Caleb Williams latest of No. 1 draft picks in NFL history

ByAlex Kennedy ESPN logo
Friday, September 6, 2024

On April 25, the Chicago Bearsselected quarterback Caleb Williamsas the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft. The Bears host the Tennessee Titansin their 2024 regular-season opener on Sept. 8.



A former Heisman Trophy winnerwith USC, Williams is widely regarded as a generational prospect. He's joined an exclusive club of stars who have heard their name called first on draft night.



Here's a complete list of players drafted No. 1 overall throughout NFL history.



1936: HB Jay Berwanger, Chicago (Philadelphia Eagles)



1937: FB Sam Francis, Nebraska (Philadelphia Eagles)



1938: FB Corbett Davis, Indiana (Cleveland Rams)



1939: C Ki Aldrich, TCU (Chicago Cardinals)



1940: HB George Cafego, Tennessee (Chicago Cardinals)



1941: HB Tom Harmon, Michigan (Chicago Bears)



1942: HB Bill Dudley, Virginia (Pittsburgh Steelers)



1943: HB Frank Sinkwich, Georgia (Detroit Lions)



1944: QB Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame (Boston Yanks)



1945: HB Charley Trippi, Georgia (Chicago Cardinals)



1946: QB Frank Dancewicz, Notre Dame (Boston Yanks)



1947: HB Bob Fenimore, Oklahoma A&M (Chicago Bears)



1948: HB/WR Harry Gilmer, Alabama (Washington Redskins)



1949: C/LB Chuck Bednarik, Penn (Philadelphia Eagles)



1950: OE Leon Hart, Notre Dame (Detroit Lions)



1951: HB Kyle Rote, SMU (New York Giants)



1952: QB Bill Wade, Vanderbilt (Los Angeles Rams)



1953: OE Harry Babcock, Georgia (San Francisco 49ers)



1954: QB Bobby Garrett, Stanford (Cleveland Browns)



1955: QB George Shaw, Oregon (Baltimore Colts)



1956: DB Gary Glick, Colorado A&M (Pittsburgh Steelers)



1957: HB Paul Hornung, Notre Dame (Green Bay Packers)



1958: QB King Hill, Rice (Chicago Cardinals)



1959: QB Randy Duncan, Iowa (Green Bay Packers)



1960: HB Billy Cannon, LSU (Los Angeles Rams)



1961: HB Tommy Mason, Tulane (Minnesota Vikings)



1962: HB Ernie Davis, Syracuse (Washington Redskins)



1963: QB Terry Baker, Oregon State (Los Angeles Rams)



1964: WR Dave Parks, Texas Tech (San Francisco 49ers)



1965: HB Tucker Frederickson, Auburn (New York Giants)



1966: LB Tommy Nobis, Texas (Atlanta Falcons)



1967: DE Bubba Smith, Michigan State (Baltimore Colts)



1968: OT Ron Yary, USC (Minnesota Vikings)



1969: HB O.J. Simpson, USC (Buffalo Bills)



1970: QB Terry Bradshaw, Louisiana Tech (Pittsburgh Steelers)



1971: QB Jim Plunkett, Stanford (New England Patriots)



1972: DE Walt Patulski, Notre Dame (Buffalo Bills)



1973: DE John Matuszak, Tampa (Houston Oilers)



1974: DE Ed Jones, Tennessee State (Dallas Cowboys)



1975: QB Steve Bartkowski, Cal (Atlanta Falcons)



1976: DE Lee Roy Selmon, Oklahoma (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)



1977: HB Ricky Bell, USC (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)



1978: HB Earl Campbell, Texas (Houston Oilers)



1979: LB Tom Cousineau, Ohio State (Buffalo Bills)



1980: HB Billy Sims, Oklahoma (Detroit Lions)



1981: HB George Rogers, South Carolina (New Orleans Saints)



1982: DE Kenneth Sims, Texas (New England Patriots)



1983: QB John Elway, Stanford (Baltimore Colts)



1984: WR Irving Fryar, Nebraska (New England Patriots)



1985: DE Bruce Smith, Virginia Tech (Buffalo Bills)



1986: HB Bo Jackson, Auburn (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)



1987: QB Vinny Testaverde, Miami (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)



1988: LB Aundray Bruce, Auburn (Atlanta Falcons)



1989: QB Troy Aikman, UCLA (Dallas Cowboys)



1990: QB Jeff George, Illinois (Indianapolis Colts)



1991: DT Russell Maryland, Miami (Dallas Cowboys)



1992: DE Steve Emtman, Washington (Indianapolis Colts)



1993: QB Drew Bledsoe, Washington State (New England Patriots)



1994: DT Dan Wilkinson, Ohio State (Cincinnati Bengals)



1995: HB Ki-Jana Carter, Penn State (Cincinnati Bengals)



1996: WR Keyshawn Johnson, USC (New York Jets)



1997: OT Orlando Pace, Ohio State (St. Louis Rams)



1998: QB Peyton Manning, Tennessee (Indianapolis Colts)



1999: QB Tim Couch, Kentucky (Cleveland Browns)



2000: DE Courtney Brown, Penn State (Cleveland Browns)



2001: QB Michael Vick, Virginia Tech (Atlanta Falcons)



2002: QB David Carr, Fresno State (Houston Texans)



2003: QB Carson Palmer, USC (Cincinnati Bengals)



2004: QB Eli Manning, Ole Miss (San Diego Chargers)



2005: QB Alex Smith, Utah (San Francisco 49ers)



2006: DE Mario Williams, North Carolina State (Houston Texans)



2007: QB JaMarcus Russell, LSU (Oakland Raiders)



2008: OT Jake Long, Michigan (Miami Dolphins)



2009: QB Matthew Stafford, Georgia (Detroit Lions)



2010: QB Sam Bradford, Oklahoma (St. Louis Rams)



2011: QB Cam Newton, Auburn (Carolina Panthers)



2012: QB Andrew Luck, Stanford (Indianapolis Colts)



2013: OT Eric Fisher, Central Michigan (Kansas City Chiefs)



2014: DE Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina (Houston Texans)



2015: QB Jameis Winston, Florida State (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)



2016: QB Jared Goff, Cal (Los Angeles Rams)



2017: DE Myles Garrett, Texas A&M (Cleveland Browns)



2018: QB Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma (Cleveland Browns)



2019: QB Kyler Murray, Oklahoma (Arizona Cardinals)



2020: QB Joe Burrow, LSU (Cincinnati Bengals)



2021: QB Trevor Lawrence, Clemson (Jacksonville Jaguars)



2022: DE Travon Walker, Georgia (Jacksonville Jaguars)



2023: QB Bryce Young, Alabama (Carolina Panthers)



2024: QB Caleb Williams, USC (Chicago Bears)



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