FSU football has long produced some of the most exciting NFL players in the history of the sport — with pro football’s lore being impossible to share without mentioning the likes of “Prime Time” Deion Sanders, Derrick Brooks, Warrick Dunn, Anquan Boldin, and Super Bowl XXXV quarterback Brad Johnson.
Even the NBA benefitted from the talent factory that FSU football has been — with 1993 Heisman trophy winner Charlie Ward going on to have an 11-year career in the highest league professional basketball has to offer.
Still, it’s hard not to also point out that there have been several NFL misfires drafted out of Tallahassee in Florida State’s storied history. Several star Seminoles didn’t produce at the next level, collapsing under the weight of massive expectations.
These are the 10 biggest FSU football NFL Draft busts of all time
No. 10: Kelvin Benjamin
2014 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 28
Carolina Panthers, 2014-2017
Buffalo Bills, 2017-2018
Kansas City Chiefs, 2018
New York Giants, 2021 (Did not make roster)
Kelvin Benjamin had one of the most significant catches in the history of the Seminoles’ football program with a game-winning touchdown catch off a pass from 2013 Heisman winner Jameis Winston that sealed the deal against Auburn during the 2014 BCS National Championship.
Unfortunately, he never did anything as significant at the NFL level.
Following his No. 28 selection in the NFL 2014 draft by the Panthers, Benjamin had a stellar rookie season, but an ACL tear wiped out his entire 2015 season — one that ended in a Super Bowl appearance for Carolina.
Benjamin returned in 2016 and led the Panthers in touchdown catches, but following a trade to the Buffalo Bills in 2017, the wideout would be injury-prone and largely ineffective for the next two years until he retired in 2019. Benjamin made a comeback attempt with the New York Giants during the 2021 training camp that went so poorly, he’d later refer to it as a hoax. The receiver has stayed retired since.
No. 9: EJ Manuel
2013 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 16
Buffalo Bills, 2013-2016
Oakland Raiders, 2017
Kansas City Chiefs, 2019 (Did not make roster)
It’s debatable that EJ Manuel ever truly got a fair shake following his No. 16 selection in the 2013 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills. His rookie year saw injuries derail the momentum he had building through the first five weeks of the season, and his second season saw him benched after a 2-2 start.
Rex Ryan’s preference for Tyrod Taylor was Manuel’s undoing, and he never replicated his rookie-year success with the then Oakland Raiders or Kansas City Chiefs as a backup. Manuel is a major injury-related case of “what could’ve been.”
No. 8: Bjoern Werner
2013 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 24
Indianapolis Colts, 2013-2015
Jacksonville Jaguars, 2016 (Did not make roster)
Bjoern Werner was the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2012, so expectations were high following his selection at No. 24 by the Indianapolis Colts in 2013. Unfortunately, Werner ended up having a quiet presence for three seasons in the Circle City before he was released.
Worse yet, Werner couldn’t make the Jacksonville Jaguars roster ahead of the 2016 season, and ended up retired following that season. The fall of Werner from top-rated defender to training camp cut was completely unforeseen by Tomahawk Nation.
No. 7: Sammie Smith
1989 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 9
Miami Dolphins, 1989-1991
Denver Broncos, 1992
Sammie Smith was a dual-sport star at Florida State, both pulverizing defenders for Seminoles football and blazing the track as a track-star. Unfortunately, things unequivocally peaked for Smith in college — with his NFL career being underwhelming and his post-playing career ending up just plain sad.
Smith rushed for less rushing yards for the Miami Dolphins and Denver Broncos in the NFL (1,881) than he had at Florida State, and after being out of the league following four seasons in the pros, he ended up in serious legal trouble.
No. 6: Andre Wadsworth
1998 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 3
Arizona Cardinals, 1998-2000
New York Jets, 2007 (Did not make roster)
Andre Wadsworth had the potential to be the one of the all-time great NFL defensive lineman following an ACC Player of the Year campaign in 1997 — the six-foot-four, 270-pounder was capable of benching 500 pounds and squatting nearly 700 pounds.
