2014 MLB Draft: 15 football players who were drafted in baseball

In honor of today's Major League Baseball draft, here are 15 current, former or future NFL standouts who were drafted in baseball. We have listed them in order of their football pedigree.


1. John Elway
The Hall of Fame quarterback for the Broncos and two-time Super Bowl champion was an 18th-round pick of the Kansas City Royals in the 1979 draft out of Granada Hills (Calif.). He was then a second-round pick — 52nd overall — in 1981 for the Yankees out of Stanford. The outfielder and pitcher was actually selected six picks ahead of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, and he played a short season in 1982. A Yankees scout said his potential "was off the charts."

2. Tom Brady
The three-time Super Bowl champion quarterback was actually groomed as a baseball player growing up in San Mateo (Calif.). He was a catcher at Serra and picked by the Montreal Expos in the 18th round of the 1995 draft.

3. Dan Marino
The Hall of Fame quarterback for the Dolphins was a fourth-round pick of the Royals in 1979, the same year they picked Elway. Kansas City has definitely had some interesting picks over the years. He attended Central Catholic (Pittsburgh).

4. Deion Sanders
One of the NFL's greatest lockdown cornerbacks and returners, Sanders was an All-State performer at North Fort Myers (Fla.) in three sports. He was drafted by the Royals — who else — out of high school in the sixth round in 1985 and then by the Yankees in college during the 1988 draft in the 30th round. He was eventually signed by the Braves and had a very successful 12-year MLB career with five teams.

5. Bo Jackson
It's hard to pinpoint Jackson's actual No. 1 sport. Even though he was the first overall pick of the 1986 NFL draft by the Buccaneers, he decided to play for the Kansas City Royals, who selected him in the fourth round of the MLB draft the same year. Considered the greatest athlete of his generation, Jackson attended McAdory (McCalla, Ala.).

6. Ricky Williams
The Heisman Trophy-winning running back at the University of Texas was an eighth-round pick of Phillies straight out of Patrick Henry (San Diego) in 1995. As an outfielder, he played four seasons with the Phillies while in college and finished with a .211 batting average in 170 games. In 1998, he was picked by the Expos in the Rule 5 draft but dealt to the Rangers. He opted for the NFL, where he played for 11 seasons and ran for 10,009 yards and 66 touchdowns.

7. Russell Wilson
The starting quarterback and sudden media darling of the reigning Super Bowl champion Seahawks seemed destined for baseball after being selected in the fifth round straight out of Collegiate (Richmond, Va.) by the Orioles in 2007. He opted not to sign and instead attended North Carolina State and played both sports. In 2010, the second baseman was picked by the Rockies in the fourth round (140 overall) and played two short seasons before informing the Rockies he would pursue the NFL and did not attend 2012 spring training. He was dealt to the Rangers in 2013 as part of the Rule 5 draft and surprised many after winning the Super Bowl by actually taking part in some infield drills during spring training in 2014.

8. Colin Kaepernick
Fresh off signing a 6-year deal with the 49ers that could pay him as much as $126 million, Kaepernick's first love was baseball and he was picked in the 43rd round by the Cubs in 2009. He was probably a better prospect as a pitcher at Pitman (Turlock, Calif.).

9. Jameis Winston
The reigning Heisman Trophy winner, who led Florida State to a national championship at quarterback as a redshirt freshman, was a 15th-round pick of the Rangers in the 2012 draft straight out of Hueytown (Ala.). He decided not to sign and has played both sports. He just finished his second season for the Seminoles baseball team as a pitcher and outfielder and accumulated a 2-2 record with nine saves and a nifty 1.95 ERA in 60.1 innings. He also batted .208 with 13 RBIs.

10. Jack Del Rio
The Hayward (Calif.) graduate played linebacker and baseball at USC before playing 11 seasons in the NFL, earning All-Pro honors in 1994. He was the Jaguars head coach for eight seasons and is now the defensive coordinator in Denver. He was a 22nd-round pick in 1981 by the Blue Jays.

11. Cedric Benson
One of the greatest high school running backs to come out of Texas at Midland Lee (Midland), the 10-year NFL veteran was a 12th-round of pick of the Dodgers in 2001. He never played in the majors, but he had five hits in 15 minor league at-bats with three doubles and two triples.

12. Daunte Culpepper
The three-time All-Pro quarterback for the Vikings, who once held the NFL record for most yards produced in a season (5,123 in 2004), was picked in the 26th round by the New York Yankees in 1995. Also a basketball standout, he opted to play football at Central Florida. He attended Vanguard (Ocala, Fla.).

13. Eric Decker
The third-round pick of the Broncos has been one of the most productive receivers in the NFL his first four seasons and now joins the Jets. A baseball standout at Rocori (Cold Spring, Minn.) and the University of Minnesota, Decker was drafted in the 39th round by the Brewers in 2008 and 27th round by the Twins in 2009.

14. Jake Locker
The current starting quarterback of the Tennessee Titans was a 10th-round selection of the 2009 draft by the Angels. He played football and baseball at Ferndale (Wash.) as a pitcher and outfielder.

15. Golden Tate
The Detroit Lions wide receiver, who has played the last four seasons with the reigning Super Bowl champion Seahawks, was a 42nd-round selection of the Diamondbacks in 2007 straight out of Pope John Paul II (Hendersonville, Tenn.). He didn't sign, instead playing both sports at Notre Dame before being picked by the San Francisco Giants in the 50th round in 2010. He opted for football.