Green Bay Packers Bust #2: California QB Rich Campbell. Drafted No. 6 overall in 1981.
First a look at what appeared to be an awful 5-10-1 team back in 1980. After a slow start, the Packers were competitive in October and November. They featured a high-powered offense (in general to NFL offenses at the time) and were led by my favorite player, QB Lynn Dickey. He had managed to stay healthy for all 16 games for the first time in his career, and he was 6th in the NFL with 3529 passing yards. The wheels came off at the end of the season, when the Packers ran through arguably their worst December in franchise history, which began with the infamous 61-7 loss to the Bears during which the Bears likely stole the offensive signals from the sidelines.
So I was shocked when Bart Starr decided to draft a quarterback, Rich Campbell, with the No. 6 overall pick to replace my favorite player on the team. I secretly hoped he was a failure, and felt it was a wasted pick. This was very early in my fandom, and I wasn't yet used to players moving on while the team remained.
But even as a little kid, I could tell that Campbell was a huge mistake. His career stats are ugly enough, but he has set the floor as far as arm strength. It was like he was throwing a knuckleball. Not only was this a high draft choice at the premier position, but he couldn't throw at all. The Packers ended his career with the team after his fourth season, and no other franchise was dumb enough to give him another chance.
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