1977 NFL draft


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The 1977 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 May 3–4, 1977, at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City, New York.[1][2] The league also held its first supplemental draft, which took place after the regular draft and before the regular season.

1977 NFL draft
General information
Date(s)May 3–4, 1977
LocationRoosevelt Hotel
in New York City, NY
Overview
335 total selections in 12 rounds
LeagueNFL
First selectionRicky Bell, RB
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Mr. IrrelevantJim Kelleher, RB
Minnesota Vikings
Most selections (18)Cincinnati Bengals
Pittsburgh Steelers
Fewest selections (6)Washington Redskins
Hall of Famers

← 1976

1978 →

This was the first draft in the common draft era (since 1967) with twelve rounds, five rounds fewer than the previous decade. The draft had twelve rounds until reduced to eight in 1993 and seven the following year, where it has remains.

The draft began with commissioner Pete Rozelle dedicating a moment of silence to California quarterback Joe Roth, one of the most electric passers in college football. Eligible for this draft, he died in February from skin cancer at the age of 21.

With the first overall pick of the draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected USC running back Ricky Bell. Next was Heisman Trophy winner Tony Dorsett of national champion Pittsburgh, taken by the Dallas Cowboys.

= Pro Bowler [3] = Hall of Famer
* = compensatory selection
† = Pro Bowler[3]
‡ = Hall of Famer[4]
Positions key
C Center CB Cornerback DB Defensive back DE Defensive end[a]
DL Defensive lineman DT Defensive tackle FB Fullback FS Free safety
G Guard[b] K Kicker[c] KR Kickoff returner LB Linebacker
LS Long snapper MLB Middle linebacker[d] OT Offensive tackle OL Offensive lineman
OLB Outside linebacker[a] NT Nose tackle P Punter PR Punt returner
QB Quarterback RS Return specialist RB Running back S Safety
SS Strong safety TE Tight end WR Wide receiver
  1. ^ a b May sometimes be referred to as an edge rusher (EDGE)
  2. ^ Also known as offensive guard (OG)
  3. ^ Also known as placekicker (PK)
  4. ^ Also known as inside linebacker (ILB)
Pick # NFL team Player Position College
252 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Robert Morgan Running back Florida
253 Pittsburgh Steelers Alvin Cowans Defensive back Florida
254 Seattle Seahawks Sam Adkins Quarterback Wichita State
255 New York Giants Mike Jones Wide receiver Minnesota
256 New York Jets John Hennessy Defensive end Michigan
257 Atlanta Falcons Billy Ryckman Wide receiver Louisiana Tech
258 New Orleans Saints Rafael Septién Kicker Southwestern Louisiana
259 Philadelphia Eagles John Mastronardo Wide receiver Villanova
260 Green Bay Packers Jim Culbreath Running back Oklahoma
261 Kansas City Chiefs Mark Vitali Quarterback Purdue
262 Houston Oilers Harvey Hull Linebacker Mississippi State
263 Detroit Lions Gary Anderson Guard Stanford
264 Miami Dolphins Mark Carter Tight end Eastern Michigan
265 San Diego Chargers Curtis Townsend Linebacker Arkansas
266 Chicago Bears Dennis Breckner Defensive end Miami (FL)
267 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Aaron Ball Linebacker Fullerton State
268 Denver Broncos Oren Middlebrook Wide receiver Arkansas State
269 Cleveland Browns Tom Burkett Tackle North Carolina
270 St. Louis Cardinals Jim LeJay Wide receiver San Jose State
271 Pittsburgh Steelers Dave LaCrosse Linebacker Wake Forest
272 Cincinnati Bengals Bob Bialik Punter Hillsdale
273 Washington Redskins James Sykes Running back Rice
274 Los Angeles Rams Don Petersen Tight end Boston College
275 Dallas Cowboys Steve DeBerg Quarterback San Jose State
276 New England Patriots John Rasmussen Tackle Wisconsin
277 Baltimore Colts Ron Baker Guard Oklahoma State
278 Minnesota Vikings Dan Beaver Kicker Illinois
279 New England Patriots Giles Alexander Defensive end Tulsa
Pick # NFL team Player Position College
280 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Chuck Rodgers Defensive back North Dakota State
281 Seattle Seahawks Bill Westbeld Tackle Dayton
282 Buffalo Bills Nate Jackson Running back Tennessee State
283 Philadelphia Eagles Rocco Moore Tackle Western Michigan
284 New York Giants Bill Helms Tight end San Diego State
