{"id":1545074,"date":"2023-01-07T11:59:19","date_gmt":"2023-01-07T16:59:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports7.us\/?p=1545074"},"modified":"2023-01-16T12:35:26","modified_gmt":"2023-01-16T17:35:26","slug":"is-kurt-warner-the-best-undrafted-nfl-player-of-all-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports7.us\/news\/is-kurt-warner-the-best-undrafted-nfl-player-of-all-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Kurt Warner the Best Undrafted NFL Player of All Time?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Kurt Warner<\/a> might be the NFL's biggest feel-good story of all time. He's probably the biggest rags-to-riches story as well.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The former St. Louis Rams,<\/a> Arizona Cardinals, and New York Giants quarterback became an instant hit during his first year as a starter in the NFL. He led the league in touchdown passes, earned the MVP, and guided his team to a berth in the Super Bowl years after getting cut by the Green Bay Packers. Warner's rise to the top is astonishing, but is he the best undrafted NFL player of all time?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kurt Warner has some serious competition for being the best undrafted NFL player of all time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Kurt Warner of the St. Louis Rams throws a pass during an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles on September 9, 2001, at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. | Mitchell Layton\/Getty Images.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After playing his college football at Northern Iowa, Warner went undrafted. The Packers signed him as an undrafted free agent, but with Brett Favre,<\/a> Mark Brunell, and Heisman winner Ty Detmer on the roster, Green Bay released Warner before the regular season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He played with the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena League and the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe before getting a chance with the Rams in 1988. Warner, however, is far from the only undrafted player who went on to have NFL success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Moon<\/a> is another NFL star who wasn't drafted. At best, he would have been a late pick after playing collegiately at Washington, so he signed with the Canadian Football League, where he won five Grey Cups in six seasons. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moon put up some big numbers early when he signed with the Houston Oilers of the NFL, but he went 12-33 as a starter in his first three seasons. He maintained the big numbers, leading the league in passing yardage in 1990 and 1991, and put together eight straight winning seasons from 1987-1994.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Antonio Gates, one of five NFL tight ends with 10,000-plus receiving yards in a career, is another undrafted star, as are former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and kicker Adam Vinatieri.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Going back, Dick “Night Train” Lane, Willie Wood, Willie Brown, Lou Groza, and Emmitt Thomas all went undrafted. There's also John Randle, James Harrison, Priest Holmes, Jason Peters, and Nate Newton, among others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warner is the best player to go undrafted in the NFL<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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25 Years Ago Today: The NFL Draft ends without Northern Iowa quarterback Kurt Warner getting drafted.

Packers sign him as a free agent, then cut him. Goes to NFL Europe, works night shift at a Hy-Vee, gets back into league with Rams, wins Super Bowl, becomes a Hall of Famer. pic.twitter.com\/giW3gVYxfq<\/a><\/p>— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) April 25, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote>