A number of players embarked on their road to greatness well before the NFL Draft, with strong showings in the Senior Bowl, combine and in pro day workouts. Here are some of the top players from each round starting down their own road.
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Duane Brown, T Houston Texans Born: Richmond, Va. High School: Hermitage (Richmond, Va.) College: Virginia Tech | First round (26) | Duane Brown enrolled at Virginia Tech as a tight end, but left as a first-round draft pick at offensive tackle for the Texans. Brown lettered twice as a tight end and defensive end at Hermitage High School in Virginia. Brown's career started on the bench at Virginia Tech, redshirting as a tight end in 2003 and catching only three passes as a reserve during his freshman season. Brown was moved to right tackle during his sophomore season and he ended up starting 13 games. He again excelled on the right side as a junior before switching to the left side during his senior season in 2007. Brown was a second team All-ACC selection. Not a bad leap, going from second-team all conference to the first round of the NFL Draft. Quotable: "From the East-West Shrine game, to the combine, to my pro day, I think I really solidified myself as a first-rounder. A lot of teams were impressed with me and my performance. I'm just very fortunate and very blessed," -- Duane Brown. |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Donnie Avery, WR St. Louis Born: Houston High School: Hastings (Alief, Texas) College: Houston | Second round (33) | Avery didn't expect to be the first receiver drafted. But Avery made an impression during his pro day running an amazing 4.34 40-yard dash, and looks to fit in well with St. Louis' offense. Avery broke numerous school and Conference USA records at Houston, setting several marks during an incredible performance against Rice in which he amassed 427 all-purpose yards, including 346 receiving. That came on the heels of a 350 receiving yard performance against East Carolina two weeks earlier. He was the fifth player in school history to gain over 4,000 all-purpose yards. Avery was recruited by numerous colleges coming out of Hastings High School (Alief, Texas) where he was a unanimous first-team All-District section as both a receiver and return specialist during his senior season. Quotable: "I know they have great receivers there," Avery said. "I just want to fit in, in any way possible even if I have to be a third or a fourth guy. If I have to step in and be a second guy, I am up for it" -- Donnie Avery |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Kevin O'Connell, QB New England Patriots Born: Knoxville, Tenn. High School: La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad, Calif.) College: San Diego St. | Third round (94) | No matter where O'Connell's career takes him, he can rest in the knowledge that he was a higher draft choice than Tom Brady. O'Connell was nabbed in the third round, more than 100 picks earlier than Brady went. O'Connell rose up the charts in the NFL Draft following some outstanding work in the Senior Bowl, the combine and pro day. Quite a feat considering that most draft experts didn't even have him on their draft boards at the beginning of the season. O'Connell, who prepped at La Costa Canyon High in Carlsbad, Calif., was a rare four-year team captain at San Diego State. And he also was one of the best athletes in the school's storied history. He ranks third in school history with 7,689 passing yards and is all the school's all-time leader in career rushing yards (1,312) and touchdowns (19) by a quarterback. Quotable: "Through this whole process, all I really wanted was a chance to compete and kind of took it one step at a time as opposed to looking at it as a whole. I wanted go to the Combine and put my best foot forward and then have my Pro Day and any workouts that I might have and try to take it all in and enjoy the process." -- Kevin O'Connell |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Beau Bell, LB Cleveland Browns Born: Tustin, Calif. High School: Tustin College: UNLV | Fourth round (104) | Bell comes from Tustin High, the same high school that produced current 49ers running back DeShaun Foster. Bell did everything for the Tillers, playing all positions on defense as well as being a pretty effective running back. Bell was recruited to play at UNLV and played in 11 games during his freshman season. Bell was one of the top linebackers in the Mountain West Conference, but suffered a left knee sprain during his junior season that caused him to start a touch lower on the draft boards than his talent would suggest. Bell made up for it his senior season, earning all-conference status and was selected as the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year. The Browns see Bell as being a hard-hitting presence who will likely move to middle linebacker. Quotable: "This guy is kind of a hammer type hitter. If you saw some of his highlights, he knows how to finish. He brings some explosion at the end of plays. We feel like he's a powerful tackler." -- Browns GM Phil Savage. |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Josh Johnson, QB Tampa Bay Buccaneers Born: Oakland, Calif. High school: Oakland Technical College: San Diego | Fifth round (160) | Johnson was one of the more obscure NFL prospects, but not to Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden who seemingly collects quarterbacks. Johnson played for former NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh at the University of San Diego, a non-scholarship Division I-AA team in the Pioneer League. Johnson, despite being a high school teammate of Bills RB Marshawn Lynch, did not garner much attention coming out of high school. NFL scouts, however, could not overlook what he did for the Toreros. Johnson had a back injury during the Senior Bowl and combine, but showed enough promise during his pro day to sneak into the fifth round. Johnson will be groomed under Gruden and could one day develop into a starting quarterback for the Buccaneers. Quotable: "It feels great. I'm ecstatic. It's a perfect fit, a blessing in disguise. I knew how many quarterbacks they had, but we didn't even talk about that. Coach Gruden just said he wanted me to come in and work and he was real excited to work with me. I'm going to go in there this week and get it going." -- Josh Johnson. |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Andy Studebaker, LB Philadelphia Eagles Born: Congerville, Ill. High School: Eureka (Ill.) College: Wheaton | Sixth round (203) | It's possible that nobody made a bigger jump in the NFL draft than Studebaker, who was one of two Division III players taken. Studebaker missed half of his senior season because of a foot injury, causing him to miss the Senior Bowl and combine. But he became a sensation during the weeks leading up to the draft when his workout video started making the rounds on the internet. Eagles GM Tom Heckert even quipped that he hadn't heard of Studebaker until his workout started showing up on YouTube. Whether that is true or not is a matter of debate. But you can't debate his ability. Studebaker had 50 sacks during his career and was the conference defensive player of the year as a junior. Studebaker participated in Northwestern's pro day and impressed scouts with his vertical jump and 4.60 time in the 40-yard dash and from there the internet took over. Quotable: "He's a pretty talented guy. He's very intelligent and very gifted athletically, to where he can play linebacker, outside linebacker, or defensive end. He played defensive end in college and had a bunch of sacks. He's a pretty sharp player." -- Eagles coach Andy Reid. |
| Player | Drafted | Road to greatness |
 Brian Johnston, DE Kansas City Chiefs Born: San Diego High School: Madison (San Diego) College: Gardner-Webb | Seventh round (210) | Johnston's road to greatness took an interesting turn. At Madison High School, Johnston earned first-team All-Harbor League honors as a defensive end during his senior season. But he turned down offers to go to Colorado State and Arizona, instead choosing Division I-AA Gardner-Webb. Johnston was able to play a number of defensive positions in college and was a Hendricks Award and Buchanan Award finalist. But yet, Johnston was not invited to the combine so he had to use personal workouts to move up the boards. The Chiefs were impressed with him and drafted him in the seventh round, reminding some of former second-round Chiefs selection Jared Allen. Johnston is a tall, athletic defensive end and if he comes anywhere near the production Allen had in Kansas City, the team would be very pleased. Quotable: "He's got a lot of potential. He can run. He's a good-looking guy. He's got a great motor." -- Chiefs coach Herm Edwards. |
