Best draft picks by Round - Round 1

[Rain Man]

I'll switch this up a little. Before posting my top 10 list, I'll start from the bottom, revealing in reverse order all 56 of the Chiefs' 1st round picks over the years. Then I'll put the top ten in this OP and put up the poll.

Feel free to share your memories, happiness, or disgust at each pick. I'll post one whenever I'm slightly bored.

#1 Buck Buchanan, DT
#2 Tony Gonzalez, TE
#3 Derrick Thomas, ROLB
#4 Ed Budde, LG
#5 Eric Berry, SS
#6 Gary Green, CB
#7 Derrick Johnson, ILB, OLB
#8 Art Still, DE
#9 E.J. Holub, OLB/C
#10 Tamba Hali, OLB/DE

[Rain Man]

With the Bill Maas selection, we are now entering the top quartile of picks. We had the 4th quartile of busts, the 3rd quartile of disappointments, and the 2nd quartile of strong players, and now we have some fun with the top quartile of stars.

[Scooter LaCanforno]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

#15 - Bill Maas, NT, 1984. 5th pick.

You can't say that the Chiefs ignored the defensive line in late 70s and early 80s. They drafted Art Still with the 2nd overall pick in 1978, Mike Bell with the 2nd overall pick in 1979, and Bill Maas with the 5th overall pick in 1984.

It wasn't a sure thing, though. There was all sorts of drama around Bill in the draft. First of all, this was the inaugural year of the USFL. Bill was a Pennsylvania kid in high school and played in college at Pitt. The USFL, in a savvy move, held a territorial draft and Bill was selected by the Pittsburgh Maulers. (However, it seems that he must've not seriously considered the USFL.)

The second bit of drama surrounded Carl Banks. There were rumors that he was the #1 guy on the Chiefs' board, and that they were trying to trade up with the Giants into the 3rd pick to get him. For some reason, though, such a trade never happened, but the rumor was everywhere. The Giants ended up taking Banks themselves and the Chiefs stayed at five.

As for Maas, he was surprised to be drafted by KC. Again with the Pennsylvania connections, the Eagles told him that they would draft him in the #4 spot, and San Diego told him that they'd take him at #6 if he was available. Kansas City never contacted him. But the Eagles ended up drafting Kenny Jackson (insert Simpsons bully saying "Ha Ha" here), and the Chiefs took him.

Bill was a five-tool nose tackle from Day One. He could hit people for power, hit people for average, throw blockers, run over blockers, and run the field. The league recognized it, and Bill is one of four Chiefs who have been named the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. Those four are Bill Maas, Dale Carter, Derrick Thomas, and Marcus Peters. (Jim Marsalis was named the AFL defensive rookie of the Year by Pro Football Weekly, but the NFL winner was Joe Greene. so ... yeah ... I'll yield the overall nod to Greene.)

Perhaps the most impressive thing about Bill was that he averaged 5.0 sacks per year during his six years as a nose tackle. That's really pretty darn good for a classic 3-4 nose tackle.

He was pretty dominant until 1988, and then the injury bug hit. He missed half of 1988 with a knee and almost half of 1989 with a broken arm. But Marty Schottenheimer, the new coach, was smart. 1989 was the first year of NFL free agency, and Marty picked up an unknown nose tackle to back up Bill. With Bill's injury the new kid, Dan Saleaumua, got a lot of playing time, and he never gave up the starting job. When Bill came back, he moved to the right defensive end slot for the remainder of his Chiefs career.

In 1993, Bill presumably believed that the Chiefs couldn't go anywhere with Joe Montana at quarterback, or the Packers threw a lot of money at him, so he signed with Green Bay. Okay, truth be told, it was actually the second reason - the Packers threw him a lot of money. But he couldn't beat out John Jurkovic for the starting job and retired the next year.

After that, it gets a little ugly. If you're old enough, you probably remember that he exercised very poor judgment during the player's strike when he was riding around with a shotgun and encouraging that idiot Jack Del Rio to attack Otis Taylor. That was a portent of things to come. Cocaine arrests, gun arrests, stories of some pretty crass and criminal things toward women ... he kind of spiraled out of control and wasn't a very likable person. He eventually lost his sportcasting job because those were the days before Michael Irvin and Ray Lewis and Shannon Sharpe paved the way for absolute dregs of humanity to be on television.

