How was the 8th overall pick in the NFL Draft fared in recent years?
The Carolina Panthers own the eighth overall pick heading into the 2025 NFL Draft. While we aren’t sure if they’ll actually use that pick or trade it away, let’s take a look at some recent draft results to see how well the eighth pick usually fares once entering the NFL.
2000s
With the dawn of a new century came the Pittsburgh Steelers taking Plaxico Burress with the eighth overall pick in 2000. Burress is more known for shooting himself in the leg than anything he did on the field, but he was a good receiver who eventually won the Super Bowl with the Giants. The run on receivers continued as the Bears took David Terrell, followed by the Lions taking Roy Williams. The Panthers took future Hall of Honor member Jordan Gross in 2003, which turned out exceptionally well for them. The Atlanta Falcons had this pick twice in the decade, taking DeAngelo Hall in 2004 and Jamaal Anderson in 2008. In between those Falcons selections, the Cardinals took Antrel Rolle and the Bills took Donte Whitner. The Jacksonville Jaguars closed out the decade with back to back picks at number eight overall, selecting Derrick Harvey and Eugene Monroe.
2010s
The early 2010s is a hodgepodge of “oh yeah, that guy” and “wait, who?” types of players. The Las Vegas Raiders (then still in Oakland) started the decade by taking Rolando McClain, who retired in 2013 after playing for multiple teams and running into multiple off-field issues. The next two eighth overall picks were quarterbacks who didn’t pan out: Jake Locker to the Tennessee Titans and Ryan Tannehill to the Miami Dolphins. Tavon Austin was taken by the Los Angeles Rams (then in St Louis) the following year. The Cleveland Browns then took Justin Gilbert, who is now in the Arena League. The Falcons had another eighth overall pick in 2015 and used it on Vic Beasley to chase around Cam Newton. Beasley had a good 2016 season, but fell off and was out of the league by 2020. After the Titans took Jack Conklin, the Panthers were once again at the eighth overall pick and took Christian McCaffrey. That pick worked out extremely well overall despite some injury issues along the way. The NFC North closed out the decade with the Chicago Bears taking Roquan Smith, still one of the best linebackers in the game, and the Detroit Lions taking TJ Hockenson, who was traded to the Vikings a few years later and has been a very good tight end.
2020s
We are already halfway through this decade, and the eighth pick has been dominated by two NFC South teams. The Panthers had the pick in 2021, using it on Jaycee Horn. The Falcons then had the next three iterations of the pick, selecting Drake London, Bijan Robinson, and Michael Penix Jr with those selections. The Arizona Cardinals started off the decade in 2020 by taking Isaiah Simmons, the LB/S hybrid. Due to the recency of these picks, the jury is still out on many of them. The Falcons seem excited about their three selections, though they are still in the honeymoon phase. The Panthers extended Jaycee Horn this offseason, making him the (temporarily) highest paid defensive back in NFL history. The lone blemish would be Simmons, who the Cardinals traded to the New York Giants in 2023, just three years into his professional career.
Overall
The 8th overall pick has been used 25 times since the turn of the century. Interestingly enough, nine of those selections have been made by the Panthers or Falcons. I don’t think that is anything more than a coincidence, but still a bit of a fun fact. For their part, both teams have picked fairly well in those instances. The Panthers landed a Hall of Honor offensive tackle, an MVP-caliber running back, and one of the best young corners in the league. The Falcons got a quality starting corner for most of his career (Hall), and three major offensive building blocks (London, Robinson, Penix Jr). Their only true misses came when drafting edge rushers (Anderson and Beasley). So maybe the Panthers should avoid edge rushers at eight. That spot seems to be cursed.