How some athletes are capable of playing in more than one major sports league is very difficult to fathom. But you’ll be surprised to hear that some NFL star players are also good enough to have been drafted into the MLB, due to some interesting set of skills that can be attributed to both sports.
Here are 10 NFL Players that were also drafted by the MLB.
Which NFL Stars were surprisingly good enough to play in MLB?
#10: Dan Marino
The Miami Dolphins legend was a huge prospect for both professional football and professional baseball, being drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 1979 before being drafted by Miami 4 years later.
Now, we can mention that he’s a hall-of-fame quarterback who holds a bevy of records not just for Miami but for the NFL as a whole, but let’s see how good a baseball player he was before going to South Beach.
Marino was a stud pitcher, going 12-0 and hitting a .513 for Central Catholic before being drafted by the Royals, whom he almost signed with.
Fortunately, his coach from Pitt informed him of the then 3-4-B rule, which stated that any college student receiving pay or compensation from a pro sports team would lose their scholarship in any other major sport, meaning Marino would’ve had to pay for his college football career at Pitt if he was officially on the Royals roster.
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Marino wanted to play minor league baseball before testing out football, but the rule forced his hand not to sign with the Royals and instead pursue his football career.
Turns out this may have been for the better as Kansas City was planning on using him as a shortstop or third baseman. Imagine a world without Marino shredding defenses the way he did; all because of one small but monumental rule.
#9: John Elway
The orchestrator of “The Drive” and helping the Broncos win their first Super Bowl title back in 1997 and again the following year, Elway’s name is forever embroiled in Broncos’ lore.
Funny enough, he was never even drafted by them, but instead came in a trade from the then Baltimore Colts, who Elway told then owner Robert Irsay that he would rather play for the New York Yankees than for them.
Even funnier, the Yankees actually drafted the former NFL star in the 1981 MLB draft and were hoping to start him as a right fielder, due to him being prospected as a better baseball player than a football player.
One season in the minors showed lots of promise. Four home runs in 151 at-bats to go with 28 walks over 25 strikeouts definitely made a statement.
But this potential in baseball ended up being just the leverage he needed to get traded to the Broncos and the rest is history.
#8: Kyler Murray
Now, let’s move on to a more recent double-drafted individual.
Kyler Murray was such a talented star in college for both football and baseball that he ended up being drafted in the first round by both the Arizona Cardinals 1st overall and the Oakland Athletics 9th overall, respectively, being the only player in history to have that designation.
Murray’s high-caliber cannon of an arm definitely shows why both sports wanted him, being a hot topic ahead of the 2019 NFL draft as to whether he’ll play in the NFL or with the Oakland A’s, who drafted him the year prior.
Murray was batting at an average of .296 with 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases along with 47 runs batted in during his last year with the Oklahoma Sooners baseball team.
Fast, shifty, powerful with his arms, and accurate no matter what he throws, he makes us wonder what would’ve been if he had stuck with baseball instead of opting for football. The world may never know.
#7: Daunte Culpepper
Daunte is quite certainly a gifted athlete, being drafted by the New York Yankees in 1995, but never signing and instead pursued college and a football career, leading him to be drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1999.
The results? 5 years of excellence from a dual-threat QB that included 2 playoff runs and an NFC Championship appearance to go along with his 3 Pro Bowls.
His baseball career as an outfielder never materialized and seeing as how a major knee injury is what derailed his NFL career so quickly, it might be safe to wonder if he would’ve been better off in baseball where those injuries aren’t as common.
Guess we’ll never know.
Also Read: 10 NFL Stars Who Will Be Out Of The League If They Don’t Have A Stellar 2024 Season
#6: Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes has enough talent for 2 people, which kind of explains how he got drafted by both the Kansas City Chiefs and the Detroit Tigers within a 3-year span.
The Tigers drafted Mahomes 37th overall in the 2014 draft, three years before Kansas City picked him up, but Mahomes never signed a contract.
He clearly got some of his baseball talents from his father Pat Mahomes, who played for the Minnesota Twins back in the 90’s and early 2000’s.
As for Mahomes the Chief, he was so good in high school that he outplayed future White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech in a dominant performance where he pitched a no-hitter game with 16 strikeouts.
Mahomes arm is other-worldly to say the least and had he went forward with the Tigers, the sky would’ve been the limit.
Instead, the Chiefs star produced a stellar NFL career with multiple accolades, including four Super Bowl appearances, three of which he won, a 5000-yard/50-TD season, and two league MVPs. Are we sure he’s from our planet?
