![Cover-Bo-Jackson--Joe-McNally]()
Anyone that knows the story of Bo Jackson’s physical prowess understands he was a once-in-a-generation athlete. But we’re going to learn about how his decisions affected the team’s he didn’t play for.
He was a Heisman winner at Auburn, and the NFL’s No. 1 overall draft pick the following season. And he became a Pro Bowl running back, while also earning MVP honors in MLB’s All-Star Game before a hip injury ended his careers.
Without a doubt, Bo Jackson affected the success of his team every time he put on a jersey – no matter what sport it was in!
But what many people might not know is how Bo Jackson’s decisions throughout his way-too-short sports career resonated throughout both the Major League Baseball and National Football League.
7 Teams Whose Fate Changed Because of Bo Jackson’s Decisions
Follow along as we track “The Bo-tterfly Effect,” wondering “What if?” with Bo Jackson’s many important decisions in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
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In June of 1982, the Yankees selected Bo Jackson in the second round of the amateur draft – as a shortstop. Can you imagine if he signed with the Bronx Bombers, rather than go to Auburn University?
Let’s just guess he’d make the majors within five years, which means he’d play on the same team with Don Mattingly, possibly helping him get to the World Series during the Yankees’ worst decade ever.
Photo Credit: Focus On Sport, Getty Images
![]()
“What if” Jackson skipped his senior year at Auburn, and chose to sign with the Angels, who drafted him in the 20th round of the 1985 MLB Draft?
Bo was a beast of a slugger in college, so he could’ve been a late call-up that next September, when the Angels faced the Red Sox in the 1986 American League Championship Series. Would Bo’s bat have helped the Angels reach the World Series, as they were just one strike away from going without him?
Closer Donnie Moore served up a home run to Dave Henderson, and the Red Sox went on to lose to the Mets in the World Series. Moore, though, would end up taking his own life because of depression just three summers later.
Jackson would later sign with the Angels in 1994, his final season as a professional athlete.
Photo Credit: Stephen Dunn, Getty Images
![]()
“What if” Jackson didn’t hate Hugh Culverhouse and the Buccaneers, and he ended up signing to play football for them after they chose him with the first overall pick of the 1986 NFL Draft?
The Bucs were deplorable in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, so it’s tough to imagine Bo making too much of a difference for them. But it’s possible they would’ve been better than the worst team all over again, keeping them from drafting Vinny Testaverde first, and maybe they end up drafting LB Cornelius Bennett, FS Rod Woodson or even QB Chris Miller.
Photo Credit: Joe McNally, Getty Images
![]()
The Royals, and all of the other MLB teams, figured Jackson would still end up signing with the Bucs when the 1986 MLB Draft rolled around in June – one year after winning the World Series. So they passed on him three times.
Then Kansas City finally pulled the trigger on Jackson in the fourth round, and he would end up playing five seasons for them from 1986-90. Unfortunately, they never finished higher than second in their division, even with Jackson roaming center field for them, but his presence gave them a post-George Brett identity.
Had Jackson decided to play for the Bucs, rather than the Royals, this franchise would have gone into the basement much earlier.
Photo Credit: Brad Mangin, Getty Images
![]()
“What if” Bo decided to play for the Buccaneers, and the Raiders were forced to just stick with future NFL Hall of Famer Marcus Allen at tailback, rather than share time in the backfield with Bo once baseball season ended?
It’s doubtful much would’ve changed for the Raiders, although, Al Davis’ unreasonable hatred toward Allen might have been a forced issue much earlier than the early ‘90s.
Photo Credit: George Rose, Getty Images
![]()
The Raiders took Jackson in the seventh round of the 1987 NFL Draft. What if any of the other non-Buccaneers teams drafted Bo Jackson in the first six rounds of the ’87 draft?
How about the Broncos? Would they still have lost two of the next three Super Bowls between 1987 and 1989?
