List of Tennessee Titans first-round draft picks

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The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference South Division. Founded in 1959 by Houston oil tycoon Bud Adams (who remained the owner until his death in 2013), they were a charter member of the American Football League (AFL) and joined the NFL in 1970 as part of the AFL–NFL merger. The team was originally known as the Houston Oilers and began play in 1960 in Houston, Texas. In 1997, the Oilers relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, playing at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis for one season while waiting for a new stadium to be constructed. The team moved to Nashville's Vanderbilt Stadium in 1998. The team was known as the Tennessee Oilers for the 1997 and 1998 seasons. They changed their name to the Tennessee Titans for the 1999 season, when they moved into Adelphia Coliseum (now known as Nissan Stadium), where they have played their home games since.

Bruce Matthews in Houston Oilers uniform, covered in dirt, carrying his helmet in his hand.
Offensive lineman Bruce Matthews was drafted ninth overall in the 1983 NFL draft and spent his entire career, 19 seasons, with the team. He was a seven-time first-team All-Pro, 14-time Pro Bowler, and won the 2001 Bart Starr Award. In addition to being inducted into the Titans Ring of Honor and having his number retired, he was also inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007 and selected for the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.

The NFL draft, officially known as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting", is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings; the teams with the worst win–loss records receive the earliest picks. Teams that qualified for the NFL playoffs select after non-qualifiers, and their order depends on how far they advanced, using their regular season record as a tie-breaker. The final two selections in the first round are reserved for the Super Bowl runner-up and champion. Draft picks are tradable and players or other picks can be acquired with them.

Before the merger agreements in 1966, the AFL directly competed with the NFL and held a separate draft. This led to a massive bidding war over top prospects between the two leagues, along with the subsequent drafting of the same player in each draft. As part of the merger agreement on June 8, 1966, the two leagues began holding a multiple round "common draft". Once the AFL officially merged with the NFL in 1970, the "common draft" simply became the NFL draft. The first AFL draft was held prior to the start of the 1960 season. The first round of the 1960 AFL draft was territorial selections. Each team received a "territorial pick" which allowed them to select a single player within a pre-agreed upon designated region (the team's "territory"). Teams then agreed on the top eight players at each position, who were subsequently assigned to teams by random draw, with each of the eight teams receiving one of those players. This process was repeated until all 53 roster spots were filled. Beginning in the 1961 draft, the AFL, using the same system as the NFL, began to assign picks based on the previous season's standings.

Since the team's first draft, the Titans have selected 61 players in the first round. The team's first-round pick in the inaugural AFL draft was Billy Cannon, a halfback from LSU; he was the team's territorial selection. The Titans have drafted first overall twice, selecting John Matuszak in 1973, and Earl Campbell in 1978. In the most recent draft, held in 2024, the Titans chose Alabama tackle JC Latham.

The Titans did not draft a player in the first round on ten occasions. Five of the team's first-round picks—Robert Brazile, Earl Campbell, Mike Ditka, Bruce Matthews, Mike Munchak—have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame; one of these, Mike Ditka, chose not to play for the team and joined the Chicago Bears of the NFL instead. The team's first-round pick in 1966, Tommy Nobis, also chose to sign with the NFL instead.

Player selections

 
Running back Earl Campbell was selected first overall in the 1978 NFL draft. Campbell spent six full seasons with the team, and a portion of a seventh, during which time he was a three-time first-team All-Pro, five-time Pro Bowler, three-time Offensive Player of the Year, and was the 1979 MVP. He was a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer, was selected to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, was inducted into the Titans Ring of Honor, and had his number retired by the team.
 
Robert Brazile, a linebacker selected sixth overall in the 1975 NFL draft, spent his entire career with the team. During this time, he was a six-time All-Pro, seven-time Pro Bowler, and was selected for the 1970s All-Decade Team. In 2018, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Titans Ring of Honor.
 
Mike Munchak, a guard drafted in 1982, spent his entire 12 season career with the Oilers. During his time with the team, he was a 10-time All-Pro, nine-time Pro Bowler, and was selected to the 1980s All-Decade Team. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the Titans Ring of Honor, and had his number retired by the team.
 
