How Many Picks Are in Each Round of the NFL Draft?
The NFL Draft is a seven-round process where each of the 32 NFL teams select a player. In rounds one through six, each team has one pick per round. In the seventh round, teams have four picks.
Introduction
The NFL draft is an annual event in which the 32 teams in the National Football League (NFL) select new players for their rosters. The draft order is determined based on the previous season’s standings, with the team with the worst record receiving the first pick.
The NFL draft consists of seven rounds, with each team having the opportunity to select one player in each round. The order of picks in each round is also determined by the previous season’s standings, with the team picking last in each round having the best record from the previous season.
In total, there are 224 picks in the NFL draft, with 32 picks in each of the seven rounds.
NFL Draft Format
The NFL draft is an annual event in which teams from the National Football League select eligible players to join their team. The draft order is determined by the previous season’s standings, with the team with the worst record picking first and the team with the best record picking last.
Round 1
There are a total of 32 selections in the first round of the NFL draft. The order of these selections is determined by the reverse standings of the previous season. For example, the team with the worst record from the previous season will picks first overall, and so on.
Round 2
The second round of the NFL Draft consists of the 33rd through 64th picks overall. Like the first round, the second round is conducted over two days.
The second and third rounds of the draft are held on the Friday after Round 1. Rounds 4-7 are held on the following Saturday.
Each team gets one pick per round, for a total of 32 picks in Round 2.
Round 3
The third round of the NFL draft will feature 64 selections on Friday, April 23. The draft order for Round 3 will be reverse of how the teams finished in the 2020 season standings, with the team with the worst record picking first and the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers picking last.
There are no more compensatory picks awarded after the third round, so all 32 teams will be making a selection in this round.
The Pittsburgh Steelers own two picks in Round 3 — No. 87 overall and No. 102 overall — while the New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins and Seattle Seahawks each have three selections.
Round 4
Round 4 of the NFL Draft consists of 32 picks, with each team in the league getting one selection. This round is where the draft starts to get extremely competitive, as there are plenty of talented prospects still available. However, with only 32 picks in this round, teams need to be very careful about who they select.
Round 5
The fifth round of the NFL draft lasts for just five minutes, but all 32 teams are on the clock for those 300 seconds. Rounds 5-7 are sometimes collectively referred to as “Day 3” of the draft.
Teams have different strategies for Day 3. Some use it to take flyers on players with high upside, while others focus on filling out their depth chart with quality depth options.
There are a total of 32 picks in Round 5 of the NFL draft.
Round 6
The sixth round of the NFL draft consists of 32 picks, with each team getting one selection in this round. This is the final round of the NFL draft, and it usually takes place on the third day of the draft (the final day). The sixth round is sometimes referred to as “Mr. Irrelevant,” as this is typically where teams will draft players that they believe have a slim chance of making their final roster.
Round 7
The NFL draft consists of seven rounds, with each team getting one pick per round. The draft order is determined by reverse order of finish, with the team that had the worst record in the previous season picking first.
There are 32 picks in round 7, with the first pick belonging to the team with the worst record from the previous season. The second pick belongs to the team with the second-worst record, and so on.
Conclusion
The NFL draft consists of seven rounds, with each team getting one pick in each round. The first round is reserved for the best players in the country, while the later rounds are for players who need more development.
