Top 10 Undrafted NFL Players the Past 25 Years, and Top 10 Undrafted Players from Cal
No Cal player is expected to be taken in this year’s NFL draft, which runs Thursday through Saturday, but history shows that does not mean they can’t have successful pro football careers.
About a dozen players who were not taken in the draft are now in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and more will be joining them soon.
We compiled a list of the top 10 undrafted NFL players in the past 25 years, then we ranked the top 10 NFL players from Cal who were not taken in an NFL draft.
Top 10 Undrafted Players of the Past 25 Years
10. Chris Harris Jr., cornerback – Four Pro Bowls. Undrafted out of Kansas. The only active player on this list.
9. Wes Welker, wide receiver – Five Pro Bowls. Undrafted out of Texas Tech in 2004
8. Rod Smith, wide receiver: Three Pro Bowls. Undrafted out of Division II Missouri Southern State in 1994
7. Tony Romo, quarterback – Four Pro Bowls. Undrafted in 2003 out of Division I-AA (now FCS) Eastern Illinois.
6. John Randle, defensive tackle -- Seven Pro Bowls. Undrafted out of Division II Texas A&M-Kingsville in 1990.
5. Jason Peters, offensive tackle – Nine Pro Bowls. Undrafted in 2004 after being a defensive end and tight end at Arkansas.
4. Warren Moon, quarterback – Nine Pro Bowls. Played at Washington, but signed with the Canadian Football League before the 1978 NFL Draft.
3. James Harrison, outside linebacker – 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the year, five Pro Bowls, 84.5 career regular-season sacks, 11 postseason sacks. Undrafted in 2002 out of Kent State, where he arrived as a walk-on.
2. Antonio Gates, tight end – Eight Pro Bowls. Undrafted because he didn’t play football in college, but was a standout on the Kent State basketball team. Ranks third alltime in receptions and receiving yards by a tight end.
1. Kurt Warner, quarterback – Two-time league MVP. He did not make an NFL roster until 1999, five years after he went undrafted in 1994 out of Northern Iowa.
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Top 10 Undrafted players from Cal (Year he went undrafted in parentheses):
10. Jerry Deloach, defensive end (2000) -- 40 career starts in five NFL seasons, and started every game in 2002 and 2003.
9. Clarence Duren, defensive back (1973) -- 48 career regular-season NFL starts plus two postseason starts and had 10 career interceptions.
8. Patrick Mekari, offensive lineman (2019) – 25 NFL starts, including 12 in 2021, and expected to be an integral part of Ravens offensive line for 2022.
7. Brian De La Puente, center (2008) – 50 regular-season NFL starts plus four postseason starts. He was signed and released six times before playing his first NFL game.
6. Matt Bouza, wide receiver (1981) – 60 NFL starts, 234 career receptions, including 71 catches for 830 yards for the Colts in 1986.
5. Keith Kartz, offensive lineman (1987) – 88 regular-season NFL starts plus nine postseason starts, including two Super Bowls. Started every game in 1989, 1990, 1991. And he beat cancer while at Cal.
4. Herman Edwards, defensive back (1976) – 135 regular-season NFL starts, plus seven postseason starts, 33 career interceptions. He played two years at Cal and his senior year at San Diego State.
3. Lorenzo Alexander, linebacker (2007) – Two Pro Bowls (one as a special teamer), 191 NFL games, 58 starts in 13-year pro career.
2. C.J. Anderson, running back (2013) – One Pro Bowl, 39 starts, three NFL seasons of over 700 yards rushing, including 1,007 yards in 2017, in eight pro seasons. Played in eight postseason games, including two Super Bowls.
1. Gary Plummer, linebacker (1983) – 163 regular-season NFL starts, plus 10 postseason starts. He was his team’s regular starting linebacker in all 12 of his NFL seasons, and made 1,029 tackles. Played his first three pro seasons with the USFL’s Oakland Invaders after not being taken in the 1983 NFL draft and started 53 games for the Invaders, intercepting six passes.
Just missed: wide receiver/kick returner Jeremy Ross, cornerback Dwayne O’Steen, tight end Stephen Anderson.
NOTE: We did not include long-snappers David Binn, L.P. Ladouceur and Nick Sundberg or place-kickers Ryan Longwell, Ray Wersching, Giorgio Tavechio and Mick Luckhurst, all of whom had successful NFL careers after not being drafted, but long snappers and place-kickers often make it in the NFL after not being drafted.
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Top 5 undrafted active NFL players (rankings based on 2022 expectations)
5. Cole Beasley, wide receiver, Buffalo Bills – His 2021 season (82 catches) was better than Robby Anderson’s (53 catches), which is why Beasley is here and Anderson isn’t.
4. Chris Harris Jr., cornerback, free agent – Harris is a year or two past his prime, which is why he is not No. 1 here while being among top 10 of the past 25 years.
3. Austin Ekeler, running back, Los Angeles Chargers – He gets better every year and his 911 rushing yards and 70 receptions in 2021 suggest a monster 2022 season.
2. Adam Thielen, wide receiver, Minnesota Vikings – Two Pro Bowls, three seasons of 100-plus catches, 49 TD catches. His 95 catches, 726 yards in 2021 represented a down year by his standards, and he’ll be 32 next season, which is why he is not No. 1.
1. Shaquil Barrett, linebacker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Two Pro Bowls, 51.5 career sacks. Over the past three seasons he had 37.5 sacks, 75 quarterback hits, 11 forced fumbles and two interceptions. He was just a so-so player his first four NFL seasons. Now he is almost unstoppable.
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Cover photo of C.J. Anderson is by Tim Fuller, USA TODAY Sports
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Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53
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