Dean Michaels
The Cleveland Browns needed to do something at the 2012 NFL draft to shake up perhaps the league's worst offense.
They did just that in trading up to No. 3 to select Alabama standout running back Trent Richardson.
Along with swapping the No. 3 for the No. 4 pick, the Minnesota Vikings also received a fourth-, fifth- and seventh-round pick in this year's draft.
As expected, there was no drama with the top two picks as Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck went No. 1 to the Indianapolis Colts and Baylor signal-caller Robert Griffin III being selected No. 2 by the Washington Redskins.
The Vikings selected USC offensive lineman Matt Kalil at No. 4, while Oklahoma State wideout Justin Blackmon went No. 5 to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Dallas Cowboys went with LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne at No. 6 and Alabama safety Mark Barron was the Tampa Bay Bucs choice at No. 7.
The Miami Dolphins chose Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill at No. 8, while Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly was the Carolina Panthers selection at No. 9.
Rounding out the top 10 were the Buffalo Bills, who opted for South Carolina corner Stephon Gilmore.
Notable Draft Quotes
Andrew Luck about the pressure replacing Pro Football Hall of Fame caliber quarterback:
Peyton Manning, arguably the greatest ever. He was my football hero growing up. I realize you don't really replace a guy like that. Those shoes to fill are huge. I'm not going to go crazy trying to do everything that Peyton did. I realize we're different personalities so I'll put my best foot forward and try to work hard every day. If one day I can be mentioned alongside Peyton in quarterback history, it would be a football dream come true
Robert Griffin III on the Redskins' offense
The receivers they just picked up -- Pierre Garcon and Josh Morgan -- they've got a lot of weapons. Anthony Armstrong is one of the fastest guys in the league. Leonard Hankerson is a young guy that got hurt last year and can really make some plays. You've got Santana Moss, can't forget about that guy, from the U [of Miami]. I watched him growing up, not that he's old, but I look forward to playing with all these guys, just using their skills, and I want them to know that even though some do look at me as a running quarterback, I play quarterback first and then when nothing is there I try to make something happen. I'll play within the system and then get ready to do whatever I have to do if nothing is there
Trent Richardson on Alabama Coach Nick Saban's advice about the pros
He really just told me, "Make sure you never forget what you did to get to where you are. You carried yourself so well. Just be you, stay humble." If you're humble, you won't have any problems. Just work hard and do what you always do."
Matt Kalil on getting to block for Adrian Peterson
It's kind of cool. Being in seventh grade and watching my brother play in the Orange Bowl, and Adrian Peterson from Oklahoma and seeing everything he's done now, and now being able to block for him, he's probably one of if not the best running backs in the NFL. From what I heard about him, what kind of guy he is, what kind of leader he is, how tough he is, I have no doubt he's going to not miss a beat this whole next season, and it's going to be pretty fun blocking for him
2012 NFL Draft Round 1 Picks
Pick | Team | Player | Position | Colege |
---|---|---|---|---|
Source: NFL | ||||
1 | INDIANAPOLIS | Luck, Andrew | QB | Stanford |
2 | WASHINGTON | Griffin, Robert | QB | Baylor |
3 | CLEVELAND | Richardson, Trent | RB | Alabama |
4 | MINNESOTA | Kalil, Matt | T | Southern California |
5 | JACKSONVILLE | Blackmon, Justin | WR | Oklahoma State |
6 | DALLAS | Claiborne, Morris | DB | Louisiana State |
7 | TAMPA BAY | Barron, Mark | DB | Alabama |
