Was Tom Brady a 'Mr. Irrelevant?' Exploring the Buccaneers QB's draft position and the best player selected with a final pick

The 'Mr. Irrelevant' tag is a famous and slightly notorious distinction given to the player picked last in every year's NFL Draft. Over the decades, we have had some great players given the honor (if you could call it that) of being named Mr. Irrelevant heading into their rookie NFL season.

However, Tom Brady was not among them. In Brady's draft class, that honor went to Mike Green, who the Chicago Bears selected as the final pick in the 2000 draft. Tom Brady was selected with the 199th pick by the New England Patriots.

Who is the greatest Mr. Irrelevant in NFL history?

Some players prefer to go undrafted rather than suffer the ignominy of being the last player selected. So they say, anyway. There are way more undrafted free agents in the Hall of Fame compared to Mr. Irrelevants, which makes sense from a statistical perspective.

However, to every rule, there are exceptions, and a few Mr. Irrelevants have taken the league by storm. The best of which is most likely Ryan Succop, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers kicker and 2009's Mr. Irrelevant.

Succop is an accomplished kicker in the NFL and he did something that no Mr. Irrelevant had done before. He won the 2020 Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He started the game and also made all of his kicks. But, like they say in Tampa, Ryan Succop is built differently.

How is 2022's Mr. Irrelevant performing this season?

The San Francisco 49ers selected quarterback Brock Purdy as the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, thus giving him the title. However, credit must go to Purdy as he took the selection in his stride and went to work as the third-string QB on the San Francisco depth chart.

Initially, it seemed impossible for Purdy to play this season with Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo ahead of him in the pecking order. However, through two season-ending injuries, Purdy will be finishing the campaign as the starter for the San Francisco 49ers.

Trey Lance got hurt in Week 2 of the season, and Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a broken foot in Week 13. That leaves Brock Purdy as the last option for the 49er. Judging by his performance after stepping in for Jimmy G in week 13, San Francisco might have themselves a budding talent.