Starting April 4th and continuing through April 29th, Canal Street Chronicles will be counting down the top 10 draft busts and then the top 10 draft successes in Saints history. Feel free to to use these posts as a springboard for discussion about how awful or how great each draft pick turned out.
1987 was a great year in Saints history. Relatively new owner Tom Benson and new head coach Jim Mora were striving to bring the first playoff appearance to the 20 year old franchise. The Saints had become a joke during this time, and Mora wanted that to change. The Saints would go 12-3 on the season, with one game being canceled due to a strike by the players.
The Saints were not able to win their division, despite the great record however, as the San Francisco 49ers finished the season at 13-2. A Week 6 loss to the 49ers by two points ended up being the difference between the two teams. Still, the Saints had made it into the playoffs for the first time ever! I won't mention what happened next, as it has to be painful for Saints fans who lived through it. However, you must be wondering, "Why did you mention all of that?" Well, because Shawn Knight, their first round pick that year, wasn't a part of it. Or anything for that matter.
Shawn Knight was a defensive end from BYU taken by the Saints with the 11th overall pick. He would not start a single game for the Saints and only played in 10 games. After the season was over he left the team! The first round pick only managed to stay with the team for one year, and it wasn't even a full year at that. It is disgusting that such a bust was taken by a team that had already thrown so many first rounders down the toilet.
He stayed in the league for three years before leaving football all together. He sucked, and he sucked badly. Unfortunately, this horrible excuse for a first round pick is only 4th on our list. I need a drink.
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