The NFL will log-on to its virtual draft tonight at 8 p.m., with several former Tennessee players hoping to hear their names called over the three-day event. Here’s a rundown on the latest projections on UT’s six draft hopefuls.
OLB Darrell Taylor
No. 53 overall, Danny Kelly (The Ringer)
No. 63 overall, Pro Football Focus
No. 67 overall, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 70 overall, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 78 overall, CBS
No. 90 overall, Daniel Jeremiah (NFL Network)
No. 92 overall, Dan Kadar (SB Nation)
No. 112 overall, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 145 overall, The Draft Network
No. 185 overall, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
As I noted on the board Wednesday, this is a pretty wild variance for Tennessee’s top draft-eligible prospect. Most mocks have Taylor as a late second, early third round pick. NFL.com’s Peter Schrager, who isn’t a draft guru but is very plugged into the league, did slot Taylor at the end of the first round to the Packers, which would be pretty crazy, IMO. Still, I’m in agreement, as I noted in the video with Hubbs, that Taylor could go higher than expected because this is a weaker draft for edge rushers + the fact it became known he played much of his senior season with an injury. He still has some question marks (mainly motor and consistency), but the upside is obvious. I just don’t see an edge rusher (a need for all NFL teams) who finished among the SEC leaders in sacks last two years and has an excellent skill-set/frame to build upon falling all the way to the sixth or possibly seventh round (i.e., Kiper and TDN predictions).
PREDICTION: Round 2-3
WR Jauan Jennings
No. 70 overall, Pro Football Focus
No. 121 overall, CBS
No. 131 overall, The Draft Network
No. 164 overall (No. 27 WR), Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 175 overall (No. 30 WR), Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
No. 278 overall (No. 42 WR), Todd McShay (ESPN)
Also, No. 31 WR, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
Jennings did not make Jeremiah’s final Top 150 at NFL.com. I don’t know if Jennings did something to offend McShay, because he got an undraftable grade and was slotted after teammate Marquez Callaway. That’s wild. Jennings’ lack of speed hurts his upside, as does his injury history. But the tape doesn’t line here, Jennings stands to be a productive, big slot wideout if he can stay healthy. It’s a deep wideout class, so he’s unlikely to hear his name called until midway through Day 3, but a team is going to get steal with a unique playmaker like Jennings, IMO. Notably, Sporting News and PFF both had Jennings getting drafted in Round 3, easily the highest of any mocks I saw.
PREDICTION: Round 6
WR Marquez Callaway
No. 209 overall (No. 34 WR), Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 260 overall, CBS
No. 291 overall (No. 49 WR), Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
Also, Callaway is the No. 45 WR prospect according to Dane Brugler of The Athletic and the No. 64 wideout per Matt Miller at Bleacher Report.
While McShay is the outlier here again, it would be a stunner if Callaway gets draft ahead of Jennings — or at all, frankly. Callaway has intriguing traits but his lack of development over the last four years remains a concern. He’ll get scooped up as a PFA because he can run and has made plays in the SEC but I don’t see him getting his named called this weekend.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
S Nigel Warrior
No. 284 overall (No. 23 S), Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 356 overall, CBS
Warrior did not make Kiper’s final Top 300 or Top 30 safeties. He also wasn’t in Miller’s final rankings of 44 draft-eligible safeties.
The Athletic is the highest on Warrior’s potential, listing the former blue-chip recruit as the No. 27 safety and saying, “Warrior takes a moment to sort through the action and needs to be a better finisher, but his play speed, aggressive nature and improved consistency are promising and should allow him to compete for a nickel role.” Although Jeremy Pruitt disagrees a bit, I think a lack of a Pro Day really hurt Warrior.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
ILB Daniel Bituli
No. 17 ILB, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 24 ILB, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
No. 30 ILB, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 38 ILB, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
Bituli was also the No. 313 overall prospect per CBS.
Here, McShay is the most bullish on Bituli, although he doesn’t crack his final Top 300 prospects. Obviously, the production is there for Tennessee’s leading tackler the last three seasons. The consensus among draft gurus is Bituli lacks explosiveness and has average anticipation. Bituli is a great locker room presence though and should help on special teams, so I imagine someone takes a chance on him for training camp.
