5 Heisman winners who lived up to the sky-high expectations in the NFL
Winning the Heisman Trophy is the pinnacle of college football. Those who do so are often earmarked for higher success.
But very few players can keep up the success of the Heisman Trophy in their professional years. In fact, there have been many notable failures; it is easier to count the number of successes instead.
There have only been nine Heisman Trophy winners who then went on to win the NFL MVP award, the latest being Lamar Jackson. But even among them, players such as Cam Newton cannot necessarily be called unqualified successes.
Then there were others who were Super Bowl MVPs, such as Jim Plunkett, who did not show the consistency needed to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
It is very difficult to weed out Heisman winners who did live up to their expectations. We will look at five such players who can definitely be considered in that category.
5 Heisman winners who reached the zenith of the NFL
#5 - Paul Hornung, RB
To classify Paul Hornung as just a running back is to do a disservice to the variety of positions he could play on the football field, including quarterback, halfback and placekicker. Legendary coach Vince Lombardi called him the best player he had ever coached.
1956 Heisman Trophy
1957 first overall pick
4x NFL champion
3x All-Pro
1961 NFL MVP
Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 1986
Paul Hornung died today at the age of 84 https://t.co/vilZrL4WUU
Paul Hornung won the Heisman Trophy in 1956. He was drafted first overall in 1957, becoming the first Heisman Trophy winner to bag that award.
He made it to the Pro Bowl in 1959 and 1960, and in 1961 he was named the NFL MVP. He won four NFL Championships with the Green Bay Packers and won the first Super Bowl with them as well.
He ended his career with 50 rushing touchdowns and 12 receiving touchdowns and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986.
#4 - Roger Staubach, QB
Roger Staubach is a legend in so many different ways. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1963, but instead of going directly to the NFL after being drafted in 1964, he served in the U.S. Navy until 1969.
He joined the Dallas Cowboys in 1969 and led them to five Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl VI and XII and being named Super Bowl MVP in the former.
#OTD in 1963, Navy QB Roger Staubach was announced as the Heisman Trophy winner. He would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame after a stellar career with the Dallas Cowboys. Earlier this month, Staubach was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Donald Trump https://t.co/l5xrXixB4Z
He made it to six Pro Bowls in his 11-year career and was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2018.
He finished his career with 22,700 passing yards and 153 touchdowns.