How does the NFL Draft work? These are the rules

Each spring brings hope to the teams of the National Football League (NFL), especially for the teams that had poor win/loss numbers in the previous season.

The NFL Draft is a three-day event where all 32 teams take turns selecting new players and is held each April. The annual NFL Draft gives teams the opportunity to enrich their club with new talent, mainly from the various 'colleges' (universities).

The NFL has specific rules for each part of the draft process, which you can read about in this article.

Some new players will give an instant boost to the team that selects them, others won't.

But the chance that the selected players will lead their new clubs to glory ensures that American Football teams compete for talent, whether in the first or last round.

NFL teams compose their teams through the NFL draft in three ways:

1. choosing free players (free agents)
2. swapping players
3. recruiting college athletes who have qualified for the NFL draft

The NFL Draft has changed over the years as the league has grown in size and popularity.

Which team will be the first to pick a player? How much time does each team have to make a choice? Who is eligible to be elected?

Draft rules and the process

The NFL Draft takes place every spring and lasts three days (Thursday through Saturday). The first round is on Thursday, rounds 2 and 3 are on Friday and rounds 4-7 on Saturday.

The NFL Draft is always held on a weekend in April, which happens to be halfway between the date of the Super Bowl and the start of training camp in July.

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The exact date for the draft varies from year to year.

Each team has its own table at the draft venue, where team representatives are in constant contact with the executives of each club's headquarters.

Each team is given a different number of selections. When a team decides to select a player, the following happens:

• The team shall communicate the player's name to its representatives.
• The team representative writes the data on a card and gives it to the 'runner'.
• A second runner informs the next team's turn who has been chosen.
• The player's name is entered into a database that notifies all clubs of the selection.
• The card is presented to Ken Fiore, NFL vice president of player personnel.
• Ken Fiore shares the choice with the representatives of the NFL.

After making the selection, the team communicates the name of the player from the draft room, also known as the War Room, to its representatives in Selection Square.

The team representative then writes the player's name, position, and school on a card and presents it to an NFL staffer known as a runner.

When the runner gets the card, the selection is official, and the draft clock is reset for the next pick.

A second runner goes to the representatives of the next team's turn and informs them who has been chosen.

Upon receipt of the card, the first runner immediately forwards the selection to an NFL Player Personnel representative, who enters the player's name into a database that notifies all clubs of the selection.

The runner also walks with the card to the main table, where it is handed to Ken Fiore, the NFL vice president of Player Personnel.

Fiore checks the name for correctness and registers the choice.

He then shares the name with the NFL's broadcasting partners, the commissioner, and other league or team representatives so that they can announce the choice.

How much time does each team have to make a choice?

The first round will therefore be held on Thursday. The second and third rounds take place on Friday and rounds 4-7 on the last day, which is Saturday.

In the first round, each team has ten minutes to make a choice.

The teams are given seven minutes to make their picks in the second round, five for regular or compensating picks in rounds 3-6 and just four minutes in round seven.

The teams therefore get less and less time each round to make a choice.

If a team can't make a choice in time, they can still do so later, but then of course they run the risk that another team selects the player that had it in mind.

During the draft, it is always one team's turn. When a team is 'on the clock', it means that it has the next roster in the draft and thus has a limited amount of time to make a roster.

The average round consists of 32 choices, giving each team approximately one choice per round.

Some teams have more than one choice per round, and some teams may not have any choice in a round.

Picks vary by team because draft picks can be traded to other teams, and the NFL may award additional picks to a team if the team has lost players (restricted free agents).

What about player trading?

Once teams are assigned their draft positions, each pick is an asset: it's up to the club executives to either keep a player or trade the pick with another team to improve their position in current or future drafts .

Teams may negotiate at any time before and during the draft and may trade draft picks or current NFL players to whom they have the rights.

When teams come to an agreement during the draft, both clubs call the main table, where Fiore and his staff monitor the league's phones.

Each team must pass the same information to the league in order for a trade to be approved.

Once an exchange is approved, a Player Personnel representative will provide the details to the league's broadcasting partners and all 32 clubs.

A league official announces the exchange to the media and fans.

Draft day: Assigning draft picks

Currently, each of the 32 clubs will receive one pick in each of the seven rounds of the NFL Draft.

The order of selection is determined by the reverse order of the teams' scoring in the previous season.

That means each round starts with the team that finished with the worst finish, and the Super Bowl champions are the last to pick.

This rule does not apply when players are 'traded' or traded.

The number of teams making a choice has changed over time, and there used to be 30 rounds in a single draft.

Where are the players during Draft day?

On Draft Day, hundreds of players sit in Madison Square Garden or in their living rooms waiting for their names to be announced.

Some of the players, likely to be chosen in the first round, will be invited to attend the draft.

