KANSAS CITY, Mo. — NFL teams had their eyes on players from major conference schools over the first 31 picks of the 2023 NFL draft.
Thursday night marked the first time in the 21st century that no player from outside the traditional classification of a power conference was selected in the first round when the Chiefs capped off the night by taking Kansas City native and Kansas State DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah to a raucous ovation from the thousands of Chiefs fans in attendance.
Before this season, at least one player from a school outside of the ACC, the former Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC and Notre Dame was picked in the first round every year since 2000.