Draft Regrets: 20 times a star player was missed by one pick
"Regrets, I've had a few. But then again, too few to mention." - Frank Sinatra in your grandpa's favorite song
NFL teams aren't Frank Sinatra, or Paul Anka, who wrote the damn song, for the over-50 crowd.
Looking through drafts from 2004-14 we've identified 20 times when teams have passed on a future star for a player at or below replacement level. Some are more egregious than others, but all stung.
Let's take a look at the most recent examples of NFL teams whiffing on a star by just one pick:
2014
No. 11 - Titans select Taylor Lewan
No. 12 - Giants select Odell Beckham Jr.
It's a little early to start putting Beckham in the Hall of Fame, but Lewan's probably going to lose his job to a rookie and is best known for peeing himself pregame.
2013
No. 26 - Packers select Datone Jones
No. 27 - Texans select DeAndre Hopkins
Instead of catching passes from Aaron Rodgers and fake laughing at Olivia Munn's jokes, Hopkins has been doomed to a string of quarterbacks-turned-drifters in the NFL.
No. 47 - Cowboys select Gavin Escobar
No. 48 - Steelers select Le'Veon Bell
Two cool names; one great player.
2012
No. 8 - Dolphins select Ryan Tannehill
No. 9 - Panthers select Luke Kuechly
Passing on the best middle linebacker in the league for a quarterback who gets owned by Brent Grimes' wife is less than ideal.
2011
No. 10 - Jaguars select Blaine Gabbert
No. 11 - Texans select J.J. Watt
It's sad that Watt only got to sack Gabbert 4.5 times while the two were in the AFC South. It's likely Watt, an approximation of an angry 1950s father, ever approved of Gabbert's haircut anyway.
No. 8 - Titans select Jake Locker
No. 9 - Cowboys select Tyron Smith
It's an NFL buddy dramedy! One is an athletic left tackle who could be around for another decade, the other retired after throwing 22 interceptions in 30 games. It's basically the backstory to TNT's ongoing masterpiece "Rizzoli & Isles."
No. 23 - Eagles select Danny Watkins
No. 24 - Saints select Cameron Jordan
One's collected 39 NFL sacks while the other collects burlap sacks for fire safety demonstrations. A little firefighter humor for you ... Tip your first responders, folks.
2010
No. 41 - Bills select Torell Troup
No. 42 - Patriots select Rob Gronkowski
Why would you need Gronk when you had Derek Fine, Travis McCall, Shawn Nelson, Derek Schouman, and Jonathan Stupar on the roster.
No. 13 - Eagles select Brandon Graham
No. 14 - Seahawks select Earl Thomas
Two boring names; one great player.
2009
No. 52 - Browns select David Veikune
No. 53 - Eagles select LeSean McCoy
Let's be honest, the Browns would've squandered McCoy's talents with some harebrained scheme. "We're turning him into a wing back - get excited, Cleveland!"
2008
No. 23 - Steelers select Rashard Mendenhall
No. 24. - Titans select Chris Johnson
The Steelers took Mendenhall one spot ahead of Mr. 2,000 because they already had Willie Parker in that role. Again, Willie. Parker.
2007
No. 6 - Redskins select LaRon Landry
No. 7 - Vikings select Adrian Peterson
Known more for his huge, steroid-induced muscles than anything else, Landry is out of the league. Interestingly, Peterson is probably still stronger than Landry.
No. 10 - Texans select Amobi Okoye
No. 11 - 49ers select Patrick Willis
Willis was the best inside linebacker of his generation, while Okoye, the youngest player ever drafted in the first round, never developed.
No. 13 - Rams select Adam Carriker
No. 14 - Jets select Darrelle Revis
Real estate mogul Stan Kroenke should've realized Revis Island was a hot property, but instead the Rams got stuck on Carriker Peninsula (Trademark theScore, 2016-in perpetuity)
2006
No. 18 - Cowboys select Bobby Carpenter
No. 19 - Chargers select Antonio Cromartie
Interesting fact: Antonio Cromartie named one of his kids Bobby Carpenter but forgot shortly after, much like the real Bobby Carpenter's parents.
2005
No. 23 - Raiders select Fabian Washington
No. 24 - Packers select Aaron Rodgers
This gets so much worse when considering the Raiders traded up to draft the speedy Washington, while Rodgers frowned through his un-frosted tips.
No. 10 - Lions select Mike Williams
No. 11 - Cowboys select DeMarcus Ware
Of all the dodgy receivers the Lions took in the first round, Williams was by far the worst - which is saying something. Ware has 38.5 sacks since Williams last touched an NFL field.
No. 26 - Seahawks select Chris Spencer
No. 27 - Falcons select Roddy White
White is the Falcons' all-time leading receiver while, according to his Wikipedia page, Spencer married "Coastal Carolina Elite volleyball player Katherine Jensen."
2004
No. 2 - Raiders select Robert Gallery
No. 3 - Cardinals select Larry Fitzgerald
An offensive lineman who was moved to guard in his third season or the greatest playoff receiver of all time? Fitz never had enough speed for Al Davis anyway.
No. 10 - Texans select Dunta Robinson
No. 11 - Steelers select Ben Roethlisberger
It's a battle of two names old guys everywhere struggle to pronounce correctly. It's Don-tay, old man! Beat it!