The decade of Y2K (aka the 2000s) was the revolutionary era of football. With the rookie salary cap not a thing yet, top overall draft picks were being paid record contracts before even taking a step on the field.
Thanks to the new 2011 CBA, which created the rookie wage scale, top rookies were able to earn fair contracts and eventually a larger deal.
While some retired early with a big payday, others benefited from that rookie wage scale and had long careers in today’s version of the NFL.
Let’s take a look at the Top 10 No. 1 Overall NFL Draft Picks of the 2000s:
It’s very uncommon for offensive tackles to be selected No. 1 off the board, but not for the type of team the Dolphins were in the process of constructing.
They decided to shock the whole NFL by taking the big, nasty pass protector in Long as the No. 1 overall pick, which was out of the box.
Normally, a team would prefer to take a quarterback as the No. 1 overall pick, but the Dolphins focused on building through the trenches to help protect starting quarterbacks Chad Pennington and Chad Henne.
Long was a powerful weightlifter, benching 37 reps of 225 pounds, which translated onto the field.
He would become a staple on the Dolphins’ offensive line, which helped create a strong ground-and-pound rushing attack with Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams.
In Long’s rookie year in 2008, he was part of a line that played a key role in the Dolphins’ new play, the “Wildcat.”
That play was instrumental in helping the Dolphins crush the Tom Bradyless New England Patriots, 38-13, in Foxboro.
When Long signed his rookie deal, he was the highest-paid lineman in league history. He signed a five-year, $57.75 million contract with the Fish, including $30 million guaranteed.
Sadly, his productive career was cut short by two torn ACLs, a back injury, and a torn achilles. It forced Long to retire early as a very rich man with some deep pockets.
Interesting fact: Jake is the son of Howie Long, a longtime Raider and current FOX NFL Pregame host. He has a brother named Chris Long, who was a member of the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles team that defeated Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 52.
The Rams were transitioning from old traditions in St. Louis to their first NFL draft, which was held in Los Angeles in 2016.
They had the No. 1 pick and wanted to invest in a young, handsome quarterback whose good looks could translate into on-the-field production.
They chose Goff from the University of California—Berkeley, who, at 21 years old, entered the league looking the part.
Now, with a hot-seat head coach in Jeff Fisher, the Rams’ organization hoped he could jumpstart the LA era with a Lombardi trophy.
After a dismal (4-12) record in his rookie year, the Rams fired Jeff Fisher, and the search for a new head coach began.
It looked like they found their guy. The brass ended up hiring a young offensive coordinator named Sean McVay, who, at the time, was the youngest head coach in the NFL at 30 years old.
With a fresh face like Goff at quarterback now paired up with a young face like McVay, it was time to see the young golden boys get to work.
The Rams continued to make progress in the 2017 regular season, finishing (11-5) and clinching the NFC West Division title.
They would be bounced in the Wildcard round at home vs the Atlanta Falcons, 26-13. This was a sign that the two golden boys in McVay and Goff were on their way to building something special heading into 2018.
In 2018, Goff and McVay led the Rams to even new heights, going (13-3) in the regular season, making a deep playoff run all the way to the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, they lost an ugly 10-3 battle to Brady and the New England Patriots.
Even with a rising young head coach and an up-and-coming young quarterback, the Rams felt they needed to move on from Goff in order to win now.
Now with Goff in Detroit, he’s developed a reputation as one of the NFL’s top passers of the 2000s. Joining him are head coach Dan Campbell and former offensive coordinator turned Bears’ head coach Ben Johnson.
The Lions reached the NFC Championship game, marking their first playoff run in the 21st century. Over time, the decision to draft Goff has become a solid pick.
The Lions have their commander under center to win now, and the Rams, with McVay, now have Stafford in a position to win immediately for them with a Super Bowl ring intact.
For his time, Smith was one of the more durable, steady quarterbacks during this decade.
From Utah, Smith was taken No. 1 overall ahead of future Hall of Famer (also a drama king) Aaron Rodgers, and yet was still one of the best quarterbacks from that loaded 2005 draft class.
After seven seasons in the Bay Area and five with Kansas City, Smith finished his career with Washington. There, he tragically broke his leg and had an infection that luckily didn’t cost him his leg.
The signal-caller had his best career in 2017 before being replaced by Patrick Mahomes. Smith threw for 26 TDs, 5 INTs, 4,042 yards in 15 games played. He also led the league with a passer rating of 104.7.
Coming out of NC State, Williams was a game wrecker that the up-and-coming Houston Texans desired. He was selected for the Pro Bowl four times, including when he also played for the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins.
