DETROIT – The 2017 NFL Draft is April 27 - 29 in Philadelphia. The entire event will take place outdoors.
The Cleveland Browns hold the first overall pick in the 2017 Draft, followed by the 49ers, Bears and Jaguars.
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T.J. Owuanibe is known as "the kid with the football" at Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. On Thursday night, he'll be "the kid announcing the first selection" for the Baltimore Ravens at the NFL draft.
The 14-year-old eighth grader at McDonogh School in Baltimore was diagnosed two years ago with brain cancer. He recently told Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic that his dream was to stand up on the draft stage with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and tell the world who his favorite team was choosing with its first-round pick. With help from the Ravens, T.J.'s wish has been granted.
Round 1: Thursday, April 27 at 8PM ET: Round 1 includes the first 32 picks of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Rounds 2 & 3: Friday, April 28 at 7PM ET: Picks 33-107 are selected on day two of the NFL Draft.
Rounds 4 - 7: Saturday, April 29 at 12PM ET: Watch as the final selections of the 2017 NFL Draft are made.
ALSO SEE: NFL Draft Viewer Guide
Follow the 2017 NFL Draft with live pick-by-pick updates below:
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Leonard Fournette is about to lose a little control over his carefully cultivated football career.
The former LSU star running back got to choose where he played in high school — a New Orleans private school called St. Augustine — and in college. But Fournette sounds ready to accept whatever fate brings him in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night.
Some teams drafting early in the first round might be a better fit for the 6-foot-1, 228-pound power runner than others, but Fournette asserts, "It doesn't matter. I'm not really focused on that.
"Wherever I'm going, I plan on starting, playing my role and my main focus is on a championship — a Super Bowl and nothing less," Fournette said in an interview with The Associated Press while doing promotional work for the sports nutrition supplement MET-Rx this week.
Given his rare combination of size, strength and speed, Fournette knows he might be able to influence the process. One of his fellow New Orleans natives, Eli Manning, did it during the 2004 draft, orchestrating a trade from San Diego to the New York Giants.
Fournette was just in grammar school then, but said he remembers it. Fournette said he didn't have a problem with Manning's tactics, but does not believe he needs to resort to that, even though his long-term earning potential could be influenced considerably by which team takes him.
"I believe whatever team I go to, they're going to try to help me, the best way to get the ball into my hand, to do what I have to do," Fournette said. "It's 50-50. The player has to be committed to the team and the team has to be all in, in order to be what they want to be."
It's now rare for running backs to break the bank in free agency, although there is some sign that could change as pro football continues to evolve. Still, running backs tend to last less than 10 years in the NFL, meaning even some of the best only get one shot at a big free-agent contract after the expiration of their rookie deal, which is based on a pre-determined scale tied to the selection with which they are drafted.
Once their second contracts end, most running backs are seen as past their prime and have to accept deals that are modest by comparison to those given to quarterbacks, receivers, pass rushers and defensive backs.
If Fournette ends up with a dysfunctional club, or playing behind an offensive line built more for pass blocking than run blocking, or if he simply plays in an ineffective offense, it could limit his production considerably over the life of his first contract. That, in turn, could weaken his negotiating leverage when his first chance to become a free agent approaches in four or five years.
Fournette, however, sounded confident that his value would become self-evident if he performs well in whatever role his first NFL team gives him — even if it doesn't mean racking up elite rushing statistics.
"It's not about me. It's the team," Fournette said. "Whatever team I'm going to, I'm willing to do what I have to do to make the team better. That's not the team trying to fit me. At the end of the day, I have to go in there and fit with those guys, too."
In three seasons at LSU, Fournette gained 4,356 yards from scrimmage, mostly as a rusher and sometimes catching passes out of the backfield. Despite playing his entire senior season with an injured ankle, he rushed for 843 yards in seven games. As a sophomore, he rushed for 1,953 yards and 22 TDs, and had more than 2,200 hundred yards from scrimmage. He never fulfilled the Heisman Trophy hype with which he entered LSU, but that might have been different if the Tigers hadn't struggled in the passing game in recent years, allowing defenses to key more on stopping him.
Fournette is optimistic that recent successes of the Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott and the Rams' Todd Gurley have improved the draft stock of top running back prospects. After being drafted fourth overall out of Ohio State last year, Elliott rushed for 1,631 yards and 15 touchdowns.
"I think Todd Gurley and I think Zeke did a great job representing the running backs coming out," Fournette said. "They did a great job in the league showing guys that if you draft a running back in the first round you wouldn't regret it."
The first choice in the annual selection of college players by professional football with player, team, position and college:
2016 — Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams, QB, California.
2015 — Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay, QB, Florida State.
2014 — Jadeveon Clowney, Houston Texans, DE, South Carolina.
2013 — Eric Fisher, Kansas City, OT, Central Michigan.
2012 — Andrew Luck, Indianapolis, QB, Stanford.
