Seven Tigers projected to go in NFL draft early rounds

Wilkins could go in the first 10 picks. He and a number of Tigers will show their skills in the NFL combine in early March.

TigerNet Staff - Correspondent - Tuesday, February 05 2019

With the big game in the books, the attention turns to NFL draft season and a number of Tigers are in the mix for a selection come the first two days in Nashville (April 26-27).

An NFL.com three-round mock draft released Tuesday has Clelin Ferrell leading the way for the Tigers with a No. 8 selection to the Detroit Lions. Other first-round projections include Christian Wilkins (No. 17 to Browns), Trayvon Mullen (No. 21 to Seahawks) and Dexter Lawrence (No. 25 to Eagles).

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Rounding out the early selections are Tre Lamar in the second round (No. 39 to Buccaneers) and Mitch Hyatt in the third (No. 80 to the Browns).

USA TODAY sees five Tigers going in the first two days.

Wilkins paces those projections for Clemson at No. 14 to the nearby Falcons (No. 14 pick), followed by another local pick in Ferrell to the Panthers (No. 16). The most action in that prediction comes in the second round with Trayvon Mullen (No. 34 to Colts), Lawrence (No. 47 to Panthers) and Lamar (No. 52 to Steelers). They send Kendall Joseph to the Vikings in the third round (No. 81 pick).

SB Nation did a two-round mock draft this week, which placed Wilkins in the top-10 (No. 9 to Bills), Ferrell to the Panthers (No. 16), Mullen to the Broncos (No. 41) and Lawrence to the Falcons (No. 45).

"This may appear a little early for Wilkins, but he could be the three-technique the Bills need," Dan Kadar writes. "Don’t file this away as a reach because Wilkins is the fourth interior defensive lineman taken already. The position is far and away the top group in the 2019 draft. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah ranks Wilkins as the seventh-best player in the draft, mainly for his ability as a pass rusher."