1967 NFL expansion draft
The 1967 National Football League expansion draft was a National Football League (NFL) draft held on February 9, 1967 in which a new expansion team named the New Orleans Saints selected its first players.[1] On November 1, 1966 (All Saints Day), NFL owners awarded its 16th team franchise to the city of New Orleans, Louisiana.[2] The Saints selected 42 players in total from every team roster except for the Atlanta Falcons, who had begun play in the 1966 season. The expansion draft included future Hall of Famer running back Paul Hornung, who set an NFL record by scoring 176 points in only 12 games in 1960 for the Green Bay Packers, but did not play in Super Bowl I. Hornung never played a down for the Saints and retired in the preseason due to a neck injury.
Following the expansion draft, the Saints signed Hornung's backfield mate with the Packers, Jim Taylor to a 10-year, $400,000 contract. Taylor played just one season in his home state (Taylor was a native of Baton Rouge and was an All-American at LSU) and retired in September 1968.
Player selections[]
1967 NFL expansion draft — New Orleans Saints | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | Player | Position[3][4] | Experience[5] | College[3][5] | Notes | |
G | S | |||||
Baltimore Colts | Jackie Burkett | LB | 79 | 6 | Auburn | |
Baltimore Colts | Ted Davis | LB | 38 | 3 | Georgia Tech | |
Baltimore Colts | Steve Stonebreaker | LB | 60 | 5 | Detroit | |
Chicago Bears | Riley Mattson | OT | 68 | 5 | Oregon | Did not report.[6] |
Chicago Bears | Brian Schweda | DE | 14 | 1 | Kansas | |
Chicago Bears | Dave Whitsell * | CB | 119 | 9 | Indiana | |
Cleveland Browns | Jim Battle | DE | 6 | 1 | Southern | |
Cleveland Browns | John Morrow * | C | 125 | 10 | Michigan | |
Cleveland Browns | Walter Roberts | FL | 42 | 3 | San Jose State | |
Dallas Cowboys | Obert Logan | S | 28 | 2 | Trinity | |
Dallas Cowboys | Bill Sandeman | OT | 8 | 1 | Pacific | |
Dallas Cowboys | Larry Stephens | DT | 94 | 7 | Texas | |
Detroit Lions | Bill Cody | LB | 1 | 1 | Auburn | Injured reserve.[6] |
Detroit Lions | Bobby Smith | CB | 69 | 6 | UCLA | Also known as Bobby Lee Smith |
Detroit Lions | FL-SE | 9 | 1 | Tennessee State | ||
Green Bay Packers | Bill Curry * | C-LB | 28 | 2 | Georgia Tech | Traded along with three draft selections (one of which was Bubba Smith) to Baltimore Colts for Gary Cuozzo, Butch Allison and a 1967 17th-round pick on March 6, 1967. |
Green Bay Packers | Paul Hornung * † | HB | 104 | 9 | Notre Dame | |
Green Bay Packers | Phil Vandersea | FB-LB | 14 | 1 | Massachusetts | |
Los Angeles Rams | Steve Heckard | FL-SE | 25 | 2 | Davidson; USC | |
Los Angeles Rams | Earl Leggett | DT | 112 | 9 | Louisiana State | |
Los Angeles Rams | Joe Wendryhoski | C-E | 31 | 3 | Illinois | |
Minnesota Vikings | Tom Hall | FL-SE | 69 | 5 | Minnesota | |
Minnesota Vikings | George Rose | CB | 34 | 3 | Auburn | |
Minnesota Vikings | Mike Tilleman | DT | 12 | 1 | Montana | |
New York Giants | Jim Garcia | DE | 22 | 2 | Purdue | |
New York Giants | Bob Scholtz | OT | 81 | 7 | Notre Dame | Did not report.[6] |
New York Giants | Gary Wood | QB | 35 | 3 | Cornell | |
Philadelphia Eagles | Dave Cahill | DE | 14 | 1 | Northern Arizona | Traded to Los Angeles Rams for and an undisclosed draft choice on July 1, 1967.[7] |
Philadelphia Eagles | Ray Rissmiller | OT | 1 | 1 | Georgia | |
Philadelphia Eagles | Fred Whittingham | LB | 19 | 2 | Cal Poly | |
Pittsburgh Steelers | Charlie Bradshaw * | OT | 118 | 9 | Baylor | Traded to Detroit Lions for Bruce McLenna on March 9, 1967.[8] |
Pittsburgh Steelers | Jerry Simmons | SE | 17 | 2 | Bethune-Cookman | |
Pittsburgh Steelers | Bobby Smith * | HB | 36 | 3 | North Texas State | Also known as Bob Smith |
St. Louis Cardinals | Jimmy Heidel | S | 14 | 1 | Mississippi | |
St. Louis Cardinals | Ray Ogden | TE | 17 | 2 | Alabama | |
St. Louis Cardinals | Dave Simmons | LB | 20 | 2 | Georgia Tech | |
San Francisco 49ers | Billy Kilmer * | QB | 39 | 4 | UCLA | |
San Francisco 49ers | Elbert Kimbrough | S | 75 | 6 | Northwestern | |
San Francisco 49ers | Kent Kramer | TE | 14 | 1 | Minnesota | |
Washington Redskins | Tom Barrington | FB | 6 | 1 | Ohio State | |
Washington Redskins | Don Croftcheck | G | 26 | 2 | Indiana | Traded to Chicago Bears for Doug Atkins and Herman Lee on July 16, 1967. |
Washington Redskins | Jake Kupp * | G | 42 | 3 | Washington | |
Made roster * Made Pro Bowl during career † Pro Football Hall of Fame |
References[]
- ^ Howell, Brian. New Orleans Saints. Edina, Minnesota: ABDO Publishing Company, 2011.
- ^ "Team History: New Orleans Saints". Pro Football Hall of Fame website. Archived from the original on 31 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
- ^ a b "Saints by Position". New Orleans States-Item. New Orleans. February 11, 1967. p. 9.
- ^ "Veterans Picked by Saints". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans. February 11, 1967. sec. 2, p. 13.
- ^ a b "1967 New Orleans Saints Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
- ^ a b c New Orleans Saints 1967 Information Guide (scroll down to page 20). Retrieved August 2, 2020
- ^ "Saints Trade Cahill For Rams' Capshaw," United Press International (UPI), Sunday, July 2, 1967. Retrieved August 2, 2020
- ^ "Saints Trade For McLenna," The Associated Press (AP), Friday, March 10, 1967. Retrieved August 2, 2020
- National Football League expansion draft
- 1967 National Football League season
- New Orleans Saints lists