The 1936 NFL draft was the first draft of

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). It took place on February 8, 1936, at the

Ritz-Carlton The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational company that operates the luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 luxury hotels and resorts in 30 countries and territories with 29,158 rooms, in addit ...

Hotel in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. The draft was instituted in an effort to end bidding wars among the league's teams by the arbitrary assignment of negotiating rights to amateur players. It was haphazardly decided that the last place team from the previous season would get the first selection, and the process would continue in reverse order of the standings. Under this structure the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

, who finished at 2–9, would select first. This was the only draft to have nine rounds; the number increased to ten for the 1937 draft. The first player ever drafted, Jay Berwanger, who had previously been awarded the initial

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

, never played in the NFL. His rights were traded by the

to the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

, as the Eagles felt they would be unable to meet Berwanger's reported demand of $1000 per game. The Eagles received tackle Art Buss from the Bears in exchange for Berwanger's rights.

George Halas George Stanley Halas Sr. (February 2, 1895 – October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear", was an American professional football end, coach, and executive. He was the founder and owner of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL), ...

was unable to convince Berwanger to sign with the Bears. After this, Berwanger got a job in rubber sales. Riley Smith, the second pick, was the first player drafted to play in the NFL.

Breakdown of players selected

The following is the breakdown of the 81 players selected:

Player selections

Hall of Famers

* Dan Fortmann, guard from Colgate taken 9th round 78th overall by the Chicago Bears. :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1965. * Joe Stydahar, tackle from West Virginia taken 1st round 6th overall by the Chicago Bears. :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1967. * Wayne Millner, end from Notre Dame taken 8th round 65th overall by the Boston Redskins. :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1968. * Alphonse “Tuffy” Leemans, back from George Washington University taken 2nd Round 18th overall by the New York Giants. :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1978.

Notable undrafted players

Schools with multiple draft selections

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:1936 Nfl Draft NFL draft

NFL Draft The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reve ...

Draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

1930s in Philadelphia American football in Philadelphia February 1936 sports events in the United States Events in Philadelphia