Myles Garrett will probably be the No. 1 overall pick in tomorrow's draft, maybe the guy who will help turn around the long-suffering Cleveland Browns franchise. Supposedly some in the Browns front office want the pick to be a quarterback, but that would be a surprise.
More often than not, of course, it is a quarterback selected with the No. 1 overall pick; seldom is it a defender. Over the last 40 years, a defender has been selected No. 1 overall 11 times. Most recently, the Houston Texans raised eyebrows by passing on a quarterback to select Jadeveon Clowney. That didn't look like a great choice initially, but did this season, with Clowney having a breakout season and being named to his first Pro Bowl.
Defensive players selected No. 1 overall in the last 40 years are shown below. The vast majority of them went on to play a decade or close to it, so there's that. But superstars? Since Bruce Smith, none of those guys have been difference-makers. Clowney and Mario Williams have been closest to it.
| NO. 1 OVERALL DEFENSIVE PLAYERS, 1976-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Pos | School | Years | Pro Bowl |
| 2014 | Jadeveon Clowney, Hou. | DE | South Carolina | 3 | 1 |
| 2006 | Mario Williams, Hou. | DE | N. Carolina State | 8 | 3 |
| 2000 | Courtney Brown, Clev. | DE | Penn State | 7 | 0 |
| 1994 | Dan Wilkinson, Cin. | DT | Ohio State | 13 | 0 |
| 1992 | Steve Emtman, Ind. | DT | Washington | 8 | 0 |
| 1991 | Russell Maryland, Dall. | DT | Miami | 10 | 1 |
| 1988 | Aundray Bruce, Atl. | LB | Auburn | 11 | 0 |
| 1985 | Bruce Smith, Buff. | DE | Virginia Tech | 18 | 11 |
| 1982 | Kenneth Sims, N.E. | DT | Texas | 8 | 0 |
| 1979 | Tom Cousineau, Buff. | LB | Ohio State | 6 | 0 |
| 1976 | Lee Roy Selmon, T.B. | DE | Oklahoma | 9 | 6 |
--Andy Richardson