Chris Johnson was a running back drafted 24th overall in the 2008 NFL draft. During Johnson's six seasons with the team, he was a first-team All-Pro, three-time Pro Bowler, and the 2009 Offensive Player of the Year. In 2009, he set the record for most scrimmage yards in a season (2,509) while becoming the sixth player to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season, earning the nickname CJ2K.
Key
Indicates the player was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
* Selected number one overall
Selected number one overall and inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Position abbreviations
CB Cornerback
DB Defensive back
DE Defensive end
DT Defensive tackle
G Guard
LB Linebacker
QB Quarterback
RB Running back
T Tackle
TE Tight end
WB Wingback
Tennessee Titans first-round draft picks
Season Pick Player Position College Notes
1960 Territorial Billy Cannon RB LSU First round was territorial selections
1961 8 Mike Ditka TE Pittsburgh Signed for the NFL's Chicago Bears instead
1962 7 Ray Jacobs DT Howard Payne
1963 6 Danny Brabham LB Arkansas
1964 6 Scott Appleton DT Texas
1965 2 Larry Elkins WR Baylor Original pick traded to New York Jets. Pick received from Denver Broncos.
1966 5 Tommy Nobis LB Texas Signed for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons instead
1967 5 George Webster LB Michigan State
23 Tom Regner G Notre Dame Pick received from Dallas Cowboys
1968 No pick Pick traded to Kansas City Chiefs
1969 15 Ron Pritchard LB Arizona State
1970 14 Doug Wilkerson G North Carolina Central
1971 3 Dan Pastorini QB Santa Clara
1972 6 Greg Sampson T Stanford
1973 1 John Matuszak* DE Tampa
14 George Amundson RB Iowa State Pick received from Atlanta Falcons
1974 No pick Pick traded to Dallas Cowboys
1975 6 Robert Brazile LB Jackson State Pick received from Kansas City Chiefs
15 Don Hardeman RB Texas A&M–Kingsville
1976 No pick Pick traded to San Francisco 49ers
1977 11 Morris Towns T Missouri
1978 1 Earl Campbell RB Texas Moved up draft order in trade with Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1979 No pick Moved down draft order in trade with Kansas City Chiefs
1980 No pick Pick traded to New England Patriots
1981 No pick Pick traded to Oakland Raiders
1982 8 Mike Munchak G Penn State
1983 9 Bruce Matthews G USC Moved down draft order in trades with Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks
1984 2 Dean Steinkuhler T Nebraska
1985 3 Ray Childress DT Texas A&M Moved down draft order in trade with Minnesota Vikings
11 Richard Johnson DB Wisconsin Pick received from New Orleans Saints
1986 3 Jim Everett QB Purdue Did not play for the team
1987 3 Alonzo Highsmith RB Miami (FL) Moved up draft order in trade with Buffalo Bills
20 Haywood Jeffires WR North Carolina State Pick received from Los Angeles Rams
1988 22 Lorenzo White RB Michigan State Additional pick received from Los Angeles Rams and subsequently traded to Los Angeles Raiders
1989 23 David Williams T Florida
1990 15 Lamar Lathon LB Houston
1991 No pick Moved down draft order in trade with New England Patriots
1992 No pick Pick traded to San Diego Chargers
1993 13 Brad Hopkins T Illinois Moved up draft order in trade with Philadelphia Eagles
1994 26 Henry Ford DT Arkansas
1995 3 Steve McNair QB Alcorn State
1996 14 Eddie George RB Ohio State Moved down draft order in trade with Los Angeles Raiders then up in trade with Seattle Seahawks
1997 18 Kenny Holmes DE Miami (FL) Moved down draft order in trade with Kansas City Chiefs
1998 16 Kevin Dyson WR Utah
1999 16 Jevon Kearse DE Florida
2000 30 Keith Bulluck LB Syracuse
2001 No pick Pick traded to St. Louis Rams
2002 15 Albert Haynesworth DT Tennessee Moved down draft order in trade with New York Giants
2003 28 Andre Woolfolk DB Oklahoma
2004 No pick Moved down draft order in trade with Houston Texans
2005 6 Adam Jones DB West Virginia
2006 3 Vince Young QB Texas
2007 19 Michael Griffin DB Texas
2008 24 Chris Johnson RB East Carolina
2009 30 Kenny Britt WR Rutgers
2010 16 Derrick Morgan DE Georgia Tech
2011 8 Jake Locker QB Washington
2012 20 Kendall Wright WR Baylor
2013 10 Chance Warmack G Alabama
2014 11 Taylor Lewan T Michigan
2015 2 Marcus Mariota QB Oregon
2016 8 Jack Conklin T Michigan State Moved down draft order in trade with Los Angeles Rams then up in trade with Cleveland Browns
2017 5 Corey Davis WR Western Michigan Pick received from Los Angeles Rams
18 Adoree' Jackson DB USC
2018 22 Rashaan Evans LB Alabama Moved up draft order in trade with Baltimore Ravens
2019 19 Jeffery Simmons DT Mississippi State
2020 29 Isaiah Wilson T Georgia
2021 22 Caleb Farley CB Virginia Tech
2022 18 Treylon Burks WR Arkansas Original pick traded to New York Jets. Pick received from Philadelphia Eagles.
2023 11 Peter Skoronski G Northwestern
2024 7 JC Latham T Alabama

See also

Notes

References