In good news, Billy Bob seems to have calmed down now, though, and blames his troubles on ... wait for it ... wait for it ... concussions. Overall, he spent nine years with the Chiefs, logging 111 starts, 40 sacks, and two all-pro selections, so he gets a pass by society for the post-NFL transgressions, kind of like that good linebacker in your high school got a pass for beating you up and stuffing you in your locker.

I liked Bill better before researching his post-NFL life, but hey, he fought Raiders so I'll still give him a thumbs up. If you would like to book Bill for a speaking engagement, or perhaps to beat up someone you don't like, you can book him here: http://www.athletespeakers.com/speaker/bill-maas/



By the way, his wife for girlfriend or whoever really takes care of herself.

I thought Bill Maas married Dan Marino's sister. Don't know if they're still married.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Scooter LaCanforno

I thought Bill Maas married Dan Marino's sister. Don't know if they're still married.

Oh, good memory. Now that you mention it, I remember some connection to Dan.

My guess is this isn't the same woman, but if so, the Marino family has good genes.

[UK_Chief]

Love love love this thread. However... Fisher above Larry Johnson?? He was a bone head but you can't argue with his numbers. And this year's pick shouldn't be in. But anyway, continue!

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by UK_Chief

Love love love this thread. However... Fisher above Larry Johnson?? He was a bone head but you can't argue with his numbers. And this year's pick shouldn't be in. But anyway, continue!

It was a tough call. Larry's star burned bright, but very short. He really only had 2.5 years of greatness, but it really was greatness. I think Fisher could give us a decade of solid work. Not sure which I prefer.

[UK_Chief]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

It was a tough call. Larry's star burned bright, but very short. He really only had 2.5 years of greatness, but it really was greatness. I think Fisher could give us a decade of solid work. Not sure which I prefer.

Your thread, your rules. I'm happy to defer to your opinion but Larry was a bright spot in a pretty terrible era for the chiefs so maybe I rate him higher than I should. If only he had a brain in his head...

[Rain Man]

#14. Dale Carter, CB, 1992. 20th pick.

The 1992 draft was a colossal bust in the first round. If you go back and look at it here - https://www.pro-football-reference.c...1992/draft.htm - it was littered with nonproductive players.

But buried down in Pick 20 was an ultra-athletic cornerback/safety from Tennessee who had returned kicks and made plays with the best of them. Dale Carter was a Georgia native who had gone to Ellsworth Community College in Iowa before transferring to the University of Tennessee. (Today he is a member of the Ellsworth Community College Hall of Fame, in case you were wondering.) He excelled at Tennessee, being named an All-American his senior year, so Marty and Carl nabbed him at Pick 20.

Dale immediately made an impact. In his first appearance in Week 1 against San Diego, he returned a punt 46 yards for an impressive touchdown and recorded an interception. By the time November rolled around, people were nodding their heads. Here's what the New York Times had to say:

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/24/sp...no-1-pick.html

When the Kansas City Chiefs made free safety Dale Carter of Tennessee their first-round pick and the 20th overall selection in the National Football League draft eight months ago, skeptics wondered if the Chiefs had squandered a high pick by using it in an area that was one of the team's strengths.

The Chiefs had long featured one the league's swiftest and most effective secondaries. Saftey Deron Cherry was retiring, but returning was the group's nucleus, cornerbacks Kevin Ross and Albert Lewis. There appeared more pressing needs elsewhere, possibly a quarterback to groom or more size and speed at receiver.

Since Lewis broke his left forearm Nov. 8 against San Diego, however, Carter has been a starter at left cornerback and has become a dual threat for the Chiefs: an aggressive, flashy cornerback, who has five interceptions, and a daring punt returner, who has returned two for scores. In Kansas City's 24-14 victory at Seattle on Sunday night, Carter once again exhibited his versatility. He intercepted a pass and returned a punt 86 yards for a touchdown.

The 6-foot-2-inch, 185-pound Carter will be 23 years old Saturday. He is one of those rare N.F.L. finds, a rookie who quickly grasps tricky pro concepts and immediately becomes an impact player.

