NFL Draft: Every team’s biggest first round bust of last ten years

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NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 26: Trent Richardson (R) from Alabama holds up a jersey as he stands on stage with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after he was selected #3 overall by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall on April 26, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

53. . 2012, 3rd overall. . Trent Richardson. . team

Cleveland – The City of Busts.

Aside from Alex Mack and Joe Haden the Browns haven’t been very successful in the first round. Phil Taylor, Brandon Weeden, Barkevious Mingo, Justin Gilbert, Johnny Manziel, Danny Shelton, Cam Erving, and Corey Coleman headlined the first round from 2011-16, and any of those players could have been a worthy candidate for the biggest bust in the last decade.

But there’s one more name who stands out, a name many thought would be the safest pick Cleveland could make when they held the third-overall pick in 2012 after trading nearly their entire draft away to move up one spot.

Running back Trent Richardson was an All-American and reigning SEC Offensive Player of the Year at Alabama. He rushed for nearly 1,700 yards and 21 touchdowns, both were single-season records until Derrick Henry arrived.

Cleveland finished 30th in points and 29th in yards the year before, leaning on Peyton Hillis’s three rushing touchdowns a year after he set the league on fire with 11. Hillis was proving to be a one-year wonder, and the Browns needed offense. Taking the best non-quarterback in the draft and one of the best players to ever enter the NFL felt like a slamdunk.

HOUSTON, TX- OCTOBER 09: Andrew Luck #12 congratulates Trent Richardson #34 of the Indianapolis Colts after he rushed for a touchdown against the Houston Texans in the first quarter in a NFL game on October 9, 2014 at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images) /

Unfornutately, this pick hit the rim and rebounded right back into the Browns face. After a very good rookie season with 950 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns, the Browns inexplicably traded Richardson to the Colts for a first round pick.

What led Cleveland to trade one of the great college running backs after one year? Some cited maturity issues, a power struggle in the Browns front office, and a lack of consistent productivity in year one. Richardson averaged 3.6 yards per carry, so perhaps there was something behind the production issues.

Regardless of what may or may not have happened, Richardson was never the same player he was at Alabama, and he was out of the league after the 2014 season.

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