Miami Hurricanes best draft sleeper former LB Jessie Armstead

Former Miami Hurricanes linebacker Jessie Armstead was part of what was referred to as the Bermuda Triangle with Micheal Barrow and Darrin Smith. Those three helped lead Miami to two national championships during their Hurricanes careers. Armstead was recently named the best draft sleeper from Miami by ESPN.

Armstead had to overcome a torn ACL during his collegiate career while Barrow and Smith are currently the fourth and fifth-ranked tacklers in Miami history. After his Miami career, two National Championships and losing in the defacto title game for a third, Armstead was selected in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL Draft.

Armstead played all 16 games as a rookie with the New York Giants finishing with 31 tackles. Continuing to contribute, Armstead did not become a full-time starter with the Giants until his fourth season in the NFL. The 1996 season, Armstead’s first as a starter was the first of five straight years with at least 100 tackles.

After nine seasons in New York, Armstead signed a three-year, 10.5 million contract with Washington. Armstead stayed two seasons in the nation’s capital. Armstead signed with the Carolina Panthers for the 2004 season but would have to retire because of a preseason injury.

Jessie Armstead All-Pro Seasons

"Miami Hurricanes: LB Jessie Armstead“The Hurricanes have had over 300 players drafted into the NFL, including nine Hall of Famers (all taken in the first round except second-round pick Ted Hendricks). But the Hurricanes have had several draft sleepers, and the choice here is linebacker Jessie Armstead, an eighth-round pick (207th overall) by the New York Giants in 1993.Armstead spent 11 years in the NFL, starting the final nine years of his career (the last two in Washington), and made the Pro Bowl five times. In all, he made 720 career tackles and 40 sacks. Not too shabby for an eighth-round pick. — (Andrea) Adelson”"

Rising from an eighth-round pick to a four-time first-team All-Pro and once named second-team All-Pro Armstead completely maximized his talent. Armstead showed that were always be players who have better careers than they were projected to based on where they were drafted. There will always be misses too.

Armstead is the perfect example of a player who fell in the draft because of an injury and was able to reach the NFL healthy and return to the productivity shown prior to getting hurt. A torn ACL in the early 1990s was vastly different than it is now. Armstead is one of the best LBs in Miami Hurricanes history.