The 5 Best Baylor Bears in NFL History

Robert Griffin III won the 2011 Heisman Trophy after throwing for 4,293 yards and 37 touchdowns while adding 10 rushing touchdowns for Baylor. His speed and deep-ball accuracy were central features of a college career that helped transform the program. He then became the second overall selection in the 2012 draft, following a season whose passing and rushing production both stand out.

Griffin’s ranking is anchored in that exceptional individual peak and its significance for Baylor. His passing totals establish substantial quarterback production, while his rushing scores show an additional source of offensive value without changing his primary role. The Heisman recognition places those accomplishments in a national context. His college case is compelling on its own, with draft position serving as a brief epilogue.

Mike Singletary built a substantial Baylor résumé at middle linebacker, earning consensus All-American honors twice and twice receiving Southwest Conference Player of the Year recognition. He averaged 15 tackles per game, giving concrete scale to the hundreds of tackles he accumulated in Waco. His later Hall of Fame career with the Chicago Bears followed a college record already distinguished by production and repeated honors.

The repeated recognition is especially important to his Baylor ranking. It supports a sustained standard of play rather than an argument dependent on one exceptional season. His tackle output gives those awards a measurable foundation, while national and conference honors provide different levels of validation. Baylor’s contribution to his legacy is therefore substantial, not merely an introduction to his professional career.

Thomas Everett’s Baylor career reached a clear individual high point in 1986, when he won the Thorpe Award as the nation’s best defensive back. A ball-hawking safety, he brought a defensive identity to a résumé highlighted by national recognition. He later won two Super Bowls with Dallas, but his college award remains the central achievement when assessing what he contributed at Baylor.

Everett’s ranking rests on the strength of that recognized peak. The Thorpe honor measures his work against defensive backs nationally, giving his case significance beyond a school-level comparison. His ball-hawking reputation supplies qualitative context for the award without requiring unsupported statistical claims. For Baylor, he represents a safety whose college distinction stands independently of the team success he later experienced in the NFL.

Bryce Petty followed Robert Griffin III at Baylor and led the Bears to consecutive Big 12 championships in 2013 and 2014. He threw for more than 8,000 yards across those two seasons, pairing substantial passing production with repeated conference success. Those campaigns form the core of his college résumé and give his Baylor career an identity beyond simply succeeding a celebrated quarterback.

Petty’s ranking argument is strongest when the two title seasons are considered together. Repeating as conference champion adds weight that a single breakthrough cannot provide, and his passing output connects his individual contribution to those results. His case is therefore about sustained achievement across a concentrated stretch. Within Baylor’s history, that combination makes him a significant figure in the program’s continued success.

Corey Coleman’s standout Baylor season came in 2015, when he caught 20 touchdown passes and won the Biletnikoff Award. That combination gave the wide receiver both a substantial scoring total and a major individual honor. He subsequently became a first-round selection of the Browns, but the central college achievement is the season that brought his receiving work national recognition.

Coleman’s place in Baylor’s rankings is built most clearly on peak impact rather than supplied evidence of career-long accumulation. His touchdown production provides a concrete reason for the award and highlights the receiving contribution behind offensive success. He also brings a different positional perspective to a group rich in quarterbacks. The college argument begins with what he accomplished catching passes for Baylor, not his draft position.