10 biggest NFL draft busts in Tennessee football history

The Tennessee Volunteers have produced many legendary players into the NFL, but a few early draft picks had careers that didn't pan out after leaving Knoxville.
Tennessee sophomore quarterback Heath Shuler (21)
Tennessee sophomore quarterback Heath Shuler (21) / Rex Perry / The Tennessean / USA TODAY
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player. . . Marcus Nash, WR. Marcus Nash, WR. 1988. No. 30 overall. 8. Marcus Nash. 45

A third straight Super Bowl champion checks in on this list, and even though Nash was selected later than both Kelly and Barnett, he’s deserving of the No. 8 spot. Nash drafted onto a loaded offense in Denver that didn’t need much help, which was good because he didn’t provide any. 

Nash caught four passes for 76 yards in his rookie season as the defending champion Broncos rolled back to a second straight title. Those would be the only four passes that Nash ever caught. 

In 1999, he only appeared in three games and was traded to Miami for fellow former first-round pick John Avery, but was waived a week later. Baltimore picked him up, but he played just one game, was targeted twice, and did not haul in a single pass. 

Nash is as much of a bust as any first-round wide receiver in history, but the fact that he was the last pick of the first round and Denver was able to repeat as Super Bowl champs despite selecting him, means I can’t justify moving him any higher on this list.