The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and the highest professional level of American football in the world. Each NFL season begins annually with a three-week preseason in August, followed by the 18-week regular season, which runs from early September to early January, with each team playing 17 games and having one bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, seven teams from each conference, including four division winners and three wild card teams, advance to the playoffs, a single-elimination tournament, which culminates in the Super Bowl, played in early February between the winners of the AFC and NFC championship games.
The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order relative to its record in the previous year, which means that the last place team is positioned first and the Super Bowl champion is last. From this position, the team can either select a player or trade its position to another team for other draft positions, a player or players, or any combination thereof. The round is complete when each team has either selected a player or traded its position in the draft. The first draft was held in 1936 and has been held every year since.
Willie Jerome Brown III was an American football defensive tackle who played for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played his entire five-year NFL career with the Eagles from 1987 to 1991, before his death just before the 1992 season. He was selected to two Pro Bowls in 1990 and 1991. He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes.
Christopher John Doleman was an American football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL). He spent the majority of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, and also played for the Atlanta Falcons and the San Francisco 49ers. Doleman was an eight-time Pro Bowl selection and a twice first-team All-Pro, recording 150.5 career sacks. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2012.
Aundray Bruce is an American former professional football player who was an outside linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). As a college football player, he played defensive end for the Auburn Tigers before the Atlanta Falcons selected him with the first overall pick in the 1988 NFL draft. He played in the NFL for the Falcons and Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders.
The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). This season featured games predominantly played by replacement players, as the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) players were on strike from weeks four to six with week three being cancelled in its entirety. This remains the last NFL season in which regular-season games were impacted by a labor conflict.
Frank Mitchell Winters is an American former professional football player who was a center in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Green Bay Packers. He played college football for the Western Illinois Leathernecks.
Harry Vonray Swayne is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Swayne was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the seventh round of the 1987 NFL draft. He is one of the few players to have started a Super Bowl with three teams: Super Bowl XXIX with the San Diego Chargers, Super Bowl XXXIII with the Denver Broncos and Super Bowl XXXV with the Ravens.
Hardy Otto Nickerson Sr. is an American former football player and coach. He played professionally as a linebacker for four teams over 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) from 1987 to 2002,. He played college football for the California Golden Bears. He was a fifth round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1987 NFL draft. Nickerson spent the prime of his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The hiring of head coaches Sam Wyche and Tony Dungy allowed Nickerson to play in the middle in a 4–3 defense for both coaches; Nickerson played in a 3–4 defense with the Steelers. While playing in the 4–3, Nickerson went to five Pro Bowls, and was selected for the National Football League 1990s All-Decade Team.
The 1970 NFL draft was the 35th National Football League Draft and the first of the league's modern era, following the merger of the National Football League with the American Football League. It was held on January 27–28, 1970, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York.
Edward Lamar Simmons is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 11-year career as an offensive tackle for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1987 to 1997. He played college football for the Eastern Washington Eagles and was selected in the sixth round of the 1987 NFL draft.
Barry Todd Wilburn is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the Ole Miss Rebels and was selected by the Washington Redskins in the eighth round of the 1985 NFL draft. Wilburn played in eight NFL seasons from 1985 to 1996 and in two CFL seasons for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the British Columbia Lions. He played in one final season in 1999 for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before retiring.
Robert James Clark is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the New Orleans Saints (1987–1988), Detroit Lions (1989–1991), Miami Dolphins (1992), and the Baltimore Stallions (1994–1995) of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was selected by the Saints in the tenth round of the 1987 NFL draft.
Roger Hamilton Vick is an American former professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles from 1987 to 1990. He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies. He also played on the Orlando Thunder in the World League.
Mark Francis Dennis is a former American football offensive tackle who played ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Miami Dolphins, the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Carolina Panthers. He was drafted in the eighth round of the 1987 NFL Draft by the Dolphins.
Dennis Earl Woodberry is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League for the Atlanta Falcons and the Washington Redskins and in the United States Football League for the Birmingham Stallions. Woodberry played college football at Southern Arkansas University.
The 1987 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 38th season in the National Football League and their 42nd overall. The 49ers won the division for the second consecutive season, ended the season as the top seed in the NFC and were heavily favored to represent the conference in the Super Bowl. The season ended with an upset loss to the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional round of the playoffs.
William Alexander Johnson is a former professional Canadian football defensive lineman who played nine seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL), mainly for the Calgary Stampeders. Johnson was a five-time All-Star and won a Grey Cup with Calgary in 1992. He started his career in the NFL, playing for the Chicago Bears in 1987, where he was a linebacker. He was selected by the Bears in the fifth round of the 1987 NFL draft.
Jeffrey Bryan Bregel is an American former professional football player who was a guard for three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) during the late 1980s.
