The 1996 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 20–21, 1996 . No teams elected to claim any players in the supplemental draft that year.
This draft is considered one of the best draft classes ever for the position of wide receiver . Keyshawn Johnson , Terry Glenn , Eddie Kennison , Marvin Harrison , Eric Moulds , Bobby Engram , Terrell Owens , Muhsin Muhammad , Amani Toomer , Jermaine Lewis , and Joe Horn have all achieved success in the pros, with all except Kennison, Engram, and Toomer having reached the Pro Bowl at least once, and a total of 26 Pro Bowl appearances for the group. In addition to the class having had several successful receivers, none of the five wide receivers drafted in the first round have been busts, as all of them are currently or have recently been starters in the NFL (Keyshawn Johnson retired in 2007). Combined, 1996 wide receivers (through the end of the 2006 season) have totalled 7,646 receptions for 105,866 yards, eclipsing any other class by more than 1,000 receptions and 10,000 yards [1] .
It was also one of the best draft years for middle linebackers, with two potential hall of famers in Ray Lewis and Zach Thomas selected. Lewis won Super Bowl XXXV and was selected MVP of that game, as well as making 12 Pro Bowls while Thomas has made 7. Other linebackers who made at least one Pro Bowl from this draft are Tedy Bruschi , Kevin Hardy , John Mobley , and Donnie Edwards . The following have enjoyed solid careers: Randall Godfrey , Earl Holmes , and Carlos Emmons .
On draft day, the St. Louis Rams traded running back Jerome Bettis and a third round draft pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a second round pick for that year, as well as a fourth round pick the following year . The trade was made immediately after the Rams drafted Nebraska running back Lawrence Phillips . Bettis went on to have a successful career with the Steelers as well as being one of the team's most popular players, while the Rams wouldn't have another feature back until they traded for Marshall Faulk three years later due to Phillips' off-field problems.
Player selections Edit
Round one Edit
Round two Edit
Round three Edit
Round four Edit
Pick # NFL Team Player Position College
96 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jason Odom Tackle Florida
97 Minnesota Vikings Hunter Goodwin Guard Texas A&M
98 Kansas City Chiefs Donnie Edwards Linebacker UCLA
99 Seattle Seahawks Phillip Daniels Defensive end Georgia
100 Denver Broncos Jeff Lewis Quarterback Northern Arizona
101 New England Patriots Heath Irwin Guard Colorado
102 Washington Redskins Stephen Davis Running back Auburn
103 New Orleans Saints Ricky Whittle Running back Oregon
104 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Eric Austin Defensive back Jackson State
