(NEXSTAR) — The NFL Draft has been held annually for the past 90 years, dating all the way back to the first draft in 1936. At the time, the draft was not the major fan spectacle we see on TV today; it was held in a hotel in Philadelphia where teams met and drafted from a pool of 90 players determined by newspaper reports and players that members of a team’s front office knew from local colleges.

Since then, the draft has become a national event with sports fans watching in anticipation as NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell walks across a concert-sized stage in front of millions of fans (some in-person, most watching on TV) to announce each pick.

Teams also now have vastly superior technology and use analytics, film, and much more to help them determine which player they want to pick.

With all these changes, one very small thing has remained the same over these 90 years, and it’s arguably the most important thing in the entire draft: the draft card.

This seemingly insignificant piece of paper has determined which player is selected with each pick of the NFL Draft since its inception.

A closeup of a Dallas Cowboys draft card indicates Roy Williams as a 1st round selection at the 2002 draft in New York on April 20, 2002. (Chuck Solomon/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

While team executives don’t attend the draft in person anymore, representatives of each team are given a table at the draft venue where they stay in contact with executives who are stationed at their team’s headquarters speaking with their top scouts and coaches about which player they would like to select in the draft, according to the NFL.

Once the team decides on the player they would like to select, the team executive calls the representative at the draft venue, who then fills out a draft card with information such as the player’s name, position and school, as well as the pick number and any other relevant information, such as if the pick was traded to them from another team.

Teams have a set amount of time, depending on the round, to make their selection and fill out their draft card.

A draft card with the name of Dee Milliner of the Alabama Crimson Tide announces that Milliner was the #9 overall pick by the New York Jets in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall on April 25, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

A team representative then hands the card to a runner, who makes the pick official and resets the clock for the next pick.

The runner then radios in the selection to the NFL, who shares the news to other teams, Commissioner Goodell, and any broadcast partners who are airing the draft.

If a team fails to turn in their draft card before the timer is up, the team that is next to pick can then select a player if they get the draft card in before the team whose turn just ended. According to ESPN, this occurred back in 2003 when the Vikings tried to make a trade and did not see that they had run out of time on their pick. Before they realized what was happening, both the Jaguars and Panthers made picks before the Vikings finally drafted a player.

The NFL Draft is set to kick off at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday with Round 1, followed by Rounds 2-3 and Rounds 4-7 beginning at 7 p.m. ET on Friday and 12 p.m. ET on Saturday.