NFL Draft: The Greatest 1st Overall Picks Ever

UCLA. Troy Aikman . 8. player. 123. One looks at his stats and the questions will start. How can one justify placing Troy Aikman so high on the list? The man threw for more than 20 touchdowns in a season just once and never topped 3,500 yards passing. Thing is it always comes down to context. Aikman may not have the prolific numbers of a Brett Favre, Steve Young or Dan Marino but in within the system he played, there is no doubting he was a superstar. <p> </p> <p>Understand that for his career he averaged 28.8 passes per game. Meanwhile others like Favre, Young, Marino and always all lived north of 30 per game most of their careers. Aikman played in an offense that featured Emmett Smith at running back. So he wasn’t going to be the focal point of the attack. That wasn’t what those Dallas Cowboys did. Aikman was expected to throw accurate, efficient passes to keep the chains moving and be a leader in the huddle. He was outstanding at both jobs, and has three Super Bowl rings to prove it.</p>. QB