Tag: PFF mock draft

PFF post-Super Bowl mock has Bucs shore up interior o-line

Interior o-line is likely to be a major point of emphasis for the Bucs in the offseason.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a few needs to address heading into the offseason, but one of the biggest ones is the offensive line.

With the retirement of Ryan Jensen at center, the Bucs are likely to look at a new center to replace the poor play of Robert Hainsey and someone to fill the empty left guard spot that was taken by both Matt Feiler and then Aaron Stinnie in 2023. An improvement to the interior offensive line would be a big boon to Tampa Bay’s run game and overall pass protection, and Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus recognized this — that’s why he has the Bucs selecting Duke offensive tackle Graham Barton in his post-Super Bowl mock draft.

Here is what Sikkema wrote about Barton and his fit in Tampa Bay:

Barton is a Jason Licht type of player with tackle, guard and even center flexibility. He has served as Duke’s starting left tackle over the past two seasons, but his NFL home is likely somewhere on the interior. Luckily, that is exactly what Tampa needs.

Barton is a tough son of a gun with vice grip-like hand strength and enough experience to realistically start in his rookie season.

As Sikkema mentioned, many project Barton to slide in as a guard at the next level instead of as a tackle as he played at Duke. The interior line class appears to be a solid one for 2024, so there are a lot of options general manager Jason Licht and the Bucs could take heading into this draft.

Tampa Bay drafted a tackle and converted him to guard last year with North Dakota State’s Cody Mauch, so this would be a similar move if indeed it were to occur. Mauch had a bit of a rough debut his rookie year, but that’s to be somewhat expected given the tough nature of the position. Should the Bucs draft Barton and find a center elsewhere in either the draft of free agency, the offensive line could look very solid heading into next year.

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3 Georgia Bulldogs go in first round of PFF’s latest mock draft

Here’s the 3 Bulldogs tabbed to go in the first round by PFF

Pro Football Focus (PFF) released its latest first round 2023 NFL mock draft on Monday featuring three Georgia Bulldogs.

First up is defensive lineman Jalen Carter, who is picked at No. 2 overall by the Chicago Bears after a trade down with the Houston Texans.

Jan. 9, 2023; Inglewood, California; Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Jalen Carter (88) chases TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Max Duggan (15) during the third quarter of the CFP national championship game at SoFi Stadium. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“When Bears general manager Ryan Poles addressed his team’s draft approach in his postseason press conference, he emphasized three areas: pass rusher, offense and cornerback — “premium positions.” Pass rusher doesn’t just mean edge rusher, either, and a three-technique defensive tackle is paramount to Matt Eberflus’ defensive scheme. In a trade-down, the Bears can recoup the early second-rounder they lost in the Chase Claypool trade while still having their choice of any non-quarterback.

Following some hints and connecting a few dots leads me to believe the Bears will have Georgia’s Jalen Carter, who earned pass-rushing grades of 88.9 and 90.0 the past two seasons, at the top of their board.”

Next up is offensive lineman Broderick Jones, who is selected by the Tennessee Titans with the 11th pick.

Jan. 9, 2023; Inglewood, California; Georgia Bulldogs offensive lineman Broderick Jones (59) in the tunnel before warmups before the CFP national championship game against the TCU Horned Frogsat SoFi Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

“Things have fallen off hard in Tennessee, and the best way to get back on track is through the trenches. Jones is still raw as a prospect, as this past season was just his first as a starting left tackle. But he has the size at 6-foot-4 and 310 pounds, and he moves like a real athlete along the line of scrimmage. For as physically imposing as he looks, it was his pass protection that stood out this past year. He earned an 84.2 pass-blocking grade with zero sacks and only nine pressures allowed on 449 pass-blocking snaps.”

Lastly is tight end Darnell Washington, who is projected to the Cincinnati Bengals with the 29th pick.

