The NFL Draft is right around the corner with the start date of Thursday, Apr. 27, rapidly approaching.
And with the lead-up to the draft comes a whole lot more questions than answers. Will Hendon Hooker be the fifth quarterback off the board? Will Jalin Hyatt sneak into the first round? Can Cedric Tillman and Byron Young both make it into the third round?
The Vols have several NFL Draft hopefuls that are ready to hear their name called this week. In the two seven-round mock drafts that were looked at, seven players were projected to be drafted, with the final pick in each being different.
It looks as though QB Hendon Hooker, OL Darnell Wright, WR Jalin Hyatt, WR Cedric Tillman, and EDGE Byron Young are certainly going to be taken in the draft at some point. Then you get into guys such as safety Trevon Flowers and tight end Princeton Fant, who made it in the last few picks of their respective mock drafts. The Vols also have players such as offensive lineman Jerome Carvin and linebacker Jeremy Banks looking for spots, too.
More from RTI: How the Fans Are Projecting Hendon Hooker’s NFL Draft Spot
Here’s a look at some of the buzz on the final day before the NFL Draft on Thursday. Below is information regarding recent mock draft projections and a look at some of what is being said around social media.
QB Hendon Hooker
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 23 to Minnesota Vikings
- NFL.com (Charles Davis): No. 16 to Washington Commanders
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 30 to Las Vegas Raiders
- PFF: No. 61 to Las Vegas Raiders
- CBS Sports (Chris Trapasso): No. 37 to Seattle Seahawks
CBS Sports’ Robert Turbin: “I love Hendon Hooker as well. I love his precision, his poise, his accuracy. Fellas, Hendon Hooker is the second-best quarterback in this draft! What are we talking about here? Why aren’t we talking about Hendon Hooker more in this draft? He’s even better than CJ Stroud in my opinion!”
Pat McAfee: “If Hendon Hooker doesn’t just blow his knee out on a very standard play down in South Carolina, where he was just kind of going off the edge, his knee buckles or whatever out of nowhere, he would be – I would love to hear where they would project him to go. Like I would love to hear the conversation of, ‘Oh, he’s the No. 2 guy.'”
Josh Heupel: “He’s got a mission on how he wants to impact his teammates in a leadership role, but he also has a great vision of what he wants to work on in his craft…”
NFL Rookie Watch on Twitter: Multiple NFL scouts and evaluators reportedly believe Hendon Hooker will not “make it out” of the first twenty picks. Hooker said in a recent interview that he should be the first QB taken in the Draft. Hooker also said that his age (25) isn’t a liability but an “advantage”…
OL Darnell Wright
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 17 to Pittsburgh Steelers
- NFL.com (Charles Davis): No. 9 to Chicago Bears
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 19 to Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- PFF: No. 17 to Pittsburgh Steelers
- CBS Sports (Chris Trapasso): No. 30 to Los Angeles Chargers
PFF’s Max Chadwick: “Wright has some of the best functional strength in this class.”
The Draft Network’s Ryan Fowler: “From what I’ve heard out of the building, [the Commanders] love Darnell Wright. He’s the 2nd tackle on their board from what I’ve been told, behind Paris Johnson from Ohio State.”
Draft Insider Jamie Eisner: “The Bears interest in Wright is real, so much so that they may avoid the temptation to trade back again to ensure they land him here before the offensive line run starts.”
WR Jalin Hyatt
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 35 to Indianapolis Colts
- NFL.com (Charles Davis): Not in the first round
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 25 to New York Giants
- PFF: No. 57 to New York Giants
- CBS Sports (Chris Trapasso): No. 26 to Dallas Cowboys
Hyatt has reportedly taken visits with the Giants, the Cowboys, and the Bills.
WR Cedric Tillman
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 39 to Carolina Panthers
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 44 to Atlanta Falcons
- PFF: No. 69 to Los Angeles Rams
- CBS Sports (Chris Trapasso): No. 74 to Seattle Seahawks
Elite Drafters on Twitter: Cedric Tillman has the rare elite traits of a true alpha WR. His body control and box out ability is top notch. Massive upside as a redzone target (think DeVante Adams) and looks to be the full package. I don’t get why he’s being faded.
Listed as Roman Harper’s No. 5 player to be “drafted earlier than projected.”
EDGE Byron Young
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 72 to Tennessee Titans
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 64 to Chicago Bears
- PFF: No. 96 to Arizona Cardinals
- CBS Sports (Chris Trapasso): No. 136 to Chicago Bears
Senior Bowl’s Jim Nagy: Talking to NFL scouts about who impressed in team interviews & one name keeps coming up—Tennessee’s Byron Young. He worked at Dollar General and played juco ball prior to Vols. Scouts say you can feel his hunger and passion.
Three Players the Dallas Cowboys covet according to Jonah Tuls: Jonathan Mingo, Byron Young, Daiyan Henley.
Derek Brown on Twitter: Don’t be surprised when Byron Young (EDGE) goes a little earlier than he’s being mocked. He’s met with a TON of teams mid to early 3rd round picks. I can easily see one team jumping up a few picks to grab him.
S Trevon Flowers
- Mock Drafts
- ESPN (Matt Miller): No. 255 to San Francisco 49ers
TE Princeton Fant
- Mock Drafts
- NFL.com (Chad Reuter): No. 231 to Las Vegas Raiders