Yes, the New York Times thought the Chiefs should have drafted a quarterback.

Dale was named the NFL defensive rookie of the year despite starting only nine games in a stacked cornerback position. He returned punts full time that season, scoring two touchdowns, and also returned several kickoffs.

When Dale arrived in 1992, Lewis and Ross were still the cornerbacks, but Burruss and Cherry had retired in 1991. Dale's performance enabled the Chiefs to move an aging Kevin Ross to free safety, teaming up Carter and Lewis in what had to be the most athletic cornerback tandem in NFL history. Jeepers.

But that depth only lasted a year. The following year, Lewis went to the Raiders and Ross became a Falcon, and suddenly Carter had none of the Fab Four DBs with him any more. That was when he stepped up his game and went to four straight pro bowls, even stepping in to play wide receiver on occasion. He's one of a very tiny handful of modern players who have scored in all three phases of the game: receiving touchdown, interception touchdown, and punt return touchdown.

Of course, when you think about Chiefs cornerbacks, you think about pairs: Lewis and Ross, Emmitt Thomas and Jim Marsalis, and so on. In 1995, as Carter entered his fourth season, Marty completed the set, bringing in a physical James Hasty to pair up with the graceful Dale Carter. The two cornerbacks shut down offenses together for the next four seasons, including 1997 when both cornerbacks went to the pro bowl.

The other thing Hasty did was mentor Carter, who was not always the best citizen, and I'll say no more about that until I talk about how he became a Bronco. But here's a poignant story about how Joe Valerio had to step in when Dale was being a jerk: https://www.arrowheadpride.com/2008/2/7/93754/99374. But again, go ahead and assume that this happened after he became a Bronco.

Alas, nothing lasts forever. In 1998, Dale played hurt with a forearm injury, and at one critical junction in a game, he actually entered the game in an emergency with his arm in a sling due to other injuries on the field. The Chiefs were pondering what to do as free agency hit, but with his good arm Dale pulled the slot machine and it came up triple 7's.

For some inexplicable reason, the Broncos threw a veritable Brinks truck at Dale. While we all hated to see him prostitute himself like that, it was a great personal decision in retrospect and it actually helped the Chiefs. The Broncos gave him ... well, read this news article. It's ridiculous. Remember that this was 1999, so it's the equivalent of roughly double that amount today. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/broncos-sign-dale-carter/

The Broncos have agreed with four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Dale Carter on a six-year contract worth $34.8 million, making him the second highest paid defensive back in the NFL. According to Carter's agent, Mitch Frankel, Carter will receive a signing bonus of $7.8 million.

The signing will likely not be announced by the Broncos until next week, giving the team more time to clear room under the salary cap.*

The Broncos took the first step Wednesday when they released eight-time Pro Bowl safety Steve Atwater, who was scheduled to make $3.3 million in 1999.**

"Due to the club's salary cap constraints and in fairness to Steve, the club has released him from his contract," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. "Suggesting that Steve's contract be reduced was not a consideration."

Carter's average annual salary of $5.8 million ranks Carter behind only Dallas' Deion Sanders, who will enter the final year of a five-year, $35 million deal in 1999. Carter earned $3.867 million last season.

* - Note that this was fictional since the Broncos were cheating on the salary cap.

** - Ha ha, they released Atwater to sign him.

Dale busted so hard with the Broncos that it sounded like those turkeys hitting the cement in that WKRP Thanksgiving special. He played one season for them, then got suspended for an entire season for substance abuse, and the Broncos cut him.*** He's widely viewed as one of their worst free agent signings ever: http://milehighsports.com/the-worst-...oncos-history/ and http://bleacherreport.com/articles/7...roncos-history He drove off with a ton of money and a lot of drugs, and the Broncos took an enormous salary cap hit.****

*** - Just so you know, he was the third Bronco that season who was suspended for substance abuse.

**** - They were still cheating on the salary cap, though.


He bounced around the league for four more seasons after that, going to the Vikings, Saints, and even the Ravens. He kept getting into trouble - drugs, guns, DUIs, and general knuckleheadedry, and it looked like he was headed for major trouble.