The Steelers’ college personnel director at the time, Tom Modrak, was in awe of the Seminoles’ walk-on-turned-superstar. “He’s like a missile when he comes off the ball,” Modrak said (h/t Sports Illustrated). “He can keep his pads low and still run full speed. He’s flexible, and he’s around 280 pounds.”
Wadsworth’s rookie season on the Cardinals — in which he amassed five sacks and 57 tackles — gave hope that he’d deliver on all of the promise. Instead, injuries undid his ensuing two seasons and Wadsworth was soon out of the league.
No. 5: Roberto Aguayo
2016 NFL Draft: Round 2, Pick 59
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2016
Chicago Bears, 2017 (Did not make roster)
Carolina Panthers, 2017 (Did not make roster)
Los Angeles Chargers, 2018 (Did not make roster)
New England Patriots, 2020–2021 (Did not make roster)
That a kicker is on this list is a testament to Roberto Aguayo’s career at Florida State. Aguayo led the ACC in points with 157 and field goals converted with 21 during the Seminoles’ BCS Championship season in 2013. For his FSU career, Aguayo went 69/78 on field goal attempts and an astonishing 198/198 on extra-point attempts.
In the NFL, though, Aguayo was just another replacement-level kicker — bouncing from team to team and rarely lasting more than a year at each spot.
No. 4: Chris Weinke
2001 NFL Draft: Round 4, Pick 106
Carolina Panthers, 2001–2006
San Francisco 49ers, 2007
College football fans wouldn’t blink twice at Chris Weinke’s story now — that of a late-20s starter at Florida State who won the Heisman but was discriminated against as an All-American by voters due to his age. At the time, though, Weinke was somewhat of a unicorn.
Unfortunately, his NFL career was anything but mystical following a successful four years in Tallahassee. Weinke holds the Panthers’ franchise record for interceptions during a rookie season and went 1-15 during his rookie season, and his time in Carolina was mostly spent backing up Jake Delhomme.
He’s moved on to have a successful coaching career, but Weinke will mostly be defined by pursuing the sport of football too late after spending his early 20s pursuing a professional baseball career.
No. 3: Rashad Greene
2015 NFL Draft: Round 5, Pick 139
Jacksonville Jaguars, 2015–2018
Rashad Greene was spectacular at Florida State, ending up with the record for receptions and receiving yards and finishing No. 2 all-time in receiving touchdowns over his four years in Tallahassee.
That he was out of the NFL just three years after being drafted and took to the CFL in an effort to return — an effort that didn’t work out considering his 2021 retirement — shows how far the mighty Seminole receiving great fell in his short-lived pro football career on the Jacksonville Jaguars and Saskatchewan Roughriders.
No. 2: Jamal Reynolds
2001 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 10
Green Bay Packers, 2001–2003
Cleveland Browns, 2004 (Did not make roster)
Jamal Reynolds had most thinking he was due for NFL stardom following a 2000 season at Florida State that saw him earn Unanimous All-American and First-team All-ACC as well as be named the Lombardi Award winner.
Instead, Reynolds missed the first 10 games of his rookie season and finished his three-year NFL career with 18 tackles and three sacks. Reynolds couldn’t make the Browns in 2004 coming off a 5-11 season and after being cut by Cleveland, the defensive end disappeared from the sport for good.
No. 1: Christian Ponder
2011 NFL Draft: Round 1, Pick 12
Minnesota Vikings, 2011–2014
Oakland Raiders, 2015 (Did not make roster)
Denver Broncos, 2015
San Francisco 49ers, 2016
What makes Christian Ponder perhaps the biggest NFL draft bust of all time from Florida State were the brief glimmers of hope he provided to Minnesota Vikings fans that made it seem as though the quarterback could be a franchise pillar in the Twin Cities.
Ponder put it all together under Jimbo Fisher during his senior year in 2010, but his NFL rookie season was a disaster. The Dallas native threw as many interceptions (13) as he threw touchdowns and his Vikings went 2-8 with him under center. Ponder’s completion percentage improved eight points to 62% in 2012, but a 2-7-1 run as starter his next two seasons sealed the QB’s fate at the highest level of pro football.
After what Ponder did in Minnesota, he never received an NFL start for either the Denver Broncos or San Francisco 49ers. He’s living well now, but the college great will live in infamy as a notable Seminoles draft bust.