Some Surprises Among The Eight Notre Dame Players Projected In Seven-Round Mock Draft
Notre Dame is 10 days away from its Pro Day, and how the former Fighting Irish players perform in that event will have a big impact on where they get drafted. Prior to the Pro Day the mock drafts are a bit all over the place. In the latest seven-round mock draft from Chris Trapasso at CBS Sports there were a number of very interesting selections.
All told, Trapasso has eight former Notre Dame players getting drafted, and each one is picked in the first eight rounds. Should Trapasso be accurate about the number of Notre Dame players going in the first five rounds it would be the most former Irish players to get picked within the first five rounds since nine players were selected in the first five rounds back in 1994.
Trapasso has linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah going in the first round to the Green Back Packers with the 29th overall pick.
“The Packers need to prioritize speed at linebacker, and Owusu-Koramah is the speediest linebacker in this class.”
One of the most intriguing picks came next, with the Miami Dolphins taking defensive end Adetokunbo Ogundeji in the second round with the 36th overall pick. It is without question the highest projection I’ve seen thus far for Ogundeji, who led the Irish defense with seven sacks last season. I've felt that Ogundeji is being underrated by many draft analysts, but I was even surprised to see him this high in the draft. A strong Pro Day could help boost Ogundeji's stock after he put together an outstanding performance at the Senior Bowl (see below).
“Ogundeji is a long, smooth athlete who knows how to use his hands. He'll be an instant producer in Brian Flores' scheme.”
In this mock draft the New York Jets are projected to take BYU quarterback Zach Wilson with the No. 2 overall pick. With the No. 66 overall pick, which is very early in round three, Trapasso projects the Jets to pick Liam Eichenberg to protect their new franchise quarterback.
“Eichenberg is a good athlete for the offensive tackle spot, he just needs to get strong to solidify his anchor.”
Eichenberg is one of three former Notre Dame players to go in the third round.
Next in line is tight end Tommy Tremble, who is projected to go to the Kansas City Chiefs with the No. 94 overall pick. Tremble and Travis Kelce on the same roster is incredibly intriguing.
“Tremble has the physical tools to be a better player as a pro than he was at Notre Dame.”
Trapasso has guard Aaron Banks going to the Dallas Cowboys with the 99th overall pick. That would put Banks on the same line with former Irish star Zach Martin.
“Banks is built like a fridge and plays with effortless power, especially in the run game.”
There is a reunion of former line mates in the fifth round with the Indianapolis Colts projected to take Robert Hainsey with pick No. 166. Hainsey and current Colts star Quenton Nelson were both starters on the 2017 Notre Dame line that won the Joe Moore Award.
“The Colts are always prudent about addressing the offensive line, and they get another Golden Domer up front.”
Hainsey is one of three former Notre Dame players going in round five.
Next is defensive end Daelin Hayes, who is slated to go No. 172 overall to the Minnesota Vikings, where he would be on the same defense with former Irish star Harrison Smith.
“The defensive line reconstruction continues for the Vikings. It's needed.”
The most puzzling projection from Trapasso was the Baltimore Ravens taking wide receiver Ben Skowronek with the No. 184 pick, which comes in the fifth round. Skowronek has a significant foot injury, which will hurt his draft draft. He was also not one of Notre Dame’s two best weapons in the pass game.
“More size and vertical ability for the Ravens receiving game.”
Calling Skowronek a vertical threat was also puzzling. Skowronek has some quality skills, but he’s not someone that should be considered a vertical threat. Placing Skowronek in the draft but not Javon McKinley was a major head scratcher for me.
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