Late-Round NFL Draft Picks Who Became Hall of Famers

As the annual NFL draft nears, the focus always shifts to the elite college football prospects, who are given the greatest credo.

When teams draft first rounders, naturally, they're expecting a high-impact player by year three, at the latest. There's no reason for them not to.

There's also an entire football economy around finding the best "value" beyond the first 32 picks, any player who can outperform on-field expectations relative to their draft slot and value of their first NFL contract. Many of them appear on our list of the best NFL draft steals of all time.

That said, there are several late-round picks who didn't just have exceptional careers, but made the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Below are our top 10, ranked.

It's worth noting that Tom Brady is not (yet) on this list, however, as his date with Canton will come in 2028.

10. DE Richard Dent (Bears in 1983)

Dent had a solid career at Tennessee State University, but fell to the Chicago Bears in the eighth round of the 1983 NFL Draft. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound edge rusher beat offensive tackles with precision and thrived in defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan's 46 defense over the course of a 10-year career in Chicago.

The Bears defeated the Patriots in a 46-10 trouncing in Super Bowl XX, and Dent was named the game MVP with his 1.5 sacks, pair of forced fumbles, and a blocked pass.

It was for these efforts - 677 total tackles, 137.5 sacks, and 37 forced fumbles across a 15-year career - that Dent cemented his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011 after many unsuccessful nominations from 2005 to 2009.

9. OT Rayfield Wright (Cowboys in 1967)

Wright on this list is a fairly deep cut, but the Dallas Cowboys' 182nd overall pick in the NFL/AFL expansion draft made his selection well worth it. Wright was selected by Dallas in the seventh round after walking onto the Fort Valley State College football team, where he was also a standout basketball player.

Wright was used as a free safety, then punter, defensive end and tight end, though it was the tight end position that cemented his place on the Cowboys, where he also played as a defensive lineman and offensive tackle.

He thrived in the trenches of Dallas' offensive line after injuries required him to step in. Over 13 seasons, Wright played more than 200 games, started at right tackle in six NFC Championships, played in five Super Bowls, won two of them, and took home three First-Team All-Pros as well as three Second-team All-Pros.

In 2006, Wright found his permanent home in Canton, becoming a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

8. DT Joe Klecko (Jets in 1977)

The New York Jets may not know how to draft quarterbacks consistently, but they can sure draft at defensive tackle. Klecko is no exception, only being noticed by Temple University's football coach during semi-pro play. Klecko led the Owls in tackles his last three seasons, but fell to the Jets in the sixth round of the 1977 NFL Draft.

Klecko was part of the Jets' famous "New York Sack Exchange" along with Abdul Salaam, Mark Gastineau, and Marty Lyons, becoming one of the top defensive lines in the NFL. In 1981, the quartet combined for 66 sacks, but Klecko contributed 20.5 of his own, leading the Jets to the playoffs for the first time in 12 years.

Klecko won NFL Defensive Player of the Year that season, but the accolades didn't stop there; the Chester, Pennsylvania, native took home four Pro Bowl nods and two first-team All-Pros en route to a 2023 Pro Football Hall of Fame nod.

MORE: Where the Fastest 40-Yard-Dash Prospects Have Been Drafted

7. WR Harold Carmichael (Eagles in 1971)

The Philadelphia Eagles know how to scout low in the draft, and Carmichael is no exception. Carmichael, a walk-on and tri-sport athlete in basketball, javelin, and discus at Southern University, was nabbed in the seventh round by Philadelphia in 1971, being converted into a tight end.

After his 1972 season, the 6-foot-8 Carmichael was moved to wide receiver, where he led the league with 1,116 yards and tied for fourth with 9 receiving touchdowns out of the gate at his new position.

Carmichael would hold the record for most consecutive games with at least one catch (127) and post three 1,000-yard seasons, making four Pro Bowls and leading two second-team All-Pros. In 2020, Carmichael was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

6. DE Jared Allen (Chiefs in 2004)

It's worth remembering that the Idaho State product didn't fall to pick No. 126 in the 2004 NFL Draft due to concerns about his play, but rather his off-the-field character.

