There are seasons where a generational NFL prospect sits at No. 1, and the gap between first and second feels astronomical. The 1998 NFL Draft was not that year.
There could be no going wrong with the first pick in that season's draft at quarterback. Either Tennessee's Peyton Manning was going to go No. 1 overall, or Washington State's Ryan Leaf would be the pick. The Colts would have their choice. The Chargers would have the next-best.
Indianapolis, of course, went with Manning, and the Volunteer quarterback wound up having a Hall of Fame career with four MVPs and a Super Bowl ring with the Colts — one more of each in Denver — while setting numerous records.
Leaf, who went to the Chargers, did not enjoy the same level of success. His rookie season was a disaster — two touchdowns and 15 interceptions in nine starts (10 games total) — and the rest of his career wasn't much better. Leaf reportedly had behavioral issues that marred his relationships with not only the press and public, but teammates as well. He made the decision to retire from the sport before the 2002 season, and has since been considered arguably the biggest draft bust of all time.
The former second overall pick later had a number of legal issues, largely stemming from drug addictions. He has since become open to sharing his story and become an advocate for mental and behavioral health. Leaf is also a program ambassador for Transcend Recovery Community and the CEO and President of RAM Consultant, Inc, according to his website.
Here's a look back at Leaf's story, and how he went from bust to a prison sentence to a speaker and analyst.
MORE: Biggest busts in NFL Draft history
Why did Ryan Leaf go to prison?
When Leaf's NFL career came to an end, he returned to Montana and quickly developed a substance addiction. He said in an appearance on "Ellen" that he began taking Vicodin when he was 28 years old, and dealt with an off-and-on addiction until he was 35.
"I didn’t know who I was. The identity was I was this football player, a, and now was this failed football player, b, and I couldn’t rationalize that or justify that in any way," Leaf said on the show. "I had been introduced to Vicodin while playing because of all my orthopedic surgeries and I used to mask those physical pains and now I was taken them to mask the emotional ones of not being able to live up to those expectations, the depression, all the things that come with mental illness and I just started medicating."
Leaf explained that he initially went to doctors to get the pills, but eventually resorted to stealing painkillers from the homes of friends or from open houses on Sundays.
He had a number of legal issues start to pop up in the late 2000s. The Associated Press reported he was accused of giving incomplete medical histories in January 2008 and September 2008 trying to get Hydrocodone, and in October 2008, he was accused of trying to force entry to an apartment of an injured football player to steal Hydrocondone.
Leaf pleaded guilty to eight felony drug charges in Texas in April 2010, per the AP, and was sentenced with 10 years of probation. The charge he faced for the October 2008 incident was dropped with his plea bargain.
"You just don't ever realize it until it becomes a psychological thing that takes hold of you," Leaf said, per the AP. "It's such an issue in this country and people don't understand it. If I have to be the one to put a face on it I am more than happy to do it. I'll do whatever I can."
In March and again in April 2012, Leaf was arrested after it was found that he had twice broken into homes and stolen medications. On May 12, 2012, the Associated Press reported he pleaded guilty to charges of breaking into a home and illegally possessing painkillers, and he was sentenced to seven years in custody of the Montana Department of Corrections, which would begin with nine months in a drug treatment facility. Two years of the sentence would be suspended if he abided by certain conditions.
However, Leaf would eventually be moved to the Montana State Prison in January 2013 for "unspecified behavioral problems" and making threats to a member of the staff, according to the NFL.
"The Montana Department of Corrections terminated Leaf from the treatment program and placed him in prison after he was found guilty of behavior that violated conditions of his drug treatment program. The violations included threatening a program staff member," Great Falls regional probation and parole administrator Dawn Handa said in a statement, per the NFL.
It was reported in September 2014 that Leaf violated the terms of his probation and had been sentenced to five years in Texas, but that a state prosecutor said his time served in Montana would count for the Texas sentence. On Dec. 4, 2014, USA Today reported Leaf had been released from prison in Montana.
Ryan Leaf arrested
Leaf had been arrested several times between 2009 and 2012 for drug and burglary related charges, but he was also later arrested in 2020 on misdemeanor domestic battery charges.
