2016 NFL Draft: By the Numbers
Facts, figures and fun. It’s time to look back at the statistics regarding the very interesting 2016 NFL Draft.
The NFL draft dates back to 1936, meaning the 81st edition of this event just wrapped up on Saturday, April 30 in the Windy (and rainy) City.
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This year also marked the 50th common draft that began in 1967. When the American Football League was formed and was in competition with the older NFL, the two leagues conducted their own separate drafts from 1960-66.
From 1967, the procedure has gone from 17 to 12 to eight and now to seven rounds, the latter beginning in 1994. In any case, here are some interesting figures involving the latest event.
Driven
The Los Angeles Rams moved up to the first spot and wound up taking University of California signal-caller Jared Goff. It was the second time in seven drafts (2010) that the franchise used the first overall pick on a quarterback (Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford).
There have now been a total of 50 common drafts (dating back to 1967) and nearly half of the first overall picks (22) have been spent on quarterbacks. That’s followed by defensive linemen (13), running backs (7), offensive linemen (4 and all tackles), wide receivers (2) and linebackers (2).
It wasn’t all that way when it came to the man behind center. Dating back to Peyton Manning’s arrival in the NFL via the 1998 draft, the pick of Goff marked the 14th time in 19 years the first selection was spent on a quarterback. That means the position was addressed first only eight times from 1967-97, a total of 31 years and starting with the Steelers’ selection of Terry Bradshaw in 1970.
Turnaround Time?
The Cleveland Browns not only selected four wide receivers in the three-day event, they left the Windy City with 14 overall selections. That ties the record for a seven-round draft for picks by a team, set originally by the Miami Dolphins back in 1997 (and led by head coach Jimmy Johnson).
Obviously, Cleveland’s haul led the league this weekend and their draft class was followed by the 2016 Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers (both with 11 picks), the Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee (all with 10 players selected) and finally the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots (9).
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The State of Mind
Speaking of the state of Ohio, it was a banner draft for the Buckeyes. They had five players selected in the first round (tied for the second-most in the common draft era that dates back to 1967) and a total of 12 performers drafted. The five first-round picks tied the mark set by the school back in 2006 and it was one short of the Miami Hurricanes’ record of six first-round picks, achieved in 2004.
Again, we will reference the current format that dates back to 1994. Ohio State’s dozen picks was the second-most in one year in the shortened procedure, now in its 23rd year. Back in 2004, the Buckeyes had 14 players drafted, the most ever in a seven-round draft.
This year, Ohio State was followed by Clemson (9), UCLA (8), Alabama (7), Florida (7) and Notre Dame (7) in terms of schools with the most picks in 2016. The six universities combined for 50 selections, nearly 20 percent of the 253 overall selection.
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The numbers are always interesting. And even more fascinating will be seeing how the fate of all 253 selections plays out. There will be the surprises and the disappointments via this inexact science.
There’s a lot to be said about statistics. Bu we should never forget that it’s human beings that make this game great.