Mitch Trubisky is not better than Patrick Mahomes.
Every NFL fan in the world knows that.
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But in the 2017 draft, the Chicago Bears stunned the league by taking Trubisky with the No. 2 overall pick, despite a limited playing career in college at North Carolina.
The real stunner, though, is what happened to the pick before Mahomes went to Kansas City at No. 10.
The Chiefs traded with the Buffalo Bills for the rights to take Mahomes out of Texas Tech.
The Cincinnati Bengals held the No. 9 selection, with Mahomes still available on everyone's draft board.
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Cincy could have drafted an already super-talented QB who had MLB potential and set NCAA records in college.
Instead, the Bengals opted for a super-speedy 5ft 11in wide receiver out of the University of Washington.
John Ross became the No. 9 pick of the 2017 NFL Draft, and was selected one pick before a franchise QB who now has three Super Bowl rings and has replaced Tom Brady as the face of football.
Ross was compared during the pre-draft process to DeSean Jackson and ran a scorching 4.22 in the 40-yard dash.
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"An instant-impact weapon who scored 23 touchdowns in just 112 touches," the NFL's official site wrote. "He should be able to step right in as a kick returner and a slot receiver.
"If his knees check out as healthy, Ross is a likely first-round pick with the rare ability to become a high-volume slot receiver or a lesser-targeted, high-yield deep-ball threat."
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But Ross dealt with an ACL injury in college and he never came close to his top-10 draft selection in the NFL.
He only played in three games as a rookie, started just 21 games during his five-year career and never made a Pro Bowl.
After four years, the Bengals moved on from their first-round bust.
Ross spent one year with the New York Giants, starting one game and catching one touchdown, and that was it.
The player drafted one pick before Mahomes in 2017 was out of the league by 2023.
Ross finished his NFL career with 62 catches, 957 yards and 11 touchdowns in 37 games (21 starts).
Ironically, Ross briefly joined Mahomes' Chiefs, but he was low on the depth chart and announced his retirement before training camp finished.
Still, at least the former WR had the fastest 40-time ever.
But even that came to an end during this year's combine when former Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy broke Ross' record with a blistering time of 4.21 seconds.
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Cincinnati had to wait until 2020 to take Joe Burrow at No. 1, and the Bengals are still trying to overcome the Chiefs in the AFC.
Kansas City leapt up into the No. 10 spot once the Bengals made their move, and the Chiefs never looked back.
Ross was undone by his pre-draft question marks.
"Undersized with below-average play strength," NFL.com wrote. "Struggled to get into his routes cleanly and impact the game against the physical cornerbacks."
Mahomes has dominated the NFL, received the biggest contract in the sport, and became the heir to Brady.
The first round for the 2024 NFL Draft is Thursday in Detroit.
This year's class is loaded with top-tier quarterback talent, including Drake Maye, J.J. McCarthy and Jayden Daniels.
But Caleb Williams is expected to the No. 1 pick and has been compared to the QB that Cincy passed on in 2017.
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The Chiefs hold the final pick (32) in the first round and could target a wide receiver to replace Rashee Rice.
Kansas City has seven picks total in the 2024 draft.