History: Pro Football Draft History - The 2000s

Pro Football Draft History: The 2000s

In back-to-back drafts in the 2000s, an NFL team made trades in order to select three players in the first round. In 2000, the Jets drafted in the number 12th, 13th, and 27th spots of the first round. One year later, the St. Louis Rams had the 12th, 20th, and 29th overall picks of round number one.

Select among the years below to see more in-depth coverage of that year''s draft:
	The Browns selected Courtney Brown, a defensive end from Penn State as the first pick. Then Washington had the next two picks, the first of which was used on Brown’s Nittany Lion teammate LaVar Arrington.
	The Atlanta Falcons traded up to get the first overall pick which they promptly used on Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Vick. In doing so, Vick became the first African-American quarterback ever taken as the first player in an NFL draft.
	Quarterbacks ruled early on, as Fresno State's David Carr went first to the expansion Houston Texans and Oregon''s Joey Harrington was taken two picks later by Detroit. Another QB wasn''t selected until the final pick of the round, when Washington tabbed Tulane''s Patrick Ramsey.
	Southern California quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals with the first overall pick. He was followed by Michigan State receiver Charles Rogers. The Jacksonville Jaguars found their next starting QB at the No. 7 spot as they selected Marshall''s Byron Leftwich.
	Eli Manning was the first of four quarterbacks to go in the first round when he was picked as the first player overall. The others included Philip Rivers (No. 4), Ben Roethlisberger (No. 11), and J.P. Losman (No. 22). Six University of Miami (FL) players were taken in the first round.
	Utah quarterback Alex Smith was selected as the first player overall by the San Francisco 49ers while three running backs were taken among the top five picks including Auburn teammates Ronnie Brown (No. 2) by Miami and Carnell Williams (No. 5) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
	The Houston Texans selected North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams as the top pick. The Tennesee Titans opted for Vince Young out of Texas as the third overall pick and the first of three QBs chosen in the first round.
	Louisiana State quarterback JaMarcus Russell was selected first overall by the Oakland Raiders. The Cleveland Browns bolstered their offense by selecting tackle Joe Thomas third overall and QB Brady Quinn in the first round.