Kmet – Syndication Server

Brian Kelly Compares new Bears TE Kmet to some of the best

I also think it’s important to look at the Chicago Bears selection of Kmet independent of what they’ve done at the position in recent years. Spending bad money on Trey Burton, a bad draft pick on Adam Shaheen or more potential bad money on Jimmy Graham doesn’t mean just because he’s a draft pick of theirs that he’s going to flop like some seem to want to suggest.

Brian Kelly knows a thing or two about coaching and developing tight ends. Sure, we’re all aware of Notre Dame being seen nationally as “Tight End U” but Kelly has been doing it longer than just since he’s been in South Bend.

Travis Kelce starred for Kelly at Cincinnati before becoming one of, if not the best tight end in the NFL over the last few seasons. Kyle Rudolph, Durham Smythe and Tyler Eifert are just a few others have starred at the position under Kelly in recent years. Kelly met the media today to recap Notre Dame players and their NFL landing spots and sees Chicago Bears draft pick Cole Kmet on a collision course with some of the good ones.

“I’ve had Travis Kelce, Tyler Eifert, Kyle Rudolph, Durham Smythe — a number of tight ends that are doing exceedingly well in the NFL,” Kelly said Tuesday. “Cole Kmet will be in line with all of those guys.”

Kmet has a couple of knocks coming out of Notre Dame. Mine are mostly in regards to inconsistency in run blocking, maybe waiting for the ball to get to him instead of attacking a reception all the time and his production being based on a very small sample. That all said, I think his ceiling is plenty high by even NFL standards.

“They would not have drafted Cole Kmet if he was the 10th tight end,” Kelly said. “You don’t make those kinds of investments unless you know what you’re getting, and what they’re getting is an athletic tight end that is going to impact their offense immediately.”

I agree with Kelly in that assessment. Kmet is by no means a finished product but based off of what the Bears have at tight end he may also enter the 2020 season as the best all-around tight end on the roster as Jimmy Graham isn’t anywhere near the talent he was seven years ago and Adam Shaheen has been an epic bust.

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I like the pick of Kmet, I really do. I’m not as sold on instant impact for the newest Bears tight end in 2020 but I have trouble believing that if he stays healthy that the Bears and their fans won’t really come to like the pick a couple of years from now.

Recapping All Notre Dame NFL Draft Picks

Cole Kmet “stays home” during quarantine and lands with hometown Chicago Bears. Just how bad have things gone at tight end there that he’ll be counted on to fix?

This weekend saw six players from Notre Dame selected in the 2020 NFL Draft with another hand-full being signed to free agent deals. Who landed in the best places to find success and which of the later picks or free agent signings will have the best chance of making a roster?

In our podcast with myself and Jeff Feyerer we discuss the landing spot of every Notre Dame player this draft season.

Cole Kmet “stays home” during quarantine and lands with hometown Chicago Bears. Just how bad have things gone at tight end there that he’ll be counted on to fix?

Did Chase Claypool get selected by the best franchise in football to get drafted by if you’re a wide receiver?

How much did Julian Okwara’s injury effect him falling to the third round and how many stories were better this weekend than him getting to play pro ball with his brother in Detroit?

We also analyze the rest of the picks: Troy Pride, Jr., Khalid Kareem and Alohi Gilman before breaking down all of the undrafted free agents as well. Take a listen and on Apple Podcasts go ahead and hit subscribe. Hope you enjoy what you hear and we’ll be doing this a lot more in the near future.

(Any feedback we are happy to take on Twitter at @NickShepkowski and @JF_Fey)

NFL Draft: Where Do Notre Dame Players End Up?

e Dame did not have a player selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft but has plenty of players who will be picked the next two days. So where the former Fighting Irish players end up? Here are where four Notre Dame players may end up getting selected Friday night according a few of the most-respected in the business.

Notre Dame did not have a player selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft but has plenty of players who will be picked the next two days. So where the former Fighting Irish players end up? Here are where four Notre Dame players may end up getting selected Friday night according a few of the most-respected in the business.

Expert mock drafts used:

Dane Brugler, The Athletic
Joe Marino, The Draft Network
Matt Miller, Bleacher Report
Lance Zierlein, NFL.com

Chase Claypool – Wide Receiver:

62 to Green Bay by Miller
65 to Cincinnati by Zierlein
85 to Detroit by Brugler
91 to Las Vegas by Marino

Cole Kmet – Tight End:

37 to New England by Brugler and Zierlein
65 to Cincinnati by Miller
66 to Washington by Marino

Julian Okwara – Edge:

51 to Dallas by Zierlein
59 to Seattle by Brugler
68 to New York Jets by Marino
91 to Las Vegas by Miller

Troy Pride, Jr. – Cornerback:

83 to Denver by Zierlein
93 to Tennessee by Brugler
Not taken by Marino or Miller in second or third round

USA TODAY: Updated Second Round Mock Draft

Kmet is the only Notre Dame player going in Davis’s second round mock. Houston would be a nice fit, at least in terms of quarterback as perhaps the best receiver in the entire league was who Houston traded. I wouldn’t want to be associated with Bill O’Brien as a general manager but there are far worse offenses to get your NFL feet wet in than the Texans.

The opening round of the NFL Draft came and went Thursday night with no Notre Dame players hearing their names called. Entering the night it felt like it’d be an upset to hear any of their names called but a few things that would have been seen as upsets played out on night one.

What happens now in the second round? Before night two of the NFL Draft kicks off at 7 p.m. ET tonight, let’s look at where the USA TODAY has one Notre Dame player going in round two.

