1997 NFL Draft

1997 NFL Draft

General Information
Date(s)	April 19–20, 1997
Location	Paramount Theatre at MSG in New York City, NY
TV coverage (US)	ESPN
Overview
240 total selections  in 7 rounds
First selection	Orlando Pace, OT St. Louis Rams
Mr. Irrelevant	Ronnie McAda, QB Green Bay Packers
Most selections (14)	Miami Dolphins
Fewest selections (3)	Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers
Hall of Famers	2 OT Walter Jones OT Orlando Pace

The 1997 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 19–20, 1997, at the Paramount Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. No teams chose to claim any players in the supplemental draft that year.

This draft was notable for its high-profile offensive linemen. The first overall selection was Orlando Pace, who has appeared in seven consecutive Pro Bowls from 2000 to 2006. Tarik Glenn was selected 19th overall and has been named to three Pro Bowls as well. Arguably the best of the bunch, Walter Jones, who made nine Pro Bowls (including eight consecutive from 2001–08), was a seven time All-Pro, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2014, was selected 6th overall. Others include Chris Naeole, Dan Neil, Ryan Tucker, Jeff Mitchell, Mike Flynn, and Joe Andruzzi.

The '97 Draft is also well known for its running backs. Warrick Dunn was drafted 12th overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and rushed for over 10,000 yards in his career. Corey Dillon, Tiki Barber, Antowain Smith, Priest Holmes, and Duce Staley all enjoyed productive seasons in the NFL.

This draft is also well known for its undrafted Pro Bowl players. Jake Delhomme, Holmes, Pat Williams, and four others made Pro-Bowl trips at some point in their careers.

Player selections

* = compensatory selection † = Pro Bowler ‡ = Hall of Famer

Positions key C Center CB Cornerback DB Defensive back DE Defensive end DL Defensive lineman DT Defensive tackle FB Fullback FS Free safety G Guard HB Halfback K Placekicker KR Kick returner LB Linebacker LS Long snapper OT Offensive tackle OL Offensive lineman NT Nose tackle P Punter PR Punt returner QB Quarterback RB Running back S Safety SS Strong safety TB Tailback TE Tight end WR Wide receiver

