The 2025 NFL Draft's Mr. Irrelevant: Kobee Minor joins club of last selections
The final day of the NFL Draft includes a marathon of picks in Rounds 4-7, culminating with one of the league's quirkiest traditions: Mr. Irrelevant.
The infamous title is granted to each year's final draft pick. This year, the New England Patriots (which obtained pick No. 257 in a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs) selected Memphis defensive back Kobee Minor with the final pick.
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Minor recorded 37 tackles, 28 solo, with the Tigers in 2024. He played one season in Memphis after stints at Indiana and Texas Tech.
San Francisco's 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy reignited interest in the Mr. Irrelevant moniker when he went from pick No. 262 in the 2022 draft to a Pro Bowl selection and Super Bowl berth in 2023. Purdy is the only Mr. Irrelevant quarterback in the common draft era (since 1967) to start and win a playoff game. He is one of three Mr. Irrelevants to make a Super Bowl appearance, joined by linebacker Marty Moore (drafted by the New England Patriots in 1994, Super Bowl XXXVI champion) and kicker Ryan Succop (drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2009, Super Bowl LV champion with Tampa Bay).
According to a USA Today analysis, more than half of players picked last in the Super Bowl era never played an NFL snap, and less than a fifth (11) have played in 25 or more games.
The lore of Mr. Irrelevant dates to 1976, when former receiver Paul Salata founded 'Irrelevant Week.' The tradition honored the draft's final pick with a week of festivities, including a trip to Disneyland, a golf tournament, a regatta, a roast and a ceremony awarding him the Lowsman Trophy, which mimics the Heisman Trophy but with a player fumbling the football.
Kelvin Kirk, selected 487th by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1976 draft (when the draft was 17 rounds), was the first recognized Mr. Irrelevant. The beloved title has since stuck, with some controversy.
The Los Angeles Rams and Steelers owned the final two picks, respectively, in 1979 but each passed on making their picks multiple times in pursuit of the final one. According to the league's rules, a team that passes doesn't forfeit its selection and can re-enter the draft. So the Rams would have been able to make the final pick if the Steelers opted to draft a player after Los Angeles' initial pass.
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Then-commissioner Pete Rozelle had to force the teams to pick, with the Steelers selecting last, and the incident led to the 'Salata Rule,' which prohibits teams from passing to get the final pick. Still, publicity surrounding Mr. Irrelevant has trickled into draft decisions, even as recently as last year.
As The Athletic previously reported, when the New York Jets traded Zach Wilson to the Denver Broncos in April 2024, Jets owner Woody Johnson instructed general manager Joe Douglas to include the draft's penultimate pick in the trade so the Jets could keep the Mr. Irrelevant selection. The Jets used pick No. 257 on former Alabama safety Jaylen Key, who didn't survive the final roster cutdown and signed a reserve/future contract with the Cincinnati Bengals in January.
Other notable Mr. Irrelevant selections include Bill Fischer (selected last in 1948 before returning to college, getting drafted in the first round by the Chicago Cardinals in 1949 and becoming the first Mr. Irrelevant to make a Pro Bowl), Tyrone McGriff (drafted in 1980 by the Steelers before earning a spot on the NFL All-Rookie team) and Chad Kelly (drafted to the Denver Broncos in 2017 and became the first Mr. Irrelevant quarterback to play a snap in a regular-season game).
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