serviceable with 57½ sacks in seven years with the Raiders. However, when off-the-field incidents came into account, Smith might be the worst on any team. He was charged with firebombing a Santa Monica furniture store in 2003, although two separate juries were unable to reach a verdict and the charges were ultimately dismissed. His off-field trouble did not stop there. He is serving three life sentences after being convicted for his role in the death of three people between 1999 and 2001.
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