For Friday Funday today, we’re sticking with the NFL Draft theme. We cannot help ourselves, you know? However, we have to prove the point that the draft itself is so much hype, and when it comes down to it, the “experts” really don’t know, do they? Wise football fans ignore the draft and focus on summer training camp, preseason exhibitions, and regular-season results to evaluate and judge a player’s true worthiness.

And so do the best general managers, really. Here’s a list of modern-day players (1950 forward) inducted into the Hall of Fame since 2000 only, who were undrafted, believe it or not:

  • Antonio Gates, TE: He wasn’t drafted out of Kent State, primarily because he was a basketball player who didn’t even play college football. See our point here? Good GMs find these guys one way or another. Just remember, the allegedly great Nick Saban wanted him to change positions, too.
  • Sam Mills, LB: He found his way to the NFL via the USFL, and then we all wondered why. He was a five-time Pro Bowler despite not making it to the league until his age-27 season. Imagine what could have been if his size (short) and his college (Montclair State) hadn’t held him back wrongly.
  • Drew Pearson, WR: Considering he went to a somewhat-known college (Tulsa), this had to be a racism issue. He was in the playoffs ten times in his 11-year career, and he won a ring in Super Bowl XII. He made three Pro Bowls and led the NFL in receiving yards once, too (1977), when that was hard.
  • Cliff Harris, FS: Okay, his small school may take the cake here for least known (Ouachita Baptist). He retired abruptly at age 31, despite having a six-season Pro Bowl streak current. He walked away at the top of his game with two Super Bowl titles—impressive and wise.
  • Donnie Shell, SS: He had two factors working against him in his era … both racism and the small-school issue. But with five straight Pro Bowls (1978-1982) and four Super Bowls rings, he got the last laugh, didn’t he? Indeed.
  • Kurt Warner, QB: We all know this story, so we don’t need to recount much of it here, do we? Nope.
  • Mick Tingelhoff, C: He was the anchor of an offensive line who started in four Super Bowls, while making six Pro Bowls in a row, too (1964-1969). Seeing as how he played college ball at Nebraska, this is somewhat of a surprise that no one drafted him, either in the AFL or the NFL.
  • Jack Butler, FS: He’s probably the only person on this list that most readers have never heard of, ourselves included. But he made four consecutive Pro Bowls in the 1950s playing for a bad team (Pittsburgh) and topped his peers in interceptions once, too (1957).
  • John Randle, DL: The victim of the small-school curse, he ended up making seven Pro Bowls and averaging almost 11 sacks a season. He was one of the most-feared pass rushers of the 1990s, for sure.
  • Emmitt Thomas, CB: A probable victim of racism for his era, he ended up playing in two Super Bowls with the Kansas City Chiefs. He also made five Pro Bowls in the days when that honor had legitimacy. He posted 19 AV in his best season (1974), when he was in his age-31 season.
  • Warren Moon, QB: There may have been racism involved here, too, as Moon was a Rose Bowl-winning team leader. Either way, he proved himself and demonstrated he never should have been forced to go to the Canadian Football League.

Yes, there are many more first rounders in the Hall of Fame, of course, but the point is clear: you can find hidden gems anywhere, even outside the draft. In the range noted above, we found players in the Hall who were drafted as low as the 18th round in their respective drafts. Obviously, there are only seven rounds these days, but considering all the diamonds in the rough out there, perhaps the NFL should add picks, no?

You decide.