Photo Credit: Rick Stewart, Getty Images
![]()
What if Bo Jackson doesn’t push his own hip back into its socket like he claimed he did after he suffered the injury against the Bengals in a playoff game during the 1990 NFL season? He might not have damaged the blood vessels supplying blood to the area, and maybe his injury could have been rehabbed better.
After leaving the NFL, and getting cut by the Royals, Bo chose to sign with the White Sox in 1991. Would they have made the playoffs in 1993 without his 16 HR in 85 games?
Photo Credit: Focus On Sport, Getty Images
In June of 1982, the Yankees selected Bo Jackson in the second round of the amateur draft – as a shortstop. Can you imagine if he signed with the Bronx Bombers, rather than go to Auburn University?
Let’s just guess he’d make the majors within five years, which means he’d play on the same team with Don Mattingly, possibly helping him get to the World Series during the Yankees’ worst decade ever.
Photo Credit: Focus On Sport, Getty Images
“What if” Jackson skipped his senior year at Auburn, and chose to sign with the Angels, who drafted him in the 20th round of the 1985 MLB Draft?
Bo was a beast of a slugger in college, so he could’ve been a late call-up that next September, when the Angels faced the Red Sox in the 1986 American League Championship Series. Would Bo’s bat have helped the Angels reach the World Series, as they were just one strike away from going without him?
Closer Donnie Moore served up a home run to Dave Henderson, and the Red Sox went on to lose to the Mets in the World Series. Moore, though, would end up taking his own life because of depression just three summers later.
Jackson would later sign with the Angels in 1994, his final season as a professional athlete.
Photo Credit: Stephen Dunn, Getty Images
“What if” Jackson didn’t hate Hugh Culverhouse and the Buccaneers, and he ended up signing to play football for them after they chose him with the first overall pick of the 1986 NFL Draft?
The Bucs were deplorable in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, so it’s tough to imagine Bo making too much of a difference for them. But it’s possible they would’ve been better than the worst team all over again, keeping them from drafting Vinny Testaverde first, and maybe they end up drafting LB Cornelius Bennett, FS Rod Woodson or even QB Chris Miller.
Photo Credit: Joe McNally, Getty Images
The Royals, and all of the other MLB teams, figured Jackson would still end up signing with the Bucs when the 1986 MLB Draft rolled around in June – one year after winning the World Series. So they passed on him three times.
Then Kansas City finally pulled the trigger on Jackson in the fourth round, and he would end up playing five seasons for them from 1986-90. Unfortunately, they never finished higher than second in their division, even with Jackson roaming center field for them, but his presence gave them a post-George Brett identity.
Had Jackson decided to play for the Bucs, rather than the Royals, this franchise would have gone into the basement much earlier.
Photo Credit: Brad Mangin, Getty Images
“What if” Bo decided to play for the Buccaneers, and the Raiders were forced to just stick with future NFL Hall of Famer Marcus Allen at tailback, rather than share time in the backfield with Bo once baseball season ended?
It’s doubtful much would’ve changed for the Raiders, although, Al Davis’ unreasonable hatred toward Allen might have been a forced issue much earlier than the early ‘90s.
Photo Credit: George Rose, Getty Images
The Raiders took Jackson in the seventh round of the 1987 NFL Draft. What if any of the other non-Buccaneers teams drafted Bo Jackson in the first six rounds of the ’87 draft?
How about the Broncos? Would they still have lost two of the next three Super Bowls between 1987 and 1989?
Photo Credit: Rick Stewart, Getty Images
What if Bo Jackson doesn’t push his own hip back into its socket like he claimed he did after he suffered the injury against the Bengals in a playoff game during the 1990 NFL season? He might not have damaged the blood vessels supplying blood to the area, and maybe his injury could have been rehabbed better.
After leaving the NFL, and getting cut by the Royals, Bo chose to sign with the White Sox in 1991. Would they have made the playoffs in 1993 without his 16 HR in 85 games?
Photo Credit: Focus On Sport, Getty Images
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Photo Credit: Joe McNally, Getty Images
