Oklahoma football: Sooner 2018 NFL draftees will be on lean side
By Chip Rouse
Three-hundred eight-one Oklahoma football players have been selected in the annual National Football League Draft since the process was first introduced in 1936.
That places Oklahoma fourth among all schools for the most players selected in the 82-year history of the NFL Draft. Only twice in the long history of the NFL Draft (1962 and 1995) has there been a year in which no Oklahoma player was selected in the draft.
Some years, obviously, are better than others insofar as the number of Sooners taken in the draft. The number of OU players drafted in any given year have ranged from as few as one (wide receiver Eddie Hinton), in 1969, to a high-water mark of 13, in 1988.
In contrast to previous years, the upcoming 2018 NFL Draft, which will be staged April 26-28 from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, will not be a banner year for the number of Sooners drafted. Although, it is almost certain that at least one player from OU will be selected in the first round.
Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Baker Mayfield is expected by most experts to be taken among the first 10 picks in this year’s draft, likely between the third and fifth overall picks. Those picks are currently owned by the New York Jets, Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos. My bet is he will land in Denver.
The only other Sooners with a reasonable chance to be selected in the first round of this year’s draft are tight-end Mark Andrews and offensive tackle Orlando Brown. The first round (which encompasses 32 selections) is a stretch at best for both, but I would not be surprised to see Andrews go in the second round, and Brown as late as the third.
Although Brown plays a valued position among NFL teams, he did not have a particularly good performance at the NFL Scouting Combine in March. His skill and strength measures were much better at OU Pro Day last month, but not enough to move him into the first 32 players selected.
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Among the 381 players from Oklahoma selected all-time in the NFL Draft, 42 were taken in the first round, and three of those (Sam Bradford in 2010, Billy Sims in 1978 and Lee Roy Selmon in 1976) were taken No. 1 overall.
Twenty-eight times in the 82 years the NFL Draft has been held, at least one OU player has been taken in the opening round, and three times (2010, 1976 and 1970) that number was three or more.
In 2010, four Oklahoma players were selected in the first round of the draft, including three of the first four players taken overall. Bradford was the No. 1 overall pick, defensive tackle Gerald McCoy was the No. 3 overall pick and offensive tackle Trent Williams was fourth overall.
Four Sooners were selected in the draft in each of the last two seasons. I don’t see that number being more than five this time around. The last time an Oklahoma player was taken in the first round was five years ago, in 2013, when offensive lineman Lane Johnson was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles with the No. 4 overall pick.
Aside from Mayfield, Andrews and Brown, I believe linebacker Ogbonnia “Obo” Okoronkwo and fullback Dimitri Flowers will round out the Sooner players who are most likely to hear their name called later this month over the three days and seven rounds of the 2018 NFL Draft.
This doesn’t mean, of course, that other former OU players won’t be given a chance to make an NFL roster. There will probably be as many as six to 10 other Sooners who will pursue an opportunity to hook on with an NFL team as undrafted free agent. Chances are extremely low that a player will make an NFL roster through this avenue, but it is not out of the realm of possibility.