The 8 Most Impactful ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ Players Selected WIth The Last Pick In The NFL Draft

The NFL Draft gives teams the chance to secure the talents of the nation’s best college football prospects, but the odds of landing a player with the potential to make a major difference decrease with each passing round. The final person to go usually doesn’t end up having a notable career to the point where they’ve been dubbed “Mr. Irrelevant,” but there are a number of players who’ve managed to defy that label.

Every player who declares for the NFL Draft is obviously hoping to hear their name called at some point, and while being picked last is certainly better than ending up on the outside looking in, it’s hard to ignore the fact that history suggests you’ll be best remembered for that disctinction as opposed to what you achieve on the field.

There’s a reason the last pick in the NFL Draft is referred to as “Mr. Irrelevant,” but there are more than a few guys who didn’t get the memo by managing to defy expectations once they got a chance to prove the doubters wrong.

I’m going to start with the most recent example and make my way backward, which means I’m kicking things off with…

Brock Purdy

Brock Purdy cemented himself as one of the best quarterbacks to ever play at Iowa State during his four seasons with the Cyclones.

The 2022 NFL Draft was pretty weak as far as guys at his position were concerned, but he was still the last of the nine QBs to get picked after being selected by the 49ers with the 262nd overall pick.

Purdy was behind both Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance on the depth chart during his rookie season but was ultimately tasked with stepping into the starting role toward the end of the campaign.

He led San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game before succumbing to the elbow injury that helped the Eagles win against a 49ers team that didn’t have a serviceable passer, but his performance up to that point cemented his status as their next franchise QB.

He helped them make it to the Super Bowl the following year, and even though things took a turn for the worse in 2024, he’s set to receive the biggest contract any Mr. Irrelevant has landed once his rookie deal expires.

 

Ryan Succop

It’s pretty rare for a kicker to get drafted in the first few rounds of the NFL Draft, and Ryan Succop was just one of the two players at that position to get the nod in 2009 after he was scooped up by the Chiefs with the 256th pick.

When everything was said and done, Succop spent 14 seasons in the NFL as a member of the Chiefs, Titans, and Buccaneers.

He had a field goal and successfully converted all four of the extra points he attempted during Tampa Bay’s win over Kansas City in Super Bowl LIV to become the first Mr. Irrelevant to contribute to a victory in The Big Game.

Mike Green

Mike Green is slightly less accomplished than the first two Mr. Irrelevants on this list, but he still deserves some credit when you consider he’s just one of a handful of people with that designation who played in more than 100 NFL games.

The man who played defensive back at Northwestern State (an FCS program) managed to catch the attention of the Bears, who drafted him with the 254th pick in 2000.

He spent six years in Chicago before one-and-done stints with Seattle and Washington and appeared in a total of 104 games while racking up 434 total tackles and six sacks before retiring in 2008.

Jim Finn

Jim Finn was a force to be reckoned with on the ground during his time at UPenn, and while he was also nabbed by the Bears with the 253rd pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, he failed to make the final roster at training camp.

He ended up signing with the Colts and spent three seasons with Indianapolis before finishing out his career as a member of the Giants.

Finn was primarily used as a receiving option on both teams despite being officially listed as a fullback. He technically won a ring when the Giants beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, but he was on injured reserve the entire season and never played another snap in the NFL.

Matt Elliott

Matt Elliott is another guy who never came close to becoming a household name, but he still gets a mention thanks to his relative longevity compared to the vast majority of other players who got the Mr. Irrelevant treatment.

Elliott was a Michigan product who earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a center during his senior season and was picked up by Washington with the 222nd selection in the draft in 1992.

He appeared in 16 games during his rookie season but suffered a setback when injuries sidelined him for the entirety of the 1993 campaign.

Elliott was cut in 1994 but got a second chance with the Panthers in 1995. He spent the next two years as a center and guard who started the majority of their games, but his third season in Carolina ended up being the last one in an NFL career where he played in a respectable 63 games.

John Tuggle

John Tuggle’s stats may not jump off the page at first glance, but he’s still one of the most notable players to earn the “Mr. Irrelevant” label due to the nature of an NFL career that was cut tragically short.

The former Cal running back was selected by the Giants with the 335th pick in 1983 (the draft had 12 rounds at that point until it was condensed a decade later).

He was initially assigned to special teams before stepping up to replace Rob Carpenter at fullback in Week 12; he started five games and had 17 carries for 49 yards and a single rushing touchdown.

However, he was diagnosed with lymphoma in 1984, and the Giants continued to pay his salary and cover his health insurance until he passed away in 1986 at the age of 25.

His coaches and teammates harnessed the courage he showed during his battle with cancer for inspiration, and Tuggle was memorialized with the helmet decal and jersey patch the team wore en route to winning Super Bowl XXI.

Jacque MacKinnon

The rest of the guys on this list are fairly ancient history, as there weren’t many instances where a Mr. Irrelevant was able to make much of a mark back in the day.

Jacque MacKinnon was a big exception based on what he achieved after the Eagles got the former Colgate RB with the 280th pick in the 1961 NFL Draft.

This one comes with an asterisk, as MacKinnon was also grabbed by the Chargers in the AFL draft and opted to sign with San Diego before pivoting to tight end.

He actually never played a snap in the NFL (he had the chance to play for both the Packers and the Raiders but declined), but the league officially recognizes the AFL stats of a man who played in 118 games, was a two-time All-Star, and earned a spot in the Chargers Hall of Fame.

Bill Fischer

This is another instance of a player making this list due to a technicality.

Bill Fischer was selected by the Cardinals with the 300th pick in the 1948 NFL Draft, but the Notre Dame lineman decided to keep playing for the Fighting Irish before the franchise (which was still based in Chicago) got him with the 10th overall pick the following year.

Fischer only ended up playing in the NFL for five seasons, but he made the Pro Bowl three consecutive times starting in 1950 before eventually heading back to Notre Dame to work as an assistant coach.