Who was the first overall pick in the inaugural NFL draft in 1936?

Jay Berwanger was the first overall pick in the inaugural NFL draft in 1936.

The first NFL draft was held on February 8, 1936, at Philadelphia’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The league created the draft to improve competitive balance by giving the weakest teams the earliest selections. The Philadelphia Eagles owned the first pick and chose Berwanger, the University of Chicago halfback who had won the first Heisman Trophy in 1935.

Berwanger’s draft rights were later traded to the Chicago Bears, but the deal did not lead to an NFL career. He and the Bears could not agree on a contract, and he never played a professional football game. That makes his selection historically famous even though he produced no NFL statistics.

A common mix-up is confusing the first overall pick with the first drafted player to actually appear in the NFL. Berwanger was followed by Riley Smith, selected second by the Boston Redskins; unlike Berwanger, Smith did play professionally. The 1936 draft established a tradition that has continued every year since.