THE DEBATE CONTINUES:

TOP 10 DRAFT CLASSES OF ALL TIME:

1974 Steelers with Four Hall of Famers?

'58 Packers Draft with Nitchske, Taylor and Kramer?

Bears Get Butkus and Sayers Back-to-Back in '65?

TOP DRAFT CLASSES FEATURED ON

"NFL'S TOP 10" THIS WEEK

WEEKLY COUNTDOWN SERIES

AIRS WEDNESDAYS AT 9:00 PM ET

What was the best Draft class in NFL history?

Find out when NFL Network's new series, NFL's Top 10 airs Wednesday, April 18 at 9:00 PM ET.

The 60-minute show features fresh interviews with key decision makers involved in these Draft classes including former NFL head coaches Mike Ditka, Jimmy Johnson and Bill Walsh and general managers Bill Polian, Rich McKay and Ozzie Newsome.

Following, in chronological order, are top the ten Draft classes on NFL Network's list.  Which will be number one?

Ø      1958 Packers – The seeds of 1960s Packer greatness were planted in the 1958 NFL Draft, a year before the arrival of coach Vince Lombardi.

·         LB Dan Currie (3^rd overall)

·         FB Jim Taylor (15^th overall)

·         LB Ray Nitchske (3^rd Rd)

·         G Jerry Kramer (4^th Rd) 

Ø      1965 Bears -- Bears owner George Halas strikes gold with back-to-back picks in the first round of the 1965 NFL Draft.

·         LB Dick Butkus (3^rd overall)

·         RB Gale Sayers (4^th overall)

Ø      1974 Steelers – Coach Chuck Noll set the table for the Steelers' dynasty of the 1970s in 1974 selecting four key players that would be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

·         WR Lynn Swann (1^st Rd)

·         LB Jack Lambert (2^nd Rd)

·         WR John Stallworth (3^rd Rd)

·         C Mike Webster (5^th Rd)

Ø      1981 Redskins-- General manager Bobby Beathard added some beef to the Redskins in the 1981 Draft selecting two future members of the "Hogs" and linebacker Dexter Manley.  The Redskins won Super Bowl XVII the next year.

·         T Mark May (1^st Rd)

·         C Russ Grimm (3^rd Rd)

·         LB Dexter Manley (5^th Rd)

·         WR Charlie Brown (8^th Rd)

·         OL Daryl Grant (9^th Rd)

·         TE Clint Didier (12^th Rd)
 

Ø      1983 Bears-- While other franchises were investing in quarterbacks, the Bears selected seven key players that shaped their shuffle to the Super Bowl in 1985.

·         G Jimbo Covert (1^st Rd)

·         WR Willie Gault (1^st Rd)

·         CB Mike Richardson (2^nd Rd)

·         S Dave Duerson (3^rd Rd)

·         C Tom Thayer (4^th Rd)

·         DE Richard Dent (8^th Rd)

·         DT Mark Bortz (8^th Rd)

Ø      1985 Bills – The Bills added top-notch talent on both sides of the ball in 1985 selecting three players who would be crucial to their four consecutive Super Bowl appearances in the early '90s.

·         DE Bruce Smith (1^st overall)

·         QB Frank Reich (3^rd Rd)

·         WR Andre Reed (4^th Rd)

Ø      1986 49ers -- Trading his first-round pick three times to stockpile Draft choices, Bill Walsh added seven starters that fuelled the second leg of the 49er dynasty.

·         3^rd round- FB Tom Rathman, CB Tim McKyer, & WR John Taylor

·         4^th round- DE Charles Haley, T Steve Wallace & DE Kevin Fagan

·         6^th round- S Don Griffin

Ø      1991-92 Cowboys-- Jimmy Johnson built a good portion of his Super Bowl starting lineups in the 1991 and 1992 NFL Drafts.
                  --1991--

·         DT Russell Maryland (1^st overall)

·         WR Alvin Harper (12^th overall)

·         LB Dixon Edwards (2^nd Rd)

·         T Erik Williams (3^rd Rd)

·         DE Leon Lett (7^th Rd)

·         DB Larry Brown (12^th Rd)

--1992--

·         DB Kevin Smith (17^th overall)

·         LB Robert Jones(24^th overall)

·         S Darren Woodson (2^nd Rd)

Ø      1995 Buccaneers-- Rich McKay formed one of the toughest defenses in NFL history in the 1995 Draft when he picked up Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks.  The duo led the Bucs to a victory in Super Bowl XXXVII.

·         DT Warren Sapp (12^th overall)

·         LB Derrick Brooks (28^th overall)

Ø      1996 Ravens – The Ravens added perennial all-pros at offensive tackle and linebacker in the 1996 NFL Draft.

·         T Jonathan Ogden (4^th overall)

·         LB Ray Lewis (26^th overall)

·         WR Jermaine Lewis (3^rd Rd)

 

NFL's Top 10 continues its focus on the Draft with the series finale airing in April:

Wednesday, April 25 – Top 10 Biggest Draft Busts

Putting a fresh twist on the countdown genre, NFL's Top 10 is a fast-paced weekly series providing an irreverent look at some of the most intriguing subjects in the NFL and creating and debating a top ten list for each category.

Each 60-minute episode of NFL's Top 10 counts down from No. 10 to the top ranking in each category.  The rankings are determined by a panel of NFL Network and NFL Films staffers.

NFL's Top 10 delves deeper into the subject matter than previous "list" shows, using interviews and imagery to put them in context and answer the "why" of the order.

NFL Network airs seven days a week, 24 hours a day on a year-round basis and is the first television network fully dedicated to the NFL and the sport of football. For more information, log onto www.nfl.com/nflnetwork/home.

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