Looking Back:
Draft Day
The old NFL drafts, which started in 1936, were not much more than, “Hey kid, we heard you were pretty good; do you want to play for us?” The first draft had a pool of only 90 players. The draft quickly evolved to, “Hey kid, we know you did well in high school/college (after talking to their coach) can we talk?” Later still, “Hey kid, we saw you play and Tom (a team employee) likes your chances, do you want to play for us?” Then (after scouting really got organized), “Hey kid, I am a scout for the Giants, we are interested in you, do you want to come to NY for a talk and physical?”
By 1963, teams had formed modern ‘scouting partnerships’. And now it is, “Hey kid, you have been thoroughly scouted, vetted, and evaluated. We checked, your eligibility, so we hope to see you at the scouting combine.” The combine pulled all the team’s scouting partnerships into one event. The early names of these scouting camps were National Invitational Camp (NIC), or the NFL Scouting Combine. The combine, as we know it today, was started in 1982. TV and the popularity of football have made it an event all by itself. The 2023 draft is being held in Kansas City at Union Station, April 27-29.
I love the fact that the first player ever drafted was Heisman winner, Jay Berwanger, and he never played in the NFL. Because pro football, in 1936, was not paying big bucks and was not that well thought of, Berwanger passed on the chance. I am sure that does not happen a lot today. The NFL was very young (it started in 1920) and was learning how to scout and conduct a draft. The NFL ‘big bucks’ did not show up until the TV money kicked in.
The emergence of the AFL sped up the need for an organized and combined draft. The first televised NFL draft was in 1980 and was aired on ESPN. Pete Rozelle wasn’t sure it would draw any fans. He was wrong. The draft grew each year and in 2010 it went to a three-day event. It was in New York, but has been on the road since 2015. Again, it has landed in KC this year.
Note: There are different types of drafts. The most covered is the “entry” draft for newly eligible players. But, there are expansion drafts, supplement drafts, etc.
Currently, each of the 32 NFL clubs receives one pick in each of the seven rounds. The number of teams and rounds has changed over time. The order of selection is determined by the reverse order of finish in the previous season. Each round starts with the team that finished with the worst record and ends with the Super Bowl champions. Of course, trades can change that order. Teams that didn’t qualify for the playoffs are assigned draft slots 1-20. The club with the worst record will pick first, and the one with the best record will pick 20th. Teams that did qualify for the playoffs are assigned draft slots 21-32. The order is determined by the results of the previous year’s postseason play. The draft is so important to the serious NFL fan, that mock drafts are held just to see what might happen. Numerous sports talk shows will do nothing but talk “draft” for months, literally. “Do the Giants need a QB? Can the Chiefs finally replace Tyreek Hill?, etc.” It is a feeding frenzy.
The young athletes are put on display, their 40-yard times are established, and off they go to the draft. Many of the top first-round prospects will have camera crews in their homes to capture the family celebration when they get the call. Watching the draft, the die-hard fan may be delighted or appalled by each pick. Here in Chiefs Kingdom: “Do we need a backup QB?” I think you know the answer to that. Get ready... the Chiefs will be on the clock on April 27, and they get the 31st pick in the first round. I bet they will pick _________. I bet I am right.
My favorite part of the Draft is “Looking Back”. How did the past draft picks turn out? Some first-round picks do great, such as Payton Manning and Patrick Mahomes. Some do not, like Todd Blackledge. He was picked #7 by the Chiefs in 1983.There have been many #1 picks flame out, such as Tony Mandarich. In 1989 he was picked ahead of Derrick Thomas and Deion Sanders. Surprising, right? How about Johnny ‘Football’ Manziel? Fun to note that Travis Kelce was picked in the third round, 63rd overall. I really love it when a non-drafted player proves the experts wrong, such as, Kurt Warner, Tony Romo, Wes Welker and Adam Vinatieri.
For most of us, we really pull for the 7th-round guy like Tom Brady - 198 players were picked before him. We like to find out that the QB picked ahead of Mahomes (Mitchell Trubisky) has only had moderate success. Maybe the biggest draft blunder was the Chargers drafting Ryan Leaf in 1998. He was picked #2 but flamed out quickly. Even after all the scouting, the vetting and the NFL Combine, the Draft is still an inexact science.
Next week I will take a look at drafts in other professional sports. Clearly, the NFL gets the most coverage, but all the other sports have their own form of a draft.
Until next time.
