A surprising ten players from Oregon were picked in the 2025 NFL Draft last month, the most over the last 10 drafts. It was thrilling for Duck fans to see two players were picked in the first round, defensive tackle Derrick Harmon to the Pittsburgh Steelers at No. 21, and offensive tackle Josh Conley Jr. to the Washington Commanders at No. 29. Another player was drafted in the second round, three more in the third round, two in the fifth round, another in the sixth round, and the last Duck of the ten went in the last round of the draft.
Over the past few seasons, Oregon players have become more attractive to NFL teams as more players from the university have been getting drafted to the pros.
Think about some of the previous drafts. In 2016, two Oregon players were picked in the draft, defensive end DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers at pick No. 7, and linebacker Joe Walker to the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round. In 2017, no players were picked in the draft. In 2018, only two Oregon players were picked, while in 2022, one player was picked, defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux to the New York Giants with the No. 5 pick in the draft.
More Oregon Players Being Picked in the Draft
Evident by the 10 players picked in this year’s draft, fortunes have improved for Oregon players over the last five years. Over the last five drafts, including this year, five or more players were drafted every year except in 2022 when Thibodeaux was the only Duck player picked in the entire draft. Five players were picked in 2021, six players were picked in 2023, eight players were picked in 2024, and 10 were picked in this year’s draft. A lot of the best sports betting apps and sites take bets on the NFL draft.
The only way to stop a sack from Kayvon Thibodeaux was to tackle him! (Photo by Scott Kelley)
Recent history is an indication that you should at least consider any bets for Oregon players to be drafted. A lot of sportsbooks take bets on what round a player will be drafted and other betting markets for the draft. Oregon players are looking like a good bet right now. Over the five drafts from 2016 to 2020, a total of 12 players were picked in five years. And over that span, no more than four players were picked in the same draft. Four players were picked in the 2019 and 2020 drafts. The 2020 Oregon draft class was headlined by the current Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.
Oregon Ducks in the First Round
Herbert is also the second-highest drafted Oregon player over the last 10 drafts at number six. Thibodeaux, the fifth pick, was the highest drafted player over that time. The lowest drafted player was center Alex Forsyth with the 40th pick in the seventh round of the 2023 draft. Despite not having a ton of players drafted every year, a lot of Oregon players have been picked in the first round, such as the aforementioned players (Harmon and Conerly) who were picked in the first round this year. The other first round picks over the last 10 drafts were quarterback Bo Nix, cornerback Christian Gonzalez, Thibodeaux, Herbert, offensive tackle Penei Sewell, and Buckner.
Most of Oregon’s players were drafted in the first, fourth, or fifth round over the last 10 years. More Oregon players were drafted in the first round than any other round during that time. Eight players were picked in the first round since the 2016 draft. The fourth and fifth rounds were the other two rounds that had the most Oregon players picked, seven in the fourth and seven in the fifth round. For a team that has had multiple years with two or fewer players picked recently, the Oregon Ducks have found a way to produce first-round talent on a consistent basis.
CJ Verdell knew he could always get a great block on the edge from Penei Sewell. (Photo by Tom Corno)
This draft was the strongest draft for Oregon over the last 10 years, as more players were picked in the first round than in any other year. This year was the only time two players were picked in the first round in the last decade. And this year at least one Oregon player was picked in every round except one, the fourth round. Oregon players weren’t picked in at least two rounds in every other draft since 2016.
Will at least one player be picked in every round next year?
OregonReigns
Lakeside, Oregon
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