The NFL Draft is one of the most exciting times of the year for everyone. Fans get excited about the future of their team, teams are excited to get some new players to hopefully fill in some of the holes on their roster, and the players get to live out their lifelong dream.

But sometimes, the draft isn’t all that fun. Every year, there are a handful of first-round picks that end up being busts and never see their NFL dreams pan out. Even the best players from schools like Alabama, LSU, Texas, and other SEC schools don’t always find success in the NFL.

Today, we’re going to look at the biggest NFL Draft bust from every SEC school since 2000.

Alabama: RB Trent Richardson

Draft Pick: 3rd overall

I, and pretty much everyone else out there, thought that Trent Richardson was going to be the next big thing in the NFL. He was so dominant at Alabama and ended up going third overall to the Cleveland Browns, but once he got into the league, he was a non-factor. As a rookie, he put up 950 yards and 11 touchdowns, but averaged just 3.6 yards per carry. And after his rookie season, he never had more than 600 yards and three touchdowns in a single season before he was out of the league by 2015.

Arkansas: DE Jamaal Anderson

Draft Pick: 8th overall

The Atlanta Falcons made Jamaal Anderson the eighth overall pick in 2007, expecting him to transform their pass rush completely. Instead, he turned into one of the biggest busts of this century. Anderson started 16 games as a rookie, but never recorded a sack. He would spend three more seasons with Atlanta, never eclipsing two sacks in a single season. Over his six years in the league, the Arkansas product recorded only 7.5 sacks before he was out of the league by 2012.

Auburn: OT Greg Robinson

Draft Pick: 2nd overall

In 2014, the St. Louis Rams made Greg Robinson the 2nd overall pick in 2014, hoping he could be their franchise left tackle, but he never panned out. As a rookie, Robinson gave up 27 pressures and seven sacks in under 500 pass blocking snaps, and that was arguably one of his better seasons. In six years, Robinson gave up a total of 180 pressures and 27 sacks while playing for three teams before he was out of the league.

Florida: DE Derrick Harvey

Draft Pick: 8th overall

The Jacksonville Jaguars selected Florida DE Derrick Harvey eighth overall back in 2008, but he was a complete bust. In his rookie season, Harvey played in all 16 games, but only recorded 3.5 sacks. And that was the best year of his career. He followed that up with 2.0 and 2.5 sacks in the next two seasons before he was traded to Denver, where he never recorded a single sack. He never recorded another stat in the league after 2011.

Georgia: DE Jarvis Jones

Draft Pick: 17th overall

Jarvis Jones is yet another pass rusher who never panned out in the NFL. After a great career at Georgia, Jones was selected 17th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he just never found his footing. He spent four seasons with the Steelers, but only logged 6.0 sacks while missing 14 games. After his rookie contract expired in 2016, Jones never recorded another stat in the NFL.

Kentucky: DT Dewayne Robertson

Draft Pick: 4th overall

Dewayne Robertson didn’t have a terrible NFL career, but he certainly didn’t live up to being the fourth overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft. Robertson spent five seasons with the New York Jets, where he racked up 14.5 sacks and only missed four games, but they let him walk after his rookie contract expired, and he played just one more season in the league before the Denver Broncos let him go and nobody picked him up.

LSU: QB JaMarcus Russell

Draft Pick: 1st overall

There aren’t many draft busts in NFL history bigger than JaMarcus Russell. He had all the tools an NFL team could want coming out of LSU, but he just didn’t have the work ethic. There have been a ton of horror stories that have come out over the years about how Russell wouldn’t watch tape, and it was evident. In three seasons with the Oakland Raiders, Russell went 7-18 as a starter with 18 touchdowns and 23 picks. And to make matters worse, this was before rookie salaries were tied to their draft position, so Russell signed a massive deal with the Raiders and never even tried.

Mississippi State: OT Derek Sherrod

Draft Pick: 32nd overall

Derek Sherrod was the last pick in the first round back in 2011, but he never stood a chance in the league. Sherrod played a total of 161 pass blocking snaps in his career and gave up 16 pressures and four sacks while earning a sub-60 run blocking grade every year. He never played more than 150 snaps in a single season and was only in the league for three years.

