NFL Players Who Were Drafted By MLB Teams

By Jordan Long

The Major League Baseball draft starts tonight with round 1.  It will end tomorrow with rounds 2 through 5.  There have been NFL players who were selected but decided to pass on baseball. 

                Kyler Murray is the most recent draftee,   the Arizona Cardinals’ quarterback.  Murray was picked by the Oakland Athletics in the 1st-round.  In two seasons with the Oklahoma Sooners, he batted .261 with 53 RBI’s and 10 home runs.  When Murray reached base he was a threat to steal a bag with 22 stolen bases while being caught 5 times.

                It wasn’t just his bat that caught the eye of the Athletics, but the way he played the field.  Murray rarely made an error when fielding a ball with 3 errors in his 2 seasons.  His fielding percentage was an outstanding .976.

                Murray turned down the Athletics.  The Arizona Cardinals made him the 1st overall pick in last years’ NFL draft.  In his rookie season, Murray passed for 3,722 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.  Murray made the right decision for his future.  He is only going to improve at the NFL level.

                Tom Brady is considered the best quarterback to ever play the game.  He is going to go to the Pro Football Hall of Fame once his career is over.  It could have been a different story.   The then Montreal Expos took him in the 18th-round in 1995.  Brady just graduated high school and decided to focus on football.  He attended the University of Michigan.

                Football worked out for Brady.  The Patriots chose Brady in the 6th-round of the 2000 NFL Draft.  Heading into this year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady has won 6 Super Bowls. He totaled 74,571 passing yards and 541 touchdowns. 

                Russell Wilson could have played baseball in the Mile High City.  The Colorado Rockies went with him in the 4th round in 2010.  Wilson spent two years with the Rockies farm system in single-A baseball.  In two seasons, Wilson’s batting average was .229 with 26 RBI’s and 5 home runs.

                When it came to fielding, Wilson was placed at 2nd base.  He played in 86 games and recorded 60 double plays.  He didn’t make many errors with 7.  At the end of the 2011 season, Wilson decided he was going to focus on football and attend the University of Wisconsin.  The rest is history.  He has been the starting quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks since 2012, leading them to 2 Super Bowl appearances and 1 Super Bowl victory.

                 The Colorado Rockies made one of the strangest selections in MLB Draft history by taking Michael Vick in the 30th-round of the MLB draft in 2000.  He was playing football for Virginia Tech as their quarterback.  Vick hadn’t even touched a baseball since the 8th grade.  According to Denverpost.com, Bill Schmidt Rockies Vice President of Scouting said, “Seeing him on the tube, he was one of the best athletes in the country. For us, it’s about opening the gate for athletes in our system, and we have no problems taking opportunities and chances like that to see if football players want to entertain our business.”

                Of course, Vick didn’t pick baseball.  Instead, he played 13 years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, and Pittsburgh Steelers.  His career record as a starter is 61-51-1.  In those games, he threw for 22,464 yards, 133 touchdowns, and 88 interceptions. The best part of his game was his ability to extend plays with his legs.  He could keep plays alive and even ran for 1^st downs or longer.  Vick totaled 6,109 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns.      

                Another name who tried his hand at baseball was Shaq Thompson who is a linebacker for the Carolina Panthers. The Boston Red Sox chose Thompson in the 18^th-round of the 2012 MLB Draft.  He reported to Rookie ball with the Gulf Coast League Red Sox.  His career lasted 13 games.  In 47 plate appearances, he didn’t even have a hit.

                Thompson dropped baseball for football.  The NFL worked out a lot better for him.  He has been with the Panthers since 2015.  He tackles opponents in the open field with 237 tackles and 9.5 sacks.  Runners have to be careful with the football otherwise Thompson will knock it out of their hands for fumbles, causing 3.  In coverage, he can knock the ball down with 12 passes defended and 1 interception.

                These are just a few of the NFL players who were picked or tried their hand at baseball.