	Rnd.	Pick #	NFL team	Player	Pos.	College	Conf.	Notes
	1	1	St. Louis Rams	Orlando Pace†	OT	Ohio State	Big Ten	from NY Jets
	1	2	Oakland Raiders	Darrell Russell †	DT	USC	Pac-10
	1	3	Seattle Seahawks	Shawn Springs †	CB	Ohio State	Big Ten
	1	4	Baltimore Ravens	Peter Boulware †	LB	Florida State	ACC
	1	5	Detroit Lions	Bryant Westbrook	CB	Texas	Big 12
	1	6	Seattle Seahawks	Walter Jones†	OT	Florida State	ACC	from St. Louis via NY Jets and Tampa Bay
	1	7	New York Giants	Ike Hilliard	WR	Florida	SEC
	1	8	New York Jets	James Farrior †	LB	Virginia	ACC	from Tampa Bay
	1	9	Arizona Cardinals	Tom Knight	CB	Iowa	Big Ten
	1	10	New Orleans Saints	Chris Naeole	G	Colorado	Big 12
	1	11	Atlanta Falcons	Michael Booker	CB	Nebraska	Big 12
	1	12	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Warrick Dunn †	RB	Florida State	ACC
	1	13	Kansas City Chiefs	Tony Gonzalez †	TE	California	Pac-10
	1	14	Cincinnati Bengals	Reinard Wilson	LB	Florida State	ACC
	1	15	Miami Dolphins	Yatil Green	WR	Miami	Big East
	1	16	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Reidel Anthony	WR	Florida	SEC
	1	17	Washington Redskins	Kenard Lang	DE	Miami	Big East
	1	18	Tennessee Oilers	Kenny Holmes	DE	Miami	Big East
	1	19	Indianapolis Colts	Tarik Glenn †	OT	California	Pac-10
	1	20	Minnesota Vikings	Dwayne Rudd	LB	Alabama	SEC
	1	21	Jacksonville Jaguars	Renaldo Wynn	DT	Notre Dame	Ind. (I-A)
	1	22	Dallas Cowboys	David LaFleur	TE	LSU	SEC
	1	23	Buffalo Bills	Antowain Smith	RB	Houston	C-USA
	1	24	Pittsburgh Steelers	Chad Scott	CB	Maryland	ACC
	1	25	Philadelphia Eagles	Jon Harris	DE	Virginia	ACC
	1	26	San Francisco 49ers	Jim Druckenmiller	QB	Virginia Tech	Big East
	1	27	Carolina Panthers	Rae Carruth	WR	Colorado	Big 12
	1	28	Denver Broncos	Trevor Pryce †	DT	Clemson	ACC
	1	29	New England Patriots	Chris Canty	CB	Kansas State	Big 12
	1	30	Green Bay Packers	Ross Verba	OT	Iowa	Big Ten
	2	31	New York Jets	Rick Terry	DT	North Carolina	ACC
	2	32	Atlanta Falcons	Nathan Davis	DE	Indiana	Big Ten
	2	33	New Orleans Saints	Rob Kelly	S	Ohio State	Big Ten
	2	34	Baltimore Ravens	Jamie Sharper	LB	Virginia	ACC
	2	35	Detroit Lions	Juan Roque	OT	Arizona State	Pac-10
	2	36	New York Giants	Tiki Barber †	RB	Virginia	ACC
	2	37	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jerry Wunsch	OT	Wisconsin	Big Ten
	2	38	Chicago Bears	John Allred	TE	USC	Pac-10
	2	39	New Orleans Saints	Jared Tomich	DE	Nebraska	Big 12
	2	40	St. Louis Rams	Dexter McCleon	CB	Clemson	ACC
	2	41	Atlanta Falcons	Byron Hanspard	RB	Texas Tech	Big 12
	2	42	Arizona Cardinals	Jake Plummer †	QB	Arizona State	Pac-10
	2	43	Cincinnati Bengals	Corey Dillon †	RB	Washington	Pac-10
	2	44	Miami Dolphins	Sam Madison †	CB	Louisville	C-USA
	2	45	San Diego Chargers	Freddie Jones	TE	North Carolina	ACC
	2	46	Tennessee Oilers	Joey Kent	WR	Tennessee	SEC
	2	47	Kansas City Chiefs	Kevin Lockett	WR	Kansas State	Big 12
	2	48	Indianapolis Colts	Adam Meadows	OT	Georgia	SEC
	2	49	Minnesota Vikings	Torrian Gray	S	Virginia Tech	Big East
	2	50	Jacksonville Jaguars	Mike Logan	CB	West Virginia	Big East
	2	51	Washington Redskins	Greg Jones	LB	Colorado	Big 12
	2	52	Buffalo Bills	Marcellus Wiley †	DE	Columbia	Ivy
	2	53	Pittsburgh Steelers	Will Blackwell	WR	San Diego State	WAC
	2	54	Detroit Lions	Kevin Abrams	CB	Syracuse	Big East
	2	55	San Francisco 49ers	Marc Edwards	FB	Notre Dame	Ind. (I-A)
	2	56	Carolina Panthers	Mike Minter	S	Nebraska	Big 12
	2	57	Philadelphia Eagles	James Darling	LB	Washington State	Pac-10
	2	58	Baltimore Ravens	Kim Herring	S	Penn State	Big Ten
	2	59	New England Patriots	Brandon Mitchell	DE	Texas A&M	Big 12
	2	60	Green Bay Packers	Darren Sharper †	S	William & Mary	Yankee
	3	61	New England Patriots	Sedrick Shaw	RB	Iowa	Big Ten
	3	62	New Orleans Saints	Troy Davis	RB	Iowa State	Big 12
