Ricky Pearsall Headed to Saints in Latest ESPN Mock Draft
Former Florida Gators wide receiver Ricky Pearsall is headed to the NFC South in 3-Round mock draft from Mel Kiper Jr. and Field Yates.
Former Florida Gators wide receiver Ricky Pearsall has aced the pre-draft process headed into next week's NFL Draft.
After posting 65 catches for 965 yards and four touchdowns with the Gators last year, Pearsall was arguably the top wide receiver at the Senior Bowl in January.
Pearsall followed up his Senior Bowl performance with top-five results at the NFL Combine in both the 3-cone and vertical jump. His 42-inch vertical and 6.64 3-cone were both good for second place regardless of position at the event.
He's been a mainstay at the top of the second round in virtually every NFL mock draft since the combine, including a three-round mock draft conducted by ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. and Field Yates.
Kiper and Yates alternated picks on ESPN+, and Kiper selected Pearsall with the No. 45 overall selection held by the New Orleans Saints.
"Pearsall, who played with Jayden Daniels at Arizona State before transferring to Florida in 2022, really impressed me at the combine," wrote Kiper. "New Orleans parted ways with Michael Thomas, and it needs competition in the wideout room."
Kiper's selection of Pearsall at No. 45 is a good indicator of how fickle mock drafts can be. Just last week, Kiper had Pearsall pegged to the Carolina Panthers with the No. 39 overall pick.
Obviously this was a different format with Kiper and Yates alternating picks, but Kiper selected Georgia's Ladd McConkey at No. 39 for the Panthers and Western Kentucky's Malachi Corley for the Atlanta Falcons at No. 43 before choosing Pearsall.
Both players went after Pearsall last week in Kiper's solo mock.
While not much has changed since last Wednesday other than Kiper's mind, it goes to prove that this is an incredibly deep draft for wide receivers. In any other year, Pearsall might be getting more attention as a possible first-round draft pick.
The Saints, or any other team for that matter, will be thrilled to get him in the second round if he falls to Day 2 of the NFL Draft next Friday.