NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — They don’t have a Super Bowl win among them, but it appears that Ohio’s pro football teams are good at something. Drafting busts.
The sports betting website “The Game Day” conducted a nationwide survey of pro sports fans, who agreed that JaMarcus Russell is not only the biggest bust in NFL history, but fans voted him the biggest bust in professional sports history overall.
The data is based on responses given by sports fans across 48 states plus Washington, D.C., who voted on the biggest busts in the NFL, NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball and the biggest ever busts in all sports combined.
“What was jarring was seeing so many athletes with Ohio ties on the list, particularly given the broad group of respondents. It shows Ohioans’ loyalty given their feverish fandom even while enduring a substandard product through the years.” – Pat Pickens, Writer at The Game Day and author of “The Whalers: The Rise, Fall, and Enduring Mystique of New England’s (Second) Greatest NHL Franchise”
Let’s start in the NFL, where you’ll find the Browns and the Bengals dominating the list of teams fans believe have drafted the most busts.
Biggest Busts in NFL History
1. JaMarcus Russell – Oakland Raiders (23.8%)
2. Johnny Manziel – Cleveland Browns (23.5%)
3. Ryan Leaf – San Diego Chargers (16.1%)
4. David Carr – New York Giants (6.6.%)
5. Tony Mandarich – Green Bay Packers (5.5%)
6. Charles Rogers – Detroit Lions (5%)
7. Akili Smith – Cincinnati Bengals (4.9%)
8. Tim Couch – Cleveland Browns (4.5%)
9. Dion Jordan – Miami Dolphins (4.3%)
10. Ki-Jana Carter – Cincinnati Bengals (3.6%)
Johnny Manziel (Cleveland), Akili Smith (Cincinnati), Tim Couch (Cleveland) and Ki-Jana Carter (Cincinnati) are all in the top 10. Manziel was drafted 22nd overall in 2014, and played in only 14 games over two seasons in Cleveland before moving north to the Canadian Football League.
Smith was taken third overall by the Bengals in the 1999 NFL Draft and won only three games in his brief career.
Couch was selected first overall by the Browns in the 1999 NFL Draft, He was Cleveland’s first draft pick when the club re-joined the NFL as an expansion team.
Carter was selected first overall in the 1995 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, but after suffering a ligament tear in his knee during his first preseason game, he was never the same.
Biggest Busts in Sports History (All Sports)
- JaMarcus Russell – Oakland Raiders (23.64%)
- Johnny Manziel – Cleveland Browns (23.34%)
- Greg Oden – Portland Trail Blazers (18.87%)
- Ryan Leaf – San Diego Chargers (15.99%)
- Brien Taylor – New York Yankees (14.10%)
- Anthony Bennett – Cleveland Cavaliers (12.81%)
- Kwame Brown – Washington Wizards (12.41%)
- Rick DiPietro – New York Islanders (12.31%)
- Brian Lawton – Minnesota North Stars (12.31%)
- Donavan Tate – San Diego Padres (11.92%)
And when you check the list of overall busts, it doesn’t get any better for Ohio. Johnny Manziel is number two on the list, Greg Oden is third, and Anthony Bennett is sixth. In fact, Oden and Bennett were voted the two biggest busts in NBA history (below).
Oden, although drafted by Portland as the number one overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft, has Ohio ties as a member of the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Anthony Bennett was the number one overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers out of UNLV. He lasted one season in Cleveland and was out of the league within three years.
Russell received votes from fans in 40 states plus Washington, D.C. and, perhaps unsurprisingly, his biggest vote share came from California.
Biggest Busts in NBA History
1. Greg Oden – Portland Trail Blazers (19.1%)
2. Anthony Bennett – Cleveland Cavaliers (12.9%)
3. Kwame Brown – Washington Wizards (12.5%)
4. Jay Williams – Chicago Bulls (10.3%)
5. Darko Miličić – Detroit Pistons (9.5%)
6. Sam Bowie – Portland Trail Blazers (9.5%)
7. Chris Washburn – Golden State Warriors (7.8%)
8. Michael Olowokandi – Los Angeles Clippers (6%)
9. (Tie) Adam Morrison – Charlotte Hornets (5%)
(Tie) Hasheem Thabeet – Memphis Grizzlies (5%)
Oden and Bennett top the list of the biggest busts in the NBA (according to the survey). Oden grabbed more than 19% of the vote and Bennett nearly 13%.
Biggest Busts in MLB History
1. Brien Taylor – New York Yankees (14.2%)
2. Donavan Tate – San Diego Padres (12%)
3. Matt Bush – San Diego Padres (11.1%)
4. Todd Van Poppel – Oakland Athletics (10.6%)
5. Mark Appel – Detroit Tigers (10%)
Taylor was thought to be a can’t-miss fireballer of a pitcher taken number one overall in the 1992 draft by the New York Yankees. But after hurting his shoulder in a fight, he never got out of the minor leagues.
Biggest Busts in NHL History
1. (Tie) Rick DiPietro – New York Islanders (12.5%)
(Tie) Brian Lawton – Minnesota North Stars (12.5%)
3. Claude Gauthier – Detroit Red Wings (11%)
4. Nail Yakupov – Edmonton Oilers (10.7%)
5. Patrik Štefan – Atlanta Thrashers (9.4%)
DiPietro had his one impressive season (2006-07), but injuries cut his career short.
“The survey clearly shows that the perception of athletes is directly tied to a person’s fandom and familiarity of a player within their state. And as a New Yorker who is a Knicks fan, I can relate to sticking with a team despite all the letdowns.” – Rich Migliorisi, VP of Web Operations at The Game Day
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Contact:Lauren Polkey: [email protected]
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