1998 NFL Draft


The 1998 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 April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
Before the draft, there was much debate in the media on if the Indianapolis Colts would select Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf, both of whom were considered excellent prospects and future franchise quarterbacks, with the first overall pick. Leaf was considered to have more upside and a stronger throwing arm, while Manning was considered a prospect who was NFL ready and more mature.
On the day of the draft, the Colts selected Manning due to Leaf's disdain for Indianapolis. Manning went on to be a five-time Most Valuable Player award winner, the most of any player in NFL history, and a two-time Super Bowl champion, whereas Leaf, who was selected second overall by the San Diego Chargers, was out of the NFL by 2002, and is considered one of the biggest draft busts in NFL history.
Until their retirements following the 2015 season, the last remaining active players from the 1998 draft were quarterback Peyton Manning and cornerback Charles Woodson. Both would go on to win Super Bowls in their careers; Manning in 2006 and 2015 with the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos, and Woodson in 2010 with the Green Bay Packers.

Player selections

Supplemental draft

A supplemental draft was held in the summer of 1998. For each player selected in the supplemental draft, the team forfeits its pick in that round in the draft of the following season. The Green Bay Packers and San Diego Chargers both selected players in the 2nd round.

Notable undrafted players

Hall of Famers

As of 2018, Moss is the only player from the 1998 NFL Draft to have been inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame. Peyton Manning and Charles Woodson are considered likely future Hall of Famers. They will be eligible for the first time in 2021.

Trades

In the explanations below, ' denotes trades that took place during the 1994 Draft, while ' indicates trades completed pre-draft.
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