285 New Orleans Saints John Blain Tackle San Jose State
286 Philadelphia Eagles Mike Cordova Quarterback Stanford
287 Atlanta Falcons Dave Farmer Running back USC
288 Kansas City Chiefs Maurice Mitchell Wide receiver Northern Michigan
289 Houston Oilers Al Romano Linebacker Pittsburgh
290 Green Bay Packers Terry Randolph Defensive back American International
291 Miami Dolphins John Alexander Defensive end Rutgers
292 Cincinnati Bengals Joel Parrish Guard Georgia
293 Detroit Lions Tony Daykin Linebacker Georgia Tech
294 Chicago Bears Connie Zelencik Center Purdue
295 San Francisco 49ers Brian Billick Tight end Brigham Young
296 Cleveland Browns Charles Nash Wide receiver Arizona
297 Denver Broncos Phil Heck Linebacker California
298 Pittsburgh Steelers Lou West Defensive back Cincinnati
299 Cincinnati Bengals Carl Allen Defensive back Southern Mississippi
300 Washington Redskins Don Harris Defensive back Rutgers
301 St. Louis Cardinals Greg Lee Defensive back Western Illinois
302 Los Angeles Rams Carson Long Kicker Pittsburgh
303 New England Patriots Ray Costict Linebacker Mississippi State
304 Baltimore Colts Brian Ruff Linebacker The Citadel
305 Dallas Cowboys Don Wardlow Tight end Washington
306 Minnesota Vikings Keith Hartwig Wide receiver Arizona
307 New York Jets Dave Butterfield Defensive back Nebraska
Pick # NFL team Player Position College
308 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Chip Sheffield Wide receiver Lenoir-Rhyne
309 Buffalo Bills Charles Romes Defensive back North Carolina Central
310 Pittsburgh Steelers Jimmy Stephens Tight end Florida
311 New York Giants Elmo Simmons Running back Texas-Arlington
312 New York Jets Phil Gargis Running back Auburn
313 New York Jets Dave Conrad Tackle Maryland
314 St. Louis Cardinals Don Parrish Defensive end Pittsburgh
315 New Orleans Saints Oakley Dalton Defensive tackle Jackson State
316 Houston Oilers Ove Johansson Kicker Abilene Christian
317 Oakland Raiders Rod Martin Linebacker USC
318 Kansas City Chiefs Ray Burks Linebacker UCLA
319 San Diego Chargers Jim Stansik Tight end Eastern Michigan
320 Detroit Lions Dave Greenwood Guard Iowa State
321 Miami Dolphins Terry Anderson Wide receiver Bethune-Cookman
322 Chicago Bears Terry Irvin Defensive back Jackson State
323 San Francisco 49ers Scott Martin Guard North Dakota
324 Denver Broncos Scott Levenhagen Tight end Western Illinois
325 Cleveland Browns Leo Tierney Center Georgia Tech
326 Cincinnati Bengals Alex Percival Wide receiver Morehouse (GA)
327 Washington Redskins Curtis Kirkland Defensive end Missouri
328 St. Louis Cardinals Rick Fenlaw Linebacker Texas
329 Seattle Seahawks I. V. Wilson Defensive tackle Tulsa
330 Los Angeles Rams Barry Caudill Center Southern Mississippi
331 Baltimore Colts Bill Deutsch Running back North Dakota
332 Dallas Cowboys Greg Peters Guard California
333 New England Patriots Dave Preston Running back Bowling Green
334 Oakland Raiders Rolf Benirschke Kicker California-Davis
335 [5] Minnesota Vikings Jim Kelleher Running back Colorado
= Pro Bowler [3] = Hall of Famer

Notable undrafted players

edit

  • Tony Dorsett, running back from Pittsburgh, taken 1st round 2nd overall by Dallas Cowboys
Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1994.[6]
  • Tony Dungy, safety from Minnesota, undrafted and signed by Pittsburgh Steelers
Inducted: For his Head Coaching achievements Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2016.
  • Joe Klecko, defensive tackle from Temple, taken 6th round 144th overall by New York Jets
Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame Class of 2023.
  1. ^ "NFL Draft Locations". FootballGeography.com. October 2, 2014. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  2. ^ Salomone, Dan (October 2, 2014). "NFL Draft headed to Chicago in 2015". Giants.com. New York Giants. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro Bowl at any time in their career.
  4. ^ a b Players are identified as a Hall of Famer if they have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
  5. ^ This last selection is commonly referred to as Mr. Irrelevant.
  6. ^ List of 1990s Hall of Fame Inductee's at profootballhof.com "Pro Football Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on July 31, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2008.