April 30, 2017
The Auburn football program had four players take during the three-day NFL Draft, April 27-29, including defensive linemen Montravius Adams and Carl Lawson, and defensive backs Johnathan Ford and Joshua Holsey.
Adams was the first Auburn players drafted being taken in the third round and 93rd overall by the Green Bay Packers. The Vienna, Ga., native and December 2016 graduate was a first team All-SEC pick as a senior and finished his career with 51 tackles, 21.0 tackles for loss and 11.0 quarterback sacks. Adams is the first Tiger drafted by the Packers since Patrick Lee in 2008 and is the highest drafted AU defensive lineman since Corey Lemonier was taken 88th overall in 2013.
Lawson was the 116th overall pick when the Cincinnati Bengals took the Alpharetta, Ga., native in the third round. A first team All-American and All-SEC honoree as a junior, Lawson had 9.0 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss in 2016. He finished his career with 67 tackles, including 14.0 sacks and 24.0 tackles for loss in 33 games played. He became the fourth AU player in the last 11 years drafted by the Bengals organization.
A native of Big Cove, Ala., Ford was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round. He was the first Tiger player selected by the Cardinals since Karlos Dansby in 2004. A December 2016 graduate and All-SEC third team pick as a senior, Ford finished his Auburn career with 275 tackles, five interceptions and 16 pass defended. His 275 tackles are the third most by an Auburn player since 2004.
Selected by the Washington Redskins in the seventh round, Holsey became the Tigers first draft pick by the Redskins since Carlos Rogers and Jason Campbell in 2005. The Fairburn, Ga., native recorded 118 career tackles with four interceptions and 23 passes defended in 44 games. A third team All-SEC pick as a senior, Holsey graduated in May 2016 and was an SEC Academic Honor Roll recipient.
It marked the first time Auburn had four defensive players selected in the same draft since 2008 when Quentin Groves, Patrick Lee, Pat Sims and Jonathan Wilhite were taken. It is also the 10th time in the last 20 years that Auburn has had four or more players selected.