These are the players who take the podium when their name is called, put on the team cap and have their picture taken with their new team jersey.

These players wait backstage in the 'green room' with their family and friends and with their agents/managers.

Some will not be called up until the second round.

The Draft position (i.e. which round you are selected in) is important for the players and their agents, because players who are selected earlier are paid more than players who are selected later in the draft.

The order during NFL Draft day

The order in which teams select their new signings is therefore determined by the final standings of the regular season: the club with the worst score chooses first, and the club with the best scores last.

Some teams, especially those with a high roster, can make their first-round roster well before the draft and may even already have a contract with the player.

In that case, the Draft is just a formality and all the player needs to do is sign the contract to make it official.

The teams that have not qualified for the play-offs will be allocated the draft slots 1-20.

The teams that have qualified for the play-offs will be allocated the slots 21-32.

The order is determined by the results of the previous year's play-offs:

1. The four teams that were eliminated in the wildcard round will take places 21-24 in the reverse order of their final standings in the regular season.
2. The four teams that were eliminated in the division round come in 25-28 places in the reverse order of their final standings in the regular season.
3. The two teams that lost in the conference championships come in 29th and 30th place in reverse order of their final standings in the regular season.
4. The team that lost the Super Bowl has the 31st pick in the draft, and the Super Bowl champion has the 32nd and final pick in each round.

What about teams that finished with identical scores?

In situations where teams finished the previous season with identical records, their place in the draft is determined by the strength of the schedule: the total winning percentage of a team's opponents.

The team that played the schedule with the lowest win percentage is awarded the highest pick.

In case the teams also have the same strength of the scheme, 'tiebreakers' from the divisions or conferences are applied.

If the tiebreakers do not apply, or if there is still a tie between teams from different conferences, the tie will be broken according to the following tiebreaking method:

• head to head – if applicable – where the team that has beaten the other teams most often wins
• Best win-loss-equal percentage in communal matches (minimum four)
• Good luck in all matches (The combined win percentage of the opponents that a team has defeated.)
• Best combined ranking of all teams in points scored and points against in all matches
• Best net points in all matches
• Best net touchdowns in all matches
• coin toss – flipping a coin

What are compensation picks?

Under the terms of the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, the league can also allocate 32 additional 'compensatory free agent' picks.

This allows clubs that have lost 'free agents' to another team to use the draft to try to fill the void.

The awarded picks take place at the end of the third through seventh rounds. ​​A free agent is a player whose contract has expired and who is free to sign with another team.

A restricted free agent is a player for whom another team can make an offer, but his current team may match that offer.

If the current squad chooses not to match the offer, they may receive compensation in the form of a draft pick.

Compensatory free agents are determined by a proprietary formula developed by the NFL Management Council, which takes into account a player's salary, playing time and post-season honors.

The NFL awards compensatory picks based on the net loss of restricted free agents. The limit for compensatory picks is four per team.

From 2017, compensatory picks may be traded. Compensatory picks take place at the end of each round to which they apply, after the regular selection round.

Also read: How American football works (rules, penalties, game play)

What is the NFL Scouting Combine?

The teams begin assessing the abilities of college athletes months, if not years, before the NFL draft.

Scouts, coaches, general managers and sometimes even team owners collect all kinds of statistics and notes when evaluating the best players before making their roster.

The NFL Scouting Combine takes place in February and is a great opportunity for teams to get acquainted with the various talented players.

The NFL Combine is an annual event where more than 300 top draft-eligible players are invited to showcase their abilities.

After judging the players, the different teams will draw up their wish lists of the players they would like to sign.

They also make a list of alternative selections, should their top picks be chosen by other teams.

Small chance of being selected

According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, one million high school students play football every year.

Only one in 17 athletes will get the chance to play in college football. There is even less chance that a high school player will end up playing for an NFL team.

According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), only one in every 50 college football seniors is selected by an NFL team.

That means only nine out of 10.000, or 0,09 percent, of high school senior football players end up being selected by an NFL team.

One of the few draft drafting rules is that younger players cannot be drafted until three college football seasons have elapsed after graduating from high school.

This means that almost all freshmen and some sophomores are not allowed to participate in the draft.

Qualifying players for the NFL draft (player eligibility)

Before the draft, the NFL Player Personnel staff check whether the candidates for the draft are actually eligible.

That means they research the college backgrounds of about 3000 college players every year.

They work with NCAA compliance departments at schools across the country to verify the information of all prospects.

They also check college all-star competition rosters to ensure that only draft-eligible players participate in the matches.

The Player Personnel staff also check all registrations from players who want to join the draft early.

Undergrads have up to seven days after the NCAA National Championship game to indicate their intention to do so.

