Here are some interesting notes you may not have known about the NFL draft.
Over the past 10 years ...
- Only two teams have not had a pick in the first 10 overall selections. Those teams? The Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins.
- Six players selected No. 1 overall are still with the team that picked them. They are David Carr (Houston, 2002), Michael Vick (Atlanta, 2001), Courtney Brown (Cleveland, 2000), Tim Couch (Cleveland, 1999), Peyton Manning (Indianapolis, 1998), and Orlando Pace (St. Louis, 1997).
- Three players picked No. 1 overall have played in the Super Bowl. Those players are Pace (twice, Super Bowl XXXIV and XXXVI), Drew Bledsoe (twice, Super Bowl XXXI and XXXVI) and Keyshawn Johnson (Super Bowl XXXVII).
- Eighty-four percent of the players who have been drafted were invited to the league's annual Scouting Combine.
Player tidbits ...
- Joe Iorio is the first (and only) walk-on at Penn State to start a game as a true freshman under Joe Paterno. He started five games in 1999, and the young man has a shot to be drafted.
- Jon Stinchcomb and Boss Bailey both had brothers picked in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft. Champ Bailey was picked No. 7 overall while Matt Stinchcomb was picked No. 18 overall. The younger brothers could be also become first-round selections on April 26.
- Speaking of Jon Stinchcomb, this big guy was a perfect 4.0 student from kindergarden all the way to 12th grade. Pretty incredible.
- Joe Dorenbos of Texas El-Paso, who might be drafted as a deep snapper, is a professional magician who has performed in Las Vegas and Hollywood.
- Makoa Freitas of Arizona is the son of Rockne Freitas, who was Pittsburgh's third-round pick in 1967 (67th overall). He never played with the Steelers though -- Freitas played 11 years (134 games) -- with the Lions and Buccaneers. He also caught one pass ... for minus-8 yards.
- Chris Simms of Texas is the son of ex-Giants quarterback Phil Simms. The elder Simms was drafted in the first round, seventh overall, of the 1979 NFL Draft and played 14 years in New York.
- Penn State receiver Bryant Johnson went to Baltimore City College High School. No, that's not a typo. As a senior, he anchored Baltimore City College's winning relay team at the 1998 Penn Relays, which are a big deal to kids in those parts.
- University of Florida wide receiver Taylor Jacobs was coached by his father, Harry, in high school.
- Reggie Newhouse, a wide receiver from Baylor, is the son of Robert Newhouse, who was a second-round pick of Dallas. He now works for the Cowboys after playing 12 years and 168 games with the team.
- Josh Brown, a kicker from Nebraska, played eight-man football in Oklahoma and scored 122 touchdowns.
College tidbits ...
- Since 1936, USC has had the most first-round picks with 59, followed by Notre Dame with 56 and Ohio State with 55.
- The University of Texas set a record with the most players selected by one school in a single year with 17 in 1984. The Longhorns have also had at least one player picked in 65 consecutive drafts (none were taken in 1936 and 1937). Ohio State has had a player picked in every draft except one -- 1998.
- The University of Tennessee has seen 60 of its players get selected over the past nine years, more than any other school. Florida State is next with 58, followed by Nebraska with 53 and Ohio State with 52.
- In that same span, Ohio State has had the most players picked in the top 10 overall picks with seven. Penn State has seen six of its players go in that same span, as has Florida State. Texas and Florida are next in line with five.
- Check this out -- 2,220 players have been picked from 252 different schools. Seventy-nine of those schools had only one player picked, five of the 252 are from junior colleges, and two of the 252 are from Canada.
Team tidbits ...
- Jacksonville has had the most choices over the past five years with 49. Detroit has had the least over that same span with 33.
- Indianapolis has the highest percentage -- 39 percent (14 of 36 players) -- of starters from the past five drafts. This will change because some of the drafted starters might have signed elsewhere since the end of the 2002 season.
Did you know?
- Ninety-seven percent of the players selected in 2002 (261 total) were either active or on injured reserve for the first game of the 2002 season. Fifty-three percent of the players drafted in 1998 (241 total) were either active or on IR for the first game of the 2002 season.
- The position most picked over the past five drafts is wide receiver, with 164 selections. Of those picks, 137 attended the Combine, meaning 27 did not.
- No player selected No. 1 overall has played in the Super Bowl in his first NFL season. Tony Dorsett was picked No. 2 overall in 1977 and played as a rookie in Super Bowl XII.