8 | MIAMI | Tannehill, Ryan | QB | Texas A&M |
9 | CAROLINA | Kuechly, Luke | LB | Boston College |
10 | BUFFALO | Gilmore, Stephon | DB | South Carolina |
11 | KANSAS CITY | Poe, Dontari | NT | Memphis |
12 | PHILADELPHIA | Cox, Fletcher | DT | Mississippi State |
13 | ARIZONA | Floyd, Michael | WR | Notre Dame |
14 | ST LOUIS | Brockers, Michael | DT | Louisiana State |
15 | SEATTLE | Irvin, Bruce | DE | West Virginia |
16 | NEW YORK JETS | Coples, Quinton | DE | North Carolina |
17 | CINCINNATI | Kirkpatrick, Dre | DB | Alabama |
18 | SAN DIEGO | Ingram, Melvin | LB | South Carolina |
19 | CHICAGO | McClellin, Shea | DE | Boise State |
20 | TENNESSEE | Wright, Kendall | WR | Baylor |
21 | NEW ENGLAND | Jones, Chandler | DE | Syracuse |
22 | CLEVELAND | Weeden, Brandon | QB | Oklahoma State |
23 | DETROIT | Reiff, Riley | T | Iowa |
24 | PITTSBURGH | DeCastro, David | G | Stanford |
25 | NEW ENGLAND | Hightower, Dont'a | LB | Alabama |
26 | HOUSTON | Mercilus, Whitney | LB | Illinois |
27 | CINCINNATI | Zeitler, Kevin | G | Wisconsin |
28 | GREEN BAY | Perry, Nick | LB | Southern California |
29 | MINNESOTA | Smith, Harrison | DB | Notre Dame |
30 | SAN FRANCISCO | Jenkins, A.J. | WR | Illinois |
31 | TAMPA BAY | Martin, Doug | RB | Boise State |
32 | NEW YORK GIANTS | Wilson, David | RB | Virginia Tech |
2012 NFL Draft Round 1 Notes
Record Number of Players Attend 2012 NFL Draft
26 NFL Draft Prospects were in attendance tonight at Radio City Music Hall for Round 1 of the 2012 NFL Draft -- the most in history. This year's total eclipses last year's record of 25 players.
A record five players from BCS National Champion Alabama were on hand: S Mark Barron, LB Dont'a Hightower, CB Dre Kirkpatrick, RB Trent Richardson and LB Courtney Upshaw.
Luck Of The Draw
Indianapolis selected Andrew Luck with the No. 1 pick of the 2012 NFL Draft, marking the fourth time a Stanford quarterback has been chosen first overall, the most of any college in history. Notre Dame is the only other school with multiple quarterbacks selected No. 1 in NFL Draft history (Angelo Bertelli, 1944; Frank Dancewicz, 1946).
Stanford Quarterbacks Selected First Overall (All-Time)
Year | Player | Team |
---|---|---|
Source: NFL | ||
1954 | Bobby Garrett | Cleveland Browns |
1971 | Jim Plunkett | New England Patriots |
1983 | John Elway | Baltimore Colts |
2012 | Andrew Luck | Indianapolis Colts |
Mulitple Draft Day Moves
There were 19 trades involving first-round selections in the 2012 NFL Draft, the most since at least 1970. The previous high during that span was 15 first-round trades in 1995.
It's A QB League
With the Colts' selection of Stanford QB Andrew Luck, the 2012 NFL Draft marked the fourth consecutive year a quarterback has been chosen first overall -- the second-longest streak in NFL Draft history. A quarterback was taken off the board first in each year from 2001-05.
It also marked the 31st time in NFL Draft history a quarterback has been selected first overall -- the most of any position -- and the 10th time in the last 12 years.
NFL Draft: First Overall Selections (2001-2012)
Year | Player | Position | Team |
---|---|---|---|
Source: NFL | |||
2001 | Michael Vick | QB | Atlanta |
2002 | David Carr | QB | Houston |
2003 | Carson Palmer | QB | Cincinnati |
2004 | Eli Manning | QB | San Diego |
2005 | Alex Smith | QB | San Francisco |
2006 | Mario Williams | DE | Houston |
2007 | JaMarcus Russell | QB | Oakland |
2008 | Jake Long | T | Miami |
2009 | Matthew Stafford | QB | Detroit |
2010 | Sam Bradford | QB | St. Louis |
2011 | Cam Newton | QB | Carolina |
2012 | Andrew Luck | QB | Indianapolis |
With the Redskins' selection of Baylor QB ROBERT GRIFFIN III at No. 2 overall in Round 1, Luck and Griffin have become the fifth pair of quarterbacks to be selected No. 1 and No. 2 overall in the same year since the common draft was instituted in 1967.