105 St. Louis Rams Percell Gaskins Linebacker Kansas State
106 Carolina Panthers Norberto Garrido Guard USC
107 Houston Oilers Kendrick Burton Defensive end Alabama
108 Cincinnati Bengals Jevon Langford Defensive end Oklahoma State
109 Houston Oilers Jon Runyan Tackle Michigan
110 Jacksonville Jaguars Reggie Barlow Wide receiver Alabama State
111 Carolina Panthers Emmanuel McDaniel Defensive back East Carolina
112 Arizona Cardinals Aaron Graham Center Nebraska
113 Miami Dolphins Kirk Pointer Defensive back Austin Peay
114 San Diego Chargers Charlie Jones Wide receiver Fresno State
115 Indianapolis Colts Brian Milne Running back Penn State
116 Chicago Bears Paul Grasmanis Defensive tackle Notre Dame
117 Atlanta Falcons Richard Huntley Running back Winston-Salem State
118 Miami Dolphins Stanley Pritchett Running back South Carolina
119 New England Patriots Chris Sullivan Defensive tackle Boston College
120 Buffalo Bills Sean Moran Defensive end Colorado State
121 Philadelphia Eagles Ray Farmer Defensive back Duke
122 Denver Broncos Darius Johnson Defensive back Oklahoma
123 Green Bay Packers Chris Darkins Running back Minnesota
124 New England Patriots Kantroy Barber Running back West Virginia
125 Miami Dolphins LaCurtis Jones Linebacker Baylor
126 Pittsburgh Steelers Earl Holmes Linebacker Florida A&M
127 Atlanta Falcons Juran Bolden Defensive back Mississippi Delta
128 San Francisco 49ers Daryl Price Defensive end Colorado
129 Detroit Lions Brad Ford Defensive back Alabama
130 New York Giants Danny Kanell Quarterback Florida State
131 Seattle Seahawks Eric Unverzagt Linebacker Wisconsin
132 Pittsburgh Steelers Jahine Arnold Wide receiver Fresno State
Round five Edit
Pick # NFL Team Player Position College
133 New York Jets Marcus Coleman Defensive back Texas Tech
134 Miami Dolphins Jerris McPhail Running back East Carolina
135 Kansas City Chiefs Joe Horn Wide receiver Itawamba J.C.
136 New Orleans Saints Mercury Hayes Wide receiver Michigan
137 Arizona Cardinals James Dexter Tackle South Carolina
138 Washington Redskins Leomont Evans Defensive back Clemson
139 New England Patriots John Elmore Guard Texas
140 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jason Maniecki Defensive tackle Wisconsin
141 St. Louis Rams Fred Miller Tackle Baylor
142 Carolina Panthers Marquette Smith Running back Central Florida
143 Houston Oilers Rayna Stewart Defensive back Northern Arizona
144 Cincinnati Bengals Greg Myers Defensive back Colorado State
145 New Orleans Saints Tom Ackerman Guard Eastern Washington
146 Jacksonville Jaguars Jimmy Herndon Guard Houston
147 Philadelphia Eagles Whit Marshall Linebacker Georgia
148 Minnesota Vikings Sean Boyd Defensive back North Carolina
149 New England Patriots Christian Peter Defensive tackle Nebraska
150 Miami Dolphins Shane Burton Defensive tackle Tennessee
151 Indianapolis Colts Steve Martin Defensive tackle Missouri
152 Chicago Bears Chris Villarrial Guard Indiana (PA)
153 Baltimore Ravens Jermaine Lewis Wide receiver Maryland
154 Miami Dolphins Zach Thomas Linebacker Texas Tech
155 San Diego Chargers Junior Soli Defensive tackle Arkansas
156 Buffalo Bills Ray Jackson Defensive back Colorado State
157 Dallas Cowboys Kenneth McDaniel Guard Norfolk State
158 Detroit Lions Kerwin Waldroup Defensive tackle Central State (OH)
159 Denver Broncos Patrick Jeffers Wide receiver Virginia
160 San Francisco 49ers Iheanyi Uwaezuoke Wide receiver California
161 Arizona Cardinals Harry Stamps Tackle Oklahoma
162 Arizona Cardinals Dell McGee Defensive back Auburn
163 Pittsburgh Steelers Israel Raybon Defensive end North Alabama
164 Atlanta Falcons Gary Bandy Linebacker Baylor
165 New Orleans Saints Terry Guess Wide receiver Gardner-Webb
166 Oakland Raiders La'Roi Glover Defensive tackle San Diego State
167 Dallas Cowboys Alan Campos Linebacker Louisville
Round six Edit
Pick # NFL Team Player Position College
168 New York Jets Hugh Hunter Defensive end Hampton
169 Arizona Cardinals Mike Foley Defensive end New Hampshire
170 Jacksonville Jaguars John Fisher Defensive back Missouri Western
171 New York Giants Doug Colman Linebacker Nebraska
172 Baltimore Ravens Dexter Daniels Linebacker Florida
173 New England Patriots Chris Griffin Tight end New Mexico
174 Washington Redskins Kelvin Kinney Defensive end Virginia State
175 St. Louis Rams Derrick Harris Running back Miami (FL)
176 Kansas City Chiefs Dietrich Jells Wide receiver Pittsburgh
177 Houston Oilers Anthony Dorsett Defensive back Pittsburgh
178 Cincinnati Bengals Tom Tumulty Linebacker Pittsburgh
179 New Orleans Saints Keno Hills Tackle Southwestern Louisiana
180 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Nilo Silvan Wide receiver Tennessee
181 Denver Broncos Tony Veland Defensive back Nebraska
182 New York Giants Scott Galyon Linebacker Tennessee
