WHAT: 73rd Annual National Football League Draft
WHERE: NFL Draft Headquarters, New York City's Radio Music Hall
WHEN: 12:00 PM PST, Saturday, April 26, 2008 (Rounds 1-2)
7:00 AM PST, Sunday, April 27, 2008 (Rounds 3-7)
TIME LIMITS: Round 1: 10 minutes between each pick
Round 2: 7 minutes between each pick
Round 3-7: 5 minutes between each pick
DRAFT THROUGH THE YEARS: Since 1950, there have been six changes in the number of rounds in the draft. From 1950-59 there were 30 rounds, and from 1960-66 the number of rounds was 20. There were 17 rounds from 1967-76, and 12 rounds from 1977-92. In 1993 the number of rounds was cut to eight, and since 1994 there have been seven rounds.
CHANGES TO THIS YEAR'S DRAFT: In a concerted effort for a 'more streamlined and efficient draft' by Commissioner Goodell, this year's draft will feature several changes from previous ones.
• Rounds 1-2 will now take place on the first day of the draft (April 26). Previously, the first three rounds of the draft were conducted on Saturday.
• The time allocated for each pick in Round 1 will now be 10 minutes instead of 15 minutes, while the time limit for Round 2 shortens to seven minutes from 10 minutes.
• The first day of the draft begins later on Saturday, starting at 12:00 PM PST rather than 9:00 AM ET.
• Round 3 will be moved to Sunday and remain at five minutes per selection.
• The draft on Sunday (Rounds 3-7) will now begin at 7:00 AM PST rather than 8:00 AM PST.
49ERS DRAFT PICKS: The 49ers currently have a total of six picks in this year's draft, which includes selections in every round with the exception of the fifth. The 49ers traded their 2008 first-round pick (7th pick overall) and one of their 2007 fourth-round selections (110th pick overall) to the New England Patriots during last year's draft in order move up positions to select T Joe Staley (28th overall pick). San Francisco then was able to get back into the 2008 first-round by trading its 2007 second-round selection (42nd pick overall) to the Indianapolis Colts, receiving Indianapolis' 2008 first-round (29th pick overall) and 2007 fourth-round (126th pick overall) selections in exchange. After being found to have violated the NFL's anti-tampering policy, the 49ers were forced to forfeit their 2008 fifth-round selection (142nd pick overall) in addition to swapping their third-round pick (70th pick overall) with Chicago's (75th overall pick). The 49ers did not receive any compensatory picks for the 2008 draft, which are given to teams by the NFL who have lost more or better free agents than they have acquired in a given year.
2008 49ERS DRAFT POSITIONS
Round Pick in Round Overall Pick
1 29 (from Indianapolis) 29
2 8 39
3 12 (from Chicago) 75
4 8 107
6 8 174
7 7 214
49ERS GO FOR #29: From 1967 to present, the 49ers have never had a number 29 overall pick. During that time span, San Francisco has selected 45 first-round picks. Of those selections, 24 have been defensive players while 21 have been offensive players. The breakdown is as follows: Defensive Line (10), defensive back (8), linebacker (6), running back (5), wide receiver (5), offensive line (4), tight end (4) and quarterback (3).
CURRENT 49ERS DRAFT CHOICES BY ROUND:
The 49ers currently have 30 original draft choices selected by the club on their roster, 22 of whom were selected over the past three drafts.
1st Round: QB Alex Smith ('05), TE Vernon Davis ('06), LB Manny Lawson ('06)
LB Patrick Willis ('07), T Joe Staley ('07)
2nd Round: CB Shawntae Spencer ('04), G David Baas ('05)
3rd Round: LB Jeff Ulbrich ('00), RB Frank Gore ('05), G/T Adam Snyder ('05), WR Jason Hill ('07)
DE Ray McDonald ('07)
4th Round: DT Isaac Sopoaga ('04), RB Michael Robinson ('06), LB Jay Moore ('07)
S Dashon Goldson ('07), DT Joe Cohen ('07)
5th Round: DT Ronald Fields ('05), LB Parys Haralson ('06), CB Tarell Brown ('07)
6th Round: WR Arnaz Battle ('03), P Andy Lee ('04), S Keith Lewis ('04), TE Delanie Walker ('06) CB Marcus Hudson ('06), DE Melvin Oliver ('06), RB Thomas Clayton ('07)
7th Round: TE Brian Jennings ('00), Eric Heitmann ('02), Billy Bajema ('05)
RECENT DRAFT SUCCESS: Under the guidance of newly assigned General Manager Scot McCloughan and Head Coach Mike Nolan, the 49ers have experienced great success in pinpointing talent over the past three drafts. Out of the 29 selections by the 49ers over the past three years, the team currently has 22 of those picks on the current roster. Of those 22 players, 14 players have started at least one game. Out of the 18 players selected by the 49ers in the past two years, 16 players are currently on the roster. All nine draft picks from 2007 are currently on the roster.
