By position: QB | RB | WR | O-line | DE | DT | LB | CB | S | Study wrap

Aside from the Franchise Quarterback, arguably the most glamorous position on draft day is that of the Franchise Left Tackle. There have been many off the board over the years, with guys like Richmond Webb and Willie Roaf becoming stars ... and Tony Mandarich becoming a notorious bust.

The value of a solid starter at any of the offensive line positions is unquestioned, and the trend of spending high draft choices on them looks to be continuing, with the Jets building their line around D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold last season. Tackles are, of course, more likely to be nabbed in the first round, with the occasional guard or center mixed in.

Success criteria, first-round O-Linemen

The logic here is that if a first-round lineman is capable, he will play, probably visit a Pro Bowl and stay in the league for more than five years.

Accordingly, we've gone with what has become our baseline metric of 80 games played and at least one Pro Bowl appearance. We'll make exceptions for guys who had long careers and no Pro Bowls (see Andy Heck) or guys who visited Pro Bowls but had their careers cut short by injuries.

1989
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Packers	2	Tony Mandarich, Michigan State	86	0	Yes
Seahawks	15	Andy Heck, Notre Dame	185	0	No
Cardinals	17	Joe Wolf, Boston College	96	0	No
Giants	18	Brian Williams, Minnesota	129	0	No
Oilers	23	David Williams, Florida	128	0	No
Steelers	24	Tom Ricketts, Pittsburgh	53	0	Yes

After the Sports Illustrated cover and a sensational college career that made him more of a rock star than any lineman before, Mandarich was initially the bust to end all busts. In his defense, however, he enjoyed moderate success as an Indianapolis Colt later in his career. Heck was a very good offensive lineman for many years, and both Williamses had long careers.

1990
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Dolphins	9	Richmond Webb, Texas A&M	184	7	No
Rams	23	Bern Brostek, Washington	106	0	No

How's this for alliteration: Bern. Brostek. Bust? Although he didn't set the world on fire, Brostek played eight seasons. Webb was many times an All-Pro and a fixture on the Miami offensive line through the 1990s.

1991
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Bucs	7	Charles McRae, Tennessee	83	0	Yes
Eagles	8	Antone Davis, Tennessee	97	0	Yes
Patriots	11	Pat Harlow, USC	105	0	No
Bears	22	Stan Thomas, Texas	55	0	Yes

As a Bears fan growing up in the '90s, I can vouch for the fact that there was very little to get excited about on draft day during these years -- witness Thomas. McRae and Davis were supposed to be bookends from Tennessee, but both were busts considering their lack of Pro Bowls and draft positions. Was Harlow a bust at the 11th spot? Probably, but he played in 105 career games.

1992
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Falcons	8	Bob Whitfield, Stanford	204	0	No
Seahawks	10	Ray Roberts, Virginia	127	0	No
Steelers	11	Leon Searcy, Miami	126	1	No
Patriots	13	Eugene Chung, Virginia Tech	56	0	Yes
Bills	27	John Fina, Arizona	155	0	No

What a difference a year makes. As bad as 1991's draft was for O-lineman, 1992 was the opposite, with Whitfield, Roberts, Searcy and Fina all playing very well over long careers -- though I was surprised at the lack of Pro Bowls among this group. Chung was a journeyman (read: bust) at guard.

1993
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Saints	8	Willie Roaf, Louisiana Tech	189	11	No
Falcons	9	Lincoln Kennedy, Washington	169	2	No
Oilers	13	Brad Hopkins, Illinois	194	2	No
Browns	14	Steve Everitt, Michigan	99	0	No
Cardinals	18	Ernest Dye, South Carolina	50	0	Yes
Eagles	19	Lester Holmes, Jackson State	103	0	No

Another banner year. Roaf is a lock for the Hall of Fame, and Kennedy, Hopkins and, to a lesser extent Everitt all enjoyed long, productive careers. Will Shields, another future Hall of Famer, was picked in the third round. Holmes was probably a borderline bust but far exceeded our games played metric.

1994
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Eagles	14	Bernard Williams, Georgia	16	0	Yes
Rams	15	Wayne Gandy, Auburn	207	0	No
Packers	16	Aaron Taylor, Notre Dame	75	0	Yes
Vikings	19	Todd Steussie, Cal	190	2	No

Nearly every center drafted (all after Round 1) in 1994 -- including Jim Pyne, Kevin Mawae, Tim Ruddy, Rich Braham and Tom Nalen -- had a very productive NFL career. The tackles were hit or miss, though, with Gandy and Steussie hitting but Taylor missing (because of injuries).

1995
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Jaguars	2	Tony Boselli, USC	91	5	No
Bills	14	Ruben Brown, Pittsburgh	173	8	No
Dolphins	25	Billy Milner, Houston	29	0	Yes
Panthers	29	Blake Brockermeyer, Texas	136	0	No
Chiefs	31	Trezelle Jenkins, Michigan	9	0	Yes

Boselli was a franchise left tackle until injuries cut his career short. Brown has been a stalwart and Brockermeyer a solid starter. Milner and Jenkins, however, busted hard, playing only 38 games between them.

1996
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Ravens	4	Jonathan Ogden, UCLA	166	10	No
Bengals	10	Willie Anderson, Auburn	174	4	No
Seahawks	21	Pete Kendall, Boston College	158	0	No
Lions	23	Jeff Hartings, Penn State	149	2	No
Packers	27	John Michels, USC	24	0	Yes
Steelers	29	Jamain Stephens, North Carolina A&T	40	0	Yes
Lions	30	Andre Johnson, Penn State	4	0	Yes

Ogden is another franchise tackle, and Hartings has become the prototype NFL center. Anderson has been to multiple Pro Bowls, and Kendall has been solid, as well. Michels was a huge disappointment in Green Bay, and Johnson appeared in a whopping four games for Detroit, which had trouble drafting even before the Matt Millen era.