From Nate Davis on Friday morning:

40. Houston Texans (from Arizona Cardinals) – Cole Kmet, TE, Notre Dame: With the pick acquired in the dubious DeAndre Hopkins deal, why not give QB Deshaun Watson a weapon who can help protect him, unleash the run game and bust a few big gainers down the seams?

I know a lot of attention goes to Claypool but the one I’d be most surprised by not getting their name called in round two in Julian Okwara. He didn’t have the dominating final season with Notre Dame in terms of actual sack numbers and some may use the late-season injury against him but he stayed healthy previous to that with the Irish. He seems like a mid-second round talent to me and can’t help but see the potential steal someone may be getting if he in fact does not go in round two.

NFL Draft: Notre Dame’s Kmet Runaway Favorite to be First Tight End Taken

We’ve long been on-board with Notre Dame’s Kmet as the best tight end prospect in the nation since October but others took their time to join us in that thinking. One outlet that does see him the same way as us is BetMGM.

Will someone jump up and grab Cole Kmet at the end of the first round next Thursday as the NFL Draft kicks off? That remains to be seen but we are getting what appears to be clarity on how much better of a prospect he’s viewed as compared to the rest of the class.

BetMGM lists Kmet as a runaway favorite to be the first tight end off the board as they list him as a -286 moneyline favorite, or almost 1:3 odds. For comparison, Adam Trautman of Dayton checks in with the second best odds at 7:1. Brycen Hopkins of Purdue is 9:1 and Thaddeus Moss of LSU closest the top four at 11:1.

Odds via BetMGM. Access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated _____ at _____ a.m. / p.m. ET. (You will need to write in the day and time you are looking at the latest betting lines)

Kmet is far from a perfect tight end prospect as Jeff Feyerer wrote about a week or so ago. Compared to the rest of the class though he’s the best tight end prospect in this class and if he can stay on the field, has potential to do some work in the NFL.

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Mock Drafts: Five Notre Dame Players Selected in SI’s First Five Rounds

Sports Illustrated put out their 14th edition of the 2020 NFL Mock Draft. Find out where they have five Notre Dame players being selected.

Quick, how do you know we’ve gotten to the point that we need the actual draft to happen instead of guessing and wondering what’s going to happen with the seven rounds? If you’re seeing a mock draft labeled as “14.0” then you know we’ve probably guessed enough and we’d all be alright if the picks actually started being made.

Well I have some bad news. We still have two more weeks of this before the actual draft happens.

With that said, Kevin Hanson of Sports Illustrated released his 14th mock draft and did his without projecting any trades, just by making selections for the first five rounds. In those five rounds he had five Notre Dame players getting selected.

No Notre Dame players went in the first round of Hanson’s mock but a pair went in Round Two:

44th overall – Colts – Cole Kmet, TE
Great fit to get his first NFL licks with Phillip Rivers throwing him the ball and having Jack Doyle on the roster as well. Personally I hope he goes a pick before.

51 – Cowboys – Julian Okwara, Edge
The Cowboys have to find pass rush help after Robert Quinn departed for Chicago this off-season. Okwara would probably be thrilled if this were to end up happening.

Round Three:

66 – Redskins – Chase Claypool, WR
As a fan of Chase Claypool I hope that literally any other NFL team drafts him. Big Ron Rivera fan but can’t think of many organizations in professional sports that are less respected.

86 – Bills – Troy Pride, Jr., CB
If you follow the league at all you know that Buffalo’s defense has something brewing. If you’re picking teams to be a slot corner for as a rookie then Buffalo is way up on your desirable destinations.

92 – Ravens – Khalid Kareem, Edge
A chance for Kareem to go up against Ronnie Stanley in practice on the regular. Well, at least the few times teams are actually allowed to practice anymore.

Notre Dame Pair Featured in USA TODAY Mock Draft

The other Golden Domer that Middlehurst-Schwartz had going in round one would be headed to one of the few franchises still playing football this January.

As college football has concluded for 2019 and the NFL has just three more games of consequence we slowly start to turn to the annual blending of the two, the NFL Draft.

Next weekend will be the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama and coaches and scouts will get a chance to see the stars of tomorrow up close for a week.

With that in mind it is officially Mock Draft Season.

Perhaps the excitement in the air isn’t quite as rich as when the holidays hit in December but for football fans and followers it’s an interesting time to watch stocks rise and fall NFL bound players.

With that in mind the USA TODAY released their latest NFL Mock Draft on Thursday and a pair of key 2019 Notre Dame players made their way to the first round.

Here is who Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz has going and where he has them headed in April’s draft:

23. Patriots — Cole Kmet, TE, Notre Dame: While New England’s future with Tom Brady remains unclear, perhaps it’s time for Bill Belichick and Co. to focus on a different glaring issue. As the draft’s top talent at tight end, Kmet might help fill the Rob Gronkowski-sized hole in this offense.

Ah, the natural fit. If you’re a tight end you want to go to Notre Dame because they turn out more talent than anyone else at the position. Meanwhile if you’re in the NFL it’s hard to find many places better to play than New England where so much of their offensive success over the last two decades has been built on great tight ends. This would be a dream scenario for Kmet.

The other Golden Domer that Middlehurst-Schwartz had going in round one would be headed to one of the few franchises still playing football this January.

29. Titans — Julian Okwara, DE/OLB, Notre Dame: Mike Vrabel has thrown an assortment of players into the pass-rushing mix, yet none have proven consistent threats. Tennessee can ramp up its efforts on this front by grabbing Okwara, who’s still learning the finer points of his position but has a tantalizing athletic profile.

Will Okwara end being a first round pick? It depends you ask, read or follow as he is seemingly very much on the bubble there. After what they’ve done the last two weekends and really since the middle of the regular season Okwara would be walking into a place to likely to compete for something big again.