He also declared bankruptcy in 2002, which is a pretty impressive feat considering these opening paragraphs from a New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/sp...ankruptcy.html

Dale Carter signed a four-year, $22.8 million contract with the Denver Broncos in 1999. He signed a five-year, $28 million contract with the New Orleans Saints two weeks ago.

But Carter, a four-time Pro Bowl cornerback in the National Football League, has apparently not been able to keep his spending in line with his income. He once spent $30,000 on jewelry in Atlanta. He has bought many cars and houses, giving some to relatives.

Carter, adept at chasing down wide receivers, is now being pursued by nearly 20 creditors, including the Broncos and the Internal Revenue Service. They say he has stopped making payments on many purchases he made on credit.

Carter declared bankruptcy in Florida last month. A court-appointed trustee is preparing to liquidate his assets and distribute them to creditors on a pro-rated basis; a hearing for creditors is scheduled to take place today in Miami.


I don't even know how you can do that. He must have literally been throwing money off the tops of buildings. How is bankruptcy even possible? And why did he not give me any of that money?

Regardless, though, he somehow survived all of that and seems happy. He's involved in a small foundation to help young men and women, and his son, the interestingly named Nigel Warrior, is now following in his tradition as a safety at the University of Tennessee. We'll see if the Chiefs draft him in a couple of years.

All in all, Dale had a good Chiefs career. He spent seven years with the team, made 88 starts, went to four pro bowls, and was generally an exciting player to watch.

Here's some Chiefs coach trying to keep Dale from making an interception during a game. What the hell are you doing, dude?



And here's a Dale Carter action figure waving at you.

[Rasputin]

I loved Dale Carter. It still pisses me off that the Denver Broncos tied up Dale and put a gun to his head and made him do coke lines.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo

I loved Dale Carter. It still pisses me off that the Denver Broncos tied up Dale and put a gun to his head and made him do coke lines.

No kidding. He was a good guy and solid citizen, and then when he goes to the Broncos, bam. He gets suspended for a year. They corrupted the poor guy.

[rico]

Freaking jewelry. That is something I am incapable of understanding. Why on Earth do these guys think they need to spend millions of dollars on bling? What use does it get? Seriously...do these guys literally believe that if they don't have bling, they won't get laid? Because if so, they are dead wrong. It makes me sick hearing about these guys spending millions of dollars on useless jewelry (that I think looks ridiculous to begin with) when I am struggling like a motor scooter to pay my student loans and likely will struggle with that for a very long time. These guys are blowing money...ON ****ING JEWELRY!!!!! WHY?!?!?

I remember watching that ESPN 30 for 30, "Broke." These football players who made millions were talking about how they spent millions of dollars on jewelry. They said that there was something that football players had...I think it was called "the helmet effect." Something along the lines of when they are playing football, people don't recognize them as easily because their heads/faces are covered by a helmet. Therefore when they buy a bunch of expensive bling and wear it out to da clubs, people know that they are someone of importance in case they didn't recognize them to begin with...because they are wearing stupid looking jewelry. Freaking jewelry. These assholes would be much happier if they didn't spend their millions on jewelry and were able to impress people with their personalities...they'd probably end up meeting people who aren't as predatory by nature in the process.

Jewelry...I hate it. Such a stupid fad for these athletes and rappers or whoever...they'd be much happier without even considering investing in jewelry with their money. I don't feel sorry for any athlete who goes broke if it turns out that the person spent any large sum of cash on jewelry.

[Dartgod]

Originally Posted by Scooter LaCanforno

I thought Bill Maas married Dan Marino's sister. Don't know if they're still married.

Originally Posted by Rain Man

Oh, good memory. Now that you mention it, I remember some connection to Dan.

My guess is this isn't the same woman, but if so, the Marino family has good genes.

His first marriage was to Cindi Marino, Dan's sister. Then he married a DJ from KY-102, Frankie.



Wikipedia says his current wife is named Sarah. I assume she's the one in the picture.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by rico

Freaking jewelry. That is something I am incapable of understanding. Why on Earth do these guys think they need to spend millions of dollars on bling? What use does it get? Seriously...do these guys literally believe that if they don't have bling, they won't get laid? Because if so, they are dead wrong. It makes me sick hearing about these guys spending millions of dollars on useless jewelry (that I think looks ridiculous to begin with) when I am struggling like a motor scooter to pay my student loans and likely will struggle with that for a very long time. These guys are blowing money...ON ****ING JEWELRY!!!!! WHY?!?!?

