Tag: 1989 nfl draft

Throwback Thursday: Chiefs select Alabama EDGE Derrick Thomas in 1989 NFL draft

#TBT to when the #Chiefs selected Alabama EDGE Derrick Thomas with pick No. 4 in the 1989 NFL draft.

On April 23rd, 1989, Carl Peterson would make his first draft pick as general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs.

It just so happens that the player Peterson selected would go on to be a Pro Football Hall of Famer and one of the all-time greats in franchise history. The Chiefs selected Alabama edge rusher Derrick Thomas with the No. 4 pick in the 1989 NFL draft. It was the second year in a row that the Chiefs had found themselves picking in the top 10, and this time they grabbed a big-time difference maker.

Check out this click from the 1989 NFL draft on Thomas:

Thomas would go on to set the Chiefs’ rookie record for sacks with 10 in 1989, paving the way for his selection as the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year. He also earned an invitation to the Pro Bowl, which would spark a Pro Bowl run that lasted for nine consecutive seasons. He earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 1990 and 1991.

Thomas led the entire league in sacks in 1990 with 20 sacks on the year, fueled by a game during which he set the NFL’s single-game record for sacks. To this day, Thomas remains Kansas City’s franchise leader in sacks with 126.5 career sacks. He also produced a whopping 41 forced fumbles and three safeties during his career.

A car crash in 2000 would ultimately leave Thomas paralyzed from the neck down. Not a month after his accident, Thomas died due to a pulmonary embolism. He’d be posthumously inducted into both the Chiefs Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

As a way to recognize his achievements both on and off the football field, the Chiefs would go on to retire Thomas’ No. 58 jersey and would name the annual team MVP award after him.

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ESPN 2 to Re-Air Perhaps Greatest NFL Draft of All-Time

It was the 1989 NFL Draft and it wasn’t anything like the show it has now become.  But it was historic in terms of greatness and although Notre Dame’s representative in it’s first round never made the Hall of Fame, he still had a pretty solid career.  In fact, he just won a Super Bowl ring this past February.

Five picks, four eventual Hall of Famers.

And one all-time bust.

It was the 1989 NFL Draft and it wasn’t anything like the show it has now become.  But it was historic in terms of greatness and although Notre Dame’s representative in it’s first round never made the Hall of Fame, he still had a pretty solid career.  In fact, he just won a Super Bowl ring this past February.

Notre Dame won a national championship after beating West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl on January 2, 1989.  A few short months later one of the most-historic NFL Drafts played out and saw Notre Dame star offensive tackle Andy Heck taken in the first round.

Heck was selected 15th overall by the Seattle Seahawks and saw four Hall of Fame players go ahead of them, each coming in the first five picks.  Why does this matter?  If you’re interested in traveling back in time and living a different life in terms of sports viewing, the 1989 NFL Draft will air Monday night at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.  ESPN2 will only show the first round of the draft, not that I’m guessing you’re craving a ton more coverage of players getting selected 31 years ago.

After the draft, Heck was excited about his rise to the first round.

‘This is a dream come true for me,’ Heck said. ‘I guess my stock has really risen. It’s just unbelievable to be going to a solid team like the Seahawks.’

Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz also was surprised ‘Andy’s stock has risen so high since the season ended. But you all got yourself an excellent pick.

‘He’s a class act in every respect,’ said Holtz. ‘He’s intelligent and has exceptional morale values, and he’s a very positive person. He’s also very durable and has tremendous work habits.’

Heck went from playing tight end in his first three years at Notre Dame to play offensive tackle on the title team in 1988.

Troy Aikman would go first overall to the Cowboys, Barry Sanders wound up in Detroit after being selected third, the Chiefs hit it out of the park with Derrick Thomas at four and Deion Sanders “fell” to the Falcons at five.

The guy who went second?  Tony Mandrich, the Michigan State turned Green Bay Packers bust.

What’s worth noting in this draft though is that another Hall of Fame talent was taken 20th overall as the Broncos took Steve Atwater out of Arkansas.

Notre Dame would end up having five players selected in the 1989 draft with Frank Stams, Mark Green, Wes Pritchett and George Streeter all eventually getting their names called.

You can watch the 1989 draft in full tonight on ESPN as numerous Hall of Famers get their names called to start their NFL careers.  As for Heck, things didn’t end too poorly as he played 12 seasons in the league between the Seahawks, Bears and Redskins.  He also just won a Super Bowl as the offensive line coach of the Chiefs.

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