When Joey Galloway and Thomas Jones were drafted, there were supposed to be numerous Pro Bowls in their future. Instead, there have been zero.
But when rosters were announced Wednesday, neither is headed to Hawaii. Again.
"The Pro Bowl process is not always mistake-free," Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden told the St. Petersburg Times. "If [Galloway] doesn't make it, hopefully they find guys who can say they have done what [he] has done for this team. Because he has been a force."
And much more productive than he was in his first 10 NFL seasons.
Galloway was supposed to be the franchise receiver for the Seattle Seahawks when he was taken with the eighth pick in the 1995 NFL draft. He experienced some individual success early in his career -- three 1,000-yard seasons during 1995-98 -- but Seattle never finished better than 8-8 during that stretch. The Seahawks' best season came in 1999 when they qualified for the playoffs, but Galloway missed half the campaign because of a contract dispute and was traded the following February.
A couple months later, Jones was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals, and there were similarly high expectations for him. Unfortunately, the results were even worse than what Galloway went through in Seattle.
Jones had the quickness and size to be a franchise running back, but the Cardinals have been a cursed franchise. First-rounders often turn into busts in the desert. Whether it's the empty seats at home games or the slow decision-making of the Cardinals' ownership, Jones followed in a long line of Cardinals first-round busts and was let go after three years.
But in 2005, Galloway and Jones have had "I told you so" years worthy of Pro Bowl consideration.
Galloway, at the age of 34, has burned defenses all season. He has 71 catches (one short of his career high in '97) for 1,152 yards (career high) and eight touchdowns. And some of his success is attributed to the rapport he's established with quarterback Chris Simms.
"Chris is one of my best friends on the team," Galloway said. "One of the best guys I got to work with in Seattle was Warren Moon, but I have been able to get a great relationship with Chris."
Thanks to Simms, life begins again for Galloway at 34.
Jones' best friend might be new Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner. At training camp, while Cedric Benson was holding out, it was clear to see Turner's zone-blocking scheme was what Jones has been waiting for the past six seasons. Turner's system isn't much different than Mike Shanahan's in Denver.
Blockers carve out running room on prescribed sections of the offensive line. The back makes a read, trying to make the best of three decisions of where to go. Good decision-making and speed are the key for the backs. It was clear in training camp that Jones had both.
After six years of waiting, Jones finally fulfilled his promise, and Benson still sits in waiting. Jones has rushed for 1,168 yards on 277 carries and has literally carried the Bears' offense on his back. He's been 36.8 percent of Chicago's offense, which has been led mostly by rookie Kyle Orton this season. Only Giants RB Tiki Barber's 39.5 percent tops Jones.
"Everyone knew we were going to run the ball," Turner said. "It's a tribute to him that he's done so well and a tribute to how hard he worked during the offseason."
In many ways, Jones and Galloway play similar roles for their teams. The Bucs and Bears are offenses in transition. To make playoff runs, the Bucs needed a great season from Galloway and the Bears needed even more from Jones, and it's ironic how they almost could have been teammates in Tampa, Fla.
Jones left Tampa via free agency after a 2003 season in which he showed renewed zip as a running back. Getting away from the Cardinals tends to do that. Sharing time in Tampa Bay with former Cardinals teammate Michael Pittman, Jones averaged 4.6 yards per carry and rushed for 627 yards in '03. The Bucs wanted him back, but the Bears paid more money in 2004, and Jones filled Priest Holmes' role in the Chiefs' style of offense used in Chicago last year. He rushed for 948 yards and caught 56 passes.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay acquired Galloway in a trade with the Cowboys in 2004, a move made by Bucs general manager Bruce Allen, who was Galloway's agent before going into front-office management. Allen always believed in Galloway, and for good reason. He's lightning fast and always in great shape. In a 40-yard timing once for Seattle, he made everyone feel as though their stopwatches were broken (he was clocked in 4.19 in the 40). Because he's used to running so fast, Galloway thought their watches were slow.
It felt like a 4.16 to him.
"Even though I've torn two ACLs, I can still run in the 4.1s," Galloway said. "My speed is still the same. Before, though, I never had to stretch much before I run. At 34, I may have to do a little stretching before doing a 40, but I can still run them."
And so can Jones.
Despite selecting Benson fourth in the draft, the Bears wanted to have Jones as the starter and the third-down pass-receiving back all year.
"I saw in mini-camp. He had good hands as a receiver," Turner said. "As a ball carrier, he has the feet, speed and reading ability you need to be good in a zone-blocking scheme. Plus, we saw [that] in a gap scheme he can ram it up in there."
When Benson, who played his college football at Texas, entered the NFL, he wasn't as fast as Jones (a Virginia man) -- and Jones has maintained his speed. Were it not for the injury to Rex Grossman that gave the starting quarterback job to Orton, Jones would have better numbers and would rank higher than fifth among NFC rushers.
"We try to watch his number of carries," Turner said. "We try to get him 24 to 27 carries instead of making him a 35-carry type. Had Rex run the offense all year, he would be more involved in the running game. We haven't run as many dump-off passes to backs as we would have. With Kyle, we've used more play-action and isolations to one or two receivers."
The Chicago stop has clearly worked out well for Jones. Last year, he accounted for 36 percent of the offense, once again second only to Barber. Turner brought in a scheme that makes Jones even better.
"Last year I led the team in rushing and receiving," Jones said. "Definitely, it wasn't a knock to me that they drafted a running back. I didn't take it personally. I'm the kind of guy who needs the ball 22 times a game. Last year I was getting it 20 to 25 carries. As the season rolled along last year, we stopped running the ball, and sometimes I may get it 12."
As it stands now, the Bears plan to bring Jones back with Benson next season. And Galloway has made himself invaluable to the Bucs this year and in the future.
Potential finally met up with the right opportunities for Galloway and Jones. It might not mean a Pro Bowl for either, but that doesn't diminish the great season each has had.
John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.