The 1979 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1979 , at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City , New York.[1] [2] supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
The Buffalo Bills held the first overall pick in the draft, acquired from the San Francisco 49ers in the trade which sent O.J. Simpson to his hometown team. The Bills' selection at No. 1, Ohio State linebacker Tom Cousineau , refused to sign with the Bills and instead inked a lucrative deal with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League .
Player selections Round one Round two
Round three Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 57 Seattle Seahawks Michael Jackson Linebacker Washington 58 Los Angeles Rams Jeff Moore Wide Receiver Tennessee 59 Cincinnati Bengals Barney Cotton Offensive Guard Nebraska 60 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jerry Eckwood Running Back Arkansas 61 Miami Dolphins Tony Nathan Running Back Alabama 62 Buffalo Bills Jon Borchardt Offensive Tackle Montana State 63 Miami Dolphins Mel Land Linebacker Michigan State 64 St. Louis Cardinals Joe Bostic Offensive Tackle Clemson 65 Miami Dolphins Ronnie Lee Tight End Baylor 66 Chicago Bears Willie McClendon Running Back Georgia 67 Detroit Lions Bo Robinson Running Back West Texas State 68 New York Jets Donald Dykes Defensive Back Southeastern Louisiana 69 Baltimore Colts Kim Anderson Defensive Back Arizona State 70 Cleveland Browns James Ramey Defensive End Kentucky 71 Green Bay Packers Charles Johnson Defensive Tackle Maryland 72 Houston Oilers Kenny King Running Back Oklahoma 73 San Diego Chargers Clifford Thrift Linebacker East Central 74 Philadelphia Eagles Tony Franklin Place Kicker Texas A&M 75 Atlanta Falcons James Mayberry Running Back Colorado 76 Dallas Cowboys Doug Cosbie Tight End Santa Clara 77 Denver Broncos Bruce Radford Defensive End Grambling 78 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Reginald Lewis Defensive End North Texas 79 Atlanta Falcons William Andrews Running Back Auburn 80 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rick Berns Running Back Nebraska 81 Los Angeles Rams Mike Wellman Center Kansas 82 San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana Quarterback Notre Dame – Pittsburgh Steelers Selection forfeited when the team was found to have practiced with pads during an off-season period when pads were not allowed [4]
Round four Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 83 Buffalo Bills Ken Johnson Defensive End Knoxville 84 Cincinnati Bengals James White Defensive Tackle Albany State 85 Kansas City Chiefs Frank Manumaleuga Linebacker San Jose State 86 Pittsburgh Steelers Russell Davis Running Back Michigan 87 Buffalo Bills Jeff Nixon Defensive Back Richmond 88 Detroit Lions Ulysses Norris Tight End Georgia 89 St. Louis Cardinals Roy Green Defensive Back (converted to WR later) Henderson State 90 New York Giants Phil Tabor Defensive End Oklahoma 91 Cincinnati Bengals Vaughn Lusby Defensive Back Arkansas 92 Detroit Lions Jon Brooks Linebacker Clemson 93 New Orleans Saints Jim Kovach Linebacker Kentucky 94 Philadelphia Eagles Ben Cowins Running Back Arkansas 95 Cleveland Browns Matt Miller Tackle Colorado 96 New York Jets Eric Cunningham Offensive Guard Penn State 97 Minnesota Vikings Steve Dils Quarterback Stanford 98 New York Jets Johnny Lynn Defensive Back UCLA 99 Los Angeles Rams Derwin Tucker Defensive Back Illinois 100 Atlanta Falcons Lynn Cain Running Back USC 101 Atlanta Falcons Charles Johnson Defensive Back Grambling 102 Seattle Seahawks Mark Bell Tight End Colorado State 103 Washington Redskins Don Warren Tight End San Diego State 104 San Diego Chargers John Floyd Wide Receiver N.E. Louisiana 105 Denver Broncos Charles Jefferson Defensive Back McNeese State 106 New England Patriots Eddie Hare Punter Tulsa 107 Miami Dolphins Steve Howell Running Back Baylor 108 Los Angeles Rams Jerry Wilkinson Defensive Tackle Oregon State 109 Dallas Cowboys Ralph DeLoach Defensive End California 110 Pittsburgh Steelers Calvin Sweeney Wide Receiver USC
