The 1980 NFL draft was the procedure by which

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 ...

teams selected amateur

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The

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 ...

was held April 29–30,

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, at the New York Sheraton Hotel in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season. With the first overall pick of the draft, the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

selected running back Billy Sims. This draft is notable as the first that the nascent

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

network (which had first gone on the air seven months earlier) aired in its entirety, and the first to be televised.

Player selections

Hall of Famers

* Anthony Muñoz, offensive tackle from Southern California, taken 1st round 3rd overall by Cincinnati Bengals :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1998.List of 1990s Hall of Fame Inductee's at profootballhof.com * Dwight Stephenson, center from Alabama, taken 2nd round 48th overall by Miami Dolphins :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1998. * Art Monk, wide receiver from Syracuse, taken 1st round 18th overall by Washington Redskins :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2008.List of 2000s Hall of Fame Inductee's at profootballhof.com *

Steve McMichael Stephen Douglas McMichael (October 17, 1957 – April 23, 2025), nicknamed "Mongo", "Ming", and "Ming the Merciless", was an American professional football player and professional wrestler. He was a defensive tackle for 15 seasons in the Natio ...

, defensive tackle from Texas, taken 3rd round 73rd overall by the New England Patriots. :Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024.

Notable undrafted players

References

External links

NFL.com – 1980 Draft
*
Pro Football Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:1980 Nfl Draft NFL draft NFL Draft 1980

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 ...

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 ...

American football in New York City 1980s in Manhattan Sporting events in New York City Sports in Manhattan