	3	63	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Frank Middleton	G	Arizona	Pac-10
	3	64	Baltimore Ravens	Jay Graham	RB	Tennessee	SEC
	3	65	Dallas Cowboys	Dexter Coakley †	LB	Appalachian State	SoCon
	3	66	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Ronde Barber †	CB	Virginia	ACC
	3	67	Denver Broncos	Dan Neil	G	Texas	Big 12
	3	68	New York Giants	Ryan Phillips	LB	Idaho	Big West
	3	69	Chicago Bears	Bob Sapp	G	Washington	Pac-10
	3	70	Atlanta Falcons	OJ Santiago	TE	Kent State	MAC
	3	71	Philadelphia Eagles	Duce Staley	RB	South Carolina	SEC
	3	72	Oakland Raiders	Adam Treu	G	Nebraska	Big 12
	3	73	Miami Dolphins	Jason Taylor †	DE	Akron	MAC
	3	74	San Diego Chargers	Michael Hamilton	LB	North Carolina A&T	MEAC
	3	75	Tennessee Oilers	Denard Walker	CB	Kent State	MAC
	3	76	Cincinnati Bengals	Rod Payne	C	Michigan	Big Ten
	3	77	San Francisco 49ers	Greg Clark	TE	Stanford	Pac-10
	3	78	Minnesota Vikings	Stalin Colinet	DE	Boston College	Big East
	3	79	Jacksonville Jaguars	James Hamilton	LB	North Carolina	ACC
	3	80	Washington Redskins	Derek Smith	LB	Arizona State	Pac-10
	3	81	Tennessee Oilers	Scott Sanderson	OT	Washington State	Pac-10
	3	82	Pittsburgh Steelers	Paul Wiggins	OT	Oregon	Pac-10
	3	83	Dallas Cowboys	Steve Scifres	G	Wyoming	WAC
	3	84	Arizona Cardinals	Ty Howard	CB	Ohio State	Big Ten
	3	85	Oakland Raiders	Kohn, TimTim Kohn	G	Iowa State	Big 12
	3	86	Indianapolis Colts	Bertrand Berry †	LB	Notre Dame	Ind. (I-A)
	3	87	Carolina Panthers	Kinnon Tatum	LB	Notre Dame	Ind. (I-A)
	3	88	New York Jets	Dedric Ward	WR	Northern Iowa	Gateway
	3	89	New England Patriots	Chris Carter	S	Texas	Big 12
	3	90	Green Bay Packers	Brett Conway	K	Penn State	Big Ten
	3*	91	Pittsburgh Steelers	Mike Vrabel †	LB	Ohio State	Big Ten
	3*	92	Miami Dolphins	Derrick Rodgers	LB	Arizona State	Pac-10
	3*	93	Miami Dolphins	Ward, RonnieRonnie Ward	LB	Kansas	Big 12
	3*	94	Dallas Cowboys	Kenny Wheaton	LB	Oregon	Pac-10
	3*	95	New York Giants	Brad Maynard	P	Ball State	MAC
	3*	96	Miami Dolphins	Brent Smith	OT	Mississippi State	SEC
	4	97	New England Patriots	Damon Denson	G	Michigan	Big Ten
	4	98	Tennessee Oilers	Derrick Mason †	WR	Michigan State	Big Ten
	4	99	New Orleans Saints	Danny Wuerffel	QB	Florida	SEC
	4	100	Atlanta Falcons	Henri Crockett	LB	Florida State	ACC
	4	101	Dallas Cowboys	Antonio Anderson	DT	Syracuse	Big East
	4	102	New York Jets	Day, TerryTerry Day	DE	Mississippi State	SEC
	4	103	New York Giants	Pete Monty	LB	Wisconsin	Big Ten
	4	104	New York Jets	Leon Johnson	RB	North Carolina	ACC
	4	105	Chicago Bears	Darnell Autry	RB	Northwestern	Big Ten
	4	106	Arizona Cardinals	Chris Dishman	G	Nebraska	Big 12
	4	107	Tennessee Oilers	Pratt Lyons	DE	Troy State	Southland
	4	108	Chicago Bears	Marcus Robinson	WR	South Carolina	SEC
	4	109	San Diego Chargers	Raleigh Roundtree	G	South Carolina State	MEAC
	4	110	Kansas City Chiefs	Pat Barnes	QB	California	Pac-10
	4	111	Cincinnati Bengals	Tremain Mack	S	Miami	Big East
	4	112	St. Louis Rams	Ryan Tucker	OT	TCU	WAC
	4	113	Minnesota Vikings	Antonio Banks	CB	Virginia Tech	Big East
	4	114	Jacksonville Jaguars	Seth Payne	DT	Cornell	Ivy
	4	115	Washington Redskins	Albert Connell	WR	Texas A&M	Big 12
	4	116	New Orleans Saints	Keith Poole	WR	Arizona State	Pac-10
	4	117	Indianapolis Colts	Monty Montgomery	CB	Houston	C-USA
	4	118	Baltimore Ravens	Tyrus McCloud	LB	Louisville	C-USA
	4	119	Philadelphia Eagles	Damien Robinson	S	Iowa	Big Ten
	4	120	Buffalo Bills	Jamie Nails	G	Florida A&M	MEAC
	4	121	Miami Dolphins	Daniels, JeromeJerome Daniels	OT	Northeastern	Yankee
	4	122	Carolina Panthers	Tarek Saleh	LB	Wisconsin	Big Ten
	4	123	Oakland Raiders	Chad Levitt	RB	Cornell	Ivy
	4	124	Denver Broncos	Gilliard, CoryCory Gilliard	CB	Ball State	MAC
