NFL Draft Trivia
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110 free NFL Draft trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Oct 2026.
51 free NFL draft trivia questions with answers. NFL draft trivia for the people who watch all seven rounds and the ones who only tune in for the green-room drama. This quiz covers the whole history: the Eagles owner who dreamed the draft up, the Heisman winner taken first in 1936 who never played a down, why the last pick is called Mr. Irrelevant, and how ESPN talked a sceptical Pete Rozelle into televising it in 1980. It also covers the legends and the lore: Tom Brady at 199, JaMarcus Russell and Ryan Leaf, the 1983 quarterback class, Elway and Eli refusing their teams, Bo Jackson sleeping through the draft, Aaron Rodgers' long wait, the gas-mask video, the Herschel Walker haul, the combine, compensatory picks and the record crowds since the draft went on the road. Difficulty runs from easy to expert and is marked on every question. Every answer has been checked against Wikipedia and the primary sources it cites, and each explanation adds one more thing worth knowing.
30 of 110 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Which MLB first-round pick went first overall in the 2019 NFL draft?
Murray
Kyler Murray won the 2018 Heisman Trophy, then gave up baseball, where he had been drafted ninth overall.
Q 02Which team owner proposed the draft in 1935 because his weak club could not sign talent or sell tickets?
Bert Bell of the Eagles
Bert Bell of the Eagles wanted the weakest teams to get first choice of college players, ending bidding wars among clubs.
Q 03Who was the first player ever selected in an NFL draft?
Jay Berwanger
Jay Berwanger, the first Heisman winner, turned down pro football and took a job selling rubber instead.
Q 04Which undrafted Eastern Illinois quarterback later started for Dallas?
Tony Romo
Tony Romo signed with Dallas right after the 2003 draft, made four Pro Bowls, then moved into the CBS broadcast booth.
Q 05Excluding compensatory picks, which team picks last in each round of the draft?
The Super Bowl champion
The Super Bowl champion picks last because the draft order runs in reverse of the previous season's results.
Q 06Which Ohio State running back challenged the NFL's three-year eligibility rule in court?
Maurice Clarett
Maurice Clarett won in district court, but Sonia Sotomayor wrote the appeals ruling that reversed it, keeping him out of the 2004 draft.
Q 07What happens when the draft clock expires on a pick?
Next team may pick
The next team may pick, and the late team can still choose any time after; the Chiefs jumped ahead of the Ravens this way in 2011.
Q 08The 'Mr. Irrelevant' title for the draft's last pick was created in 1976 by which former receiver?
Paul Salata
Paul Salata, a former 49ers receiver, founded Irrelevant Week, where the last pick gets the Lowsman Trophy, showing a player fumbling.
Q 09Which 2022 Mr. Irrelevant became a starting QB and Super Bowl participant?
Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy, the 262nd and final pick, started Super Bowl LVIII for the 49ers and threw a touchdown pass.
Q 10Which network first televised the draft in 1980 after persuading a sceptical Pete Rozelle?
ESPN
ESPN, on air for only seven months, carried the whole 1980 draft, though Rozelle doubted it would make entertaining television.
Q 11Between 1965 and 2014, every draft was held in which metropolis?
New York
New York hosted every draft for those 50 years, moving between city hotels, theaters and a convention center.
Q 12Which city won the bidding to host the 2015 draft, complete with a 'Draft Town' fan festival?
Chicago
Chicago staged the picks in the Auditorium Theatre while Draft Town drew about 200,000 visitors to Grant Park.
Q 13The 2024 NFL draft drew more than 750,000 fans to which city?
Detroit
Detroit held the draft around Hart Plaza, and that crowd stood as the record until Pittsburgh drew 805,000 in 2026.
Q 21John Elway refused to play for which team after it drafted him first overall in 1983?
The Baltimore Colts
The Baltimore Colts traded John Elway to Denver after he used a baseball career with the Yankees as leverage.
Q 22Eli Manning was drafted first overall in 2004 by which team, whom he refused to play for?
The San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers swapped him to the Giants for fourth pick Philip Rivers; with Ben Roethlisberger, 2004 became the first class with two multiple-Super-Bowl-winning QBs.
Q 23Which quarterback went first overall in 1998 out of Tennessee?
Peyton Manning
Q 14Which city was set to host the 2020 draft before the pandemic made it virtual?
Las Vegas
Las Vegas had planned a floating red carpet in front of the Bellagio fountains, and it finally hosted the draft in 2022.
Q 15Which quarterback went 199th overall in the 2000 draft?
Tom Brady
Tom Brady, the seventh quarterback taken that year, is widely called the draft's biggest steal after winning seven Super Bowls.
Q 16Which quarterback, the first overall pick in 2007, is considered one of the biggest draft busts?
JaMarcus Russell
JaMarcus Russell was released in 2010 after three seasons and never played in the NFL again.
Q 17Which quarterback did Kansas City trade up with Buffalo to draft 10th overall in 2017?
Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes spent most of his rookie year as a backup, then led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl win in 50 years.
Q 18Ki-Jana Carter, top overall pick in 1995, saw his career derailed by a torn knee ligament suffered when?
In his debut preseason game
Ki-Jana Carter hurt his knee in his debut preseason game in 1995 and missed his entire rookie season.
Q 19Which quarterback did the franchise reactivated in 1999 take with the first overall pick?
Tim Couch
Tim Couch threw for 11,131 yards over five seasons and reached the playoffs in 2002 before his release in 2004.
Q 20Which quarterback from 1983's six-QB first round played two USFL seasons before joining the NFL?
Jim Kelly
Jim Kelly starred for the USFL's Houston Gamblers, then led Buffalo to four straight Super Bowl appearances.
Peyton Manning, chosen over Ryan Leaf, later won Super Bowl XLI and, with a second franchise, Super Bowl 50.
Q 24Which team drafted Bo Jackson in 1987's seventh round, after he had refused to sign as the first overall pick?
The Los Angeles Raiders
The Los Angeles Raiders let Bo Jackson keep playing baseball for the Royals, so he starred in both sports at once.
Q 25Aaron Rodgers slid to the 24th pick in 2005 after the 49ers took which quarterback first?
Alex Smith
The 49ers picked Alex Smith, and Aaron Rodgers, who had expected to go first, waited hours before Green Bay took him 24th.
Q 26Which offensive tackle's hacked Twitter posted a gas-mask bong video minutes before the 2016 NFL draft?
Laremy Tunsil
Laremy Tunsil slid to Miami at 13th, and after an Instagram leak he admitted taking money from a college coach.
Q 27Brady Quinn's long green-room wait in 2007 ended when which team took him 22nd?
The Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns traded with Dallas to grab Brady Quinn at 22, after taking tackle Joe Thomas third.
Q 28Which quarterback went through the 1985 supplemental draft after his future team traded for Buffalo's pick?
Bernie Kosar
Bernie Kosar graduated early from Miami so he could skip the regular draft and land with his home-state team.
Q 29Which future Hall of Fame receiver entered the league via the 1987 supplemental draft?
Cris Carter
Cris Carter lost his Ohio State eligibility over secret dealings with an agent, so he had to enter the supplemental draft.
Q 30Which draft analyst did general manager Bill Tobin famously dismiss in 1994 for criticising his pick of Trev Alberts?
Mel Kiper Jr.
Mel Kiper Jr. argued Tobin should have taken quarterback Trent Dilfer, and Tobin replied by questioning Kiper's credentials.