National Football League draft
The 1997 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 19–20, 1997, at the Paramount Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York.[1][2] No teams chose to claim any players in the supplemental draft this year.
This draft was notable for its high-profile offensive linemen. The first overall selection was Orlando Pace, who appeared in seven consecutive Pro Bowls from 2000 to 2006 and was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2016. Tarik Glenn was selected 19th overall and was also named to three Pro Bowls. Walter Jones, who made nine Pro Bowls (including eight consecutive from 2001 to 2008), was a seven time All-Pro, and was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2014, was selected sixth overall. Others include Chris Naeole, Dan Neil, Ryan Tucker, Jeff Mitchell, Mike Flynn, and Joe Andruzzi.
The 1997 Draft is also known for its running backs. Warrick Dunn, Corey Dillon, and Tiki Barber each rushed for over 10,000 yards in their careers, and Antowain Smith, and Duce Staley all enjoyed productive seasons in the NFL. This draft is also well known for its undrafted Pro Bowl players, including Jake Delhomme, Priest Holmes, and Pat Williams.
Trades
In the explanations below, (D) denotes trades that took place during the 1994 Draft, while (PD) indicates trades completed pre-draft.
Chicago bears
- Round one
- ^ No. 1: N.Y. Jets → St. Louis (PD). N.Y. Jets traded its first-round selection (1st) to St. Louis in exchange for St. Louis' first-, third-, fourth- and seventh-round selections (6th, 67th, 102nd and 207th).
- ^ No. 2: New Orleans → Oakland (PD). New Orleans traded its first- and sixth-round selections (2nd and 166th) to Oakland in exchange for Oakland's first-, second- and fourth-round selections (10th, 39th and 107th) and WR Daryl Hobbs.
- ^ No. 3: Atlanta → Seattle (PD). Atlanta traded its first- and third-round selections (3rd and 63rd) to Seattle in exchange for Seattle's first-, second-, third- and fourth-round selections (11th, 41st, 70th and 100th).
- ^ No. 6: multiple trades:
No. 6: St. Louis → N.Y. Jets (PD). see No. 1: N.Y. Jets → St. Louis.
No. 6: N.Y. Jets → Tampa Bay (PD). N.Y. Jets traded this first-round selection (6th) to Tampa Bay in exchange for Tampa Bay's first- and fourth-round selections (8th and 104th).
No. 6: Tampa Bay → Seattle (D). Tampa Bay traded this first-round selection (6th) to Seattle in exchange for Seattle's first- and third-round selections (12th and 63rd).
- ^ No. 8: Tampa Bay → N.Y. Jets (D). see No. 8: N.Y. Jets → Tampa Bay.
- ^ No. 10: Oakland → New Orleans (PD). see No. 2: New Orleans → Oakland.
- ^ No. 11: multiple trades:
No. 11: Chicago → Seattle (PD). Chicago traded its first-round selection (11th) to Seattle in exchange for Seattle's fourth-round selection (105th) and QB Rick Mirer.
No. 11: Seattle → Atlanta (PD). see No. 3: Atlanta → Seattle.
- ^ No. 12: Seattle → Tampa Bay (D). see No. 8: Tampa Bay → Seattle.
- ^ No. 13: Tennessee → Kansas City (D). Tennessee traded its first- and fourth-round selections (13th and 110th) to Kansas City in exchange for Kansas City's first-, third-, fourth- and sixth-round selections (18th, 81st, 116th and 181st).
- ^ No. 16: San Diego → Tampa Bay (PD). San Diego traded its first-round selection (16th) to Tampa Bay in exchange for Tampa Bay's second-round selection (41st) in 1996.
- ^ No. 18: Kansas City → Tennessee (D). see No. 13: Tennessee → Kansas City.
- ^ No. 22: Philadelphia → Dallas (D). Philadelphia traded its first-round selection (22nd) to Dallas in exchange for Dallas' first- and fifth-round selections (25th and 155th) and third-round selection in 1998.
- ^ No. 25: Philadelphia → Dallas (D). see No. 22: Philadelphia → Dallas.
- Round two
- Round three
- Round four
- Round five
- Round six
- Round seven