Dec. 3, 2022; Atlanta; Georgia Bulldogs tight end Darnell Washington (0) reacts after his touchdown reception against the LSU Tigers during the second quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

“Washington feels too unique of a talent to not be a first-rounder. No, he’s likely not going to be a 1,000-yard receiver in the NFL, but at 6-foot-7 and 275 pounds, he blocks like an offensive lineman. He earned an 81.3 run-blocking grade and a 78.4 pass-blocking grade in 2022, and he’s also a stellar weight-adjusted athlete who put up an 83.2 receiving grade, 475 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns this past season. His presence brings so much versatility to an offense’s personnel choices.”

The draft will be held on April 27-29 in Kansas City and will air on NFL Network.

PFF has one Irish star in their latest NFL Mock Draft

The data drive experts at Pro Football Focus has one Notre Dame Football player in their latest NFL Mock Draft.

Pro Football Focus has plenty of statistical analysis behind their basis for making selections and rankings players. They once against used their large amount of data to predict the first round selections of the NFL Draft. Michael Renner named one member from Brian Kelly’s squad to go off the board on the first day, linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.

Renner has JOK just making the end of the first, as he projects that the talented linebacker will be selected 29thoverall by the Green Bay Packers. Due to his versatility and the Packers scheme, Renner thinks this is a great fit for both sides. “The Packers often only employ one linebacker, which means he’s got to be able to cover a good deal of ground in the run game. That’s Owusu-Koramoah’s specialty. The 6-foot-1, 215-pounder flies around the field with reckless abandon and has looked like a different player over the second half of last season and into 2020.”

Through two games, JOK leads the Irish in tackles with 10 and is tied for second on the team with a sack. His numbers won’t rival last years, due to less games played, but the impact is still there. Owusu-Koramoah’s development has been amazing and something Brian Kelly and his coaching staff can take a ton of credit for. Enjoy JOK this season, we’ll be seeing him in the NFL next year.

Jets select Oklahoma WR CeeDee Lamb in PFF mock draft

In Pro Football Focus analytics-driven mock draft, the Jets select Oklahoma WR CeeDee Lamb over Mekhi Becton and Jedrick Wills Jr.

Pro Football Focus released a new mock draft this week, but this one has a different allure to it.

An industry leader in football data, PFF created an algorithm for its latest mock draft that is solely focused on analytics while accounting for a prospective team’s needs. For the Jets, it leads to an intriguing scenario with the 11th pick. With tackles Tristan Wirfs, Andrew Thomas and Josh Jones already off the board, the Jets opt for Oklahoma WR CeeDee Lamb.

Here’s PFF’s explanation for the selection:

With Robby Anderson likely leaving and the time ticking on Sam Darnold’s rookie deal, the Jets stock up at receiver with the former Oklahoma Sooner star. Lamb was the fifth most valuable wide receiver in college football last year, but he was the second most valuable one who played fewer than 700 snaps.

Interestingly enough, the analytics are not high on Louisville’s Mekhi Becton or Alabama’s Jedrick Wills Jr., who the Jets would presumably pick between in this scenario. Instead, PFF has them falling out of the first round altogether. For New York to pass on both Becton and Wills, it has to be comfortable with its free agency results, but it might not be financially feasible to trade for someone like Trent Williams and add a Bryan Bulaga or Jack Conklin at right tackle.

Just two weeks ago at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Lamb stole the show and cemented his status as one of the top wide receivers in this draft class. While 20 out of 55 receivers may have run a faster 40-yard dash than Lamb, it doesn’t account for his play speed and how he was able to set the college football world ablaze playing in Lincoln Riley’s fast-paced offense.

The Jets desperately need a No. 1 wide receiver and Lamb can instantly provide an immediate impact with his tremendous ball skills and explosiveness with the ball in his hands.

In 2019, Lamb was named a first-team Associated Press All-American and a Biletnikoff Award finalist and earned first-team All-Big 12 honors. In 13 starts, he led the Sooners with 62 receptions for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns.