The 9 Lowest NFL Draft Picks Who Ended Up Enshrined In The Pro Football Hall Of Fame

The vast majority of the players who’ve been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame were highly-touted college prospects who picked up where they left off after being scooped up near the top of the NFL Draft. However, there are also more than a few sleepers who landed in Canton after being overlooked by most of the teams who probably regretted passing on them in hindsight.

These are the NFL players who went the lowest in the NFL Draft before being immortalized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Most football fans are probably aware that Tom Brady was selected by the Patriots with the 199th overall pick in the NFL Draft in 2000 before going on to cement himself as one of the best quarterbacks (if not the best) of all time.

There is zero doubt he will be inducted into the Pro Footbal Hall of Fame, although it’s fair to wonder if he’ll get in on the first ballot in 2028 based on what happened with Bill Belichick earlier this year. When he does, he will earn a spot on this list of other largely unheralded talents who cemented themselves as one of the all-time greats after being overlooked.

Before we dive in, I should note I’m only including Hall of Famers who made it in as a player; John Madden would be here as the 244th overall pick in 1958, but he never played an NFL game before turning his attention to the coaching career that got him in.

Shannon Sharpe: 192nd in the 1990 NFL Draft

Shannon Sharpe was a force to be reckoned with during his time at Savannah State, but teams were nonetheless hesitant to take a chance on him when he decided to take his talents to the NFL. His size and physique put him in a grey area between traditional tight ends and wide receivers, which contributed to him falling to the Broncos in the seventh round in 1990.

He proceeded to revolutionize that first position after starting his career at WR, as the 10,060 receiving yards, 815 receptions, and 62 touchdowns he accumulated during his career were all records for TEs when he retired after 14 seasons. He also contributed to three Super Bowl victories (two with the Broncos and another with the Ravens) and officially punched his ticket to Canton in 2011.

Terrell Davis: 196th in the 1995 NFL Draft

The Broncos had a knack for sniffing out underappreciated offensive talent in the 1990s, as Terrell Davis also played an instrumental role in the back-to-back Super Bowls Denver took home to cap off the 1997 and 1998 seasons (including an MVP-worthy performance in the first).

The running back, who started his college career at Long Beach State and ended it at Georgia, only played for seven seasons, but he took full advantage. He also earned MVP honors for his play in the regular season in 1998 while taking home his second Offensive Player of the Year award,  and the three-time Pro Bowler landed in the Hall of Fame in 2017.

Bart Starr: 200th in the 1956 NFL Draft

Bart Starr played college football at Alabama and served as a quarterback, safety, and punter during his time with the Crimson Tide. Vince Lombardi thought he had some potential at that first position, but the Packers were obviously not super high on him when you consider he was grabbed in the 17th round with the 200th pick in 1956.

Starr didn’t start every game for Green Bay until his sixth season in the NFL, but he firmly cemented himself as the man for the job in 1961 en route to the first of back-to-back NFL championships. The Packers won a third one in 1965, and Starr ushered in the Super Bowl era with another set of back-to-back wins in 1966 and 1967 while earning MVP honors for his performance in that first campaign.

He retired as a legend in Green Bay after 16 seasons and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1977.

Richard Dent: 203rd in the 1983 NFL Draft

Richard Dent showed enough promise during his four years at Tennessee State to hear his name called at the NFL Draft in 1983, but he had to wait until the eighth round.

He ended up being a very valuable asset for a Bears team that won Super Bowl XX during his third season with the team, a victory that was made possible with the help of the incredibly formidable defense he contributed to as a DE. He was named the MVP of that contest with 1.5 sacks and a couple of forced fumbles, which was just the fourth time a defensive player earned that honor in The Big Game.

Dent played the majority of his 15-year career in Chicago but also won a Super Bowl during his one and only season with the 49ers in 1994, and he punched his ticket to the Hall of Fame in 2011.

Ken Houston: 214th in the 1967 NFL Draft

Ken Houston transitioned from linebacker to safety after accepting the only scholarship offer he received courtesy of what is now Prairie View A&M. 1967 marked the first of three years the NFL and AFL had a joint draft due to the merger that was finalized in 1970, and the Oilers (who belonged to the latter at the time) got the man who shared a last name with the city they called home in the ninth round.

He immediately earned a starting job and was named to the Pro Bowl during his sophomore season, which marked the first of 12 consecutive years where he earned that honor. Houston was an interception machine with an uncanny ability to turn them into a pick-six (he had nine on the 49 passes he snagged during his 14-year career) and ended up in the Hall of Fame in 1986.

Andy Robustelli: 228 in the 1951 NFL Draft

The 1951 NFL Draft featured two afterthoughts who ended up in the Hall of Fame, including Andy Robustelli.

Robustelli played football at Arnold College in Bridgeport, Connecticut before heading across the country after the Los Angeles Rams got him in the 19th round. He’d played both offensive and defensive end as a student-athlete, but he turned his attention to the latter to maximize his chances of earning a spot on the roster before doing exactly that.

He won an NFL championship during his rookie season and got the first of six first-team All-Pro Selections in his third. He was traded to the Giants after five seasons and capped off his 14-year career with New York while winning another title before being enshrined in 1971.

Raymond Berry: 232nd in the 1954 NFL Draft

Raymond Berry played the bulk of his college career at SMU, and he slid to the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round in the 1954 NFL Draft thanks in no small part to a run-heavy offense that hampered his ability to showcase his skills with the Mustangs.

However, he got the chance to do exactly that with a little bit of help from a quarterback by the name of Johnny Unitas. Berry ended up becoming one of the QB’s favorite targets, and he led the league in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns on multiple occasions while winning a couple of championships.

The six-time Pro Bowler spent the entirety of his 13-year career with the Colts and earned his spot in the Hall of Fame in 1973.

Chris Hanburger: 245th in the 1965 NFL Draft

Chris Hanburger enlisted in the Army after graduating from high school before he was somewhat ironically discharged due to an injury he suffered while playing flag football. He subsequently got a scholarship to play tackle football at UNC, where he took snaps on both sides of the ball before settling on a role as a linebacker after Washington selected him in the 18th round in 1965.

He landed a starting job midway through his rookie season and ended up playing 14 of them for the team that drafted him while being named to the Pro Bowl nine times. The closest Hanburger came to a title was a loss to the undefeated Dolphins in Super Bowl VII, but he was honored for his otherwise stellar career with a Hall of Fame induction in 2011 (the third man on this list enshrined that year).

Roosevelt “Rosey” Brown: 321st in the 1951 NFL Draft

Last, and literally least, we have Roosevelt “Rosey” Brown, a Morgan State product who had to wait until the 27th round for the Giants to draft him in 1951.

New York ended up landing one of the best offensive tackles in NFL history, one who made the Pro Bowl in nine of his 13 seasons while missing just four games during his time with the G-Men. Brown earned a single championship before retiring in 1965, and he made it into the Hall of Fame a decade later.