By Kevin Stone/@kstone06/@newftbj

It’s day two of New England Football Journal’s extra draft content as we look back with “This day in draft history,” and April 21st is a pretty good one.

APRIL 21, 1991

The Marriott Marquis in New York was the site for the 1991 draft and those in attendance that day saw quite a few memorable, impact players selected on day one and throughout the weekend.

Russell Maryland was the first overall selection by the Cowboys, a defensive tackle from Miami. Safety Eric Turner (Nebraska) went second to Cleveland, and Bruce Perkins (cornerback, Nebraska) went to Atlanta.

With the 25th pick overall on this day 29 years ago a big defensive tackle named Ted Washington was selected by San Francisco. The Louisville product turned out to be a huge part of the “Homeland Defense” during the early 2000’s that helped solidify the Patriots’ first few championships. 

With the 21st pick that year the Patriots took a tackle out of USC named Pat Harlow. Harlow played in New England until 1995 and was out of the NFL in 1999. The Patriots also drafted a quarterback named Scott Zolak on this day in 1991 out of Maryland, taking him 84th overall. Zolak would go on to have a career defined by longevity before becoming quite the popular radio personality in Boston.

The original Rob Gronkowski was elected 124th overall by the Patriots, as Ben Coates became an elite tight end out of little-known Livingstone College. Linebacker Bryan Cox went to Miami before Coates at 113, but would also have a huge impact on the franchise during the 2001 Super Bowl run.

Brett Favre went to Atlanta 33rd overall and running back Ricky Waters (Notre Dame) went to San Francisco at 45th overall. The Pheonix Cardinals took Hall of Fame cornerback Aeneas Williams 59th overall, the New York Jets grabbed linebacker Mo Lewis out of Georgia 63rd, and Ed McCaffrey was taken by the Giants with pick 83. McCaffrey would ultimately be a key piece to the Broncos’ championship teams in 1997 and 1998.

Leon Lett – most known for his gaff during a fumble return in the Super Bowl against the Bills – was taken by the Cowboys with the 173rd pick during and versatile wide receiver Kennan McCardell went tot he Redskins with the 326th pick, just eight slots before the final selection.

APRIL 21, 2001

The first round of the NFL Draft on this day 19 years ago was pretty damn good.

Mike Vick went first to the Falcons, with Pro Bowl guard Leonard Davis (Texas) going to Arizona second. Gerrard warren – who played with the Patriots in 2010-2011 – went third to the Browns.

A running back out of TCU named LaDainian Tomlinson went tot he San Diego Chargers fifth overall, while Richard Seymour went to the Patriots with the sixth overall pick.

Of course, Seymour put up a Hall of Fame worthy career here before being shipped to Oakland, was a vital part of the original dynasty here in New England, and is one of three finalists now for the Patriots Hall of Fame.

Defensive end Andre Carter was taken just after Seymour by San Francisco, and Carter would end up making a significant contribution to the 2013 Patriots’ defense that lost to Denver in the AFC Championship.

Wideout Santana Moss (Miami) went to the Jets at 16, the Seahawks grabbed guard Steve Hutchinson (Michigan) 17th and Pittsburgh took DT CaseyHampton (Texas) 19th. Popular running back Deuce McAllister (Mississippi) went to New Orleans with the 23rd pick while Reggie Wayne (Miami) was a steal for Indianapolis at 30 and Todd Heap (Arizona State) had a heck of a career for Baltimore as the 31st pick. 

Some quarterback named Drew Brees went as the top selection in the second round (32 at the time) to San Diego. Defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch (Nebraska) went 34th to Arizona and tight end Alge Crumpler – who was here in New England for a bit – went 35th to Atlanta out of North Carolina. 

Chad Johnson (Oregon State) was taken by Cincinnati at 36 overall. Johnson was here during the 2011 season, but was a shell of the star he was seemingly becoming as a Bengal during the early 2000’s. 

Matt Light was taken 48th overall for the Pats, becoming quite a bargain for the amount of consistency he provided during his career. Brash wide receiver Steve Smith also went for a steal in this draft, taken 74th overall by Carolina.