NFL draft a chance for worst teams to get the best players from college
Some may wonder why there is still talk about football when the season has been over for a while now.
That is most likely because in about two weeks, the NFL draft will take place. For those unfamiliar with the draft and what it involves, here is a crash course.
The NFL draft is an annual event where teams from the NFL take turns selecting college football players and other first-time eligible players. The draft consists of seven rounds, with each team being assigned a pick in that round. The worst team from the previous year receives the first pick, then the second-worst team and so on. The team that won the Super Bowl ends up with the 32nd pick – the last pick. This is done to allow the teams that are not as good to get better players and potentially become better teams.
Some teams have more than one pick in each round. This happens when trades are made. For example, a team can trade a player to another team in exchange for future draft picks. Thus, some teams may end up with more or less picks than they started with.
To be eligible to enter the draft, players need to be at least three years out of high school. This is why high school kids are never seen going straight to the NFL – it is not allowed. Players can also enter the draft from other leagues, such as Arena Football leagues.
On draft day, each team is put “on the clock,” and they have a set time to announce who they select with their pick. This continues for all seven rounds, with 32 picks per round.
Being drafted first is worth more than just bragging rights. Sure these players may be able to always say they were the No. 1 overall pick, but they get another bonus as well: the highest salary allocation. The higher a player is picked, the higher their salary could be.
For this reason, teams occasionally trade down in the draft, meaning they will give up a high draft pick to get a lower draft pick. They would do this possibly because they do not want to pay the higher salary if they are sure the player they want will be there later on in the draft.
There are plenty of variables and factors that can change things on draft day. It can be the one bright spot of a bad season. Teams can get players that will come in and turn their program around. Just look at the Colts for instance, winners of last year’s Super Bowl. Back in the ’90s, they were one of the bottom teams in the league, and because of that got a high draft pick. With that pick, they were able to select Payton Manning, who has helped turn the team around and make them champions.
So if a team had a bad year this year, maybe they will find that last piece of the puzzle to finally turn things around and one day become champions.
-wwm@cc.usu.edu