1997
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Rams	1	Orlando Pace, Ohio State	143	7	No
Seahawks	6	Walter Jones, Florida State	153	6	No
Saints	10	Chris Naeole, Colorado	146	0	No
Colts	19	Tarik Glenn, Cal	154	3	No
Packers	30	Ross Verba, Iowa	106	0	No

Three tackles, three perennial Pro Bowl-caliber players in Pace, Jones and Glenn. Naeole has been decent, though probably over-drafted at the 10 spot, and Verba has been a journeyman but a long-playing one.

1998
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Saints	7	Kyle Turley, San Diego State	102	0	No
Eagles	11	Tra Thomas, Florida State	135	2	No
Raiders	23	Mo Collins, Florida	71	0	Yes
Steelers	26	Alan Faneca, LSU	142	6	No
Chiefs	27	Victor Riley, Auburn	111	0	No

After a strong start in New Orleans, Turley has resurrected his career in Kansas City after battling injuries. Thomas has been solid, and Faneca is the best player to come from this draft. Olin Kreutz and Matt Birk, two Pro Bowl centers, were picked in the later rounds.

1999
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Chiefs	14	John Tait, BYU	117	0	No
Patriots	17	Damien Woody, Boston College	115	0	No
Raiders	18	Matt Stinchcomb, Georgia	66	0	Yes
Giants	19	Luke Petitgout, Notre Dame	115	0	No
Cardinals	21	L.J. Shelton, Eastern Michigan	98	0	No
Lions	27	Aaron Gibson, Wisconsin	38	0	Yes

The Lions drafted Gibson largely on his ability to do the splits at 350 pounds, and Woody, after a few good years in New England, came to Detroit in free agency and, like so many Lions, became completely ordinary. Shelton has been disappointing, as well.

2000
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Redskins	3	Chris Samuels, Alabama	108	3	No
Lions	20	Stockar McDougle	81	0	Yes

The Lions are well on their way to setting a record for futility in drafting offensive linemen, and the McDougle pick is further proof of their ineptitude. It would have been nice to see what Joey Harrington could have done behind a decent offensive line. Samuels looked as if he was going to be a star early on but has settled into being just very good.

2001
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Cardinals	2	Leonard Davis, Texas	91	0	No
Bucs	14	Kenyatta Walker, Florida	75	0	Yes
Seahawks	17	Steve Hutchinson, Michigan	84	4	No
Lions	18	Jeff Backus, Michigan	96	0	No

You could make the argument that all three tackles in this draft -- Davis, Walker, and Backus -- are busts. Although he hasn't played like a No. 2 overall, Davis just signed a nice free-agent deal, but Walker has been a bust and was recently cut. Backus, though still employed, has struggled mightily.

2002
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Bills	4	Mike Williams, Texas	51	0	Yes
Vikings	7	Bryant McKinnie, Miami	72	0	No
Bengals	10	Levi Jones, Arizona State	69	0	No
Bears	29	Marc Colombo, Boston College	39	0	Yes
Steelers	30	Kendall Simmons, Auburn	60	0	No

A tale of two teams -- the Steelers drafted Simmons and Faneca, and later signed Hartings during the study cycle; the Bears have grabbed Colombo, Troy Auzenne and Stan Thomas. Ugh. McKinnie and Jones look like the real deal, but what is it about players named Mike Williams? This version goes down as one of the biggest busts in history.

2003
Team	Pick	Player, School	Games	Pro Bowls	Bust?
Panthers	8	Jordan Gross, Utah	64	0	No
Broncos	20	George Foster, Georgia	49	0	Yes
Browns	21	Jeff Faine, Notre Dame	52	0	No
49ers	26	Kwame Harris, Stanford	60	0	No

Gross and Faine are solid, but disappointing Foster is on his way to, you guessed it, Detroit.

Crunching the Numbers: First-Round Offensive Linemen, 1989-2003
Number of offensive linemen drafted: 70

Notable busts: Tony Mandarich, Mike Williams, any Detroit Lion or Chicago Bear

Number of busts: 22

Bust percentage: 31 percent

Number of O-linemen with at least one Pro Bowl appearance: 18

Pro Bowl percentage: 26 percent

Teams with multiple busts: Lions, Bears, Bucs, Raiders, Eagles

For the sake of comparison
Percentage of first-round DE busts: 31 percent
Percentage of first-round QB busts: 53 percent

Conclusions
Perhaps more than any other study, this one showed that bad teams continually have poor drafts up front, and good teams -- such as Baltimore, Seattle and Pittsburgh -- have put Pro Bowl-caliber players in front of their quarterbacks.

The encouraging news is that most of the tackles deemed worthy of a top-10 selection went on to visit the Pro Bowl, which bodes well for Joe Thomas this year. And though the rest of the first round busted at the same percentage as the defensive ends (31 percent), there were a number of players like Andy Heck, Bob Whitfield, and John Fina who enjoyed long, productive careers but never visited a Pro Bowl.

Ted Kluck is not a scientist, rather he is the author of three books, including "Facing Tyson: Fifteen Fighters, Fifteen Stories" (Lyons Press 2006) and a full-fledged draft geek. He recently spent a season playing professional football as a member of the Battle Creek Crunch (GLIFL) where he was, without a doubt, a bust.