183 Oakland Raiders Tim Hall Running back Robert Morris
184 Seattle Seahawks Reggie Green Guard Florida
185 Jacksonville Jaguars Chris Doering Wide receiver Florida
186 Baltimore Ravens James Roe Wide receiver Norfolk State
187 Chicago Bears Jon Clark Tackle Temple
188 Atlanta Falcons Craig Sauer Linebacker Minnesota
189 Miami Dolphins Shawn Wooden Defensive back Notre Dame
190 San Diego Chargers Jim Mills Tackle Idaho
191 Indianapolis Colts Keith Conlin Tackle Penn State
192 San Diego Chargers Bryan Stoltenberg Center Colorado
193 Carolina Panthers Scott Greene Running back Michigan State
194 Philadelphia Eagles Steve White Defensive end Tennessee
195 New England Patriots Marrio Grier Running back Tennessee-Chattanooga
196 Buffalo Bills Leon Neal Running back Washington
197 Philadelphia Eagles Tony Johnson Tight end Alabama
198 San Francisco 49ers Stephen Pitts Running back Penn State
199 Kansas City Chiefs Philip Riley Wide receiver Florida State
200 Pittsburgh Steelers Orpheus Roye Defensive end Florida State
201 St. Louis Rams Hayward Clay Tight end Texas A&M
202 Buffalo Bills Dusty Zeigler Center Notre Dame
203 Pittsburgh Steelers Spence Fischer Quarterback Duke
204 New Orleans Saints Toderick Malone Wide receiver Alabama
205 Indianapolis Colts Mike Cawley Quarterback James Madison
206 New England Patriots Devin Wyman Defensive end Kentucky State
207 Dallas Cowboys Wendell Davis Defensive back Oklahoma
208 Green Bay Packers Marco Rivera Guard Penn State
209 Seattle Seahawks T. J. Cunningham Defensive back Colorado
Round seven Edit
Pick # NFL Team Player Position College
210 New York Jets Chris Hayes Defensive back Washington State
211 Kansas City Chiefs Ben Lynch Center California
212 Arizona Cardinals Jarius Hayes Tight end North Alabama
213 Denver Broncos Leslie Ratliffe Tackle Tennessee
214 New York Giants Conrad Hamilton Defensive back East New Mexico
215 Washington Redskins Jeremy Asher Linebacker Oregon
216 New England Patriots Lovett Purnell Tight end West Virginia
217 Carolina Panthers Donnell Baker Wide receiver Southern
218 Houston Oilers Mike Archie Running back Penn State
219 Cincinnati Bengals Rod Jones Tackle Kansas
220 Oakland Raiders Sedric Clark Defensive end Tulsa
221 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Reggie Rusk Defensive back Kentucky
222 St. Louis Rams Chuck Osborne Defensive tackle Arizona
223 Minnesota Vikings Jon Merrill Tackle Duke
224 Oakland Raiders Darius Smith Center Sam Houston State
225 Seattle Seahawks Johnie Church Defensive end Florida
226 Denver Broncos Chris Banks Guard Kansas
227 Jacksonville Jaguars Clarence Jones Wide receiver Tennessee State
228 Jacksonville Jaguars Gregory Spann Wide receiver Jackson State
229 Atlanta Falcons Ethan Brooks Defensive end Williams
230 Miami Dolphins Jeff Buckey Guard Stanford
231 San Diego Chargers Freddie Bradley Running back Sonoma State
232 Indianapolis Colts Adrian Robinson Defensive back Baylor
233 Chicago Bears Marcus Keyes Defensive tackle North Alabama
234 Carolina Panthers Kerry Hicks Defensive tackle Colorado
235 Denver Broncos L. T. Levine Running back Kansas
236 Denver Broncos Brian Gragert Punter Wyoming
237 Buffalo Bills Dan Bradenburg Defensive end Indiana State
238 Baltimore Ravens Jon Stark Quarterback Trinity
239 San Francisco 49ers Sean Manuel Tight end New Mexico State
240 Green Bay Packers Kyle Wachholtz Quarterback USC
241 Kansas City Chiefs Jeff Smith Center Tennessee
242 Pittsburgh Steelers Carlos Emmons Linebacker Arkansas State
243 Dallas Cowboys Ryan Wood Running back Arizona State
244 Buffalo Bills Jay Riemersma Tight end Michigan
245 Kansas City Chiefs Darrell Williams Defensive back Tennessee State
246 New Orleans Saints Henry Lusk Tight end Utah
247 New England Patriots J. R. Conrad Tackle Oklahoma
248 Oakland Raiders Joey Wylie Guard Stephen F. Austin
249 Buffalo Bills Eric Smedley Defensive back Indiana
250 Washington Redskins DeAndre Maxwell Wide receiver San Diego State
251 Miami Dolphins Brice Hunter Wide receiver Georgia
252 Green Bay Packers Keith McKenzie Linebacker Ball State
253 Chicago Bears Michael Hicks Running back South Carolina State
254 [4] San Francisco 49ers Sam Manuel Linebacker New Mexico State
Notable undrafted players Edit
Hall of famers Edit
None of the drafted players from the 1996 NFL Draft have been inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame . However, many of the players drafted are expected to make it when they are eligible.
References Edit
↑ Football Prospectus 2007, p. 461
↑ 2.0 2.1 Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.
↑ Eddie George, 1995 Heisman Trophy winner "1995 Heisman Trophy winner" . http://www.heisman.com/winners/e-george95.html . Retrieved 2008-10-11 .[dead link ]
↑ This last selection is commonly referred to as Mr. Irrelevant .
External links Edit