List of second overall NFL draft picks

Travis Hunter was selected second overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2025

This is a list of second overall National Football League (NFL) draft picks. The NFL draft is an annual sports draft in which National Football League teams select newly eligible players for their rosters. Thirteen players selected second overall have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Sid Luckman (1939), George McAfee (1940), Les Richter (1952), Bob Brown (1964), Tom Mack (1966), Randy White (1975), Tony Dorsett (1977), Lawrence Taylor (1981), Eric Dickerson (1983), Marshall Faulk (1994), Tony Boselli (1995), Julius Peppers (2002), and Calvin Johnson (2007).[1] In 2012, Sports Illustrated chose Taylor as the best player selected second overall.[2]

Eight Heisman Trophy winners have been selected at the spot: Glenn Davis (1946), Billy Vessels (1952), John David Crow (1957), Reggie Bush (2006), Robert Griffin III (2012), Marcus Mariota (2014), Jayden Daniels (2024), and Travis Hunter (2025). Notable draft busts selected include Lam Jones (1980), Tony Mandarich (1989), Blair Thomas (1990), Ryan Leaf (1998), Charles Rogers (2003), Jason Smith (2009), Mitchell Trubisky (2017), and Zach Wilson (2021).[3][4][5] The Cleveland / St. Louis / Los Angeles Rams have had nine selections at the spot, the most in the NFL.[1]

List

Key
K Kicker NT Nose tackle C Center
LB Linebacker FB Fullback DB Defensive back
P Punter HB Halfback DE Defensive end
QB Quarterback WR/E Wide receiver / end DT Defensive tackle
G Guard T Offensive tackle TE Tight end
* Selected to a Pro Bowl
‡ Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
List of second overall picks[1]
Year Name Position College NFL team Notes
1936 Riley Smith QB Alabama Boston Redskins College Football Hall of Fame
1937 Ed Goddard QB/HB Washington State Brooklyn Dodgers
1938 Jim McDonald HB Ohio State Philadelphia Eagles
1939 Sid Luckman‡ QB Columbia Chicago Bears Pro Football Hall of Fame
1940 George McAfee‡ HB Duke Philadelphia Eagles Pro Football Hall of Fame
1941 John Kimbrough FB Texas A&M Chicago Cardinals College Football Hall of Fame
1942 Jack Wilson HB Baylor Cleveland Rams Appeared in only 10 NFL games, 3 as a starter
1943 Joe Muha FB VMI Philadelphia Eagles 2x All-Pro
1944 Pat Harder* FB Wisconsin Chicago Cardinals 3× first-team All-Pro; College Football Hall of Fame
1945 Paul Duhart QB/HB Florida Pittsburgh Steelers Appeared in only 13 NFL games, 7 as a starter