2011 — Cam Newton, Carolina, QB, Auburn.
2010 — Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams, QB, Oklahoma.
2009 — Matthew Stafford, Detroit, QB, Georgia.
2008 — Jake Long, Miami, OT, Michigan.
2007 — JaMarcus Russell, Oakland, QB, LSU.
2006 — Mario Williams, Houston Texans, DE, N.C. State.
2005 — Alex Smith, San Francisco, QB, Utah.
2004 — Eli Manning, San Diego, QB, Mississippi.
2003 — Carson Palmer, Cincinnati, QB, Southern Cal.
2002 — David Carr, Houston Texans, QB, Fresno State.
2001 — Michael Vick, Atlanta, QB, Virginia Tech.
2000 — Courtney Brown, Cleveland, DE, Penn State.
1999 — Tim Couch, Cleveland, QB, Kentucky.
1998 — Peyton Manning, Indianapolis, QB, Tennessee.
1997 — Orlando Pace, St. Louis Rams, T, Ohio State.
1996 — Keyshawn Johnson, New York Jets, WR, Southern Cal.
1995 — Ki-Jana Carter, Cincinnati, RB, Penn State.
1994 — Dan Wilkinson, Cincinnati, DE, Ohio State.
1993 — Drew Bledsoe, New England, QB, Washington State.
1992 — Steve Emtman, Indianapolis, DE, Washington.
1991 — Russell Maryland, Dallas, DL, Miami.
1990 — Jeff George, Indianapolis, QB, Illinois.
1989 — Troy Aikman, Dallas, QB, UCLA.
1988 — Aundray Bruce, Atlanta, LB, Auburn.
1987 — Vinny Testaverde, Tampa Bay, QB, Miami.
1986 — Bo Jackson, Tampa Bay, RB, Auburn.
1985 — Bruce Smith, Buffalo, DT, Virginia Tech.
1984 — Irving Fryar, New England, WR, Nebraska.
1983 — John Elway, Baltimore Colts, QB, Stanford.
1982 — Kenneth Sims, New England, DT, Texas.
1981 — George Rogers, New Orleans, RB, South Carolina.
1980 — Billy Sims, Detroit, RB, Oklahoma.
1979 — Tom Cousineau, Buffalo, LB, Ohio State.
1978 — Earl Campbell, Houston Oilers, RB, Texas.
1977 — Ricky Bell, Tampa Bay, RB, Southern Cal.
1976 — Lee Roy Selmon, Tampa Bay, DE, Oklahoma.
1975 — Steve Bartkowski, Atlanta, QB, California.
1974 — Ed Jones, Dallas, DE, Tennessee State.
1973 — John Matuszak, Houston Oilers, DE, Tampa.
1972 — Walt Patulski, Buffalo, DE, Notre Dame.
1971 — Jim Plunkett, New England, QB, Stanford.
1970 — Terry Bradshaw, Pittsburgh, QB, Louisiana Tech.
1969 — O.J. Simpson, Buffalo (AFL), RB, Southern Cal.
1968 — Ron Yary, Minnesota, T, Southern Cal.
1967 — Bubba Smith, Baltimore Colts, DT, Michigan State.
1966 — Tommy Nobis, Atlanta, LB, Texas.
1966 — Jim Grabowski, Miami (AFL), RB, Illinois.
1965 — Tucker Frederickson, N.Y. Giants, RB, Auburn.
1965 — Lawrence Elkins, Houston (AFL), WR, Baylor.
1964 — Dave Parks, San Francisco, WR, Texas Tech.
1964 — Jack Concannon, Boston (AFL), QB, Boston College.
1963 — Terry Baker, Los Angeles Rams, QB, Oregon State.
1963 — Buck Buchanan, Kansas City (AFL), DT, Grambling.
1962 — Ernie Davis, Washington, RB, Syracuse.
1962 — Roman Gabriel, Oakland (AFL), QB, N.C. State.
1961 — Tommy Mason, Minnesota, RB, Tulane.
1961 — Ken Rice, Buffalo (AFL), G, Auburn.
1960 — Billy Cannon, Los Angeles Rams, RB, LSU.
1959 — Randy Duncan, Green Bay, QB, Iowa.
1958 — King Hill, Chicago Cardinals, QB, Rice.
1957 — Paul Hornung, Green Bay, HB, Notre Dame.
1956 — Gary Glick, Pittsburgh, DB, Colorado A&M.
1955 — George Shaw, Baltimore Colts, QB, Oregon.
1954 — Bobby Garrett, Cleveland, QB, Stanford.
1953 — Harry Babcock, San Francisco, WR, Georgia.
1952 — Bill Wade, Los Angeles Rams, QB, Vanderbilt.
1951 — Kyle Rote, New York Giants, HB, SMU.
1950 — Leon Hart, Detroit, WR, Notre Dame.