Allen made a fine career for himself, making five Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pros, and leading the league twice in sacks (2007, 2011). Currently, Allen holds the NFL record for most career safeties (4) and most safeties in a season, and Allen is to this day considered one of the better defensive ends in recent NFL history, with a career total of 136 sacks.

Allen was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2025.

5. TE Shannon Sharpe (Broncos in 1990)

Shannon Sharpe, the younger brother of 1988 first-round pick and Hall of Fame WR Sterling Sharpe, fell to the Denver Broncos in the seventh round and pick No. 192 of the 1990 NFL Draft. Not because of his play, but because scouts famously worried he was a "tweener" - too big to be a wide receiver, and too small to be a tight end.

Sharpe took those fears to the bank, pulling down 815 passes (one of which was a 96-yard touchdown in the 2000 AFC Championship game, the longest touchdown catch in NFL playoff history), winning three Super Bowls, making four first-team All-Pros, and getting inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011.

4. QB Johnny Unitas (Steelers in 1955)

Widely considered the best quarterback in the NFL during his time, Unitas had to overcome plenty of doubts before his Hall of Fame career.

The coach of Notre Dame, his dream collegiate team, thought the then-6-foot-1, 145-pound Unitas would get "murdered" if he went out to play. Then, the Pittsburgh Steelers' head coach, even after drafting Unitas in the ninth round of the 1955 NFL Draft, thought Unitas was not smart enough to quarterback an NFL team, and he was released. In hindsight, a surprise for one of the best QB-drafting teams of all time.

Unitas borrowed money for gas to make a tryout for the Baltimore Colts after his release by the Steelers, and finished first in the NFL in passing yards (2,550) and touchdowns (24) in his first season with the Colts. Unitas played an integral role in growing the game of football in the late 1950s and 1960s, including the "greatest game ever played" in 1958, and his MVP seasons in 1959, 1964, and 1967.

Unitas won three NFL championships, made 10 Pro Bowls, led the NFL in fourth-quarter comebacks in six separate years and passing yards in four seasons.

Even with his numerous injuries sustained during his career, perhaps the biggest adversity the 1979 Hall of Famer had to face was his plummeting draft stock back in 1955.

3. QB Bart Starr (Packers in 1956)

Starr was selected in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, not for lack of interest by Green Bay, who were tipped off by the basketball coach at Alabama, where Starr played in college. Still, Starr fell to the 200th overall pick in that year's draft, a number that would haunt any team that passed up on the Crimson Tide product.

Starr became a star in Vince Lombardi's dynasty, taking home five NFL championships and the first two Super Bowl MVPs in history. He had to wait his turn though, as Starr played backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, only securing the starting job midway into 1960.

Starr, the best draft pick in Packers history, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1977.

2. RB Terrell Davis (Broncos in 1995)

The legendary story of Davis begins with his label as "camp-bait" out of Georgia, falling to the Broncos with the 196th overall pick in the sixth round of the 1995 NFL Draft.

Davis, the best RB in Broncos history, found his niche initially in special teams, but transitioned to the team's full-time back, leading Denver to two Super Bowl rings. Davis became the first running back to rush for three touchdowns in a single Super Bowl, and the Long Beach State product proved just about everyone wrong en route to his Hall of Fame induction in 2017, his eleventh year of eligibility.

1. QB Joe Montana (49ers in 1979)

While the majority of players on this list were selected in the fifth round or later, it's impossible not to acknowledge the utter absurdity of Montana's draft day experience, as the Notre Dame product fell to the 82nd overall pick in 1979 due to concerns about his size and arm strength.

As the aforementioned Unitas showed in his career, size isn't necessarily a tell-all. And Montana, widely regarded as a top-two player in NFL history, won four Super Bowls, three Super Bowl MVPs, and made eight Pro Bowls.

Montana was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000 after one of the most legendary careers in pro football history.