1996 Draft Redo - What Should've Happened

What should each team have done in the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft?

2005 Draft Redo | 2004 Draft Redo | 2003 Draft Redo | 2002 Draft Redo
2001 Draft Redo | 2000 Draft Redo | 1999 Draft Redo | 1998 Draft Redo
1997 Draft Redo | 1996 Draft Redo | 1995 Draft Redo | 1994 Draft Redo
1993 Draft Redo | 1992 Draft Redo | 1991 Draft Redo | 1990 Draft Redo
1989 Draft Redo

Here's a look at past NFL drafts looking to see what each team needed, who they all took in the first round, and in hindsight, who should've gone based on how their pro careers turned out (forgetting about proper coaching and other circumstances).

If each team could draft knowing what we all know now and not taking future drafts into account, this is how the first round should've gone.  There were 30 picks in the first round of the 1996 draft.

Who Went	How the Draft Should've Gone
1. New York Jets Keyshawn Johnson, WR USC	LB Ray Lewis (1st), Miami Baltimore Ravens
The 1995 Jets had league's 30th best offense out of 30. It's hard to say the Keyshawn pick didn't work out as he made an instant impact for the Jets, but he took off. They should've taken one of the greatest linebackers to ever play the game.
2. Jacksonville Jaguars Kevin Hardy, LB Illinois	RB Eddie George (1st), Ohio State Houston Oilers
Jacksonville was a young team with a slew of inexperienced talent. This would've been the perfect situation for Eddie George as he wouldn't be as worn down later in his career with James Stewart splitting the carries for several years. Stewart might not have been as injury-prone with George handling the bulk of the workload.
3. Arizona Cardinals Simeon Rice, LB/DE Illinois	WR Marvin Harrison (1st), Syracuse Indianapolis Colts
Rice never developed into the superstar pass rusher many envisioned he'd be with the Cardinals. With Mr. Small Hands Dave Krieg, Mike Buck and Stoney Case, the Cards needed a quarterback. Since there isn't one worth a third round pick, much less the third pick overall, Harrison would be the selection over Terrell Owens. The last thing this franchise needed was a head case.
4. Baltimore Ravens Jonathan Ogden, OT UCLA	OT Jonathan Ogden (1st), UCLA Baltimore Ravens
Ogden took a while to earn the "best lineman in the game" status, but he was never far off as a mainstay of the Raven offensive line.
5. New York Giants Cedric Jones, LB Oklahoma	WR Terrell Owens (3rd), UT Chattanooga San Francisco 49ers
Jones was considered a bit of a reach at the fifth pick and injuries and inconsistent play did nothing to justify the selection. With a receiving corps of Chris Calloway, Mike Sherrard and Arthur Marshall, a receiver is a must and Owens is just too great a talent to pass up. Now if only Danger Dave Brown and Tommy Maddox can get him the ball.
6. Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams Lawrence Phillips, RB Nebraska	WR Keyshawn Johnson (1st), USC New York Jets
Phillips had all the talent in the world with a rare combination of quickness and power, but had the mental makeup of a four-year-old. The Rams should stick with Jerome Bettis at running back and give Isaac Bruce some receiving help while bunkering down for the whine-fest from the ridiculously overrated Keyshawn after the move of the Rams from L.A. to St. Louis. Johnson would've eventually thrived with Kurt Warner throwing him the damn ball.
7. New England Patriots Terry Glenn, WR Ohio State	DB Lawyer Milloy (2nd), Washington New England Patriots
At this point in the retro-mock draft, there's much weeping and gnashing of teeth in the Patriot front office as they desperately need a receiver and the three best just flew off the board. Milloy turned out to be one of the top hitting safeties in football and a leader of the New England defense.
8. Carolina Panthers Tim Biakabatuka, RB Michigan	RB Stephen Davis (4th), Auburn Washington Redskins
Biakabatuka might have had the upper hand in his final matchup with Eddie George in college, but the Panthers blew it by taking him over the Buckeye star. Davis might have taken a while to get rolling, but he would've turned into the consistent player the Panthers were hoping for, and eventually got.
9. Oakland Raiders Rickey Dudley, TE Ohio State	LB Zach Thomas (5th), Texas Tech Miami Dolphins
Dudley had a body made of granite coming out of college. Unfortunately, that included his hands. While the Raiders could've used more help on offense, how great would Thomas have looked, and played, in a Raider uniform? He never, ever, ever would've been a Raider as he lacked the speed and pizzazz coming out of college that Al Davis holds so dear.
10. Cincinnati Bengals Willie Anderson, OT Auburn	OT Willie Anderson (1st), Auburn Cincinnati Bengals
I know ... the Bengals didn't exactly set the world on fire after taking Anderson in 1996. While this is a boring pick for a boring team, you can't argue with his production turning into a consistent fixture on the line.
11. New Orleans Saints Alex Molden, DB Oregon	OG Jeff Hartings (1st), Penn State Detroit Lions
Molden was humongous bust for the Saints rarely cracking the starting lineup. Add Hartings to the line along with Willie Roaf and the Saints would've had one of the league's strongest front walls for the next ten years. Hartings was a 2004 Pro Bowl performer.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Regan Upshaw, DE California	DE/LB Simeon Rice (1st), Illinois Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Rice didn't quite live up to third-overall-pick status, but after turning out to be a star with Tampa Bay, he would've been a good pick for the Bucs.