1946 Dub Jones* HB LSU Chicago Cardinals 2× AAFC champion, 3× NFL champion
1947 Glenn Davis* HB Army Detroit Lions Heisman Trophy (1946)
1948 Skip Minisi HB Penn New York Giants College Football Hall of Fame
1949 John Rauch QB Georgia Detroit Lions College Football Hall of Fame
1950 Adrian Burk* QB Baylor Baltimore Colts 2× Pro Bowl
1951 Bob Williams QB Notre Dame Chicago Bears College Football Hall of Fame
1952 Les Richter‡ LB California New York Yanks[a] Pro Football Hall of Fame
1953 Billy Vessels HB Oklahoma Baltimore Colts Heisman Trophy (1952)
1954 Lamar McHan QB Arkansas Chicago Cardinals
1955 Max Boydston E Oklahoma Chicago Cardinals
1956 Earl Morrall* QB Michigan State San Francisco 49ers 3× Super Bowl champion, NFL Most Valuable Player (1968)
1957 Jon Arnett* HB USC Los Angeles Rams College Football Hall of Fame; 5× Pro Bowl
1958 John David Crow* HB Texas A&M Chicago Cardinals Heisman Trophy (1957)
1959 Dick Bass* FB Pacific Los Angeles Rams 3× Pro Bowl
1960 George Izo QB Notre Dame St. Louis Cardinals
1961 Norm Snead* QB Wake Forest Washington Redskins 4× Pro Bowl
1962 Roman Gabriel QB NC State Los Angeles Rams College Football Hall of Fame; 4× Pro Bowl, NFL Most Valuable Player (1969)
1963 Jerry Stovall* DB LSU St. Louis Cardinals 3× Pro Bowl
1964 Bob Brown‡ T Nebraska Philadelphia Eagles Pro Football Hall of Fame
1965 Ken Willard* FB North Carolina San Francisco 49ers 4× Pro Bowl
1966 Tom Mack‡ G Michigan Los Angeles Rams Pro Football Hall of Fame
1967 Clint Jones HB Michigan State Minnesota Vikings College Football Hall of Fame
1968 Bob Johnson C Tennessee Cincinnati Bengals College Football Hall of Fame
1969 George Kunz* T Notre Dame Atlanta Falcons 8× Pro Bowl
1970 Mike McCoy DT Notre Dame Green Bay Packers
1971 Archie Manning QB Ole Miss New Orleans Saints 2× Pro Bowl
1972 Sherman White DE California Cincinnati Bengals
1973 Bert Jones QB LSU Baltimore Colts Pro Bowl (1976), NFL Most Valuable Player (1976)
1974 Bo Matthews HB Colorado San Diego Chargers
1975 Randy White‡ DT Maryland Dallas Cowboys Pro Football Hall of Fame
1976 Steve Niehaus DT Notre Dame Seattle Seahawks NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year (1976)
1977 Tony Dorsett‡ HB Pittsburgh Dallas Cowboys Pro Football Hall of Fame
1978 Art Still* DE Kentucky Kansas City Chiefs 4× Pro Bowl
1979 Mike Bell DE Colorado State Kansas City Chiefs
1980 Lam Jones WR Texas New York Jets
1981 Lawrence Taylor‡ LB North Carolina New York Giants Pro Football Hall of Fame , 2× Super Bowl champion (XXI, XXV)

