Tag: Christian Gonzalez

Mock Draft Roundup: Where Christian Gonzalez, Noah Sewell, other Ducks are projected to go

It’s mock draft season, and there are far too many to keep track of. We did the hard work for you. Check out where the top Ducks are projected to land.

As we trudge along in the college football offseason and start to think about the prospects of spring football on the horizon, one of the more entertaining things to look at for fans is the upcoming NFL Draft.

In late April, hundreds of college players will get to realize their dreams and be selected by one of the 32 NFL teams, getting tabbed to play on Sundays.

For the Oregon Ducks, there are a number of players who will likely get drafted or sign undrafted free-agent contracts, headlined by cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who is expected to be selected in the first round. There are also guys like LB Noah Sewell, DE D.J. Johnson, and OL Alex Forsyth, among others, who are expected to hear their names called as well.

So where will these guys end up getting drafted? That’s not always a straightforward question to answer. In the world of NFL media nowadays, there are hundreds of mock drafts to sift through, all with varying degrees of predictions for how the draft will play out. Rather than leaving you to go through all of them to get a good idea of where your favorite Ducks are going to get drafted, we did the work for you.

Here is a mock draft roundup, showing where the top Oregon players are projected to land this spring:

Mock draft watch: Breaking down Mel Kiper’s first projection for the Lions

Mock draft watch: Breaking down Mel Kiper’s first projection for the Lions

The first mock draft projections from ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. are now public. Kiper has been one of the prominent faces and voices of the NFL draft media for decades, and his takes are always interesting.

This mock draft flows into a couple of defensive selections for the Detroit Lions with their first-round selections at No. 6 and No. 18.

Kiper has these five players off the board when the Lions go on the clock at No. 6 overall:

1. Bears – Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia

2. Texans – C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State

3. Cardinals – Will Anderson, EDGE, Alabama

4. Colts – Bryce Young, QB, Alabama

5. Seahawks – Will Levis, QB, Kentucky

At six, Kiper turns to Texas Tech EDGE Tyree Wilson. A long-armed, powerful player who led the Red Raiders with seven sacks in each of the last two seasons, Wilson brings a strong presence to the Lions defensive front. As Kiper notes,

Wilson, the top true defensive end in this class, would help both. He can use his burst at the snap to beat offensive tackles on passing downs or use his 6-foot-6 frame to hold up against the run. An edge-rushing duo of Wilson and Aidan Hutchinson would be formidable, with surprise rookie James Houston working in on obvious passing downs.

At No. 18, Oregon CB Christian Gonzalez gets the nod. It’s later than Gonzalez is typically projected, but that’s a positive development for the Lions. Like Wilson, Gonzalez has unusual size for his position but a very high athletic ceiling to go with some impressive on-field credentials at both Colorado and Oregon.

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2023 NFL draft: 69 prospects granted special eligibility

Here is the full list of 69 players, per Tom Pelissero at NFL Network.

The NFL has released a list of college prospects who have been granted special eligibility for the 2023 draft coming at the end of April.

The list has some of the top prospects in this draft class, including Bryce Young and Will Anderson Jr. from Alabama, Jalen Carter and Broderick Jones from repeat national champion Georgia, plus Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

Here is the full list of 69 players, per Tom Pelissero at NFL Network.

Nice.

In our latest seven-round mock draft for the Seahawks we picked Young at No. 5 overall plus two more of his teammates in later rounds.

More Seahawks 2023 mock drafts

CJ Stroud or bust

Trading down twice

Carter + Richardson

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Which storylines have dominated the Oregon Ducks’ offseason so far?

Sco-ing Long host Zachary Neel had Oregon reporters Jared Mack, Jarrid Denney on the podcast to draft off-season storylines for the Ducks.

It’s been a busy offseason for the Oregon Ducks by any stretch of the imagination. There have been coordinator changes, numerous recruiting flips, veteran passers returning, and transfer portal craziness that has allowed Dan Lanning to reshape the roster ahead of his second season in Eugene.

And that’s only to mention about half of what took place over the past two months in Eugene.

While it would be too time-consuming to list everything that has taken place between now and the start of the offseason on November 26, 2022, we wanted to take a second and go over some of the most important things that have taken place in Eugene.

In order to try and sift through the most important occurrences, I brought On3’s Jarrid Denney and 247Sports’ Jared Mack on the Sco-ing Long Podcast to draft the offseason. With five picks each, we chose our favorite storylines, most entertaining events, or most important developments going forward.

Check out the full episode here:

The Commanders land a different defender in the newest Draft Wire mock draft

The Commanders land a physical corner with their first-round pick in this mock draft.

It’s no secret the Washington Commanders need offensive line help in the 2023 NFL draft. But at pick No. 16, what if some of the top offensive linemen are off the board for the Commanders?

Luke Easterling of Draft Wire has the Commanders landing a talented cornerback at No. 16 in Devon Witherspoon from Illinois.

Not familiar with Witherspoon? The 6-foot-0, 180-pounder didn’t begin playing football until his junior year of high school, which slowed his recruitment. After initially committing to Hutchinson Community College, Witherspoon landed at Illinois days before camp started in 2019.

As a true freshman in only his third year of organized football, Witherspoon played in every game, making three starts. From there, he would start the next three seasons and become an All-Big-Ten selection in his final two seasons before being named a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award in 2022.

Witherspoon may have the highest ceiling of any cornerback in this draft. He is a physical player who excels in man coverage. That skill set would certainly be welcome on Washington’s defense in 2023 and beyond.

