They say the path to the Super Bowl revolves around defense.  It’s difficult to argue that statement but after dissecting some of the best and worst teams drafting defensive linemen, it made me rethink that notion.  In the end, any Super Bowl winning team has to have all the pieces and even the best defensive fronts sometimes fall short of the ultimate prize.

The overall success (or lack thereof) is pretty intriguing concerning the scouting departments that get it right and just as well to the staffs that fail miserably. In our last volume, we looked at the teams who draft best on the defensive line.

Below is a closer look at some of the worst in the history of the NFL at drafting prospects to play on the defensive line.

Who Drafts the Worst Defensive Linemen?

Atlanta Falcons

In 1968, the world witnessed the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. and NASA’s first manned space mission in Apollo 7 and the Boeing 747 made its first maiden flight.

Pretty significant happenings during 1968.

In the city of Atlanta, the Falcons selected their first ever Hall of Fame selection that same year (1968). The organization has five players recognized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but only two were originally drafted by the Falcons. Those two players are Claude Humphrey and Deion Sanders.

Humphrey was their first-round pick (3rd overall) in the draft and he was named Defensive Rookie of the Year after recording 11.5 sacks and earning first-team All-Pro five times in his career.

That’s a wrap on the success of the Atlanta Falcons drafting defensive linemen.

Patrick Kerney is the best since Humphrey and absent of those two names, the constant misfires of draft selections surrounding the position have been atrocious. The list of other first-round picks by the Falcons include Kerney (1999), Wilson Faumunia (1978), Don Smith (1979), Mike Pitts (1983), Rick Bryan (1984), Jamaal Anderson (2007) and Peria Jerry (2009).

New head coach Dan Quinn was brought in this year due to his success as the Seattle Seahawks former defensive coordinator. He’ll need to get up to speed quickly on changing the longtime philosophy of the Falcons scouting department on how they value the guys up-front defensively.

If not, Quinn will be as successful in Atlanta as their draft picks at the defensive line position.

Not very good.

DENVER BRONCOS

Quickly identifying the Denver Broncos, I envision No. 7 John Elway scrambling around exhausting every ounce left to make a play. Thunder (the mascot) the his white horse (Bronco) lavishly prancing around Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Truth be told its just Mile High in my own mind.

Shannon Sharpe was before his time and helped bring the tight end position to another level. Terrell Davis was arguably the most productive running back in the history of the league during his abbreviated career. On the other side of the football, Steve Atwater and Dennis Smith were two of the most intimidating figures in the secondary. Karl Mecklenburg and Randy Gradishar were on par with the best of their generation at the linebacker position.

Nowhere can I think about a dominating defensive lineman being drafted that stood out. Sure if you are a Broncos diehard you will possibly say Derek Wolfe and his high-motor and intensity. His lunch bucket mentality makes him easy to root for but not hard to play against.

We’re talking about game changers! Guys who move the needle and change the game.

The Broncos had one.

His name was Lyle Alzado from Yankton College. Drafted in the fourth-round of the 1971 NFL Draft, he became one of the most prominent and dominant forces in Broncos history. Alzado played in Denver (1971-78) and two other teams (Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Raiders). He won a Super Bowl with the Raiders and remains till this very day one of the most colorful figures to ever wear an NFL uniform.

Since Alzado’s entry in 1971 the Broncos basically have disappeared into the abyss.

In the 90s Trevor Pryce was a four-time Pro Bowler and one-time First-Team All-Pro for the Broncos. The Broncos have made a living using their linebackers to make the big plays. Possibly being tucked in the shadows of Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil are the savvy guys up-front not getting the credit they deserve?

Why label the Broncos amongst the worst at drafting defensive linemen?

Their success or lack thereof.

For instance, in the 1984 NFL Draft the Broncos drafted Andre Townsend. He was the teams first pick (second-round) in the 1984 NFL Draft. In the 1984 NFL Supplemental Draft they used their first-round pick on Freddie Gilbert.

Townsend lasted seven years in Denver and recorded 22 career quarterback sacks. Not exactly the production needed with the 46th overall selection in the draft.

As for Gilbert, he elected to join the New Jersey Generals and then go play for the Broncos. He played three years in Denver and recorded five sacks before calling it a career one year later with the Phoenix Cardinals.

The harsh reality of the matter is this: If they drafted better up front they might have won more Super Bowls.

Denver has been crowned AFC Champions an amazing seven times. It also is so blatantly clear that they lacked the force up-front to stop some of the leagues best offenses on the leagues biggest stage.

The Broncos are 2-5 overall in the Super Bowl and have been outscored 206 to 58 in those five lopsided defeats.

The Denver Broncos have been really, really good. Stealing a line from Tony the Tiger, had their front office done a better job drafting defensive linemen they would have been “Grrrrreat!”