Williams was a character guy both on and off the field, but wreaked havoc for opposing quarterbacks by recording 399 tackles, 97.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, 21 pass deflections, and a touchdown.
While he hasn’t been selected to be a Hall of Famer, he should be just for how important the edge rushing position has evolved from when he was drafted. Plus, his long body of work can’t be ignored for consideration.
Burrow was one of the original star quarterbacks who started benefiting from using the Transfer Portal when playing in College. Before he was “Joe Ice” at LSU, Burrow was a third-string quarterback at the Ohio State University, struggling to earn playing time.
While he never earned starting reps for the Buckeyes, he did gain extra knowledge by learning the playbook, which would help him later on in 2019 when he transferred to LSU and won a national championship there.
Adapting to different playbooks in college helped Burrow pick up the Bengals’ system a bit quicker than quarterbacks who stay at just one college.
He has evolved from “Joe Ice” to another “Joe Cool” as he’s put up record passing numbers year after year with two top-end receivers and a poor o-line. He’s also beaten Mahomes to get his team to the Super Bowl during the 2021 season.
Last season, he was up for the MVP award despite the team going (9-8) with a horrid defense and a team that always seems to struggle early in the season.
Burrow will earn his time to win both an MVP and many Super Bowl rings and will likely be another Hall of Famer when it’s all said and done.
The 2017 NFL Draft was loaded with superstar and franchise cornerstone talent. It wasn’t that difficult for the Browns to swing for the fences and hit a big home run, taking Garrett No. 1 overall.
While they could have had Mahomes, Garrett was the no-brainer at No. 1 as he has transformed into a generational talent and a game-changer at the edge rush position.
Garrett is also a sneaky negotiator when he tricked the Browns this past offseason into wanting a trade, but then stayed when the Browns showed him more money, he gladly accepted.
We’ll never know whether he ever wins a Super Bowl in Cleveland, but we’ll always know he was a franchise cornerstone for a Browns team finally looking to turn the corner.
Stafford did resurrect a struggling Lions franchise before he was traded to the Los Angeles Rams, where he won a Super Bowl ring.
As of 2009, Stafford has amassed over 56,000 throwing yards, 357 touchdowns, and 180 interceptions.
The productive signal-caller could have been arguably another G.O.A.T. if he had been on a Super Bowl-winning team earlier in his career.
He’s still among the top quarterbacks in the league for his longevity and willingness to win and learn, even at 37 years old.
Vick was an exciting NFL player to watch then because the league hadn’t seen a dual-threat quarterback like him before. He could escape defenders out of the pocket and outrun any defender chasing him for six points.
On Saturday, Jan 4, 2003, he led one of the greatest road playoff victories in NFL history, as the Falcons went into Lambeau Field to play Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers.
What happened next was “Vick Magic,” which was utter shock for the Packers. Vick tore through a Packers-stacked defense and did a great job of keeping Farve and the Packers offense on the sidelines.
The Falcons gave the Packers their first-ever playoff loss at home, 27-7.
Newton revolutionized what a dual-threat quarterback can do in a league that was traditionally built for pocket passers.
The former Auburn Tiger balled out in his rookie season, throwing an unimaginable 4,051 yards passing at the time.
His 2015 season, which included 35 TDs and only 10 INTs, carried the Carolina Panthers into Super Bowl 50, but they eventually lost to Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, 24-10.
His cannon arm and fast legs make him one of the greatest dual-threat quarterbacks in the league. (Not to mention his wardrobe choices).
Known as the “Brady Killer” for winning two Super Bowls over the dynasty New England Patriots, Eli was known for more than just that. He was a franchise piece for the New York Giants, creating a legacy that competed with Peyton’s.
Although he may not be known as a G.O.A.T. type of talent, Eli is a down-to-earth guy with comedic humor, along with his older brother.
He also has a special place in the hearts of NFL fans and has Hall of Fame-caliber numbers. It’s wild that he keeps getting snubbed, but he should be in for beating Brady twice in the Super Bowl and one that ended the Pats’ perfect season.
Manning’s 15-year career stats of throwing for over 57,000 yards and 366 touchdowns could also help him get into the Hall of Fame, ya think?
Now, you can see Eli and Peyton on their hysterical and popular “Manningcast,” ESPN2‘s alternative to Monday Night Football broadcast.
The 2000s will be remembered as the decade that revolutionized the NFL in many ways. From the rookie salary cap, to the uptick in offensive play, and the rise of the dual-threat quarterbacks throwing for 3,000-4,000 yards every year, to the wildcat, and now the“tushpush”.
Football is a game for everyone, and it should be celebrated all year long.
All these top 10 players made their mark during the 21st century, and now the torch has been passed on to the next generation of this century’s NFL greats.
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