	4	125	New England Patriots	Ed Ellis	OT	Buffalo	Ind. (FCS)
	4	126	Green Bay Packers	Jermaine Smith	DT	Georgia	SEC
	4*	127	Dallas Cowboys	Macey Brooks	WR	James Madison	Yankee
	4*	128	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Alshermond Singleton	LB	Temple	Big East
	4*	129	Dallas Cowboys	Nicky Sualua	FB	Ohio State	Big Ten
	4*	130	Detroit Lions	Matt Russell	LB	Colorado	Big 12
	5	131	New York Jets	Lamont Burns	G	East Carolina	Ind. (I-A)
	5	132	Washington Redskins	Jamel Williams	S	Nebraska	Big 12
	5	133	Atlanta Falcons	Wimberly, MarcusMarcus Wimberly	S	Miami	Big East
	5	134	Baltimore Ravens	Jeff Mitchell	C	Florida	SEC
	5	135	Detroit Lions	Chryplewicz, PetePete Chryplewicz	TE	Notre Dame	Ind. (I-A)
	5	136	New York Giants	Sam Garnes	S	Cincinnati	C-USA
	5	137	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Patrick Hape	TE	Alabama	SEC
	5	138	San Diego Chargers	Kenny Bynum	RB	South Carolina State	MEAC
	5	139	Arizona Cardinals	Chad Carpenter	WR	Washington State	Pac-10
	5	140	Washington Redskins	Keith Thibodeaux	CB	Northwestern State	Southland
	5	141	Chicago Bears	Hiles, VanVan Hiles	CB	Kentucky	SEC
	5	142	Seattle Seahawks	Eric Stokes	CB	Nebraska	Big 12
	5	143	Tennessee Oilers	George McCullough	CB	Baylor	Big 12
	5	144	Cincinnati Bengals	Purvis, AndreAndre Purvis	DT	North Carolina	ACC
	5	145	New York Jets	Raymond Austin	CB	Tennessee	SEC
	5	146	San Diego Chargers	Paul Bradford	CB	Portland State	Big Sky
	5	147	Jacksonville Jaguars	Damon Jones	TE	Southern Illinois	Gateway
	5	148	Washington Redskins	Twan Russell	LB	Miami	Big East
	5	149	Miami Dolphins	Barron Tanner	DT	Oklahoma	Big 12
	5	150	Indianapolis Colts	Nate Jacquet	WR	San Diego State	WAC
	5	151	Minnesota Vikings	Tony Williams	DT	Memphis	C-USA
	5	152	Philadelphia Eagles	N. D. Kalu	DE	Rice	WAC
	5	153	Buffalo Bills	Woodson, SeanSean Woodson	CB	Jackson State	SWAC
	5	154	Pittsburgh Steelers	George Jones	RB	San Diego State	WAC
	5	155	Philadelphia Eagles	Luther Broughton	TE	Furman	SoCon
	5	156	Indianapolis Colts	Carl Powell	DE	Louisville	C-USA
	5	157	Miami Dolphins	Lopez, NickNick Lopez	DE	Texas Southern	SWAC
	5	158	St. Louis Rams	Taje Allen	CB	Texas	Big 12
	5	159	New England Patriots	Vernon Crawford	LB	Florida State	ACC
	5	160	Green Bay Packers	Anthony Hicks	LB	Middle Tennessee State	Ohio Valley
	5*	161	Detroit Lions	Ashman, DuaneDuane Ashman	DE	Virginia	ACC
	5*	162	Washington Redskins	Brad Badger	G	Stanford	Pac-10
	5*	163	Kansas City Chiefs	June Henley	RB	Kansas	Big 12
	6	164	New York Jets	Scharf, TimTim Scharf	LB	Northwestern	Big Ten
	6	165	New Orleans Saints	Nicky Savoie	TE	LSU	SEC
	6	166	Miami Dolphins	John Fiala	LB	Washington	Pac-10
	6	167	Baltimore Ravens	Lee, SteveSteve Lee	RB	Indiana	Big Ten
	6	168	Detroit Lions	Ramirez, TroyTroy Ramirez	G	Northern Colorado	NCIAC
	6	169	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Al Harris †	CB	Texas A&M–Kingsville	Lone Star
	6	170	Miami Dolphins	Brian Manning	WR	Stanford	Pac-10
	6	171	New York Giants	Mike Cherry	QB	Murray State	OVC
	6	172	Oakland Raiders	Calvin Branch		Colorado State	WAC
	6	173	Miami Dolphins	Mike Crawford	LB	Nevada	Big West
	6	174	Seattle Seahawks	Itula Mili	TE	BYU	WAC
	6	175	Arizona Cardinals	Rod Brown	RB	NC State	ACC
	6	176	Cincinnati Bengals	Canute Curtis	LB	West Virginia	Big East
	6	177	Miami Dolphins	Ed Perry	TE	James Madison	Yankee
	6	178	San Diego Chargers	Palmer, DanielDaniel Palmer	C	Air Force	WAC
	6	179	St. Louis Rams	Kazadi, MuadianvitaMuadianvita Kazadi	LB	Tulsa	WAC
	6	180	Atlanta Falcons	Calvin Collins	C	Texas A&M	Big 12
	6	181	Tennessee Oilers	Stallings, DennisDennis Stallings	LB	Illinois	Big Ten
	6	182	Indianapolis Colts	Von der Ahe, ScottScott Von der Ahe	LB	Arizona State	Pac-10
	6	183	Minnesota Vikings	Robert Tate	WR	Cincinnati	C-USA
