List of North Carolina Tar Heels in the NFL draft
![A man in a suit with a jacket draped over him.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Trubisky_2017_camrongood.jpg/220px-Trubisky_2017_camrongood.jpg)
The North Carolina Tar Heels football team, representing the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has had 224 American football players drafted into the National Football League (NFL) since the league began holding drafts in 1936.[A 1] The highest that a Tar Heel has ever been drafted is second overall, which has happened on four occasions: Ken Willard in 1965, Lawrence Taylor in 1981, Julius Peppers in 2002, and Mitch Trubisky in 2017[3] The Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins have drafted the most Tar Heels with sixteen and fifteen, respectively. Every current NFL franchise has drafted a player from North Carolina.[3]
Each NFL franchise seeks to add new players through the annual NFL Draft. The draft rules were last updated in 2009. The team with the worst record the previous year picks first, the next-worst team second, and so on. Teams that did not make the playoffs are ordered by their regular-season record, with any remaining ties broken by strength of schedule. Playoff participants are sequenced after non-playoff teams, based on their round of elimination (wild card, division, conference, and Super Bowl).[4]
Before the merger agreements in 1966, the American Football League (AFL) operated in direct competition with the NFL and held a separate draft. This led to a massive bidding war over top prospects between the two leagues, along with the subsequent drafting of the same player in each draft. As part of the merger agreement on June 8, 1966, the two leagues held a multiple round "Common Draft". Once the AFL officially merged with the NFL in 1970, the "Common Draft" simply became the NFL Draft.[1][2][5]
Twenty-four Tar Heels have been drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft, with the most recent being Mitch Trubisky in 2017. The single first round of the NFL Draft with the most Tar Heels selected was 1998 with three: Greg Ellis, Brian Simmons, and Vonnie Holliday. Of the Tar Heels selected in the NFL Draft, fifteen have been selected to a Pro Bowl, seventeen have been a member of a Super Bowl winning team; four have achieved both. The most Tar Heels selected in a single NFL Draft is nine, in 2011.[6] Both Chris Hanburger and Taylor are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Key
[edit]B | Back[A 2] | K | Kicker | NT | Nose tackle |
C | Center | LB | Linebacker | FB | Fullback |
DB | Defensive back | P | Punter | HB | Halfback |
DE | Defensive end | QB | Quarterback | WR | Wide receiver |
DT | Defensive tackle | RB | Running back | G | Guard |
E | End | T | Offensive tackle | TE | Tight end |
* | Selected to a Pro Bowl | ||||
† | Won a Super Bowl championship | ||||
‡ | Selected to a Pro Bowl and won a Super Bowl |
Players selected
[edit]![An American football player looking at the camera while wearing a blazer.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/LT_2009.jpg/220px-LT_2009.jpg)
![An American football player catching a football in mid-air.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Eric_Ebron_2013.jpg/220px-Eric_Ebron_2013.jpg)
![An American football player catching a football in mid-air.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Giovani_Bernard_2013_01.jpg/220px-Giovani_Bernard_2013_01.jpg)
![An American football player looks at the crowd. He is wearing his uniform on the field with some spectators in the background.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/DreBly.jpg/220px-DreBly.jpg)
![An American football player throwing a football. He is wearing a white jersey with the number 13 across the chest.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/TJ_Yates_%28cropped%29.jpg/220px-TJ_Yates_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Notes
[edit]- ^ Because of the NFL–AFL merger agreement, the history of the AFL is officially recognized by the NFL and therefore this list includes the AFL Draft (1960–1966) and the Common Draft (1967–1969).[1][2]
- ^ In American and Canadian football, a back is a player who is lined up behind the linemen, the players who line up closest to the line of scrimmage.
- ^ a b Rip Hawkins was drafted in 1961 by the Boston Patriots (9th overall) and by the Minnesota Vikings (15th overall).
- ^ a b Bob Elliott was drafted in 1961 by the St. Louis Cardinals (190th overall) and in 1962 by the Oakland Raiders (241st overall).
- ^ a b Bob Lacey was drafted in 1964 by the New York Jets (83rd overall) and by the Minnesota Vikings (75th overall).
- ^ a b Ed Kesler was drafted in 1964 by the Houston Oilers (174th overall) and by the Pittsburgh Steelers (219th overall).
Notable undrafted players
[edit]Note: No drafts held before 1920
Year | Player | Debut Team | Position | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1954 | Andy Miketa | C | Detroit Lions | — |
1967 | Frank Gallagher | G | Detroit Lions | — |
1975 | Jimmy DeRatt | DB | New Orleans Saints | — |
1978 | Alan Caldwell | DB | Los Angeles Rams | — |
1981 | Paul Davis | LB | Oakland Raiders | — |
1982 | Jeff Hayes | P | Washington Redskins | — |
1982 | Shelton Robinson | LB | Seattle Seahawks | — |
1984 | Scott Stankavage | QB | Denver Broncos | — |
1986 | Tim Morrison | DB | Washington Redskins | — |
1987 | Ron Burton | LB | Dallas Cowboys | — |
1994 | Ethan Albright | LS | Miami Dolphins | — |
1994 | Bernardo Harris | LB | Kansas City Chiefs | — |
1994 | Corey Holliday | WR | Pittsburgh Steelers | — |
1995 | Greg DeLong | TE | Minnesota Vikings | — |
1998 | Nate Hobgood-Chittick | DT | New York Giants | — |
1998 | Jeff Saturday | C | Baltimore Ravens | — |
2002 | Jeff Reed | K | New Orleans Saints | — |
2019 | Anthony Ratliff-Williams | WR | Tennessee Titans | — |
2024 | British Brooks | RB | Houston Texans | — |
References
[edit]- General
- "Draft History by School–North Carolina". National Football League. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
- "2019 North Carolina Football Media Guide" (PDF). North Carolina Athletic Communications Office. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 21, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
- "North Carolina Drafted Players/Alumni". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
- Specific
- ^ a b Cross, B. Duane (January 22, 2001). "The AFL: A Football Legacy". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on December 17, 2009. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "NFL History by Decade: 1961–1970". NFL. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "Draft History by School–North Carolina". National Football League. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
- ^ Clayton, John (March 26, 2009). "Draft order to change for playoff teams". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2010.
- ^ "Time Changes for 2008 NFL Draft". NFL. April 22, 2008. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
- ^ Sammy Batten (May 1, 2011). "School record nine Tar Heels drafted". FayObserver.com. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "Bill Koman NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 22, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "Rip Hawkins NFL & AFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Ken Willard NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Chris Hanburger NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Lawrence Taylor NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2008. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "1986 New York Giants". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 10, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "1990 New York Giants". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "1981 San Francisco 49ers". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "1987 Washington Redskins". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "Ethan Horton NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 5, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Harris Barton NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "1988 San Francisco 49ers". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 23, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ a b "1989 San Francisco 49ers". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ a b c "1994 San Francisco 49ers". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "Natrone Means NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 6, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "1996 Green Bay Packers". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "William Henderson NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "1999 St. Louis Rams". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "1995 Dallas Cowboys". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "Greg Ellis NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Dre' Bly NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ a b "2007 New York Giants". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 27, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "Alge Crumpler NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 15, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "Julius Peppers NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 18, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "2004 New England Patriots". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "2006 Indianapolis Colts". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 17, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ a b "2011 New York Giants". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ "William Henderson NFL Statistics". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
- ^ "2015 Denver Broncos". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (January 21, 2019). "Trubisky named to NFC Pro Bowl roster". ChicagoBears.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
- ^ "2017 Philadelphia Eagles". Sports Reference LLC. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2012.