Quarterbacks Selected Number One And Number Two Overall In The Same Year
Year | No. 1 Selection | No. 2 Selection |
---|---|---|
Source: NFL | ||
1971 | Jim Plunkett -- New England | Archie Manning -- New Orleans |
1993 | Drew Bledsoe -- New England | Rick Mirer -- Seattle |
1998 | Peyton Manning -- Indianapolis | Ryan Leaf -- San Diego |
1999 | Tim Couch -- Cleveland | Donovan McNabb -- Philadelphia |
2012 | Andrew Luck -- Indianapolis | Robert Griffin III -- Washington |
Tannehill Two-Step
Miami selected Ryan Tannehill with the No. 8 overall pick, making him the first Texas A&M quarterback chosen in the first round since the advent of the common draft in 1967.
This is the second consecutive season the Aggies had a first-round selection. In 2011, the Denver Broncos selected LB Von Miller with the No. 2 pick.
Here are the Texas A&M quarterbacks selected in the NFL Draft since 1967:
Year | Player | Team | Round |
---|---|---|---|
Source: NFL | |||
1969 | Edd Hargett | New Orleans Saints | 16 |
1983 | Gary Kubiak | Denver Broncos | 8 |
1992 | Bucky Richardson | Houston Oilers | 8 |
2009 | Stephen McGee | Dallas Cowboys | 4 |
2012 | Ryan Tannehill | Miami Dolphins | 1 |
Party of Two
For the second time in school history, South Carolina has two first-round selections in the same NFL Draft -- CB Stephon Gilmore (No. 10, Buffalo) and DE Melvin Ingram (No. 18, San Diego). The only year in which the school had multiple players selected in Round 1 was 1981 (RB George Rogers, New Orleans, No. 1; TE Willie Scott, Kansas City, No. 14).
South Carolina Players Selected In The First Round (All-Time)
Year | Player | Position | Team | Overall Selection |
---|---|---|---|---|
Source: NFL | ||||
1979 | Rick Sanford | DB | New England | 25 |
1981 | George Rogers | RB | New Orleans | 1 |
1981 | Willie Scott | TE | Kansas City | 14 |
1988 | Sterling Sharpe | WR | Green Bay | 7 |
1993 | Ernest Dye | T | Phoenix | 18 |
2000 | John Abraham | DE | N.Y. Jets | 13 |
2004 | Dunta Robinson | DB | Houston | 10 |
2005 | Troy Williamson | WR | Minnesota | 7 |
2006 | Johnathan Joseph | CB | Cincinnati | 24 |
2012 | Stephon Gilmore | CB | Buffalo | 10 |
2012 | Melvin Ingram | LB | San Diego | 18 |
Wake Up The Echoes
WR Michael Floyd (No. 13, Arizona) left his mark at Notre Dame, establishing school records in receptions (271), receiving yards (3,686) and touchdown catches (37). He becomes the third Notre Dame wide receiver to be selected in the first round since 1967 and the first since Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown (No. 6 overall, L.A. Raiders) in 1988.
Notre Dame Wide Receivers Selected in Round 1
Year | Player | Team | Overall Selection |
---|---|---|---|
Source: NFL | |||
1969 | Jim Seymour | Los Angeles Rams | 10 |
1988 | Tim Brown | Los Angeles Raiders | 6 |
2012 | Michael Floyd | Arizona Cardinals | 13 |
SEC Flavor
The SEC had nine players drafted in Round 1 tonight, the most of any conference.
Since 2000, the SEC leads all conferences with 495 total draft choices:
Conference | Draft Choices |
---|---|
Source: NFL | |
SEC | 495 |
Big Ten | 418 |
PAC-12 | 367 |
Big XII | 351 |
Big East | 304 |
ACC | 304 |
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