The 1971 NFL draft was held January 28–29, 1971, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York. The Boston Patriots, who did not officially change their name to New England Patriots until after the draft, used the first overall pick to select quarterback Jim Plunkett, the Heisman Trophy winner. It was the first draft where the first three selections were quarterbacks (Plunkett, Archie Manning, and Dan Pastorini). During round 17, after Falcons coach Norm Van Brocklin had yelled to his staff "Do we want the roughest, toughest s.o.b. in the draft?!", the team drafted the then-64-year-old actor John Wayne, though saying he was from "Fort Apache State" (Wayne actually played football at USC); NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle rejected the selection.

Player selections

Round one-eight

Round nine

Round ten

Round eleven

Round twelve

Round thirteen

Round fourteen

Round fifteen

Round sixteen

Round seventeen

Notable undrafted players

Hall of Famers