Notre Dame’s NFL Best By Rounds

Yesterday we featured Notre Dame’s best “Men of Steal” who were selected extremely late, if at all, in the NFL Draft, yet went on to have prosperous careers.

Beginning in 1994, the NFL pared back its draft to only seven rounds. Thus, today we’ll look at the best Fighting Irish players selected from rounds one through seven as opposed to those who were taken as late as the 16th round (Rocky Bleier in 1968), if at all (Hall of Fame inductee Nick Buoniconti in 1962).

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Page and Brown share the school record with most Pro Bowl selections with nine apiece. Page played 15 seasons in the league while Brown thrived for 17, and both are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Neither was part of a Super Bowl champion — Page was 0-4 in such appearances with the Minnesota Vikings and Brown 0-1 with the Oakland Raiders — but both gained the utmost esteem for their citizenship and life beyond the gridiron.

With six Pro Bowl selections in as many seasons, current Dallas Cowboys offensive guard Zack Martin is a legitimate threat to overtake Page and Brown on Notre Dame’s all-time leader board in that category. Like Martin, fellow guard Quenton Nelson, also was a first-round pick (2018) and was selected to the Pro Bowl each of his first two seasons.

Runners-Up: RB Jerome Bettis (1993) & OT George Kunz (1969)

Known as “The Bus,” Bettis finished his career fourth on the NFL’s all-time rushing chart (his 13,662 yards on the ground is now No. 8) and retired after a 13-year career with a Super Bowl title at the conclusion of the 2005 campaign. In 2015, he joined Brown for enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Is there a more underrated Notre Dame graduate in NFL history than Kunz? The No. 2 overall pick in 1969 (behind Heisman winner O.J. Simpson), Kunz made the Pro Bowl eight times, tied with quarterback Joe Montana for the most behind the duo of Page and Brown. He also has been named to all-time teams at Atlanta and Baltimore — yet has not received a sniff from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Notable: George Connor (1946) and Paul Hornung (1957), like Brown, Page and Bettis, also are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Connor, drafted before he completed his college eligibility following the 1947 season, retired after eight productive seasons. Hornung made the Pro Bowl only twice, but established himself as one of the game's marquee figures (on and off the field).

Defensive tackle Bryant Young, a four-time Pro Bowl pick who made the NFL All-1990s Team and starred for 14 years, could be a future Pro Football Hall of Fame candidate.

In the “Year of The Tight End,” Casper was the sixth one taken (No. 45 overall), but the four-time All-Pro would go on to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame after a prolific 11-year career as a receiver and blocker that had many league experts classify him as one of the greatest all-around tight ends ever.

Runner-Up: RB Ricky Watters (1991)

Like Casper, he also was taken at No. 45 overall. One of two backs in NFL history to rush for more than 1,000 yards at three different franchises, and his 10,643 yards rushing rank No. 24 on the all-time chart.

Notable: Multiple Pro Bowl players (at least three times) included tackle Bob Toneff (1952), center Dick Szymanski (1955), who hiked the ball to legendary NFL quarterback Johnny Unitas for a decade, and linebacker Myron Pottios (1961).

Defensive back Dave Waymer (1980), has the most interceptions ever (48) by an Irish alumnus in the NFL.

The fourth quarterback taken in his draft (behind Jack Thompson, Phil Simms and Steve Fuller), eight-time Pro Bowl player Super Joe became one of the game’s all-time icons, including four Super Bowl titles in as many tries. He was the final player selected in the third round (82nd overall).

Runner-Up: DB Dave Duerson (1983)

A four-time Pro Bowl pick at safety, including for the impregnable 1985 Chicago Bears, and was chosen the 1987 NFL Man of the Year.

Notable: Rush end Bertrand Berry (1997) played 12 years in the NFL and recorded 65 career sacks.

Kuechenberg played defense his last two years at Notre Dame, but was a six-time Pro Bowl pick at guard, where he won two Super Bowls at Miami (17-0 in 1972) while playing there 14 years.

The seventh quarterback taken in his draft (and also chosen originally by Miami), Theismann opted to play four years in Canada before becoming a Super Bowl champion and the 1983 NFL MVP with the Washington Redskins.

Runners-Up: DE Justin Tuck (2005) & TE Mark Bavaro (1985)

Tuck, a two-time Pro Bowl pick, starred in two Super Bowl victories and recorded 66.5 sacks during his 11-year career.

Bavaro was a two-time Super Bowl champion like Tuck and Kuechenberg, and also made two Pro Bowl teams while catching 351 career passes (39 for touchdowns).

Notable: Guard Tom Thayer (1983) started every game seven straight years for the Chicago Bears, highlighted by doing so for the 1986 Super Bowl champs.

No, this isn’t the head coach who won three Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s. This one played center six years in the NFL and made the Pro Bowl three times — including first-team All-Pro in his final season in 1954. Talk about going out on top.

Runner-Up: E Bob Dove (1946)

The two-time consensus All-American at Notre Dame played nine years at end and made the 1950 Pro Bowl.

Notable: Tackle Bob Wetoska (1959) and offensive lineman Jordan Black (2003) each lasted 10 years in the NFL.

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Best known for scoring the fourth-down touchdown in the epic 7-0 upset of Oklahoma in 1957, Lynch led the NFL in interceptions in 1961 and 1963 (nine apiece) during a nine-year career with the New York Giants, including first-team All-Pro.

Runner-Up: C John Sullivan (2008)

Sullivan made 93 career starts at Minnesota, then moved to Washington and was the starting center for the NFC champion Los Angeles Rams in 2018.

Notable: Arnaz Battle (2003) began his career at quarterback for the Irish before moving to wide receiver as a senior. He snared 178 passes during his nine-year NFL career.

Would you believe that in his 12 seasons as a tight end (he was a flanker at Notre Dame) his 363 regular season catches almost matched Casper’s (378) and were more than Bavaro’s (351)?

Runner-Up: WR David Givens (2002)

He won two Super Bowls at New England while catching seven touchdown tosses from Tom Brady in the playoffs. Givens finished with 166 career catches in the regular season, 12 for scores.

Notable: Punters seldom get drafted, but Hunter Smith (1999) had a 12-year career and included a 43.0-yard average per punt.

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