Former Miami DB Warren Sapp was widely projected to be a top-five pick in the 1995 NFL Draft before an ugly saga sent teams panicking. A series of highly publicized leaked drug-test rumors caused multiple teams to pass on him, with his draft position ultimately falling to No. 12. He went on to build a successful NFL career regardless, but Sapp does not have very fond memories of the time surrounding his draft.

On Drink Champs, when he was asked what exactly he was accused of failing, Sapp said, “Seven drug tests. Six for marijuana and one for cocaine.

“I didn’t take seven drug tests at the whole Miami, and three NCAA tests. I was blown. I knew I should have took over that damn interview for Ross that night at 11:30. I want to walk down there in my drawers. I was going to walk down and marry out my key in my drawers and get the interview,” he added.

The night before the draft, media outlets published reports citing anonymous league sources claiming that an internal NFL security background check sent to teams alleged Sapp had failed multiple drug tests during his time at Miami. It nearly destroyed his career because teams that were looking to pick him suddenly viewed him as a liability.

Sapp’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, aggressively contacted NFL front offices and informed every team that the leaked reports were “totally false” and that his client had been “wrongly accused.”

Then, Warren Sapp denied the allegations, calling the rumors a “total fabrication” and an intentional act of sabotage. He emphasized that he had never used cocaine, famously joking that the media made it sound like he was “Pablo Escobar down there” in Miami. Even the league stated that the media reports claiming Sapp had tested positive for cocaine were completely “inaccurate.”

It wasn’t enough to change the minds of several teams, who viewed him as a “character risk.” Admittedly, it was not a popular decision among fans. When the Jets passed on Sapp, they were met with a chorus of boos from their fanbase. Even Bill Belichick’s Browns traded out of the 10th overall pick instead of drafting him.

However, Tampa Bay ultimately trusted him and selected Warren Sapp with the 12th overall pick.

Decades later, Sapp revealed that he had smoked marijuana just three days before the NFL Combine. But it was a single instance in which his sample registered only three nanograms above the league’s strict 20-nanogram threshold. In the end, the draft slide proved to be a franchise-altering blessing for the Buccaneers.

11 teams missed out on a future Hall of Famer

From 1991 to 1994, his transformation from an offensive recruit to a consensus All-American headlined Warren Sapp’s time at Miami. During his breakout 1994 season, he became the most decorated defensive player in the country. He amassed 84 tackles and 10.5 sacks. His dominance earned him a 6th-place finish in the Heisman voting, in an era when defensive players rarely received national recognition.

Following his historic junior season, he chose to forgo his senior year of eligibility and declare for the Draft, where 11 teams passed on him.

That ultimately turned into a blessing for Tampa Bay. Once he got his NFL opportunity, Sapp went on to anchor one of the most feared defenses in league history, earning seven Pro Bowl selections and four First-Team All-Pro honors.

But that was only part of his legacy. Sapp also won the 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, helped lead the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl XXXVII title, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

Meanwhile, Kyle Brady, whom the Jets selected over him, never quite made a major impact despite spending 13 seasons in the NFL. Other names like Blake Brockermeyer and Tyrone Wheatley also failed to leave the kind of lasting mark Sapp eventually made in Tampa Bay as a Hall of Fame defender.

Statistically, Sapp finished his career with 96.5 sacks as a defensive tackle, which was almost unheard of for his position during that era. His dominance eventually silenced any doubts that surfaced because of the rumors surrounding him before the draft.