Round five Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 111 San Francisco 49ers Tom Seabron Linebacker Michigan 112 Kansas City Chiefs Earl Gant Running Back Missouri 113 Cincinnati Bengals Casey Merrill Defensive End California-Davis 114 Buffalo Bills Rod Kush Defensive Back Nebraska-Omaha 115 Baltimore Colts Larry Braziel Defensive Back USC 116 Buffalo Bills Dan Manucci Quarterback Kansas State 117 New York Giants Cleveland Jackson Tight End UNLV 118 St. Louis Cardinals Steve Henry Defensive Back Emporia State 119 San Francisco 49ers Jerry Aldridge Running Back Angelo State 120 New Orleans Saints Harlan Huckleby Running Back Michigan 121 Dallas Cowboys Bob Hukill Offensive Guard North Carolina 122 Los Angeles Rams Victor Hicks Tight End Oklahoma 123 New York Jets Kelly Kirchbaum Linebacker Kentucky 124 Cleveland Browns Rich Dimler Defensive Tackle USC 125 New York Jets Stan Blinka Linebacker Sam Houston State 126 Philadelphia Eagles Scott Fitzkee Wide Receiver Penn State 127 Atlanta Falcons Mike Zele Defensive Tackle Kent State 128 Dallas Cowboys Curtis Anderson Defensive End Central State (OH) 129 Minnesota Vikings Jerry Meter Linebacker Michigan 130 St. Louis Cardinals Mark Bell Wide Receiver Colorado State 131 Detroit Lions Walt Brown Center Pittsburgh 132 Denver Broncos Rick Leach Quarterback Michigan 133 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Chuck Fusina Quarterback Penn State 134 Miami Dolphins Don Bessillieu Defensive Back Georgia Tech 135 New England Patriots John Zamberlin Linebacker Pacific Lutheran 136 Dallas Cowboys Ron Springs Running Back Ohio State 137 Pittsburgh Steelers Dwaine Board Defensive End North Carolina A&T
Round six Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 138 San Francisco 49ers Ruben Vaughan Defensive Tackle Colorado 139 Cincinnati Bengals Steve Kreider Wide Receiver Lehigh 140 Kansas City Chiefs Spider Gaines Wide Receiver Washington 141 Buffalo Bills Mike Burrow Offensive Guard Auburn 142 Oakland Raiders Ira Matthews Wide Receiver Wisconsin 143 Houston Oilers Daryl Hunt Linebacker Oklahoma 144 St. Louis Cardinals Thomas Lott Running Back Oklahoma 145 New York Giants Bob Torrey Running Back Penn State 146 New Orleans Saints Ricky Ray Defensive Back Norfolk State 147 Chicago Bears John Sullivan Linebacker Illinois 148 Denver Broncos Jeff McIntyre Linebacker Arizona State 149 New York Jets Bill Dufek Offensive Guard Michigan 150 Baltimore Colts Jim Moore Tackle Ohio State 151 Cleveland Browns Clinton Burrell Defensive Back Louisiana State 152 Minnesota Vikings Joe Senser Tight End West Chester (PA) 153 Green Bay Packers Dave Simmons Linebacker North Carolina 154 Atlanta Falcons Mike Moroski Quarterback California-Davis 155 Dallas Cowboys Tim Lavender Defensive Back USC 156 Oakland Raiders Henry Williams Defensive Back San Diego State 157 Pittsburgh Steelers Bill Murrell Tight End Winston-Salem State 158 New York Giants Eddie Hicks Running Back East Carolina 159 Houston Oilers Mike Murphy Linebacker SW Missouri State 160 Dallas Cowboys Mike Salzano Offensive Guard North Carolina 161 Pittsburgh Steelers Dwayne Woodruff Defensive Back Louisville 162 Miami Dolphins Steve Lindquist Offensive Guard Nebraska 163 Cleveland Browns Jim Ronan Defensive Tackle Minnesota 164 Dallas Cowboys Chris DeFrance Wide Receiver Arizona State 165 Pittsburgh Steelers Matt Bahr Kicker Penn State 0 Buffalo Bills (supplemental draft) Rod Stewart Running Back Kentucky