1949 — Chuck Bednarik, Philadelphia, C, Pennsylvania.
1948 — Harry Gilmer, Washington, QB, Alabama.
1947 — Bob Fenimore, Chicago Bears, HB, Oklahoma A&M.
1946 — Frank Dancewicz, Boston, QB, Notre Dame.
1945 — Charley Trippi, Chicago Cardinals, HB, Georgia.
1944 — Angelo Bertelli, Boston, QB, Notre Dame.
1943 — Frank Sinkwich, Detroit, HB, Georgia.
1942 — Bill Dudley, Pittsburgh, HB, Virginia.
1941 — Tom Harmon, Chicago Bears, HB, Michigan.
1940 — George Cafego, Chicago Cardinals, HB, Tennessee.
1939 — Ki Aldrich, Chicago Cardinals, C, TCU.
1938 — Corbett Davis, Cleveland, FB, Indiana.
1937 — Sam Francis, Philadelphia, FB, Nebraska.
1936 — Jay Berwanger, Philadelphia, HB, Chicago.
Baylor coach Matt Rhule is spending the rest of this week back in Philadelphia, where he will be at the NFL draft with his former Temple players while also touting the Bears.
"I'm there to support my Temple kids, and I'm there to sell Baylor to future recruits, and make sure that all kids that I'm recruiting know that our process is doing things that no one thought was possible," Rhule said Tuesday. "Five kids made NFL teams last year from the Temple Owls."
There will also be appearances on the NFL Network and visits to some of his favorite restaurants — he made reservations in advance — in the town where he spent 10 of the past 11 seasons. He is staying in a hotel only about five minutes where he used to live.
Rhule became Baylor's coach in December , fresh off an American Athletic Conference title and a second consecutive 10-win season with the Owls.
The Bears wrapped up their first spring under Rhule with their Green and Gold game Saturday. They spent the 15 spring working on new offenses and defensive schemes, while also taking care of their academics and doing more than 700 hours of community service.
Temple linebacker Haason Reddick , a potential first-round pick, invited Rhule to be with him in the green room at the draft Thursday night. Owls offensive tackle Dion Dawkins is also expected to be a high pick, and Temple has at least two other players that could be drafted in the later rounds.
"I'm there because those kids asked me to come. It's as gratifying an experience as I've ever had," Rhule told the AP by phone before leaving the Waco campus for Philadelphia.
Among the Bears expected to get drafted are receiver KD Cannon, who left Baylor after his junior season, and center Kyle Fuller. Quarterback Seth Russell, who had each of his last two seasons cut short by injuries, could also get an NFL chance.
Rhule first went to Temple as an assistant under Al Golden in 2006, then spent the next decade there — except for the 2012 season in the NFL as an assistant offensive line coach for the New York Giants. He returned to Philadelphia as the Owls head coach in 2013, and they went from 2-10 and 6-6 seasons to the best two-season stretch in school history.
"Those older kids, I think they recognize how hard all of our assistant coaches and myself worked for them, and we recognize how hard they worked for us," he said. "When I left, they understood that this was the next step in my journey, and I understood that going to the NFL was the next step in their journey."
Like he did at Temple, Rhule he wants every kid that comes to Baylor to want to get an education, win conference and national championships, and want to play in the NFL. The goal is for players to try to excel in everything that they do.
"It's not about trying to pick one thing to be great at, it's about trying to be great at everything that's important to you," Rhule said. "That's a major step for kids and for programs."
CNN NFL Draft Big Board:
The 2017 NFL draft class is unusually strong at many positions—running back, tight end, edge-rusher, cornerback and safety. Where this class is not deep—quarterback and left tackle—makes for interesting rankings and mock drafts. See it here.
T.J. Lang signed with his hometown Detroit Lions last month and was overwhelmed by the response.
“I had to remind people that I’m a guard, and I’m not a receiver,” said Lang, who grew up in suburban Detroit and played at Eastern Michigan. “I’m one of the blue-collar, lunch-pail guys. I’m not going to make a play on Sunday that is going to be a difference in game. But hey, it’s been awesome.”
The Lions singed Lang to a three-year, $28.5 million deal in March and got him way from NFC North rival Green Bay. He started 13 games last year for the Packers and started in 94 games over his eight-year career in the league with same franchise.
Lang had hip surgery in the offseason and has been encouraged by his recovery.
“The goal is still to be ready for training camp,” Lang said.
And, Detroit’s goals are higher than Lang expected. The Lions won nine games last season and made the playoffs for the second time in three years, but extended their postseason losing streak to eight over 25 years.
“This is a team that I view that we’re ready to contend,” Lang said. “In the building, I was very happy to see the expectations were high. Nobody is just satisfied with making the playoffs. We want to win the division. We want to have a perfect home record. The goals are much higher than I would’ve thought being on the outside looking in. That was definitely a good sign.”