For the 2017 NFL Draft, 106 undergraduates were allowed to enter the draft by the NFL, as were 13 other players who graduated without using all of their college eligibility.

Once players qualify for the draft or have expressed their intention to enter the draft early, Player Personnel staff will work with teams, agents and schools to map the status of players.

They also work with agents, schools, scouts and teams to enforce league rules for Pro Days (where NFL Scouts come to colleges to observe candidates) and private workouts.

During the draft, Player Personnel staff confirm that all players being drafted are actually eligible to participate in the draft.

What is the supplemental draft?

The process for selecting new players from colleges (universities) has changed dramatically since the first draft that took place in 1936.

There is now much more at stake and the league has adopted a more formal process to treat all 32 clubs equally.

A successful selection can change the course of a club forever.

Teams do their best to predict how a player will perform at the highest level, and any draft pick can become an NFL legend.

In July, the league may hold one supplemental draft for players whose eligibility status has changed since the NFL Draft.

A player may not skip the NFL Draft to qualify for the supplemental draft.

Teams are not required to participate in the supplemental draft; if they do, they can bid on a player by telling the league which round they would like to take a specific player into.

If no other club bids for that player, they get the player, but lose a pick in the following year's NFL Draft that corresponds to the round in which they got the player.

If several teams bid for the same player, the highest bidder gets the player and loses the corresponding draft pick.

Why does the NFL Draft even exist?

The NFL Draft is a system with a dual purpose:

1. First, it is designed to filter the best college football players into the professional NFL world.
2. Second, it aims to balance the league and prevent one team from dominating each season.

The draft thus brings a sense of equality to the sport.

It prevents teams from trying indefinitely to sign the best players, which would inevitably lead to persistent inequality between teams.

Essentially, the draft limits the “rich gets richer” scenario that we often see in other sports.

who is mr. Irrelevant?

Just as there is always one lucky player who is picked first in a draft, 'unfortunately' someone has to be the last.

This player is nicknamed "Mr. Irrelevant'.

It may sound insulting, but trust me, there are hundreds of players who would love to play in this Mr. Irrelevant's shoes would like to stand!

mr. Irrelevant is thus the final pick and is actually the most famous player outside the first round.

In fact, he is the only player in the draft for whom a formal event is being organized.

Since 1976, Paul Salata, of Newport Beach, California, has hosted an annual event to honor the last player in each draft.

Paul Salata had a brief career as a receiver for the Baltimore Colts in 1950. For the event, Mr. Irrelevantly flown to California and is shown around Newport Beach.

He then spends the week at Disneyland taking part in a golf tournament and other activities.

every mr. Irrelevant also receives the Lowsman Trophy; a small, bronze statue of a player dropping a ball from his hands.

The Lowsman is the antithesis of the Heisman Trophy, which is awarded each year to the best player in college football.

What about NFL player salaries?

The teams pay the players a salary in accordance with the position in which they were selected.

High-ranking players from the first round are paid the most and low-ranking players the least.

Essentially, draft picks are paid on a scale.

The "Rookie Wage Scale" was revised in 2011, and in the late 2000s, salary requirements for first-round picks increased, triggering a restructuring of the competition rules for rookie contracts.

Can fans attend the Draft?

While millions of fans can only watch the Draft on television, there are also a few people who are allowed to attend the event in person.

Tickets will be sold to fans about a week before the Draft on a first come, first served basis and will be distributed on the morning of the first day of the draft.

Each fan will receive only one ticket, which can be used to attend the entire event.

The NFL Draft has exploded in ratings and overall popularity in the 21st century.

In 2020, the draft reached a total of more than 55 million viewers during the three-day event, according to a press release from the NFL.

What is an NFL mock draft?

Mock drafts for the NFL Draft or other competitions are very popular. As a visitor you can vote for a specific team on the ESPN website.

Mock drafts allow fans to speculate about which college athletes will join their favorite team.

A mock draft is a term used by sports websites and magazines to refer to a simulation of the draft of a sports competition or a fantasy sports competition.

There are many internet and television analysts who are considered experts in this field and can give fans some insight into which teams certain players are expected to play on.

However, mock drafts do not mimic the real-world methodology that the teams' general managers use to select players.

Closing comments

You see, the NFL draft is a hugely important event for the players and their teams.

The rules for the draft seem complicated, but you might be able to follow it a little better after reading this post.

And you now understand why it is always so exciting for those involved! Would you like to attend The Draft?

Also read: How do you throw an American football? Explained step-by-step

Joost Nusselder, the founder of referees.eu is a content marketer, father and loves to write about all kinds of sports, and has also played a lot of sports himself for most of his life. Now since 2016, he and his team have been creating helpful blog articles to help loyal readers with their sports activities.