	6	184	Jacksonville Jaguars	Daimon Shelton	FB	Sacramento State	Big Sky
	6	185	Buffalo Bills	Marcus Spriggs	G	Houston	C-USA
	6	186	Pittsburgh Steelers	Daryl Porter	S	Houston	C-USA
	6	187	Dallas Cowboys	Vaughn, LeeLee Vaughn	CB	Boston College	Big East
	6	188	Arizona Cardinals	McCombs, TonyTony McCombs	LB	Eastern Kentucky	OVC
	6	189	Carolina Panthers	Finkes, MattMatt Finkes	DE	Ohio State	Big Ten
	6	190	Philadelphia Eagles	Antwuan Wyatt	WR	Bethune-Cookman	MEAC
	6	191	New York Jets	Chuck Clements	QB	Houston	C-USA
	6	192	New England Patriots	Gaiter, TonyTony Gaiter	WR	Miami	Big East
	6	193	Oakland Raiders	Grady Jackson	DT	Knoxville	Ind. (Div. II)	from Green Bay
	6*	194	Baltimore Ravens	Cornell Brown	DE	Virginia Tech	Big East
	6*	195	Kansas City Chiefs	Isaac Byrd	WR	Kansas	Big 12
	6*	196	Chicago Bears	Shawn Swayda	DT	Arizona State	Pac-10
	6*	197	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Nigea Carter	WR	Michigan State	Big Ten
	6*	198	Philadelphia Eagles	Ed Jasper	DT	Texas A&M	Big 12
	6*	199	Pittsburgh Steelers	Rod Manuel	DE	Oklahoma	Big 12
	6*	200	Chicago Bears	Hogans, RichardRichard Hogans	LB	Memphis	C-USA
	6*	201	Chicago Bears	Parker, RickyRicky Parker	CB	San Diego State	WAC
	7	202	New York Jets	Rosga, SteveSteve Rosga	CB	Colorado	Big 12
	7	203	Miami Dolphins	Ismaeli, HudhaifaHudhaifa Ismaeli	S	Northwestern	Big Ten
	7	204	Atlanta Falcons	Tony Graziani	QB	Oregon	Pac-10
	7	205	Baltimore Ravens	Ward, ChrisChris Ward	DE	Kentucky	SEC
	7	206	Detroit Lions	Battle, TerryTerry Battle	RB	Arizona State	Pac-10
	7	207	Philadelphia Eagles	Koy Detmer	QB	Colorado	Big 12
	7	208	New York Giants	Keneley, MattMatt Keneley	DT	USC	Pac-10
	7	209	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Anthony DeGrate	DT	Stephen F. Austin	Southland
	7	210	Chicago Bears	Mike Miano	DT	SW Missouri State	Gateway
	7	211	Seattle Seahawks	Jones, CarlosCarlos Jones	CB	Miami	Big East
	7	212	Arizona Cardinals	Mark Smith	DE	Auburn	SEC
	7	213	Green Bay Packers	Miller, ChrisChris Miller	WR	USC	Pac-10
	7	214	Kansas City Chiefs	Parks, NathanNathan Parks	OT	Stanford	Pac-10
	7	215	St. Louis Rams	White, CedricCedric White	DE	North Carolina A&T	MEAC
	7	216	Tennessee Oilers	Williams, ArmonArmon Williams	LB	Arizona	Pac-10
	7	217	Cincinnati Bengals	William Carr	DT	Michigan	Big Ten
	7	218	San Diego Chargers	Toran James	LB	North Carolina A&T	MEAC
	7	219	Indianapolis Colts	Thompson, ClarenceClarence Thompson	CB	Knoxville	Ind. (Div. II)
	7	220	Minnesota Vikings	Artie Ulmer	LB	Valdosta State	Gulf South
	7	221	Jacksonville Jaguars	Jon Hesse	LB	Nebraska	Big 12
	7	222	Atlanta Falcons	Chris Bayne	CB	Fresno State	WAC
	7	223	Pittsburgh Steelers	Mike Adams	WR	Texas	Big 12
	7	224	Dallas Cowboys	Omar Stoutmire	S	Fresno State	WAC
	7	225	Philadelphia Eagles	Capers, ByronByron Capers	CB	Florida State	ACC
	7	226	Buffalo Bills	Pat Fitzgerald	TE	Texas	Big 12
	7	227	Philadelphia Eagles	Brown, DeaunteDeaunte Brown	CB	Central State	Ind. (NAIA)
	7	228	Carolina Panthers	Kris Mangum	TE	Ole Miss	SEC
	7	229	New York Jets	Jason Ferguson	DT	Georgia	SEC
	7	230	New England Patriots	Scott Rehberg	OT	Central Michigan	MAC
	7	231	Green Bay Packers	Jerald Sowell	FB	Tulane	C-USA
	7*	232	Detroit Lions	Marcus Harris	WR	Wyoming	WAC
	7*	233	Chicago Bears	Thomas, MarvinMarvin Thomas	DE	Memphis	C-USA
	7*	234	Baltimore Ravens	Wally Richardson	QB	Penn State	Big Ten
	7*	235	Minnesota Vikings	Matthew Hatchette	WR	Langston	NAIA Ind.
	7*	236	Baltimore Ravens	Ralph Staten	LB	Alabama	SEC
	7*	237	San Diego Chargers	Tony Corbin	QB	Sacramento State	Big Sky
	7*	238	Baltimore Ravens	Leland Taylor	DT	Louisville	C-USA
	7*	239	Detroit Lions	Richard Jordan	LB	Missouri Southern	MIAA
	7*	240	Green Bay Packers	Ronnie McAda	QB	Army	Ind. (I-A)

