Three Longhorns were selected in the 2020 NFL Draft, with Brandon Jones going to Miami, Devin Duvernay getting picked by Baltimore, and Collin Johnson heading to Jacksonville. All three were selected in the third round or later, extending the five-year streak of no Texas players in the first round.
Bleacher Report has released a mock draft for the 2021 NFL Draft and predicts the streak will come to an end next year. In fact, they even predict two Longhorn players will be selected in the first round, something that has not happened since 2007.
Caden Sterns is the first predicted player off the board from Austin, as Bleacher Reports says he will go 16th overall to the Cleveland Browns. In the 2020 NFL Draft, Cleveland drafted LSU safety Grant Delpit in the second round. With opposing safety Karl Joseph’s contract set to expire after the 2020 season, the Browns could be in need of a new partner to Delpit.
No safety was selected in the first round during this year’s draft. Alabama’s Xavier McKinney was the first selected in the second round by the New York Giants.
Playing great during his freshman season, Sterns spent some of his sophomore year injured. When he was on the field, he wasn’t his normal self. To keep his first-round draft status, Sterns must return to the form he was in during his first year in Austin. Expected to be a key contributor during the 2020 season for Texas, he could even crawl up the board a few more spots with solid production.
To end the first round, Bleacher Report thinks the Baltimore Ravens will take a new offensive lineman for MVP Lamar Jackson. Samuel Cosmi could have declared for the draft this season, but elected to come back for his redshirt junior year instead.
Selected to second-team All-Big 12 last season, Cosmi is one of the best offensive lineman coming back next season. Playing left tackle for Sam Ehlinger, his athletic ability and quickness are what make him so special. He even was able to display it by scoring a touchdown against West Virginia last season.
BIG MAN TOUCHDOWN! Sam Cosmi in for six #HookEm 🤘 pic.twitter.com/CT4g5MmmPt
— CJ Vogel (@cjvogel3) October 5, 2019
If taken, he would be just the second offensive lineman from Texas to be drafted. Connor Williams went in the second round to the Dallas Cowboys in 2018. It has been since 2002 since the Longhorns have produced a first-round offensive lineman when Mike Williams went fourth overall to the Buffalo Bills.
With another solid season protecting Ehlinger’s blindside, Cosmi could rise up draft boards. In what is projected to be another offensive tackle heavy first round, the competition will be stiff atop the board. If Cosmi can have a first-team All-Big 12 type season for Texas, his projections will be looking towards the top 15 picks.
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