Undrafted
Encyclopedia
An undrafted sportsperson or undrafted free agent is specific type of sportsperson who plays, or attempts to play, in a professional sports league
without first being selected in a draft
.
In most professional sports by sequentially aligning each team from worst to best (sometimes with a draft lottery
factor to avoid having teams intentionally lose their last games to gain higher draft position) and allowing said teams to claim rights to the top players entering the league that year. Players that pass through an entire draft (usually several rounds) without being selected by any of the league's teams become unrestricted free agents
, and these players are sometimes identified simply as an "undrafted free agent" and are free to sign with any team they choose. The term is most common in the National Football League
, where rookies enter directly into the NFL and do not play in a minor league
system. In the National Hockey League
, where players are drafted out of junior ice hockey
while still in their teen years and will often play several more years in the juniors or in minor league hockey, the league allows anyone over the age of 24 years who seeks to play pro hockey for the first time to bypass the draft and join any team willing to sign them as an undrafted free agent; this is generally very rare.
Sports league
League is a term commonly used to describe a group of sports teams or individual athletes that compete against each other in a specific sport. At its simplest, it may be a local group of amateur athletes who form teams among themselves and compete on weekends; at its most complex, it can be an...
without first being selected in a draft
Draft (sports)
A draft is a process used in the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Russia and the Philippines to allocate certain players to sports teams. In a draft, teams take turns selecting from a pool of eligible players...
.
In most professional sports by sequentially aligning each team from worst to best (sometimes with a draft lottery
Draft lottery
Draft lottery could refer to:* NBA Draft Lottery, a lottery determining the order of the teams for the first fourteen selections in the NBA Draft* Sports draft...
factor to avoid having teams intentionally lose their last games to gain higher draft position) and allowing said teams to claim rights to the top players entering the league that year. Players that pass through an entire draft (usually several rounds) without being selected by any of the league's teams become unrestricted free agents
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
, and these players are sometimes identified simply as an "undrafted free agent" and are free to sign with any team they choose. The term is most common in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, where rookies enter directly into the NFL and do not play in a minor league
Minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in...
system. In the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
, where players are drafted out of junior ice hockey
Junior ice hockey
Junior hockey is a catch-all term used to describe various levels of ice hockey competition for players generally between 16 and 20 years of age...
while still in their teen years and will often play several more years in the juniors or in minor league hockey, the league allows anyone over the age of 24 years who seeks to play pro hockey for the first time to bypass the draft and join any team willing to sign them as an undrafted free agent; this is generally very rare.