NFL Most Valuable Player (1986) 3× NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1981, 1982, 1986) NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (1981) 2× UPI NFC Player of the Year (1983, 1986) 8× First-team All-Pro (1981–1986, 1988, 1989) 2× Second-team All-Pro (1987, 1990) 10× Pro Bowl (1981–1990) NFL sacks leader (1986) NFL 1980s All-Decade Team NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team Bert Bell Award (1986) PFWA All-Rookie Team (1981) New York Giants Ring of Honor New York Giants No. 56 retired 100 greatest Giants of all-time Unanimous All-American (1980) ACC Player of the Year (1980) First-team All-ACC (1980) North Carolina Tar Heels Jersey No. 98 honored

1982 Johnie Cooks LB Mississippi State Baltimore Colts
1983 Eric Dickerson‡ HB SMU Los Angeles Rams Pro Football Hall of Fame
1984 Dean Steinkuhler T Nebraska Houston Oilers Outland Trophy (1983)
1985 Bill Fralic G Pittsburgh Atlanta Falcons 4× Pro Bowl
1986 Tony Casillas DT Oklahoma Atlanta Falcons College Football Hall of Fame
1987 Cornelius Bennett LB Alabama Indianapolis Colts 5× Pro Bowl
1988 Neil Smith DE Nebraska Kansas City Chiefs NFL 1990s All-Decade Team, 6× Pro Bowl
1989 Tony Mandarich T Michigan State Green Bay Packers
1990 Blair Thomas HB Penn State New York Jets
1991 Eric Turner DB UCLA Cleveland Browns 2× Pro Bowl
1992 Quentin Coryatt LB Texas A&M Indianapolis Colts
1993 Rick Mirer QB Notre Dame Seattle Seahawks
1994 Marshall Faulk‡ HB San Diego State Indianapolis Colts Pro Football Hall of Fame
1995 Tony Boselli‡ T USC Jacksonville Jaguars Pro Football Hall of Fame
1996 Kevin Hardy LB Illinois Jacksonville Jaguars Pro Bowl (1999)
1997 Darrell Russell DT USC Oakland Raiders 2× Pro Bowl
1998 Ryan Leaf QB Washington State San Diego Chargers
1999 Donovan McNabb* QB Syracuse Philadelphia Eagles 6× Pro Bowl
2000 LaVar Arrington* LB Penn State Washington Redskins Bednarik Award (1999), 3× Pro Bowl
2001 Leonard Davis* G Texas Arizona Cardinals 3× Pro Bowl
2002 Julius Peppers‡ DE North Carolina Carolina Panthers Pro Football Hall of Fame
2003 Charles Rogers WR Michigan State Detroit Lions Biletnikoff Award (2002)
2004 Robert Gallery T Iowa Oakland Raiders Outland Trophy (2003)
2005 Ronnie Brown* HB Auburn Miami Dolphins Pro Bowl (2008)
2006 Reggie Bush HB USC New Orleans Saints Heisman Trophy (2005)
2007 Calvin Johnson‡ WR Georgia Tech Detroit Lions Pro Football Hall of Fame
2008 Chris Long DE Virginia St. Louis Rams 2× Super Bowl champion, Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year (2018)
2009 Jason Smith T Baylor St. Louis Rams
2010 Ndamukong Suh* DT Nebraska Detroit Lions NFL 2010s All-Decade Team; 5× Pro Bowl
2011 Von Miller LB Texas A&M Denver Broncos 2× Super Bowl champion, NFL 2010s All-Decade Team; 8× Pro Bowl
2012 Robert Griffin III QB Baylor Washington Redskins Heisman Trophy (2011), Offensive Rookie of the Year, Pro Bowl (2012)
2013 Luke Joeckel T Texas A&M Jacksonville Jaguars Outland Trophy (2012)
2014 Greg Robinson T Auburn St. Louis Rams
2015 Marcus Mariota QB Oregon Tennessee Titans Heisman Trophy (2014)
2016 Carson Wentz QB North Dakota State Philadelphia Eagles Bert Bell Award (2017), Pro Bowl (2017)
2017 Mitchell Trubisky QB North Carolina Chicago Bears Pro Bowl (2018)
2018 Saquon Barkley HB Penn State New York Giants Offensive Rookie of the Year, 3× Pro Bowl
2019 Nick Bosa DE Ohio State San Francisco 49ers Defensive Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year (2022), 5× Pro Bowl
2020 Chase Young DE Ohio State Washington Redskins Defensive Rookie of the Year, Pro Bowl (2020)
2021 Zach Wilson QB BYU New York Jets
2022 Aidan Hutchinson DE Michigan Detroit Lions Pro Bowl (2023)
2023 C. J. Stroud QB Ohio State Houston Texans Offensive Rookie of the Year, Pro Bowl (2023)
2024 Jayden Daniels QB LSU Washington Commanders Heisman Trophy (2023), Offensive Rookie of the Year, Pro Bowl (2024)
2025 Travis Hunter CB/WR Colorado Jacksonville Jaguars Heisman Trophy (2024)

Notes

  1. ^ The New York Yanks folded prior to the 1952 NFL season. The Dallas Texans would later assume the rights for Richter.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Morris, Kevin Winters (April 21, 2020). "NFL Draft history: Multiple running backs, but only one HOF quarterback taken with second pick". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2025-04-29.
  2. ^ Chris Burke (April 4, 2012). "Best of the Firsts, No. 2: Lawrence Taylor". Sports Illustrated.
  3. ^ Jill R. Dorson (September 20, 2016). "No. 2 Overall Picks In NFL Draft: A Surprising Amount Of Busts". ThePostGame.
  4. ^ "NFL Draft: Boons & busts at No. 2". The Florida Times-Union. April 15, 2013.
  5. ^ Jim Wyatt (April 29, 2014). "No. 2 pick in NFL Draft doesn't bring a sure thing". The Tennessean.
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