Round seven Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 166 San Francisco 49ers Phil Francis Running Back Stanford 167 Kansas City Chiefs Ken Kremer Defensive End Ball State 168 Cincinnati Bengals Max Montoya Offensive Tackle UCLA 169 Seattle Seahawks Larry Polowski Linebacker Boise State 170 Buffalo Bills Tom Mullady Tight End Rhodes College 171 Houston Oilers Tim Ries Defensive Back SW Missouri State 172 New York Giants Steve Alvers Tight End Miami (FL) 173 St. Louis Cardinals Kirk Gibson Wide Receiver Michigan State 174 Chicago Bears Lee Kunz Linebacker Nebraska 175 Oakland Raiders Jack Matia Offensive Tackle Drake 176 New Orleans Saints Stan Sytsma Linebacker Minnesota 177 New England Patriots Judson Flint Defensive Back Memphis State 178 Philadelphia Eagles Don Swafford Offensive Tackle Florida 179 New York Jets Emmett King Running Back Houston 180 Green Bay Packers Henry Monroe Defensive Back Mississippi State 181 Minnesota Vikings Bob Winkel Defensive Tackle Kentucky 182 Washington Redskins Rich Milot Linebacker Penn State 183 Cleveland Browns Cody Risien Offensive Tackle Texas A&M 184 Green Bay Packers Rich Wingo Linebacker Alabama 185 Philadelphia Eagles Curtis Bunche Defensive End Albany State 186 Atlanta Falcons Roger Westlund Offensive Tackle Washington 187 New York Jets Keith Brown Defensive Back Minnesota 188 Denver Broncos Luke Prestridge Punter Baylor 189 Miami Dolphins Uwe von Schamann Kicker Oklahoma 190 Los Angeles Rams Jeff Delaney Defensive Back Pittsburgh 191 Dallas Cowboys Greg Fitzpatrick Linebacker Youngstown State 192 Pittsburgh Steelers Bruce Kimball Offensive Guard Massachusetts
Round eight Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 193 Green Bay Packers Ron Cassidy Wide Receiver Utah State 194 Cincinnati Bengals Howie Kurnick Linebacker Cincinnati 195 Kansas City Chiefs Mike Williams Running Back New Mexico 196 Philadelphia Eagles Chuck Correal Center Penn State 197 Baltimore Colts Steve Heimkreiter Linebacker Notre Dame 198 New York Jets Marshall Harris Defensive Tackle Texas Christian 199 St. Louis Cardinals Larry Miller Linebacker Brigham Young 200 New York Giants D.K. Perry Defensive Back Southern Methodist 201 New York Giants Roy Simmons Offensive Guard Georgia Tech 202 New Orleans Saints Doug Panfil Offensive Guard Tulsa 203 Chicago Bears Rick Moss Defensive Back Purdue 204 Cleveland Browns Kent Perkov Defensive End San Diego State 205 New York Jets Willie Beamon Linebacker Boise State 206 Miami Dolphins Jeff Groth Wide Receiver Bowling Green 207 Baltimore Colts Nesby Glasgow Defensive Back Washington 208 Green Bay Packers Rick Partridge Punter Utah 209 Oakland Raiders Robert Hawkins Running Back Kentucky 210 San Diego Chargers Wilbert Haslip Running Back Hawaii 211 Philadelphia Eagles Max Runager Punter South Carolina 212 Atlanta Falcons Keith Miller Linebacker N.E. Oklahoma 213 Detroit Lions John Mohring Linebacker C.W. Post 214 Houston Oilers Carter Hartwig Defensive Back USC 215 Miami Dolphins Glenn Blackwood Defensive Back Texas 216 New England Patriots Randy Love Running Back Houston 217 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Gene Sanders Defensive Tackle Texas A&M 218 Kansas City Chiefs Robert Brewer Offensive Guard Temple 219 Dallas Cowboys Bruce Thornton Defensive Tackle Illinois 220 Pittsburgh Steelers Tom Graves Linebacker Michigan State
Round nine Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 221 San Francisco 49ers Steve Hamilton Defensive Tackle Missouri 222 Kansas City Chiefs James Folston Tight End Cameron 223 Cincinnati Bengals Scott Burk Defensive Back Oklahoma State 224 Baltimore Colts Russ Henderson Punter Virginia 225 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Henry Vereen Wide Receiver UNLV 226 Buffalo Bills Keven Baker Defensive End William Penn 227 New York Giants Tom Rusk Linebacker Iowa 228 St. Louis Cardinals Bob Rozier Defensive End California 229 Kansas City Chiefs Joe Robinson Offensive Tackle Ohio State 230 Chicago Bears Jerome Heavens Running Back Notre Dame 231 Detroit Lions Jeff Komlo Quarterback Delaware 232 New York Jets Gordy