Auburn’s NFL Draft: 8 outsiders beat the high-number odds.

The Auburn players who have been picked with the 258th selection or later of an NFL Draft include:

No. 258 pick: Clayton Beauford, wide receiver, Detroit Lions, 1985.

Beauford sustained a knee injury in the Senior Bowl and didn’t reach the NFL until 1987. He played in one game for the Cleveland Browns and returned a kickoff 22 yards in a 20-10 victory over the New England Patriots on Oct. 4, 1987.

No. 260 pick: Bill Turnbeaugh, tackle, Green Bay Packers, 1953.

Early in his career at Auburn, Turnbeaugh was billed as “Blind Bill,” who “played by ground vibrations.” While legally blind, Turnbeaugh wore an early version of contact lenses.

No. 261 pick: Steve Taylor, center, Houston Oilers, 1974.

No. 262 picks: Cleve Wester, tackle, New York Giants, 1958; James Owens, running back, Los Angeles Rams, 1973.

Wester played in Canada for the Toronto Argonauts in 1959.

The first African American player at Auburn, Owens did not stick in the NFL after having knee surgery following his senior season with the Tigers. He later became an assistant coach at Auburn and the head coach at Miles College.

No. 264 pick: David King, defensive back, San Diego Chargers, 1985.

King played in one game with San Diego in 1985 and three with the Green Bay Packers in 1987.

No. 266 pick: Jim Thompson, tackle, Indianapolis Colts, 1989.

A prep standout at Enterprise, Thompson became a county commissioner in Coffee County.

No. 267 pick: Danny Sanspree, defensive end, St. Louis Cardinals, 1973.

A prep standout at Escambia County High School, Sanspree is a member of the Atmore Area Hall of Fame.

No. 268 pick: Mailon Kent, back, Minnesota Vikings, 1963.

No. 270 pick: Harold Hallman, linebacker, San Francisco 49ers, 1986.

Hallman played nine seasons in the Canadian Football League, including for the Toronto Argonauts’ Grey Cup championship team in 1991. He was the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie and won the Jackie Parker Trophy as the West Division’s best rookie in 1986. Hallman made the All-CFL team four times and recorded 82 sacks in his career.

No. 273 pick: Eric Ramsey, defensive back, Kansas City Chiefs, 1991.

No. 274 pick: Joe Baughan, tackle, Washington Redskins, 1963.

Baughan played for the Gadsden Raiders of the Southern Football League in 1964.

No. 276 pick: Carlo Cheattom, defensive back, Buffalo Bills, 1989.

Cheattom played for the San Antonio Riders of the World League of American Football in 1991.

No. 278 pick: Bob Meeks, center, Denver Broncos, 1992.

After playing eight games with Denver in 1993, Meeks played in the Canadian Football League for the Baltimore Stallions in 1995 and the World League of American Football for the Barcelona Dragons in 1996.

No. 281 pick: Dick Plagge, running back, Buffalo Bills, 1968.

No. 286 pick: Bill Braswell, guard, Kansas City Chiefs, 1967.

No. 289 pick: Mike Kolen, linebacker, Miami Dolphins, 1970.

No Auburn player drafted deeper than Kolen has become a regular starter in the NFL. The former Berry High School standout was an immediate starter for Miami and earned two Super Bowl rings as the Dolphins’ right linebacker before an injury ended his career after seven seasons. Kolen played in 84 regular-season and 11 playoff games and started 88 of them.

No. 290 pick: Jim Jeffrey, tackle, Chicago Cardinals, 1959.

Jeffrey compiled a 113-4-2 record as the wrestling coach at Vestavia Hills High School.

No. 294 pick: John Hudson, guard, Philadelphia Eagles, 1990.

Hudson never started a game in his NFL career, but he played in 139 of them. No Auburn player drafted deeper than Hudson can match his longevity in the pros. Hudson played 10 seasons with Philadelphia, the New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens, getting most of his action as a long snapper.

No. 297 pick: Claude Matthews, guard, Houston Oilers, 1981.

Mathews played for the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1982 and 1983.

No. 301 pick: Jim Cook, back, Detroit Lions, 1958.

No. 304 picks: Chester Willis, running back, Oakland Raiders, 1981; Dowe Aughtman, defensive tackle, Dallas Cowboys, 1984.

Willis played in 52 regular-season and five playoff games for the Raiders – in 1981 in Oakland and in 1982 through 1984 in Los Angeles. He ran for 73 yards and one touchdown on 32 carries and caught one pass for 24 yards in the regular season. In the Raiders’ 38-9 victory over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII, Willis had a 7-yard run. Willis scored his touchdown on a 15-yard run in a 33-17 victory over the Miami Dolphins on Nov. 15, 1981.

Aughtman played in seven games for Dallas in 1984 after being switched from the defensive line to guard. A training-camp injury caused him to miss the 1985 season, and the Cowboys let hi