The 2018 NFL draft was the 83rd annual meeting of
National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the
2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at
AT&T Stadium in
Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft to take place in an NFL stadium and the first to be held in Texas.[3][4][5] In order to be eligible to enter the draft, players must be at least three years removed from high school. The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft was January 15, 2018.[6]
Five quarterbacks were selected in the first round —
Baker Mayfield,
Sam Darnold,
Josh Allen,
Josh Rosen, and
Lamar Jackson — the second highest number of first-round quarterback selections (along with the
1999 and
2021 drafts) after the six selected in
1983.[7] As of 2023, only Allen and Jackson have remained with their original teams. The draft was also the first to have siblings — safety
Terrell Edmunds and linebacker
Tremaine Edmunds — selected in its first round.[8]
In order to be eligible to enter the draft, players must be at least three years removed from high school. The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft was January 15, 2018.[9]
The following is the breakdown of the 256 players selected by
position:
First-round quarterbacks (from top to bottom)
Baker Mayfield,
Josh Allen, and
Lamar Jackson received
Pro Bowl honors, broke franchise passing records and led their teams to the playoffs. Jackson won the
NFL MVP Award in 2019 and 2023.
A
supplemental draft was held on July 11, 2018. For each player selected in the supplemental draft, the team forfeits its pick in that round in the draft of the following season.
In the explanations below, (PD) indicates trades completed prior to the start of the draft (i.e. Pre-Draft), while (D) denotes trades that took place during the 2018 draft.
Round one
^No. 3: Indianapolis → NY Jets (PD).Indianapolis traded a first-round selection (
3rd) to the
Jets in exchange for the Jets' first-round selection (
6th), two second-round selections (
37th and
49th), and a second-round selection in
2019.[TRADE 1]
^No. 4: Houston → Cleveland (PD).Houston traded a first-round selection (
4th) and a first-round selection in
2017 (
25th) to
Cleveland in exchange for Cleveland's first-round selection in
2017 (
12th). With the trade, Houston selected
Deshaun Watson.[TRADE 2]
^No. 7: Tampa Bay → Buffalo (D).Tampa Bay traded first- and seventh-round selections (
7th and
255th) to
Buffalo in exchange for Buffalo's first-round selection (
12th) and two second-round selections (
53rd and
56th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 10: Oakland → Arizona (D).Oakland traded a first-round selection (
10th) to
Arizona in exchange for Arizona's first-, third-, and fifth-round selections (
15th,
79th, and
152nd).[TRADE 3]
^No. 14: Green Bay → New Orleans (D).Green Bay traded a first-round selection (
14th) to
New Orleans in exchange for New Orleans's first- and fifth-round selections (
27th and
147th) and a first-round selection in
2019.[TRADE 3]
^No. 16: Baltimore → Buffalo (D).Baltimore traded first- and fifth-round selections (
16th and
154th) to
Buffalo in exchange for Buffalo's first and third round selections (
22nd and
65th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 18: Seattle → Green Bay (D).Seattle traded first- and seventh-round selections (
18th and
248th) to
Green Bay in exchange for Green Bay's first-, third-, and sixth-round selections (
27th,
76th, and
186th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 22: multiple trades: No. 22: Kansas City → Buffalo (PD).Kansas City traded a first-round selection (
22nd) as well as first- and third-round selections in
2017 (
27th and
91st) to
Buffalo in exchange for Buffalo's first-round selection in
2017 (
10th).[TRADE 2] With the trade, Kansas City selected
Patrick Mahomes II. No. 22: Buffalo → Baltimore (D). see
No. 16: Baltimore → Buffalo.[TRADE 3] No. 22: Baltimore → Tennessee (D).Baltimore traded first- and sixth-round selections (
22nd and
215th) to
Tennessee in exchange for Tennessee's first- and fourth-round selections (
25th and
125th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 23: LA Rams → New England (PD). The
Rams traded first- and sixth-round selections (
23rd and
198th) to
New England in exchange for New England's fourth-round selection (
136th) and wide receiver
Brandin Cooks.[TRADE 5]
^No. 32: Philadelphia → Baltimore (D).Philadelphia traded first- and fourth-round selections (
32nd and
132nd) to
Baltimore in exchange for Baltimore's second- and fourth-round selections (
52nd and
125th) and a second-round selection in
2019.[TRADE 3]
Round two
^No. 35: Houston → Cleveland (PD).Houston traded a second-round selection (