TMZ Sports reported Leaf's arrest on May 22, 2020, was over a "minor dispute," per his lawyer David Greenberg, and that it had nothing to do with any substance abuse issues.
"This was a couple that had a small minor dispute and it's unfortunate that it ended up in the criminal justice system," Greenberg said.
Leaf pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor violating the personal liberty of the accuser, per TMZ Sports, and was sentenced to four days in jail. However, he was also credited with two days time served and two days credit, which meant he did not need to serve any time in jail.
MORE: Each team's worst NFL Draft regret
Where is Ryan Leaf now?
Leaf now is quite busy with a number of engagements in 2023. He is the CEO and President of RAM Consultat Inc., a program ambassador for Transcend Recovery Community, joins various networks as an analyst and is on several podcasts, including PointsBet's "The Straight Line" and "Bust | The Ryan Leaf Story."
During an interview with Fox Sports' Jay Glazer, Leaf talked about the importance of his work with the Transcend Recovery Community.
“It’s like a big brother thing. You’re just trying to help somebody along who’s going through a difficult time. And you understand that because you went through the same difficult time," Leaf said during the interview.
Ryan Leaf NFL Draft
Hindsight being 20/20, the decision in 1998 by the Colts to draft Manning seems obvious. At the time, however, it was anything but.
Teams and analysts alike went back-and-forth on which quarterback appeared to be the one best suited to guide a franchise. On April 12, 1998, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram posted a comparison of the two QBs, with comments from various coaches and executives about the two.
"I'd be surprised if both didn't do well, but you say that and you never know — look what happened to us with Rick Mirer," Seahawks assistant player personnel director Rich Thompson said. "You assume Peyton and Ryan will be well-coached and that they will be able to mentally handle what could be a rocky first few years. But picking a quarterback is one of the hardest things to do. Who knows who will turn out to be the best."
The paper wound up giving a slight score edge to Manning overall, with Manning earning better scores for leadership/mental toughness and football acumen, Leaf earning the mark for mobility and the two breaking even on arm strength/control.
The Chargers, who had the third overall pick in the draft, were unable to swing a deal to move up to No. 1 with the Colts, so they instead opted to trade with the Cardinals to select second. That deal sent a pair of first-round picks, a second-round pick, Eric Metcalf and Patrick Sapp to the Cardinals. Here's a look at how those picks turned out for Arizona:
- 1998, No. 3: Andre Wadsworth, EDGE
- 1998, No. 33: Corey Chavous, S
- 1999, No. 8: David Boston, WR
Wadsworth played in only three years in the NFL before injuries wrecked his career; Chavous didn't break out until his second team when he was with Minnesota, where he earned his first Pro Bowl nod; Boston earned a Pro Bowl and posted two 1,000-yard seasons with the Cardinals — including leading the league in receiving yards with 1,598 in 2001 — before leaving to play with the Chargers. Metcalf started only four more games the rest of his career and Sapp started only six.
Ryan Leaf college stats
Leaf's 1997 campaign at Washington State is what earned him all the acclaim that led to him nearly being selected first overall. He finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting and earned the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year honors.
Here's a look at his stats during his collegiate career:
| Year | Cmp-Att (Cmp%) | Yds | TDs | Ints |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 52-97 (53.6%) | 654 | 4 | 1 |
| 1996 | 194-373 (52%) | 2,811 | 21 | 12 |
| 1997 | 227-410 (55.4%) | 3,968 | 34 | 11 |
Ryan Leaf career earnings
During his four-year NFL career, Leaf made a fair amount of money, particularly stemming from being signed as the No. 2 overall pick. According to Spotrac, he made $11.45 million in 1998, $250,000 in 1999, $858,000 in 2000 and $418,000 in 2001 for a total of $12,976,000.
Leaf has likely lost a good deal of that during the years since his retirement between his legal battles and his 2003 divorce. However, now with roles as a keynote speaker, analyst and podcaster, it's also likely that he's made a good living since being released from jail in 2014.