PREDICTION: Free Agent
TE Dominick Wood-Anderson
No. 17 TE, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 20 TE, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 22 TE, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 23 TE, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
McShay has Wood-Anderson cracking his final rankings, checking in at No. 259 overall. Despite a lack of production, there’s a possibility DWA actually gets selected in the final round due to a thin tight end crop this year. The Athletic labeled him a coach’s project with some physical talent, and that’s a pretty fair assessment. Ultimately, I don’t think DWA gets picked but he’ll find a team quickly on the open market.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
OLB Darrell Taylor
No. 53 overall, Danny Kelly (The Ringer)
No. 63 overall, Pro Football Focus
No. 67 overall, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 70 overall, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 78 overall, CBS
No. 90 overall, Daniel Jeremiah (NFL Network)
No. 92 overall, Dan Kadar (SB Nation)
No. 112 overall, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 145 overall, The Draft Network
No. 185 overall, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
As I noted on the board Wednesday, this is a pretty wild variance for Tennessee’s top draft-eligible prospect. Most mocks have Taylor as a late second, early third round pick. NFL.com’s Peter Schrager, who isn’t a draft guru but is very plugged into the league, did slot Taylor at the end of the first round to the Packers, which would be pretty crazy, IMO. Still, I’m in agreement, as I noted in the video with Hubbs, that Taylor could go higher than expected because this is a weaker draft for edge rushers + the fact it became known he played much of his senior season with an injury. He still has some question marks (mainly motor and consistency), but the upside is obvious. I just don’t see an edge rusher (a need for all NFL teams) who finished among the SEC leaders in sacks last two years and has an excellent skill-set/frame to build upon falling all the way to the sixth or possibly seventh round (i.e., Kiper and TDN predictions).
PREDICTION: Round 2-3
WR Jauan Jennings
No. 70 overall, Pro Football Focus
No. 121 overall, CBS
No. 131 overall, The Draft Network
No. 164 overall (No. 27 WR), Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 175 overall (No. 30 WR), Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
No. 278 overall (No. 42 WR), Todd McShay (ESPN)
Also, No. 31 WR, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
Jennings did not make Jeremiah’s final Top 150 at NFL.com. I don’t know if Jennings did something to offend McShay, because he got an undraftable grade and was slotted after teammate Marquez Callaway. That’s wild. Jennings’ lack of speed hurts his upside, as does his injury history. But the tape doesn’t line here, Jennings stands to be a productive, big slot wideout if he can stay healthy. It’s a deep wideout class, so he’s unlikely to hear his name called until midway through Day 3, but a team is going to get steal with a unique playmaker like Jennings, IMO. Notably, Sporting News and PFF both had Jennings getting drafted in Round 3, easily the highest of any mocks I saw.
PREDICTION: Round 6
WR Marquez Callaway
No. 209 overall (No. 34 WR), Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 260 overall, CBS
No. 291 overall (No. 49 WR), Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
Also, Callaway is the No. 45 WR prospect according to Dane Brugler of The Athletic and the No. 64 wideout per Matt Miller at Bleacher Report.
While McShay is the outlier here again, it would be a stunner if Callaway gets draft ahead of Jennings — or at all, frankly. Callaway has intriguing traits but his lack of development over the last four years remains a concern. He’ll get scooped up as a PFA because he can run and has made plays in the SEC but I don’t see him getting his named called this weekend.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
S Nigel Warrior
No. 284 overall (No. 23 S), Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 356 overall, CBS
Warrior did not make Kiper’s final Top 300 or Top 30 safeties. He also wasn’t in Miller’s final rankings of 44 draft-eligible safeties.
The Athletic is the highest on Warrior’s potential, listing the former blue-chip recruit as the No. 27 safety and saying, “Warrior takes a moment to sort through the action and needs to be a better finisher, but his play speed, aggressive nature and improved consistency are promising and should allow him to compete for a nickel role.” Although Jeremy Pruitt disagrees a bit, I think a lack of a Pro Day really hurt Warrior.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
ILB Daniel Bituli
No. 17 ILB, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 24 ILB, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
No. 30 ILB, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 38 ILB, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
Bituli was also the No. 313 overall prospect per CBS.
Here, McShay is the most bullish on Bituli, although he doesn’t crack his final Top 300 prospects. Obviously, the production is there for Tennessee’s leading tackler the last three seasons. The consensus among draft gurus is Bituli lacks explosiveness and has average anticipation. Bituli is a great locker room presence though and should help on special teams, so I imagine someone takes a chance on him for training camp.
PREDICTION: Free Agent
TE Dominick Wood-Anderson
No. 17 TE, Todd McShay (ESPN)
No. 20 TE, Matt Miller (Bleacher Report)
No. 22 TE, Dane Brugler (The Athletic)
No. 23 TE, Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN)
McShay has Wood-Anderson cracking his final rankings, checking in at No. 259 overall. Despite a lack of production, there’s a possibility DWA actually gets selected in the final round due to a thin tight end crop this year. The Athletic labeled him a coach’s project with some physical talent, and that’s a pretty fair assessment. Ultimately, I don’t think DWA gets picked but he’ll find a team quickly on the open market.
PREDICTION: Priority Free Agent