35th), their sixth-round selection in
2017 (
188th), and quarterback
Brock Osweiler to
Cleveland in exchange for Cleveland's fourth-round selection in
2017 (
142nd).[TRADE 6]
^No. 41: Oakland → Tennessee (D).Oakland traded a second-round selection (
41st) to
Tennessee in exchange for Tennessee's second- and third-round selections (
57th and
89th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 43: multiple trades: No. 43: San Francisco → New England (PD).San Francisco traded a second-round selection (
43rd) to
New England in exchange for quarterback
Jimmy Garoppolo.[TRADE 7] No. 43: New England → Detroit (D).New England traded a second-round selection (
43rd) to
Detroit in exchange for Detroit's second- and fourth-round selections (
51st and
117th)[TRADE 3]
^No. 44: Washington → San Francisco (D).Washington traded second- and fifth-round selections (
44th and
142nd) to
San Francisco in exchange for San Francisco's second- and third-round selections (
59th and
74th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 46: Cincinnati → Kansas City (D).Cincinnati traded second- and third-round selections (
46th and
100th) to
Kansas City in exchange for Kansas City's second- and third-round selections (
54th and
78th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 64: multiple trades: No. 64: Philadelphia → Cleveland (PD).Philadelphia traded a second-round selection (
64th) as well as a first-, third-, and fourth-round selections in
2016 (
8th,
77th, and
100th) and a first-round selection in
2017 to
Cleveland in exchange for Cleveland's first-round selection in
2016 (
2nd) and a fourth-round selection in
2017.[TRADE 10] No. 64: Cleveland → Indianapolis (D).Cleveland traded a second-round selection (
64th) to
Indianapolis in exchange for Indianapolis' third- and sixth-round selections (
67th and
178th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 70: Chicago → San Francisco (PD).Chicago traded a third-round selection (
70th) as well as first-, third-, and fourth-round selections in
2017 (
3rd,
67th, and
111th) to
San Francisco in exchange for San Francisco's first-round selection in
2017 (
2nd).[TRADE 2]
^No. 80: Seattle → Houston (PD).Seattle traded a third-round selection (
80th) as well as a second-round selection in
2019 to
Houston in exchange for Houston's fifth-round selection (
141st) and offensive tackle
Duane Brown. This trade originally included cornerback
Jeremy Lane but was revised after Lane failed his physical.[TRADE 15]
^No. 85: Buffalo → Carolina (PD).Buffalo traded a third-round selection (
85th) as well as a 2018 seventh-round selection (previously acquired from the
LA Chargers) to
Carolina in exchange for wide receiver
Kelvin Benjamin.[TRADE 16]
^No. 87: LA Rams → Oakland (D). The
Rams traded their third-round selection (
87th) to
Oakland in exchange for Oakland's third- and seventh-round selections (
89th and
217th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 88: Carolina → Green Bay (D).Carolina traded a third-round selection (
88th) to
Green Bay in exchange for Green Bay's fourth- and fifth-round selections (
101st and
147th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 94: Minnesota → Tampa Bay (D).Minnesota traded a third-round selection (
94th) to
Tampa Bay in exchange for Tampa Bay's fourth- and sixth-round selections (
102nd and
180th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 109: multiple trades: No. 109: San Francisco → Denver (PD).San Francisco traded a fourth-round selection (
109th) to
Denver in exchange for running back
Kapri Bibbs and their fifth-round selection in
2017 (
177th).[TRADE 2] No. 109: Denver → Washington (PD).Denver traded fourth- and two fifth-round selections (
109th,
142nd, and
163rd) to
Washington in exchange for Washington's fourth- and fifth-round selections (
113th and
149th) and safety
Su'a Cravens.[TRADE 18]
^No. 114: multiple trades: No. 114: Green Bay → Cleveland (PD). see No. 101: Cleveland → Green Bay.[TRADE 17] No. 114: Cleveland → New England (D). see No. 105: New England → Cleveland.[TRADE 3] No. 114: New England → Detroit (D).New England traded a fourth-round selection (
114th) to
Detroit in exchange for Detroit's third-round selection in
2019.[TRADE 3]
^No. 115: Arizona → Chicago (PD).Arizona traded a fourth-round selection (
115th) as well as second-, fourth-, and sixth-round selections in
2017 (
45th,
119th,
197th) to
Chicago in exchange for Chicago's second-round selection in
2017 (
36th).[TRADE 2]
^No. 123: multiple trades: No. 123: Carolina → Cleveland (PD).Carolina traded a fourth-round selection and punter
Kasey Redfern to
Cleveland in exchange for punter
Andy Lee and Cleveland's
