NFL teams have been informed that the league will not conduct a supplemental draft this summer, per the Athletic’s Dane Brugler. Traditionally held in the second week of July, no player has been selected in the supplemental draft since safety Jalen Thompson in 2019 with a fifth-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals. Conducted from 1977 to 2019, there have been some significant players to enter the NFL as supplemental draft choices:
2006: Cincinnati Bengals LB Ahmad Brooks
2011: Oakland Raiders QB/WR Terrelle Pryor
2011: Cleveland Browns WR Josh Gordon
The New Orleans Saints have taken advantage of the traditional NFL supplemental draft once before. In 1981, the Saints used a first-round choice on Illinois Fighting Illini quarterback Dave Wilson. As a result, New Orleans would forfeit their Round 1 selection in the 1982 draft. Wilson would play seven seasons with the Saints through 1988, missing the 1982 season with a knee injury. He appeared in 53 games, starting 31 of them, completing 53% of his passes while throwing for 6,987 yards with 36 touchdowns and 55 interceptions. He still ranks seventh on the Saints career passing yardage list.
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It’s worth noting that this does not include a special supplemental draft that the NFL held in 1984 for players from the CFL and more specifically, from the original USFL. That supplemental draft brought the Saints future stars linebacker Vaughan Johnson and kick returner Mel Gray. Linebacker Sam Mills, quarterbacks Bobby Hebert and John Fourcade, running back Buford Jordan, and offensive lineman Derek Kennard also arrived to New Orleans from the USFL as free agents after the original league folded.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL cancels 2025 supplemental draft: Which players were picked before?