Hvornår begyndte NFL-draften?
Første gang NFL foretog en draft, hvor holdene valgte college-spillere var helt tilbage i 1936. Det allerførste pick gik til Philadelphia Eagles, der tog runningback Jay Berwanger.
Han var kåret til Heisman-vinder som årets bedste college-spiller, men nåede aldrig at spille i NFL som følge af uenighed om kontrakten med klubben. Eagles har siden valgt først to gange, men ikke siden 1949.
Ud af de 90 spillere, der er valgt først siden 1936 er de 35 quarterbacks, mens der ikke er valgt en defensive back (cornerback eller safety) først siden 1956.
Hvem er blevet valgt først gennem tiden i NFL draften?
| År | Spiller | Position | Hold |
| 1936 | Jay Berwanger | HB | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 1937 | Sam Francis | FB | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 1938 | Corbett Davis | FB | Cleveland Rams |
| 1939 | Ki Aldrich | C | Chicago Cardinals |
| 1940 | George Cafego | HB | Chicago Cardinals |
| 1941 | Tom Harmon | HB | Chicago Bears |
| 1942 | Bill Dudley | HB | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 1943 | Frank Sinkwich | HB | Detroit Lions |
| 1944 | Angelo Bertelli | QB | Boston Yanks |
| 1945 | Charley Trippi | HB | Chicago Cardinals |
| 1946 | Frank Dancewicz | QB | Boston Yanks |
| 1947 | Bob Fenimore | HB | Chicago Bears |
| 1948 | Harry Gilmer | HB, WR | Washington Redskins |
| 1949 | Chuck Bednarik | C, LB | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 1950 | Leon Hart | E | Detroit Lions |
| 1951 | Kyle Rote | HB | New York Giants |
| 1952 | Bill Wade | QB | Los Angeles Rams |
| 1953 | Harry Babcock | E | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1954 | Bobby Garrett | QB | Cleveland Browns |
| 1955 | George Shaw | QB | Baltimore Colts |
| 1956 | Gary Glick | DB | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 1957 | Paul Hornung | HB | Green Bay Packers |
| 1958 | King Hill | QB | Chicago Cardinals |
| 1959 | Randy Duncan | QB | Green Bay Packers |
| 1960 | Billy Cannon | HB | Los Angeles Rams |
| 1961 | Tommy Mason | HB | Minnesota Vikings |
| 1962 | Ernie Davis | HB | Washington Redskins |
| 1963 | Terry Baker | QB | Los Angeles Rams |
| 1964 | Dave Parks | WR | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1965 | Tucker Frederickson | HB | New York Giants |
| 1966 | Tommy Nobis | LB | Atlanta Falcons |
| 1967 | Bubba Smith | DE | Baltimore Colts |
| 1968 | Ron Yary | T | Minnesota Vikings |
| 1969 | O. J. Simpson | HB | Buffalo Bills |
| 1970 | Terry Bradshaw | QB | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 1971 | Jim Plunkett | QB | New England Patriots |
| 1972 | Walt Patulski | DE | Buffalo Bills |
| 1973 | John Matuszak | DE | Houston Oilers |
| 1974 | Ed Jones | DE | Dallas Cowboys |
| 1975 | Steve Bartkowski | QB | Atlanta Falcons |
| 1976 | Lee Roy Selmon | DE | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 1977 | Ricky Bell | HB | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 1978 | Earl Campbell | HB | Houston Oilers[I] |
| 1979 | Tom Cousineau | LB | Buffalo Bills |
| 1980 | Billy Sims | HB | Detroit Lions |
| 1981 | George Rogers | HB | New Orleans Saints |
| 1982 | Kenneth Sims | DE | New England Patriots |
| 1983 | John Elway[K] | QB | Baltimore Colts |
| 1984 | Irving Fryar | WR | New England Patriots |
| 1985 | Bruce Smith | DE | Buffalo Bills |
| 1986 | Bo Jackson | HB | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 1987 | Vinny Testaverde | QB | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 1988 | Aundray Bruce | LB | Atlanta Falcons |
| 1989 | Troy Aikman | QB | Dallas Cowboys |
| 1990 | Jeff George | QB | Indianapolis Colts |
| 1991 | Russell Maryland | DT | Dallas Cowboys |
| 1992 | Steve Emtman | DE | Indianapolis Colts |
| 1993 | Drew Bledsoe | QB | New England Patriots |
| 1994 | Dan Wilkinson | DT | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 1995 | Ki-Jana Carter | HB | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 1996 | Keyshawn Johnson | WR | New York Jets |
| 1997 | Orlando Pace | T | St. Louis Rams |
| 1998 | Peyton Manning | QB | Indianapolis Colts |
| 1999 | Tim Couch | QB | Cleveland Browns |
| 2000 | Courtney Brown | DE | Cleveland Browns |
| 2001 | Michael Vick | QB | Atlanta Falcons |
| 2002 | David Carr | QB | Houston Texans |
| 2003 | Carson Palmer | QB | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 2004 | Eli Manning | QB | San Diego Chargers |
| 2005 | Alex Smith | QB | San Francisco 49ers |
| 2006 | Mario Williams | DE | Houston Texans |
| 2007 | JaMarcus Russell | QB | Oakland Raiders |
| 2008 | Jake Long | T | Miami Dolphins |
| 2009 | Matthew Stafford | QB | Detroit Lions |
| 2010 | Sam Bradford | QB | St. Louis Rams |
| 2011 | Cam Newton | QB | Carolina Panthers |
| 2012 | Andrew Luck | QB | Indianapolis Colts |
| 2013 | Eric Fisher | T | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 2014 | Jadeveon Clowney | DE | Houston Texans |
| 2015 | Jameis Winston | QB | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 2016 | Jared Goff | QB | Los Angeles Rams |
| 2017 | Myles Garrett | DE | Cleveland Browns |
| 2018 | Baker Mayfield | QB | Cleveland Browns |
| 2019 | Kyler Murray | QB | Arizona Cardinals |
| 2020 | Joe Burrow | QB | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 2021 | Trevor Lawrence | QB | Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 2022 | Travon Walker | DE | Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 2023 | Bryce Young | QB | Carolina Panthers |
| 2024 | ? | ? | Chicago Bears |
