Date(s) January 29–30, 1974 TV coverage (US) no television coverage | Time 10:00am EST | |
Location Americana Hotel
in New York City, NY First selection Ed "Too Tall" Jones, DE
Dallas Cowboys Last selection Ken Dickerson, DB
Miami Dolphins | ||
The 1974 National Football League draft took place at the Americana Hotel in New York City, New York, on January 29–30, 1974. Each of the 26 NFL teams was granted 17 selections for a total of 442 picks.
Many experts consider the 1974 Pittsburgh Steelers to have had the best draft in NFL history (or even pro-sports history), as they selected four players later inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth, and Mike Webster). The closest any other team has come to this success in a draft is the Dallas Cowboys' 1964 draft, when three Hall of Famers were taken.
The Houston Oilers had the first pick in the 1974 draft based on their one-win record in 1973, but they traded the first overall pick—as well as the first pick of the third round, #53 overall—to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for defensive end Tody Smith and wide receiver Billy Parks. Dallas used the two picks to select two future Pro Bowlers, defensive end Ed "Too Tall" Jones and quarterback Danny White.
This was the last draft until the 1984 draft to not have any quarterbacks taken in the first round.