The Data

Most-Drafted Players

What 300 real all-time rosters say about who football fans actually pick.

Everybody argues about the greatest of all time. Almost nobody checks what people do when they have to pick one.

So we looked. These are the 300 highest-scoring all-time rosters built in 17-0 — the free game where you draft one legend at every position and sim whether your team can go a perfect 17-0 season. 106 of them actually did.

Players draft Peyton Manning more than anyone else — but the rosters that actually go 17-0 are Tom Brady's. He starts 18.9% of perfect seasons versus 14.7% of rosters overall.

Across the eight positions, players drafted 372 different legends — so this is not everyone converging on the same nine names. The disagreement is the interesting part.

Settle it yourself

Nine picks, offense to defense. Does your all-time team go 17-0?

🏈 Play 17-0 free

Quarterback

33 different quarterbacks were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common quarterback is Tom Brady (18.9%). See the full quarterback ranking →

Running Back

35 different running backs were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common running back is Walter Payton (21.7%). See the full running back ranking →

Wide Receiver

75 different wide receivers were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common wide receiver is Jerry Rice (20.8%). See the full wide receiver ranking →

Tight End

57 different tight ends were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common tight end is Tony Gonzalez (16.0%). See the full tight end ranking →

Offensive Line

47 different offensive lines were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common offensive line is Anthony Munoz (8.5%). See the full offensive line ranking →

Defensive Line

43 different defensive lines were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common defensive line is Reggie White (16.0%). See the full defensive line ranking →

Linebacker

45 different linebackers were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common linebacker is Lawrence Taylor (11.3%). See the full linebacker ranking →

Defensive Back

37 different defensive backs were drafted · % of the 300 rosters that used each one

On rosters that went a perfect 17-0, the most common defensive back is Deion Sanders (13.2%). See the full defensive back ranking →

How we counted

Methodology

Every percentage is drawn from the 300 rosters currently on the 17-0 all-time leaderboard — the highest-scoring teams players have submitted, out of 6,211 seasons simulated to date. It is a leaderboard, so it skews toward rosters that did well; that is exactly what makes the "perfect 17-0" splits meaningful — they compare the 106 rosters that ran the table against the rest of the field.

Names are the players as rated in 17-0. Numbers move as the leaderboard turns over — this page is regenerated from live data.

Draft your all-time team

One legend at every position. See if it goes 17-0.

🏈 Play 17-0 free

All-time rankings

Best players at every position
Best QuarterbacksBest Running BacksBest Wide ReceiversBest Tight EndsBest Offensive LinemenBest Defensive LinemenBest LinebackersBest Defensive Backs