13. Chicago Bears Walt Harris, DB Mississippi State	FS Brian Dawkins (2nd), Clemson Philadelphia Eagles
Harris hurt the Bears more than he helped them never developing into the player they needed.  Dawkins would've given Chicago's poor pass defense more consistency and far more production.
14. Houston Oilers Eddie George, RB Ohio State	WR Eric Moulds (1st), Mississippi State Buffalo Bills
Every year Moulds appeared to be just-this-close to breaking into the elite level of receivers. Even though he hadn't turned into the elite receiver many thought he'd be, he'd be a nice piece to the Oiler/Titan puzzle helping out a young Steve McNair.
15. Denver Broncos John Mobley, LB Kutztown State	LB Tedy Bruschi (3rd), Arizona New England Patriots
How can you argue with the heart-and-soul leadership Bruschi provided for three Super Bowl defenses? He'd have been a key piece to the Denver defensive puzzle for years.
16. Minnesota Vikings Duane Clemons, DE California	DT La'Roi Glover, (5th), San Diego State Oakland Raiders
With John Randle eating up most of the attention on the Viking defensive line, Glover would've racked up even more than the 71.5 sacks he had by 2004.
17. Detroit Lions Reggie Brown, LB Texas A&M	LB Kevin Hardy (1st), Illinois Jacksonville Jaguars
Brown was turning into a solid player before he was injured. Hardy really shouldn't slide any further than this.
18. Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams Eddie Kennison, WR LSU	WR Joe Horn (5th), Itawamba CC Kansas City Chiefs
The Rams already took Keyshawn with the sixth pick and by taking Horn, the Rams will have one of the league's most frightening receiving corps with two big wideouts working the seams and the Reverend Ike Bruce flying by on the outside. I hear there's this guy in the Arena League who's seems to have a nice touch on the ball who can throw to their young stars. (note: I'm not dealing with the Kurt Warner situation until the 1997 season even though he technically could've been drafted in 1994. He wouldn't have been the same player had he not played in the Arena League.)
19. Indianapolis Colts Marvin Harrison, WR Syracuse	G Marco Rivera (6th), Penn State Green Bay Packers
WRs Sean Dawkins and Floyd Turner aren't scaring anyone and they'd consider taking Mushin Muhammad or Joe Horn, but they'll take the steady Rivera instead to help open holes for Marshall Faulk.
20. Miami Dolphins Daryl Gardner, DT Baylor	WR Amani Toomer (2nd), Michigan New York Giants
This is a they-have-to-win-now pick as Dan Marino doesn't have a lot of throws left. With Randal Hill not working out, O.J. McDuffie merely average and Irving Fryar and Gary Clark ready for the Senior Tour, they'll take the speed of Toomer hoping beyond all hope that he's the missing piece the Dolphins need.
21. Seattle Seahawks Pete Kendall, OG Boston College	OG Pete Kendall (1st), Boston College Seattle Seahawks
Placing a premium on consistency for offensive linemen, Kendall is the pick even though he jumped ship to Arizona in 2001. He gave the Seahawks 75 straight starts.
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers  Marcus Jones, DT North Carolina	RB Mike Alstott (2nd), Purdue Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jones took a while to turn into the player Tampa Bay thought it was getting with the 22nd pick. Not wanting to wait five rounds, they're taking Alstott now before anyone else grabs him.
23. Detroit Lions Jeff Hartings, OG Penn State	LB Donnie Edwards (4th), UCLA Kansas City Chiefs
Detroit got a total steal getting Kevin Hardy at the 17 in the redo draft and had another gift fall into it's lap getting Edwards here to help make linebacker a position of strength for the Lions.
24. Buffalo Bills Eric Moulds, WR Mississippi State	WR Terry Glenn (1st), Ohio State New England Patriots
Moulds was a nice player for the Bills who helped carry the passing game for years. Glenn would be a bit more explosive and a good receiver to plug in for ten years.
25. Philadelphia Eagles Jermane Mayberry, OG Texas A&M-Kingsville	OL Chris Villarrial (5th), Indiana PA Chicago Bears
This is a truly boring pick, but Villarrial will give Philadelphia the offensive lineman it needs for the next several seasons.
26. Baltimore Ravens Ray Lewis, LB Miami	DB Jerome Woods (1st), Memphis Kansas City Chiefs
Woods isn't spectacular, but he has been a steady starter for the Chiefs and I'm not waiting for Tory James to be a playmaker several years down the road. Even though Muhsin Muhammad is still on the board, Cleveland/Baltimore had Andre Rison, Keenan McCardell, Michael Dyson/Jackson and Derrick Alexander.
27. Green Bay Packers John Michels, OT USC	WR Muhsin Muhammad (2nd), Michigan State Carolina Panthers
With Robert Brooks and Antonio Freeman the Pack didn't really need Muhammad, but you can't give Mr. Favre enough weapons to work with.
28. Kansas City Chiefs Jerome Woods, DB Memphis	LB Earl Holmes (4th), Florida A&M Pittsburgh Steelers
Fine, so Holmes likely would've never lasted this long. Over 11 years he cranked out 678 tackles in 140 games.
29. Pittsburgh Steelers Jamain Stephens, OT North Carolina A&T	TE Jay Riemersma (7th), Michigan Buffalo Bills
Stephens was nothing more than mediocre. Riemersma would've helped the receiving corps of Yancey Thigpen, Andre Hastings, Charles Johnson and Ernie Mills.
30. Washington Redskins Andre Johnson, OT Penn State	DB Tory James (2nd), LSU Denver Broncos
James would turn into a Pro Bowl player after a while and would've been a great pick, eventually, late in the first round.