Notable undrafted players

†	= Pro Bowler

Original NFL team	Player	Pos.	College	Conf.	Notes
Atlanta Falcons	David Akers †	K	Louisville	C-USA
Baltimore Ravens	Priest Holmes †	RB	Texas	Big 12	2nd All-time leading rusher in Kansas City Chiefs history
Baltimore Ravens	Mike Flynn	C	Maine	Yankee
Buffalo Bills	Pat Williams †	DT	Texas A&M	Big 12
Chicago Bears	Obafemi Ayanbadejo	FB	San Diego State	WAC
Chicago Bears	Terry Cousin	CB	South Carolina	SEC
Dallas Cowboys	Kevin Mathis	CB	Texas A&M–Commerce	Lone Star
Detroit Lions	Travis Kirschke	DE	UCLA	Pac-10
Denver Broncos	Matt Lepsis	OT	Colorado	Big 12
Green Bay Packers	Joe Andruzzi	OT	Southern Connecticut State	ECAC
Green Bay Packers	Ryan Longwell	K	University of California, Berkeley	Pac-10
New Orleans Saints	Jake Delhomme †	QB	University of Louisiana at Lafayette	Ind. (I-A)
New Orleans Saints	Sammy Knight †	S	USC	Pac-10
New Orleans Saints	Keith Mitchell †	LB	Texas A&M	Big 12
New York Giants	David Patten	WR	Western Carolina	SoCon
Philadelphia Eagles	Chad Lewis †	TE	Brigham Young	WAC
San Francisco 49ers	Brandon Noble	DT	Penn State	Big Ten
Seattle Seahawks	Jon Kitna	QB	Central Washington	CFA	Started at least one game in 12 of 15 seasons with Seattle, Cincinnati, Detroit, and Dallas

Hall of Famers

• Walter Jones, offensive tackle from Florida State University taken 1st round 6th overall by the Seattle Seahawks.

inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2014.

• Orlando Pace, offensive tackle from Ohio State University taken 1st round 1st overall by the St.Louis Rams.

inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2016.

External links

• NFL.com – 1997 Draft
• databaseFootball.com – 1997 Draft
• Pro Football Hall of Fame