#5: Russell Wilson
Wilson is an interesting case as the former Seattle Seahawk’s star is now on his 3rd team in the NFL. Wilson’s incredible stint with the Seahawks will forever be engraved in Seattle’s history, while his time with the Broncos will most likely be remembered as an embarrassing one.
Still his skills on the field for both sports are undeniable. 2 Super Bowl appearances with one of them resulting in victory, and his 9 Pro Bowl nods speak for themselves.
His baseball career is kind of similar. Drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 2010, Wilson managed to bat a .230 and a .228 batting average in two seasons with affiliated Rockies teams, along with five total home runs, before announcing that he would pursue a career in football.
But his Baseball career didn’t end there. He then was then traded to the Texas Rangers in 2013, the year he entered the NFL before finally being traded again to the New York Yankees in 2018, the team he promised his father he would one day be a part of.
#4: Brian O’Neil Jordan
He may not be a household name today, but Brian Jordan was definitely an interesting and talented athletic prospect.
First being drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1988 for baseball before being drafted by the Buffalo Bills the next year.
He was cut during training camp, which allowed the Atlanta Falcons to pick him up. In 3 short years, he racked up five interceptions and four sacks, leading the team in tackles in 1991.
However, St. Louis came calling back and had him sign a contract that would make him leave football completely.
Not for nothing, as he built up a pretty well-rounded career, playing for multiple teams from 1992 – 2006, building up a stat sheet that includes a .282 batting average, 821 RBIs, 119 stolen bases, and 184 home runs over a 15-year period. Not to shabby, if I do say so myself.
#3: Tom Brady
What can’t this guy do? 7 Super Bowl rings, 6 with the Patriots, 5 Super Bowl MVP’s, 15 Pro Bowl nods, 3 League MVP’s, 2 All-Decades team, and a partridge in a pear tree, Brady has it all in the NFL.
Buuuuuut, before being drafted in 2000 by the Patriots, he was drafted five years prior by the Montreal Expos, oddly enough.
The then-GM Kevin Malone believed him to be an All-Star catcher and tried him out. But clearly Brady had other plans as he signed to play for the University of Michigan’s football team instead.
One can only wonder what could’ve been for the NFL had Brady not been a part of it for as long as was and instead played Major League Baseball.
#2: Deion Sanders
Sanders is an all-time NFL and MLB star athlete, to say the least. The only player in history to play in both a Super Bowl and a World Series.
His NFL career is off the charts, 2 Super Bowl championships, 8 Pro Bowl and 8 All-Pro nods, along with being one of the most elusive cornerbacks and kick returners in pro football history.
But what about baseball? Drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 1985 but never signing, Sanders was again drafted in 1988 by the New York Yankees, and here’s what he accomplished: 3 home runs and a .157 batting average in just 57 games.
After being waived due to contract disputes in 1990, Sanders joined the Atlanta Braves and played for three years from 1991 to 1994, including his World Series run in 1992, leading the team in batting average, slugging percentage, and total bases as a few accolades to his name.
Also batting for the San Francisco Giants and the Cincinnati Reds, Deion was playing 2 major league sports at the same time for almost 10 years, excluding a 3-year hiatus from baseball, when he finally committed to football in 2001.
Prime time was one-of-a-kind. Or was he?
#1: Bo Jackson
Arguably the greatest athlete of all time, Bo was a monster in any sport he played in.
In an interesting twist, unlike the aforementioned NFL star players, Jackson was first drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL draft in 1986 before ever being drafted by an MLB team.
The Kansas City Royals, once again, drafted an elite prospect in 1986, this time getting something great in the process getting 22 home runs and 10 stolen bases the next year.
Things only got better as he managed an eye-opening 26.75 Home Run average over 4 years, including a 32-home run season in 1989 and ending his baseball career with a total of 141 home runs and a batting average of .250 with the Royals, Chicago White Sox, and California Angels.
One memorable moment was when he made his infamous “wall run” to catch a ball to avoid injury from the fence or the field. He and the aforementioned Sanders also played a game against each other in 1990, where Bo came out on top with a 3-homer in the “Bo and Prime Time Show.”
All this while pushing the then-Los Angeles Raiders over the top with over 2,000 total rushing yards over four years and 16 touchdowns. He never played a full season in the NFL but had quite a remarkable career when you watch his highlights as an athlete, no matter which sport he played.
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