Missouri: QB Blaine Gabbert

Draft Pick: 10th overall

Blaine Gabbert had a really successful NFL career as a backup, but he did not live up to being the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. The Jaguars were hoping he’d be their franchise quarterback, but they quickly abandoned that dream after Gabbert threw 22 touchdowns to 24 interceptions in his first three seasons. He was in the league for over a decade as a backup, but he should still be considered a massive draft bust.

Oklahoma: QB Sam Bradford

Draft Pick: 1st overall

Sam Bradford was considered one of the best quarterback draft prospects in recent years when he entered the draft in 2010. The St. Louis Rams made him the first overall pick in the draft, and while he wasn’t horrible, he didn’t live up to the hype, and multiple injuries never allowed him to find his footing in the league. After leaving St. Louis, he played really well for Minnesota in 2016, leading the league in completion percentage with a 4:1 TD to INT ratio, but he never got injured again in 2017 and was out of the league by 2018.

Ole Miss: DT Peria Jerry

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Draft Pick: 24th overall

Two years after Atlanta missed on Jamaal Anderson, they took Peria Jerry in the first round with the 24th overall pick, and once again missed on an SEC defensive lineman. Jerry spent five years with the Falcons and could only total 67 tackles and 5.5 sacks, 3.5 of which came in his final season with the team. After his rookie contract was up in Atlanta, nobody gave Jerry another chance, and he never recorded another stat in the league.

South Carolina: WR Troy Williamson

Draft Pick: 7th overall

Coming out of South Carolina, Troy Williamson was one of the hottest names in the draft, and the Minnesota Vikings made him the seventh overall pick in 2005. His rookie season was disappointing, with Williamson totaling just 372 yards and two touchdowns, but he followed it up with a more promising 455-yard campaign in 2006. Unfortunately, that would be Williamson’s most productive season, and by 2010, he was out of the NFL.

Tennessee: DT Justin Harrell

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Draft Pick: 16th overall

The Green Bay Packers selected Justin Harrell 16th overall in 2007, hoping he could fill a hole at defensive tackle and help improve their defense. Well, that didn’t happen. Harrell appeared in just 14 games, starting two, and never recorded a single stat with 27 tackles in his NFL career. He did win a Super Bowl with Green Bay in 2011, but he didn’t play a single snap for them that season and never saw the field for any team after the 2010 season.

Texas: QB Vince Young

Draft Pick: 3rd overall

Vince Young was one of the hottest names in the football world in 2006. He was coming off a National Championship run at Texas and went third overall to the Tennessee Titans, but he never amounted to much in the NFL. In five seasons, Young had a positive TD to INT ratio just twice and never threw for more than 2,600 yards or 12 touchdowns in any one season. He dealt with some injuries that certainly didn’t help, but he also just never adjusted to the NFL.

Texas A&M: QB Johnny Manziel

Draft Pick: 22nd overall

Want to talk about someone who was one of the hottest names in football coming out of college? Let’s talk about Johnny Manziel, who won the Heisman Trophy as a freshman. A few years later, he entered the NFL Draft and was selected 22nd overall by the Browns, but like everyone else on this list, he never adjusted to the NFL. He appeared in 14 games, starting eight, and completed 57 percent of his passes for 1,675 yards, seven touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He was a classic case of being a great college player, but not a great NFL player.

Vanderbilt: OT Chris Williams

Draft Pick: 14th overall

In 2008, the Chicago Bears made Vanderbilt OT Chris Williams the 14th overall pick in the draft, hoping he could help transform their offensive line, but that never happened. Williams played 16 snaps as a rookie, but saw over 1,000 snaps in his sophomore season, where he gave up 50 pressures and seven sacks. After that, the Bears moved him to guard, where he wasn’t awful, but he wasn’t great. They let him walk after four seasons, and he bounced around, but he was never as good as he was in Chicago and was out of the league by 2015.