Noah, San Francisco, CA
Subj: Hindsight is 20/20
How many quarterbacks were drafted before Tom Brady?
Believe it or not, NFL personnel selected five other quarterbacks before the New England Patriots snatched Tom Brady with the 199th pick of the 2000 draft. Although each of those prospects was highly regarded at the time, the list now reads like a roll call for the witness protection program. The Jets selected Chad Pennington with the 18th pick, the 49ers selected Giovanni Carmazzi with the 65th pick, the Ravens selected Chris Redman with the 75th pick, the Steelers selected Tee Martin with the 163rd pick, the Saints selected Marc Bulger with the 168th pick and the Browns selected Spergon Wynn with the 183rd pick. If you remove Bulger and Pennington from the equation, the remaining signal callers have combined for 6 starts, 18 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Brady, meanwhile, has started 159 games, thrown 300 touchdowns, won three Super Bowls and been named to the Pro Bowl seven times. As if that weren’t impressive enough, he’s also married to a supermodel and he impregnated a Hollywood starlet. Take that Giovanni Carmazzi!