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Draft Wire sends Vikings Christian Gonzalez in latest 2023 NFL mock draft

The Vikings select another cornerback in the latest Draft Wire mock draft

Cornerbacks continue to be a hot-button position for the Minnesota Vikings in mock drafts. In the 52 mock drafts that we have collected, 23 of those have been cornerbacks and three have been who Luke Easterling of Draft Wire sent the Minnesota Vikings in his latest mock draft: Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

Arguably the smoothest cover corner in the class, Gonzalez has a great size and athleticism profile that will be incredibly attractive to NFL teams. Here is what I had to say about him in my scouting report.

“Gonzalez is an incredibly smooth cover corner. He understands how to move with receivers by mirroring, trailing and staying in phase. He has fluid hips to help him against all kinds of receivers. Press is where he is the most comfortable but Gonzalez is also good in zone.”

The versatility to be good in both man and zone will be a huge draw, as there aren’t a lot of defenses that are man-only.

Commanders land cornerback in Daniel Jeremiah’s first mock draft

Cornerback is a clear need for the Commanders.

The Washington Commanders roster is in good shape at several key positions heading into the offseason. But when you describe Washington’s weaknesses, quarterback always comes to mind.

Outside of quarterback, the Commanders badly need help on the offensive line. In addition, Washington needs to add another starting-caliber cornerback alongside Kendall Fuller and Benjamin St-Juste.

St-Juste had a breakout season in 2022 but missed five games. That was after missing eight games in his rookie season. Fuller had a terrific season after an up-and-down 2021. That’s why it’s important for the Commanders to add another cornerback for 2023. To protect against injury or decline.

NFL Network draft expert Daniel Jeremiah dropped his first mock draft of the year this week and sees one of the top corners landing in Washington at No. 16 overall.

Gonzalez (6-foot-2, 201 pounds) has an ideal blend of size, speed and fluidity. He struggled a little early in the season, but kept getting better throughout the year. Washington has a strong need at the position.

Gonzalez has all the physical tools and is an ascending player. His size makes him even more intriguing as St-Juste is 6-foot-3, which would give the Commanders two cornerbacks who are 6-foot-2 or taller with long arms and athleticism.
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Mock draft watch: Lions trade up with Packers in The Athletic’s latest projection

The Lions trade up with Packers to land a QB in The Athletic’s latest projection from Dane Brugler

Looking for a mock draft with an unusual wrinkle for the Detroit Lions? The Athletic’s Dane Brugler has one for you with his latest projections for the first round.

Brugler’s mock features several trades, including the Chicago Bears moving out of the No. 1 overall pick. The Lions get in on the trade action too, but not with their first selection.

That pick, No. 6 overall from the Rams, is devoted to cornerback Christian Gonzalez of Oregon. The gifted athlete offers the man coverage skills and ball production have cycled Gonzalez up the mock draft charts; he was routinely in the 15-25 overall range of most projections in the last month.

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Where things get funky for the Lions is their own pick, No. 18 overall. In this early projection, the Lions trade up with the division rival Green Bay Packers to go land a quarterback.

Brugler sends the Lions picks at No. 18 and No. 48 overall to Green Bay for No. 15. It’s a move done to land the Lions talented but inexperienced Florida QB Anthony Richardson,

In last year’s first round, the Lions made a major trade with a division foe to move up for a high-upside offensive star (Jameson Williams). They could do it again this year and invest in their future at the quarterback position.

Thanks to his size, athleticism and arm, Anthony Richardson is a total freak show with a high ceiling, but he’s still figuring out how to be a consistent passer. Jared Goff’s presence would let Detroit develop Richardson at his own pace.

Expect to see a lot of projections in the coming weeks with Gonzalez and Richardson each headed to Detroit — including some in which both become Lions like this one.

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2023 NFL draft: Vikings’ Mock Draft Roundup 2.0

The second 2023 NFL mock draft roundup includes a few new names

Mock draft season is upon us and that means our mock draft roundup is back!

What we do every week is track the mainstream outlets mock drafts and aggregate how many times a player gets selected. Last season, we tallied up 173 mock drafts and only 10 of them were on offense. This season could end up being much of the same.

We will track them and try to determine trends and patterns, along with giving my own analysis on how they could fit with the Minnesota Vikings

Mock Draft Roundup 1.0

Mock draft watch: Lions land high-end athletes on defense in the 33rd Team’s latest

Mock draft watch: Lions land high-end athletes on defense in the 33rd Team’s latest set of projections

Lions fans looking for an injection of size and speed on defense are going to like the latest mock draft compiled by a longtime NFL talent evaluator.

The 33rd Team came out with an interesting mock draft to start the playoffs. Led by former NFL scout T.J. McCreight, the first-round projection emphasizes freak athleticism on defense for Detroit.

With the No. 6 pick, the one acquired from the Rams, the Lions land perhaps the most athletic defensive tackle prospect in the draft class in Clemson DT Bryan Bresee. The 305-pounder has run the 40-yard dash in the 4.7-second range, benches 435 pounds and boasts a 30-inch vertical jump.

The Lions’ own pick tabs another incredible athlete in Oregon CB Christian Gonzalez. A 6-foot-2 and 201 pounds, the outside cover man has run a verified 4.32 40-yard dash. His sister is former Lions QB David Blough’s wife, Olympic hurdler Melissa Gonzalez.

The Lions have had one of the best offenses in the NFL this season, and they are plugging holes on the defense with this draft (added Bryan Bresee with their earlier pick). Gonzalez has all the tools, and he has improved throughout his career, making four interceptions in 2022.

It’s a high-end haul with two defenders possessing tremendous athletic ceilings who have already flashed legit NFL skills, too.

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