30 biggest NFL Draft sleepers in Tennessee football history – from Trey Smith to Arian Foster

Tennessee football has put 47 first-round draft picks into the NFL, but its also had plenty of success with late-round sleepers.

Case in point, No. 1 pick Peyton Manning won two Super Bowls. But Trey Smith, the 226th pick, has already won two Super Bowls in only three seasons as the starting guard for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The 2024 NFL Draft will be April 25-27. Perhaps a UT player will be selected early and then others late. And a few more Vols should get their chance as undrafted free agents. But they all will have an opportunity to make it from there.

Here is the Vols’ all-time hidden gems team. It includes 30 former UT players whose NFL careers far exceeded their draft position.

To be eligible, a player had to be drafted no higher than the 100th pick. And preference is given to late-round picks and undrafted free agents.

Offensive line

Paul Lipscomb (undrafted in 1946): After serving three years in the Army in World War II, Lipscomb was signed by Green Bay Packers coach Curly Lambeau. Lipscomb later made four Pro Bowl teams with Washington.

Ramon Foster (undrafted in 2009): Held down starting job for the better part of 11 seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers, including a Super Bowl appearance.

Raleigh McKenzie (290th pick in 1985): Started 194 games over 16 seasons as a member of the Hogs, the famously dominant Washington offensive line. He won two Super Bowl rings.

Scott Wells (251st pick in 2004): Went from practice squad to 143-game starter, Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion with the Packers.

Trey Smith (226th pick in 2021): Started 60 games with two Super Bowl wins in three seasons for an almost perfect start to his career.

Harry Galbreath (212nd in 1988): Nine-year career started with All-Rookie selection and spanned 142 starts for three teams.

Mickey Marvin (112nd pick in 1977): Started 119 games over 12 seasons and won two Super Bowls with Raiders.

Quarterbacks

Pat Ryan (281st pick in 1978): Valuable backup for 13 seasons, mostly with the New York Jets. He also touted an 11-8 record as a starter, including a 1986 playoff win. He passed for 4,320 yards and 31 TDs in his career.

Joshua Dobbs (135th pick in 2017): A respected veteran backup and occasionally a starter in a pinch, Dobbs has passed for 2,920 yards, rushed for 496 yards and accounted for 21 TDs. He has started 14 games and recently signed with his fifth team, the San Francisco 49ers.

Tight end, receivers and running backs

David Martin (198th pick in 2001): Steady tight end for Packers, Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills over 10 seasons. He had 159 catches and 15 TDs in his career.

Jauan Jennings (217th pick in 2020): High-energy wide receiver has 78 catches and seven TDs in the regular season over three years for the 49ers. But Jennings made his mark with a TD pass and TD reception in Super Bowl 53.

Denarius Moore (148th pick in 2011): Had 2,169 yards receiving and 17 TDs in the regular season during a five-year career, mostly with the Raiders.

Haskel Stanback (114th pick in 1974): Gained more than 3,500 all-purpose yards and scored 26 TDs over six seasons as the starting running back for the Atlanta Falcons.

Arian Foster (undrafted in 2009): One of the NFL’s top running backs for a half-decade, Foster was the 2010 rushing leader and led the league in rushing TDs twice. He made four Pro Bowls and accounted for about 9,000 all-purpose yards.

Defensive line

Tony McDaniel (undrafted in 2006): After a brief stint at UT, McDaniel put together a 12-year career with six teams. He played in two Super Bowls with the Seattle Seahawks, including a victory in Super Bowl 48.

Malik Jackson (137th pick in 2012): Strong 10-year career with four teams. Selected to a Pro Bowl with the Jacksonville Jaguars and won a Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos. In Super Bowl 50, Jackson recovered a fumble in the end zone to score the only TD of his career.

Aubrayo Franklin (146th pick in 2003): Solid 11-year career with five teams, including seven seasons as a starter. He had 256 tackles, including 20 for a loss, in 142 regular-season games.

Shane Burton (150th pick in 1996): Very productive eight-year career. Had 212 tackles, 18 sacks, three interceptions, five fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles in 125 regular-season games. Also played well in the Carolina Panthers’ loss in Super Bowl 38.

Linebackers

Parys Haralson (140th pick in 2006): A seven-year starter for the 49ers and New Orleans Saints, Haralson had almost 300 tackles in his career.

Jalen Reeves-Maybin (124th pick in 2017): His seven-year career is on an upward trajectory. In 2023, Reeves-Maybin made his first Pro Bowl as a core special teams player. But he also plays linebacker, racking up more than 200 tackles in 100-plus games in his career.

Mike Stratton (100th pick in 1962 AFL draft): Stratton was a 13th-round pick of the Bills in the AFL Draft, just as the NFL selected 280 players in its draft. He exceeded that position by a landslide, winning two AFL titles and making six AFL All-Star teams. Stratton delivered an iconic hit in the 1965 AFL Championship game and is a member of the Bills’ Wall of Fame.

Defensive backs

Jabari Greer (undrafted in 2004): After tumbling out of the draft, Greer made teams wish they would’ve picked him. He played 10 seasons for the Bills and Saints, made more than 400 tackles and returned four interceptions for TDs. He played well in the Saints’ win over Mannings’ Colts in Super Bowl 44.

Justin Coleman (undrafted in 2015): Played for four teams over eight seasons and got a Super Bowl ring with the New England Patriots. He made more than 250 tackles and returned two interceptions for TDs.

Gibril Wilson (136th pick in 2004): Capped the best season of his eight-year career by deflecting Tom Brady’s Hail Mary pass to secure a win in Super Bowl 42 for the New York Giants. Wilson made 87 starts, including the postseason, and had 13 interceptions in his career.

Emmanuel Moseley (undrafted in 2018): Moseley has been sidelined by injuries most of the past two seasons, but he’s already built an impressive resume. He started three seasons for the 49ers, including a Super Bowl appearance. He’s now with the Detroit Lions, who re-signed him to a contract extension.

Special teams

Bill Bates (undrafted in 1983): One of the most beloved players in Dallas Cowboys history, Bates was an overachieving special teams player who won three Super Bowl rings, earned a Pro Bowl selection and played 231 games, including regular season and postseason.

Morgan Cox (undrafted in 2010): Five-time Pro Bowl selection as a long snapper, Cox has played the past 14 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans. He snapped for the Ravens team that won Super Bowl 47.

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Britton Colquitt (undrafted in 2009): Four members of the Colquitt family made the NFL. But two were drafted and another didn't have sustained success as an undrafted free agent. But Britton Colquitt, an undrafted free agent, punted for the Broncos, Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings over 11 seasons and won Super Bowl 50 with Denver.

Fuad Reveiz (195th pick in 1985): From UT to the NFL, Reveiz was very reliable. He made 188 field goals and scored 931 points over an 11-year career, including a 1994 Pro Bowl selection with the Vikings.

Eddie Brown (199th pick in 1974): A two-time Pro Bowl selection as the NFL’s top punt returner with Washington. He was mostly a special teams player for three teams. But he also had an interception for the Rams in Super Bowl 14.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing atknoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: 30 biggest NFL Draft hidden gems in Tennessee football history