The NFL draft is an annual sports draft in which National Football League (NFL) teams select newly eligible players for their rosters. [1] [2] [3] To be eligible for the NFL draft, a player must be at least three years removed from high school. While the regulations do not explicitly require collegiate attendance, players must either exhaust their college eligibility or seek a special exemption from the league. [4] Each NFL franchise seeks to add new players through the draft as it is the league's most common source of player recruitment. [5] Each team is assigned a position in the drafting order based on the reverse of its record from the previous year. The team with the worst record selects first, followed by the team with the second-worst record, and so forth. Teams also have the option to trade with another team to move up to a better draft position. Teams that did not make the playoffs are ordered by their regular-season record, with any remaining ties broken by strength of schedule. Playoff participants are sequenced after non-playoff teams, based on their round of elimination (wild card, division, conference, and Super Bowl). [6] [7] [8]
From 1947 through 1958 the first selection was awarded by a random draw. The team which received this "bonus" pick forfeited its selection in the final round of the draft. The winner of the "bonus pick" was eliminated from the draw in future years. By 1958 all twelve clubs in the league at the time had received a bonus choice and the system was abolished. [9] [10]
Before the merger agreements in 1966, the American Football League (AFL) directly competed with the NFL and held a separate draft. This led to a massive bidding war over top prospects between the two leagues, along with the subsequent drafting of the same player in each draft. As part of the merger agreement on June 8, 1966, the two leagues held a multiple round "common draft". Once the AFL officially merged with the NFL in 1970, the "common draft" simply became the NFL draft. [11] [12] [13] The draft is one of the most notable events in American sports, with live broadcasts of it produced by ESPN, Fox and ABC. [14]
Through the 2024 NFL draft, 89 players have been selected first overall, with the first being Jay Berwanger and the most recent being Caleb Williams. The Indianapolis Colts and the Los Angeles Rams have each made the most first overall selections in history with seven. The Baltimore Ravens, the Seattle Seahawks, and the Denver Broncos have never selected a player first overall. [15] The University of Southern California is the college with the most selections with 6, followed by the University of Notre Dame, the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Georgia with 5. [16] Quarterbacks are most commonly selected position with 39, followed by running backs with 23. [17] Of the first overall draft picks, 43 have been selected to a Pro Bowl and 14 have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
K | Kicker | NT | Nose tackle | C | Center |
LB | Linebacker | FB | Fullback | DB | Defensive back |
P | Punter | HB | Halfback | DE | Defensive end |
QB | Quarterback | WR/E | Wide receiver/End | DT | Defensive tackle |
G | Guard | T | Offensive tackle | TE | Tight end |
* | Selected to a Pro Bowl/All-Star Game | ||||
‡ | Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (all were also selected to a Pro Bowl) | ||||
§ | Denotes an expansion team |
The Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Rams have each held the first overall pick a total of seven times, the most of any NFL team. This includes the Colts' time in Baltimore and the Rams' time in Cleveland and St. Louis. The Boston Yanks are the only defunct franchise to have held a first overall pick. [132] The Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks are the only teams that have never had the first overall pick. [133]
USC has the most first overall picks with 6. Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and Georgia are tied for second-most first overall picks with 5 each. Only two schools have had first overall picks in consecutive years: USC, with Ron Yary (1968) and O. J. Simpson (1969), and Oklahoma, with Baker Mayfield (2018) and Kyler Murray (2019). [163]
Position | Number of selections | Last year selected |
---|---|---|
Quarterbacks | 39 | 2024 |
Running backs | 23 | 1995 |
Defensive linemen | 15 | 2022 |
Offensive linemen | 7 | 2013 |
Wide receivers | 6 | 1996 |
Linebackers | 4 | 1988 |
Defensive backs | 1 | 1956 |
Matthew Rutledge Schaub is an American former professional football quarterback who played for 17 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers, and was selected by the Falcons in the third round with the 90th pick of the 2004 NFL draft.
Cedric Leonard Houston is an American former professional football running back of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the New York Jets in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL draft. He played college football at Tennessee.
Matthew Andrew Cavanaugh is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a quarterback, winning two Super Bowl titles. He played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers.
Antone Dominique Stevenson is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins. He played college football at the University of Tennessee and was selected by the Bills in the seventh round of the 2002 NFL draft.
Kris Durham is a former American football wide receiver. He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL draft. He played college football at Georgia. Durham played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Seahawks, Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, and in the Italian Football League (IFL) for the Parma Panthers.
Javier E. Arenas is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). Arenas played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, earned consensus All-American honors, and was a member of a BCS National Championship team. He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round of the 2010 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, New York Jets, and Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL), and the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Daniel Ellis Williams is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. He has also played for the Oakland Raiders.
Joshua Antron Chapman is an American former professional football nose tackle. He attended the University of Alabama and was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL draft. Chapman served as the backup to All-American Terrence Cody during the 2008 and 2009 seasons, and was regarded as one of the better nose guard prospects in his class.
Stevan Todd Ridley is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers and was selected by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 2011 NFL draft. Ridley was also a member of the New York Jets, Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers. With the Patriots, he won Super Bowl XLIX.
Bacarri Jamon Rambo is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, earning first-team All-American honors in 2011. He was selected by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL draft.
Quinton Arnaz Dial is a former American football nose tackle. He played college football in Alabama, and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL draft. He also played for the Green Bay Packers.
Kevin Norwood is a former American football wide receiver. He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft. He played college football at Alabama.
Larry Seivers is an American former football player who was a wide receiver for the Tennessee Volunteers. He was a consensus All-American in 1975 and 1976. He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) in the fourth round of the 1977 NFL draft.
Mirko Jurkovic was an American football offensive guard who played college football at the University of Notre Dame and attended Thornton Fractional North High School in Calumet City, Illinois. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the ninth round of the 1992 NFL draft.
Derek John Watt is an American former professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers, and was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL draft. He also played for the Pittsburgh Steelers. His older brother is J. J. Watt, and his younger brother is Steelers linebacker T. J. Watt.
Lorenzo Lemuel Carter is an American professional football linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia, and was selected in the third round of the 2018 NFL draft by the New York Giants.
Ugochukwu Amadi is an American professional football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oregon and was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft. As a senior in 2018, he won the Lombardi Award.
Jack Jacob Camarda is an American professional football punter. He previously played college football at Georgia and was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Year in 2020 before being selected by the Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Teagan Quitoriano is an American professional football tight end for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oregon State.