A look at the Longhorns defensive backs that have been taken in the NFL Draft

It’s only natural that a school that considers itself “DBU” would have a long list of defensive backs taken in the NFL Draft through the years. Texas defensive backs have not only been constant selections to play in the NFL; many of those Longhorns have gone on to have standout careers at the highest level of the game.

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Texas could add to its draft tradition in this year’s Draft, with cornerback D’Shawn Jamison and safety Anthony Cook potentially third-day selections in the proceedings, which begin on Thursday in Kansas City.

Jamison, who goes at 5-foot-10 and 187 pounds, played in 60 career games over his five years at Texas with 39 starts, finishing with 139 tackles (109 of them solo), six tackles for a loss, a sack, six interceptions, 23 passes defended, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and a blocked punt. Jamison ranks fourth all-time in Longhorns’ history in career kick returns (54) and kick return yards (1,435).

Cook, a 6-foot-1, 188-pounder, also played in 60 games over five seasons in Austin, amassing a career-high 61 tackles (35 solo), 3.5 tackles for loss and five pass breakups with half a sack and one forced fumble in his super senior year. He was named honorable mention All-Big 12 by the league’s coaches after the 2022 season.

With this year’s NFL Draft beginning on Thursday, we decided to take a look at the list of defensive backs that have been selected to play in the NFL through the years.

The list includes Ronnie Ehrig, who was drafted in 1968 in the 15^th round by the AFL’s New York Jets but opted to go back to school for another year, after which he was selected in the 14^th round by the Chicago Bears.

The roster below also lists Marty Akins as chosen as a defensive back by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1975. Akins was an All-America wishbone quarterback during his career at Texas.

National award winners among the Texas defensive backs that were drafted in the NFL are Michael Huff and Aaron Ross, who won the Jim Thorpe Award in 2005 and 2006, respectively.

In all, 55 Longhorns defensive backs have been selected in the draft, with 26 of those since 1990. Fourteen of defensive backs have been taken in the first round.

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Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Jackie Crain-1942-17-4-154-Chicago Cardinals

Tom Landry-1947-20-9-184-New York Giants

Max Bumgardner-1948-1-10-10-Chicago Bears

Bobby Dillon-1952-3-3-28-Green Bay Packers

Don Menasco-1952-4-10-47-New York Giants

Edward Kelley-1955-5-6-55-Los Angeles Rams

Ronnie Ehrig-1968-15-17-398-New York Jets

Bill Bradley-1969-3-17-69-Philadelphia Eagles

Ronnie Ehrig-1969-14-15-353-Chicago Bears

Danny Lester-1971-13-5-317-Philadelphia Eagles

Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Alan Lowry-1973-13-4-316-New England Patriots

Marty Akins-1975-11-34-315-St. Louis Cardinals

Raymond Clayborn-1977-1-16-16-New England Patriots

Glen Blackwood-1979-8-23-215-Miami Dolphins

Johnnie Johnson-1980-1-17-17-Los Angeles Rams

Derrick Hatchett-1980-1-24-24-Baltimore Colts

Ricky Churchman-1980-4-1-84-San Francisco 49ers

Charles Vaclavik-1980-12-1-306-Pittsburgh Steelers

Vance Bedford-1982-5-8-119-St. Louis Cardinals

William Graham-1982-5-16-127-Detroit Lions

Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Mike Hatchett-1982-9-7-230-Chicago Bears

Mossy Cade-1984-1-6-6-Green Bay Packers

Fred Acorn-1984-3-1-57-Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Craig Curry-1984-4-9-93-Indianapolis Colts

Jitter Fields-1984-5-11-123-New Orleans Saints

Jerry Gray-1985-1-21-21-Los Angeles Rams

Stephen Braggs-1987-6-25-165-Cleveland Browns

Eric Jeffries-1987-12-26-333-Chicago Bears

John Hagy-1988-8-11-204-Buffalo Bills

Stanley Richard-1991-1-9-9-San Diego Chargers

Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Mark Berry-1992-6-21-161-Chicago Bears

Lance Gunn-1993-7-7-175-Cincinnati Bengals

Van Malone-1994-2-28-57-Detroit Lions

Bryant Westbrook-1997-1-5-5-Detroit Lions

Chris Carter-1997-3-29-89-New England Patriots

Taje Allen-1997-5-28-158-St. Louis Rams

Quentin Jammer-2002-1-5-5-San Diego Chargers

Rod Babers-2003-4-26-123-New York Giants

Nathan Vasher-2004-4-14-110-Chicago Bears

Michael Huff-2006-1-7-7-Oakland Raiders

Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Cedric Griffin-2006-2-16-48-Minnesota Vikings

Michael Griffin-2007-1-19-19-Tennessee Titans

Aaron Ross-2007-1-20-20-New York Giants

Tarell Brown-2007-5-10-147-San Francisco 49ers

Earl Thomas-2010-1-14-14-Seattle Seahawks

Aaron Williams-2011-2-2-34-Buffalo Bills

Curtis Brown-2011-3-31-95-Pittsburgh Steelers

Chykie Brown-2011-5-33-164-Baltimore Ravens

Kenny Vaccaro-2013-1-15-15-New Orleans Saints

Mykkele Thompson-2015-5-8-144-New York Giants

Player-Year-Round-Pick-Overall-Team

Quandre Diggs-2015-6-24-200-Detroit Lions

DeShon Elliott-2018-6-16-190-Baltimore Ravens

Kris Boyd-2019-7-3-217-Minnesota Vikings

Brandon Jones-2020-3-6-70-Miami Dolphins

Caden Sterns-2021-5-8-152-Denver Broncos