Sprattler Running Back North Dakota State 233 Washington Redskins Kris Haines Wide Receiver Notre Dame 234 Cleveland Browns Carl McGee Linebacker Duke 235 Green Bay Packers John Thompson Tight End Utah State 236 Minnesota Vikings Billy Diggs Wide Receiver Winston-Salem State 237 San Diego Chargers Alvin Garrett Wide Receiver Angelo State 238 Oakland Raiders Jim Rourke Offensive Tackle Boston College 239 Atlanta Falcons Dave Parkin Defensive Back Utah State 240 Seattle Seahawks Ezra Tate Running Back Mississippi State 241 Cleveland Browns Curtis Weathers Tight End Mississippi 242 Denver Broncos Charlie Taylor Wide Receiver Rice 243 Houston Oilers Richard Ellender Wide Receiver McNeese State 244 Miami Dolphins Jeff Weston Defensive Tackle Notre Dame 245 New England Patriots John Spagnola Tight End Yale 246 Los Angeles Rams Jeff Rutledge Quarterback Alabama 247 Dallas Cowboys Garry Cobb Linebacker USC 248 Pittsburgh Steelers Rick Kirk Defensive End Denison
Round ten Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 249 San Francisco 49ers Dwight Clark Wide Receiver Clemson 250 Cincinnati Bengals Nathan Poole Running Back Louisville 251 Kansas City Chiefs Mike DuPree Linebacker Florida 252 San Francisco 49ers Howard Ballage Defensive Back Colorado 253 Buffalo Bills Dave Marler Quarterback Mississippi State 254 Baltimore Colts Steve Stephens Tight End Oklahoma State 255 St. Louis Cardinals Jerry Holloway Tight End Western Illinois 256 New York Giants Dan Fowler Offensive Guard Kentucky 257 Chicago Bears Joe Restic Defensive Back Notre Dame 258 Miami Dolphins Jerome Stanton Defensive Back Michigan State 259 Oakland Raiders Ricky Smith Defensive Back Tulane 260 Kansas City Chiefs Gerald Jackson Defensive Back Mississippi State 261 Cleveland Browns John Smith Wide Receiver Tennessee State 262 New York Jets Steve Sybeldon Offensive Tackle North Dakota 263 New York Jets Ed McGlasson Center Youngstown State 264 Green Bay Packers Frank Lockett Wide Receiver Nebraska 265 San Diego Chargers Tony Petruccio Defensive Tackle Penn State 266 Atlanta Falcons Bruce Beekley Linebacker Oregon 267 Seattle Seahawks Robert Hardy Defensive Tackle Jackson State 268 Kansas City Chiefs Larry Willis Wide Receiver Alcorn State 269 San Diego Chargers Al Green Defensive Back LSU 270 New England Patriots Martin Cox Wide Receiver Vanderbilt 271 New England Patriots Allan Clark Running Back Northern Arizona 272 Miami Dolphins Mike Kozlowski Running Back Colorado 273 Los Angeles Rams Grady Ebensberger Defensive Tackle Houston 274 Dallas Cowboys Mike Calhoun Defensive Tackle Notre Dame 275 Pittsburgh Steelers Tod Thompson Tight End Brigham Young
Round eleven Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 276 San Francisco 49ers Billy McBride Defensive Back Tennessee State 277 Kansas City Chiefs Stan Rome Wide Receiver Clemson 278 Cincinnati Bengals Ken Bungarda Defensive End Missouri 279 Buffalo Bills Paul Lawler Defensive Back Colgate 280 Baltimore Colts John Priestner Linebacker Western Ontario 281 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Bob Rippentrop Tight End Fresno State 282 New York Giants Mike Mince Defensive Back Fresno State 283 St. Louis Cardinals Nate Henderson Offensive Tackle Florida State 284 New York Giants Ken Johnson Running Back Miami (FL) 285 New Orleans Saints David Hall Wide Receiver Missouri-Rolla 286 Chicago Bears Bob Wright Offensive Tackle Cincinnati 287 Cleveland Browns Randy Poeschl Defensive End Nebraska 288 New York Jets Danny Sanders Quarterback Carson-Newman 289 Washington Redskins Monte Coleman Linebacker Central Arkansas 290 Green Bay Packers Mark Thorson Defensive Back Ottawa (KS) 291 Minnesota Vikings Brian Nelson Wide Receiver Texas Tech 292 Atlanta Falcons Bill Leer Center Colorado State 293 Seattle Seahawks Jim Hinesly Offensive Guard Michigan State 294 Oakland Raiders Bruce Davis Offensive Tackle UCLA 295 San Diego Chargers Dave Rader Quarterback Tulsa 296 Philadelphia Eagles Al Chesley Linebacker Pittsburgh 297 Denver Broncos Zach Dixon Running Back Temple 298 Houston Oilers Mike Taylor Offensive Tackle Georgia Tech 299 Miami Dolphins Mike Blanton Defensive End Georgia Tech 300 Washington Redskins Tony Hall Wide Receiver Knoxville 301 Los Angeles Rams Jesse Deremus Defensive Tackle Tennessee State 302 Detroit Lions Eddie Cole Linebacker Mississippi 303 Pittsburgh Steelers Charlie Moore Center Wichita State
