NFL Draft

Twenty-four of the best sites about the NFL draft, the annual choosing of college football players by National Football League teams. Know of another site that should be listed here? Leave your suggestion at the bottom of this page. (Related searches: Cleveland Browns)

1. Scott Wright’s Draft Countdown - All sorts of information on the NFL draft, including interviews with potential draftees, the main needs of NFL teams, a mock draft, a list of Wright’s top prospects with commentary on each, forums where you can discuss the NFL draft with other football junkies, draft grades after each draft, and more. (www.nfldraftcountdown.com)

2. ESPN.com - 2008 NFL Draft Index - Articles and mock draft rankings for the 2008 draft as well as a look back at 2007, 2006 and 2005. (sports.espn.go.com)

3. Draft Insiders’ Digest - Year-round coverage of NFL prospects and the NFL draft itself from long-time scout/reporter Frank Coyle. (www.draftinsiders.com)

4. NFL Draft at NFL.com - Check out the draft picks for the most recent NFL draft, look up draft picks of all the NFL teams since 1982, get opinions on who the best draft picks might be at each position, this year’s draft order, more. (www.nfl.com)

5. NFL Draft Dog - Get information on the 2008 NFL draft, with scouting reports, prospect rankings, a mock draft, and even a mock draft of expected 2009 draftees. (www.nfldraftdog.com)

6. List of National Football League First Overall Draft Choices - See all the #1s going back to 1936. (en.wikipedia.org)

7. DraftHistory.com - Offers an ongoing blog on NFL draft news, plus categories to research current eligible draftees, complete draft history results by year, position, team, school, and more. (www.drafthistory.com)

8. No Clear No. 1: Who Will Emerge Atop NFL Draft? - April 2, 2008 article on the unpredictableness of which player will go first in 2008. (www.usatoday.com)

9. The NFL Draft Site - Blog focused on the NFL draft and all of the events leading up to it, including scouting combines, college all-star games, spotlights on specific college players, lists of eligible draftees, continually updated mock draft predictions by the site’s owner Robert Bryant, and more. (nfl-draft-site.blogspot.com)

10. Small School NFL Draft Prospects - Analysis of draft prospects from outside the major Division I schools, including Division I-A, Division II, Division III, and “a sprinkling of NAIA, junior college and smaller Division I schools.” (nfl-prospects.blogspot.com)

11. Rivals.com: NFL Draft - Latest news on the NFL draft, draft order and mock draft, player rankings overall as well as ratings for prospects at each position, profiles of certain top players, more. (nfldraft.rivals.com)

12. NFL Draft Day Drinking Game Rules - April 7, 2008 blog post offers some ideas on how to spice up draft day if you’re hanging out with buddies. Drink whenever you hear words or phrases such as “tremendous upside” or “intangibles” or “sleeper” or many others. Following these rules is guaranteed to leave you passed out before the first round is over. (yardbarker.com)

13. NFL Draft Blitz - Ranks the top 150 NFL draft prospects, features interviews with prospects, discusses overrated and “sleeper” prospects, reports on draft rumors, offers a mock draft of the upcoming draft and more. (www.nfldraftblitz.com)

14. Three Draft-Day Errors Teams Fail to Learn From - April 3, 2008 article says teams repeatedly make the same mistakes in rating players for their draft board, including falling in love with 40-yard dash times, following sudden gut feelings, and overrating college statistics and underrating the player’s college opponents or the system the player played in. (www.sportingnews.com)

15. CBS Sports NFL Draft Tracker - Lists the top players at each position and updates where they went on draft day and in which round. (sportsline.com)

16. Top Backs Not Fitting into NFL Mold - April 6, 2008 article says that the 4 running backs expected to be taken first in the 2008 draft are hard to grade because they played in offenses very different from how they’ll be used in the NFL. (www.sun-sentinel.com)

17. NFL Draft at Wikipedia - Offers an overview of how the NFL Draft works, including basic procedures and rules, compensatory picks, player eligibility, the supplemental draft, pre-draft events such as the scouting combine and Pro Day, and information on how to get tickets to be there in person on draft day. (en.wikipedia.org)

18. League Tweaks Format for Draft - April 4, 2008 article on the change in the NFL Draft that will put only the first two rounds on Day One and the rest on Day Two. Teams will also have only 10 minutes to make their picks in rounds 1 and 2. (Previously the draft had three rounds the first day, and each team got 15 minutes to make their picks in the opening rounds.)

19. Secrecy is Crucial in NFL Draft - February 2, 2007 article on Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Mike Martz saying the Lions wouldn’t draft a quarterback in that draft, and how such statements can hurt a team’s chances of making good trades or getting the player they want most in the draft. (www.detnews.com)

20. NFL’s Cattle Call Whistled to Start - The Seattle Seahawks’ Michael Boulware describes what NFL combine prospects can expect, recalling his experience as “one of the worst three-day periods of my life.” (seattlepi.nwsource.com)

21. Brown Says Off-Field Woes Will Alter Bengals’ Draft - January 28, 2007 article on Cincinnati Bengals president Mike Brown vowing to consider the off-field reputations of potential draft picks after 6 out of the past two years’ 16 draft picks were arrested in 2006 on a variety of charges. (www.usatoday.com)

22. Troy Smith Lobbying Browns to Draft Him - January 31, 2007 article on Ohio State quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith lobbying his hometown Cleveland Browns to draft him. (The Baltimore Ravens took him instead.) (www.msnbc.msn.com)

23. Nebraska’s Moore Aiming to Improve His Draft Status - February 1, 2007 article on Nebraska defensive end Jay Moore’s impressive performance in the Senior Bowl, plus Moore’s thoughts on his draft prospects if he can combine that performance with a fast 40-yard dash at the NFL combines. (Moore was drafted in the 4th round by the San Francisco 49ers.) (www.journalstar.com)

24. NFL Scouting Combine Preview - Sports Illustrated looks at which NFL prospects had the most to gain and the most to lose through their participation in the 2007 NFL combines. (sportsillustrated.cnn.com)