The Ohio State Buckeyes are one of the most prestigious college football schools across the nation. As the 2023 NFL Draft approaches, they are set for another new era of Buckeyes to be entering the NFL. They have 13 total players in consideration for the upcoming draft, including a few studs who will look to make an impact right away. QB CJ Stroud has the potential to be the first pick overall, while WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba and OT Paris Johnson Jr. are hoping to hear their names called in the first round as well.
As a new class of Buckeyes begin their careers in the NFL, they can reflect on former Buckeyes' NFL careers to emulate. Ohio State has had quite a few prospects go on to enjoy very effective careers at the highest level, including some of the hall-of-fame caliber. Out of all the Buckeyes that went on to the NFL, there are a select few that had better careers than the rest. So, who are the best Ohio State products to excel in the NFL?
Here are three Ohio State NFL Draft picks who enjoyed outstanding NFL careers.
*Stats via NFL
Eddie George
Eddie George played nine seasons in the NFL, predominantly for the Tennessee Titans. The best year of his career came in 2000, as he had 1,509 yards rushing to go along with 14 touchdowns. He played in the Super Bowl that year, unfortunately suffering a loss at the hands of the St. Louis Rams, 23-16. Still, George put forth a successful individual effort, rushing for 95 yards and scoring twice in the big game.
Over the course of his nine-year career, George ran for 10, 441 yards and 68 touchdowns, with a career yards-per-carry of 3.6. His average run could leave a little to be desired, but no one disputes the fact that George had an outstanding NFL career. In his first year of eligibility for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he was a semifinalist in 2021.
In recent years, George has been joined by RB Ezekiel Elliott as stud rushers coming out of Ohio State. Elliott is reaching the later years of his tenure, and it will be an interesting debate of whether George or Elliott had a better career when it is all said and done. For now, recognition of George's career will suffice for the Ohio State legend.
Cris Carter
A 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, Carter fits into the argument of best Ohio State players to play in the NFL. Carter played 16 seasons in the NFL, 12 of them coming as a Minnesota Viking in becoming one of the best wide receivers in Minnesota franchise history. He was an eight-time Pro Bowl selection after being drafted in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL Supplemental Draft.
Carter had 13,899 receiving yards over the course of his 16 years, including 130 touchdowns over 1,101 receptions. His best year was 1995, as he posted one of the great wide receiver seasons of all time. He finished the season with 122 receptions, the second year in a row with this total, and he had 1,371 yards receiving and 17 touchdowns. Carter was a formidable force for many years after 1995, but was truly unstoppable during this season.
In the latter years of his Minnesota days, Carter was joined by the legendary Randy Moss. As Moss began his NFL career, he and Carter formed the best wide receiver duo in the NFL for multiple years with the Vikings. Moss went on to play for a few other teams in his NFL career, but his impact in Minnesota will always be felt.
Carter owes a lot of his NFL career to his development at Ohio State, and WR hopeful Smith-Njigba hopes to make the 2023 NFL Draft the start of a similar journey.
Jim Marshall
The Iron Man Jim Marshall played for Ohio State in the 1950s before launching his 20 year NFL Career. 19 of those seasons also came in Minnesota, although he was drafted to the Cleveland Browns. In the 1960 NFL Supplemental Draft, Marshall was drafted in the fourth round to the Browns before only playing one season in Cleveland and finding himself shipped to Minnesota. In Minnesota he became a workhorse, starting 270 consecutive games on the defensive line.
In 2004, Marshall was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, one of the many achievements he eclipsed from his playing days. Marshall held many Vikings franchise records at the time of his retirement, and appeared in all four of the Vikings Super Bowl appearances in the 1970s. Unfortunately for Marshall, one of the things he is most well known for is a play where he scored for the other team.
In a 1964 game against the San Francisco 49ers, Marshall recovered a fumble and returned it 66 yards in the wrong direction into the wrong end zone, and he ended up throwing the ball out of bounds. It resulted in two points for the 49ers, and went down in infamy in Vikings history.
Overall, Marshall had an incredible career and made Ohio State fans proud. This years Buckeye draft class hopes to join Marshall in consideration of becoming an Ohio State all-time great.
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