History: NFL Draft Memories - Marv Levy

Shortly after his election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001, Marv Levy shared a draft story with Profootballhof.com.  In 2006, Levy returns to the Bills' "war room" as Buffalo's new General Manager/Football Operations.

Being drafted versus doing the drafting certainly supplies different kinds of pressure. Marv Levy handled that pressure from inside the Buffalo Bills' "war room" quite well. The team he led to an unprecedented four straight Super Bowls was built, in a large part, through the annual college draft. Hence, it comes as no surprise that two of the more memorable recollections of the Hall of Fame coach came in the late 1980s just prior to the Bills' Super Bowl run.

Marv Levy

In 1988, at the start of just his second full season as head coach of the Bills, Levy was faced with going into the draft without a first round pick, which had been traded away. "We badly needed a running back," Levy told Profootballhof.com. "Six running backs went off our board by the middle of the second round so we had to make a decision on a guy," he continued.

That guy happened to be Thurman Thomas, who was passed over by several teams because of an injury he suffered while at Oklahoma State. Levy and his personnel department carefully surveyed all their information that included a report that Thomas was healthy.

In what turned out to be a twist of fate for the Bills, they chose Thurman with the 13th pick of the second round and the 40th player overall. "Had we had a first-round choice," Levy said retrospectively, "we probably would have gone for someone else." Fortunate for the Bills, Thomas became the featured back of Levy's potent offense and shattered nearly every Bills' rushing record during his career in Buffalo.

Thurman Thomas

The following year, Levy found himself in disagreement with Norm Pollum, the Bills' national scout and former Director of Player Personnel. Pollum, for whom Marv had great respect, was urging him to take a defensive end. However, Levy questioned the player's character.

As the draft approached, Levy and Pollom engaged in a discussion that lasted five hours. Finally Pollom turned to Marv and stated, "If you take this guy, Marv, he'll end up in the Pro Bowl!"

The ever-quotable Levy responded, "I want a guy who'll end up in the Super Bowl."

And with that, the Bills selected Levy's choice of Penn State linebacker Shane Conlan, who as Marv told www.profootballhof.com, went on to play in three Super Bowls.

Running Backs Taken Before Thurman Thomas in 1988 Draft