The 2005 NFL draft, the 70th in league history, took place on April 23 and 24, 2005. The draft was held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City and was televised for the 26th consecutive year, with coverage on ESPN and ESPN2. It was the first to be held at the Javits Center, as Madison Square Garden had been utilized for drafts since 1995.
Joseph Paul Schmidt was an American professional football player and coach. He played as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions for 13 years from 1953 to 1965. He won two NFL championships with the Lions, and, between 1954 and 1963, he played in ten consecutive Pro Bowl games and was selected each year as a first-team All-Pro player. He was also voted by his fellow NFL players as the NFL's most valuable defensive player in 1960 and 1963, named to the NFL 1950s All-Decade Team, inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973 and chosen as a member of the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019.
Robert Sims is a former American football guard in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL draft. He played college football at Ohio State University.
Andrew Geza Farkas was an American football fullback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins and the Detroit Lions.
Calvin Johnson Jr. is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with the Detroit Lions. Nicknamed "Megatron" after the Transformers character of the same name, he is regarded as one of the greatest wide receivers of all time. He played college football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, winning the Fred Biletnikoff Award as a junior, and was selected by the Lions second overall in the 2007 NFL draft.
Thomas John Lang is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Eastern Michigan Eagles and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2009 NFL draft. Lang was a member of the Packers' Super Bowl XLV win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, and also played for the Detroit Lions.
The 2011 NFL draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, over three days: this year, the first round took place on Thursday, April 28, 2011; the second and third rounds took place on Friday, April 29; with the final four rounds on Saturday, April 30, 2011. The Carolina Panthers, who had the worst record for the 2010 NFL season at 2–14, had the right to the first selection in the draft, where they selected Auburn University quarterback Cam Newton, who was the 2010 Heisman Trophy winner. The 2011 draft is regarded as one of the most talented draft classes in NFL history, as 12 of the first 16 players have been selected to at least one Pro Bowl.
Nicholas Lachester Fairley is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Auburn University, where he was recognized as an All-American and was a member of a BCS National Championship team. Fairley was selected by the Detroit Lions in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft. He also played for the St. Louis Rams and the New Orleans Saints.
The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on May 8 through May 10, 2014. The draft started on May 8, 2014, at 8 pm EDT. The draft was moved from its traditional time frame in late April due to a scheduling conflict at Radio City Music Hall.
The 2015 NFL draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. This was the first NFL draft held outside New York City in fifty years. The 2015 NFL draft was the first to feature a companion outdoor fair, where fans would be able to see the Commissioner during the selection on the Auditorium Theatre stage from across the street in the park; this area was called Draft Town. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers held the right to select first because they had the league's worst record in the previous season. The Arizona Cardinals made the final pick in the draft, commonly called Mr. Irrelevant.
Frank Ragnow is an American professional football center for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks, and was selected by the Lions in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft.
The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The draft concluded with rounds 4–7 on April 25. The NFL originally planned to hold the event live in Paradise, Nevada, before all public events related to it were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, all team selections took place via videoconferencing with league commissioner Roger Goodell broadcasting picks from his home.
Jermar Jefferson is an American professional football running back for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oregon State and was drafted by the Lions in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL draft.
Thomas James Hockenson is an American professional football tight end for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected in the first round of the 2019 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes, where he earned the John Mackey Award, as the nation's top tight end in college football.
William Jamahl Harris is an American professional football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Boston College, and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2019 NFL draft.
Jeffrey Chidera Okudah is an American professional football cornerback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State, where he was a unanimous All-American in 2019 before being selected by the Detroit Lions third overall in the 2020 NFL draft.
Penei Sewell is an American Samoan professional football offensive tackle for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oregon Ducks, where he won the Outland and Morris trophies in 2019.
Aidan Joseph Bernardi Hutchinson is an American professional football defensive end for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). Hutchinson was a unanimous All-American for the Michigan Wolverines, and the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 2021. He was selected with the second overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions, and named to the All-Rookie Team in 2022. Hutchinson was voted to his first Pro Bowl in 2023.
Ifeatu Christian-David Melifonwu is an American professional football safety for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Syracuse and was drafted by the Lions in the third round of the 2021 NFL draft.
