Everybody remembers the drama heading into the 2005 NFL Draft. The San Francisco 49ers held the first overall pick and had a decision to make between local star Aaron Rodgers or Utah's Alex Smith as their quarterback of the future.
We all know how that worked out.
Smith had a number of good years in the Bay Area before being traded to Kansas City. Rodgers, of course, sat behind Brett Favre for a few years before eventually leading the Packers to the Super Bowl in 2011.
Though Green Bay fans will surely recall the image of Rodgers holding up the Lombardi Trophy whenever they think of him, those that follow the draft closely likely will remember the look on his face when he slid further and further down the draft board back in 2005. He sat and sat -- and sat some more -- as he watched team after team fail to call his name.
It was one of the most memorable and, for some, painful, waits in the green room of any draft. The 2014 NFL Draft features a record 30 players invited to New York City and that large number means at least a handful of prospects will find themselves sitting around the green room as long and longer than Rodgers did back in the day.
Who had better make sure they have hotel reservations for two days? Here are five players who could have the longest wait backstage before hearing their name called by the commissioner.
Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville
Jimmy Garoppolo, QB, Eastern Illinois
Cyrus Kouandjio, OT, Alabama
Jordan Matthews, WR, Vanderbilt
Cody Latimer, WR, Indiana
Follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter @BryanDFischer.