Round twelve Pick # NFL Team Player Position College 304 Cincinnati Bengals Jim Browner Defensive Back Notre Dame 305 Kansas City Chiefs Michael Forrest Running Back Arkansas 306 Baltimore Colts Charlie Green Wide Receiver Kansas State 307 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Dave Logan Defensive Tackle Pittsburgh 308 Buffalo Bills Mike Harris Running Back Arizona State 309 St. Louis Cardinals Rick McBride Linebacker Georgia 310 New York Giants Tim Gillespie Offensive Guard North Carolina State 311 New Orleans Saints Kelsey Finch Running Back Tennessee 312 Chicago Bears Dave Becker Defensive Back Iowa 313 Detroit Lions Bob Forster Center Brown 314 New York Jets Paul Darby Wide Receiver Southwest Texas State 315 Cleveland Browns Dewitt Methvin Center Tulane 316 Oakland Raiders Dirk Abernathy Defensive Back Bowling Green 317 Minnesota Vikings David Stephens Linebacker Kentucky 318 Green Bay Packers Bill Moats Punter South Dakota 319 Seattle Seahawks Jeff Moore Running Back Jackson State 320 Oakland Raiders Reggie Kinlaw Middle Guard Oklahoma 321 San Diego Chargers Frank Duncan Defensive Back San Francisco State 322 Pittsburgh Steelers Ed Smith Linebacker Vanderbilt 323 Atlanta Falcons Stuard Walker Linebacker Colorado 324 Houston Oilers Wayne Wilson Running Back Shepherd College 325 Denver Broncos Dave Jacobs Kicker Syracuse 326 Detroit Lions Brian Sweeney Wide Receiver Texas A&I 327 Miami Dolphins Larry Fortnet Quarterback Miami (OH) 328 Los Angeles Rams Drew Hill Wide Receiver Georgia Tech 329 Dallas Cowboys Quentin Lowry Linebacker Youngstown State 330 [5] Pittsburgh Steelers Mike Almond Wide Receiver Northwest Louisiana
= Pro Bowler [3] = Hall of Famer
Hall of Famers Kellen Winslow , tight end from Missouri taken 1st round 13th overall by the San Diego Chargers.Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 1995.[6] Joe Montana , quarterback from Notre Dame taken 3rd round 82nd overall by the San Francisco 49ers.Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2000.[7] Dan Hampton , defensive tackle from Arkansas taken 1st round 4th overall by the Chicago Bears.Inducted: Professional Football Hall of Fame class of 2002.[7] Bill Cowher , linebacker from NC State, undrafted and signed by the Philadelphia Eagles.Inducted: For his Coaching achievements Professional Football Hall of Fame Class of 2020. Notable undrafted players References ^ "NFL Draft Locations" . FootballGeography.com . October 2, 2014. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2014 .^ Salomone, Dan (October 2, 2014). "NFL Draft headed to Chicago in 2015" . Giants.com . New York Giants . Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015 . ^ a b c Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career. ^ "Steelers Facts & Info" . SteelerTribute.com. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 30, 2009. Retrieved March 25, 2010 .^ This last selection is commonly referred to as Mr. Irrelevant . ^ List of 1990s Hall of Fame Inductee's at profootballhof.com "Pro Football Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on July 31, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2008 . ^ a b List of 2000s Hall of Fame Inductee's at profootballhof.com "Pro Football Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on July 31, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2008 . External links 