While some players turn outstanding seasons into lengthy and impressive careers, others simply fade into obscurity. Here are notable one-hit wonders for each NFC South team.
Atlanta Falcons: Erric Pegram, running back
In his breakout 1993 season, the sixth-round pick rushed for 1,185 yards and three touchdowns. But he only played one more year for the Falcons before leaving for Pittsburgh in free agency in 1995 and never again came close to 1,000 yards rushing.
Pegram was the Steelers leading rusher when they reached Super Bowl XXX at the end of the 1995 season. He played two more seasons, ending his career with the Giants in 1997.
Carolina Panthers: Rocket Ismail, wide receiver
After three middling seasons with the Raiders, Ismail — a former Notre Dame star — got off to a quiet start in Carolina with 48 receptions, 633 yards and two touchdowns combined in 1996 and 1997. He blew past those numbers with ease in his third season with the Panthers (69 receptions, 1,024 yards, career-high eight TDs).
Then … poof!
Instead of building on his strong season in Carolina, Ismail left in free agency for Dallas on a seven-year, $21.5M contract. He recorded 1,097 receiving yards in his first year with the Cowboys but was released after three seasons, falling well short of living up to his contract.
New Orleans Saints: Junior Galette, outside linebacker
During his first three seasons in New Orleans (2010-12), Galette played in 32 games (two starts) and had 9.5 sacks. He turned the corner in 2013 (12 sacks), playing in every game that season and the next. But cracks began to show after Galette was named team captain in 2014, per ESPN’s Mike Triplett.
He rubbed veteran teammates the wrong way when he asserted that the team’s 2014 defense was better than the one that won Super Bowl XLIV (it wasn’t), got into a fight with a teammate and — worst of all — a video surfaced in July 2015 of Galette striking a woman with a belt in 2013.
The Saints released him during the 2015 offseason, one year into a four-year, $41.5M contract extension he signed in September 2014.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Shaun King, quarterback
During his rookie season in Tampa Bay, King went 4-1 after replacing injured starter Trent Dilfer and led the Bucs to the NFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history. Tampa Bay made a major investment in King during the 2000 offseason by trading two first-round picks for star wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, but the move didn’t help King take his game to the next level.
Sure, Tampa Bay went 10-6 with King as the full-time starter, but he took a step back by completing just 54.4% of his attempts for 2,769 yards after completing 61% of his passes as a rookie. The Bucs signed Brad Johnson in free agency in 2001 and King only started one more game for the franchise.
Johnson, meanwhile, led the Bucs to their first Super Bowl victory the next season.
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