Drafted: Round 6 (No. 199 overall), 2000.
The 2000 NFL Draft is already infamous for the Brady pick, which helped launch a Patriots dynasty that lasted two decades. NFL Films made an entire documentary called The Brady 6, which revolved around Brady’s journey into the NFL and the six quarterbacks drafted ahead of him: Chad Pennington (18th overall), Giovanni Carmazzi (65th overall), Chris Redman (75th overall), Tee Martin (163rd overall), Marc Bulger (168th overall) and Spergon Wynn (183rd overall).
Brady, of course, blew all of them out of the water. Pennington had a respectable, resilient career with the Jets and Dolphins, and Bulger (a Saints pick) had some moments with the Rams, but the rest were a forgettable lot. Redman, Martin and Wynn barely saw the field. Carmazzi, who was picked by Brady’s hometown 49ers, never took a regular-season snap. With 89,214 career passing yards and 649 TD passes, Brady more than doubled the combined totals of the six QBs taken ahead of him. And, you know, he won seven Super Bowl rings.
Brady is probably the best value pick in draft history. In the 25 drafts since he was selected, there have been 48 quarterbacks chosen in Round 6, including five this past April. So far, only a handful — Tyrod Taylor, Gardner Minshew and Derek Anderson — have had a modicum of success in the league. Teams looking for the next Brady have mostly been left grasping at straws.Â