2017 seventh-round selection in a late August 2016 trade.[TRADE 20] No. 123: Cleveland → Miami (PD).Cleveland traded this fourth-round selection to
Miami in exchange for wide receiver
Jarvis Landry in 2018.[TRADE 17]
^No. 124: LA Rams → Kansas City (PD). The
Rams traded their fourth-round selection (
124th) and second-round selection in
2019 to
Kansas City in exchange for Kansas City's sixth-round selection (
209th) and cornerback
Marcus Peters.[TRADE 21]
^No. 131: multiple trades: No. 131: New England → Philadelphia (PD).New England traded a fourth-round selection to
Philadelphia in exchange for cornerback
Eric Rowe. The fourth-round selection would have become a third-round selection if Rowe had played more than 50 percent of the defensive snaps in 2016 or 2017, but he did not.[TRADE 24] No. 131: Philadelphia → Miami (PD).Philadelphia traded this fourth-round selection to
Miami in exchange for running back
Jay Ajayi.[TRADE 25]
^No. 135: NY Giants → LA Rams (PD). The
Giants traded fourth- and sixth-round selections (
135th and
176th) to the
Rams in exchange for the Rams' seventh-round selection in
2019 and linebacker
Alec Ogletree.[TRADE 26]
^No. 138: Cleveland → Green Bay (PD). see No. 101: Cleveland → Green Bay.[TRADE 17]
^No. 140: Indianapolis → Oakland (D).Indianapolis traded a fifth-round selection (
140th) to
Oakland in exchange for the Oakland's fifth- and sixth-round selections (
159th and
185th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 157: multiple trades: No. 157: Dallas → NY Jets (PD).Dallas traded a fifth-round selection (
157th) to the
Jets in exchange for the Jets' sixth-round selection in
2017 (
191st).[TRADE 2] No. 157: NY Jets → Minnesota (D). The
Jets traded their fifth-round selection (
157th) to the
Minnesota in exchange for Minnesota's fifth- and seventh-round selections (
167th and
225th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 160: multiple trades: No. 160: LA Rams → Denver (PD). The
Rams traded a fifth-round selection (
160th) to
Denver in exchange for cornerback
Aqib Talib.[TRADE 35] No. 160: Denver → LA Rams (D).Denver traded a fifth-round selection (
160th) to the
Rams in exchange for the Rams' two sixth-round selections (
183rd and
217th).[TRADE 3]
^No. 166: Jacksonville → Buffalo (PD)Jacksonville traded a sixth-round selection to
Buffalo in exchange for defensive tackle
Marcell Dareus. This pick became a fifth-rounds selection (
166th) after Dareus remained on Jacksonville's roster for the remainder of the 2017 season and the Jaguars made the playoffs.[TRADE 37]
^No. 194: multiple trades: No. 194: Detroit → LA Rams (PD).Detroit traded a sixth-round selection (
194th) to the
Rams in exchange for offensive tackle
Greg Robinson.[TRADE 43] No. 194: LA Rams → Atlanta (D). The
Rams traded their sixth-round selection (
194th) to
Atlanta in exchange for Atlanta's two seventh-round selections (
244th and
256th.)[TRADE 3]
^No. 223: multiple trades: No. 223: Tampa Bay → Miami (PD).Tampa Bay traded a seventh-round selection (
223rd) as well as a seventh-round selection in
2017 (
237th) to
Miami in exchange for Miami's seventh-round selection in
2017 (
223rd).[TRADE 2] No. 223: Miami → San Francisco (PD).Miami traded this seventh-round selection (
223rd) to
San Francisco in exchange for San Francisco's seventh-round selection (
227th) and center
Daniel Kilgore.[TRADE 49]
^No. 230: Cincinnati → Jacksonville (PD).Cincinnati traded a conditional selection to
Jacksonville in exchange for defensive end
Chris Smith.[TRADE 51] The conditions were that the Jaguars would acquire the Bengals' seventh-round selection if Smith was on the Bengals' active roster for at least 6 games during the 2017 season, which he was.[TRADE 52]
Coverage of the draft was broadcast by
ESPN and
NFL Network, with
Fox also simulcasting NFL Network's coverage of the first two rounds of broadcast television (serving as a prelude for Fox's acquisition of Thursday Night Football for the 2018 season). ESPN aired coverage of the last four rounds on
ABC. College GameDay broadcast a special edition from outside AT&T Stadium as a pre-show on ESPN, and its panel hosted a secondary broadcast of the first round on
ESPN2.[10]ESPN Deportes broadcast coverage in Spanish.[2][11]
Telecasts of the first round across all three broadcasters (which included the expansion of coverage to broadcast television) drew a combined Nielsen overnight household rating of 8.4, and total viewership of 11.214 million, making it the most-watched opening round since
2014. ESPN drew the largest single audience, with 5.336 million viewers, while Fox and NFL Network had a combined viewership of 5.74 million across both channels (3.776 and 2.005 million individually).[12][13]