I remember watching that ESPN 30 for 30, "Broke." These football players who made millions were talking about how they spent millions of dollars on jewelry. They said that there was something that football players had...I think it was called "the helmet effect." Something along the lines of when they are playing football, people don't recognize them as easily because their heads/faces are covered by a helmet. Therefore when they buy a bunch of expensive bling and wear it out to da clubs, people know that they are someone of importance in case they didn't recognize them to begin with...because they are wearing stupid looking jewelry. Freaking jewelry. These assholes would be much happier if they didn't spend their millions on jewelry and were able to impress people with their personalities...they'd probably end up meeting people who aren't as predatory by nature in the process.

Jewelry...I hate it. Such a stupid fad for these athletes and rappers or whoever...they'd be much happier without even considering investing in jewelry with their money. I don't feel sorry for any athlete who goes broke if it turns out that the person spent any large sum of cash on jewelry.

Hmm, the helmet theory is interesting and I suspect it's valid. And I guess I can see how the jewelry offsets that. But it sure seems like an expensive and impractical way to do it. Just wear your jersey or something.

It's funny that you would want attention, too. I think the recognizable celebrities don't want attention and try to remain low key. Maybe it goes back to that helmet thing.

When I was researching Dwayne Bowe and he was telling ESPN about the entire floor of girls at the hotel, he mentioned that they knew everything about him. So you've got a subset of people (who are likely trouble with a capital T) who'll recognize you regardless of the helmet. So I guess they're trying to impress the ones who won't recognize them.

It's an interesting phenomenon, and I guess to some extent it's a validation of the jewelry as a concept. But I agree with you that the whole thing seems stupid and it impresses the wrong type of person. You can buy a Lamborghini for half the price of some of the jewelry and I guarantee that it'll get you attention.

[Hydrae]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

Dale busted so hard with the Broncos that it sounded like those turkeys hitting the cement in that WKRP Thanksgiving special.

OMG, I almost busted out loud at work when I read that. I, like many, have always loved your posting style and the humor that you include but this may be the funniest line of yours I have ever read!

[rico]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

Hmm, the helmet theory is interesting and I suspect it's valid. And I guess I can see how the jewelry offsets that. But it sure seems like an expensive and impractical way to do it. Just wear your jersey or something.

It's funny that you would want attention, too. I think the recognizable celebrities don't want attention and try to remain low key. Maybe it goes back to that helmet thing.

When I was researching Dwayne Bowe and he was telling ESPN about the entire floor of girls at the hotel, he mentioned that they knew everything about him. So you've got a subset of people (who are likely trouble with a capital T) who'll recognize you regardless of the helmet. So I guess they're trying to impress the ones who won't recognize them.

It's an interesting phenomenon, and I guess to some extent it's a validation of the jewelry as a concept. But I agree with you that the whole thing seems stupid and it impresses the wrong type of person. You can buy a Lamborghini for half the price of some of the jewelry and I guarantee that it'll get you attention.

Funny you mention Bowe. I just watched a clip of him from TMZ. I think it's on YouTube somewhere. He had the TMZ crew on him and a couple girls were like who is that? And they were like, "this is Dwayne." They were like, "Dwayne who?" And they said, "Dwayne Johnson?!" And the big joke of the skit is that a lot of these people thought he was Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock. Bowe handled it with grace...he seemed to think it was funny. And there was one girl on him who knew he was Dwayne Bowe.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by rico

Funny you mention Bowe. I just watched a clip of him from TMZ. I think it's on YouTube somewhere. He had the TMZ crew on him and a couple girls were like who is that? And they were like, "this is Dwayne." They were like, "Dwayne who?" And they said, "Dwayne Johnson?!" And the big joke of the skit is that a lot of these people thought he was Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock. Bowe handled it with grace...he seemed to think it was funny. And there was one girl on him who knew he was Dwayne Bowe.

Heh. I saw that when I was researching Dwayne. Pretty funny.