Ordering Up a Draft: Please Pour a Tryon and a Molden
Pick after pick, hour after hour and round after round went by as University of Washington football players squirmed in their seats and watched uncomfortably while the NFL draft ignored them.
It wasn't until Day 3, on the 122nd pick of the fourth round, that the Huskies broke up the player dispersal no-hitter, sending quarterback Jacob Eason to the Indianapolis Colts.
That won't be the case in 2021. Not if the mock drafts -- all 66 of them compiled so far -- are to be believed.
Huskies' defensive end Joe Tryon and cornerback Elijah Molden are worthy of first-round picks, according to this multitude of early-bird experts.
Tyron appears nine times among the first 32 players taken, projected to go anywhere from eighth to 30th. Molden turned up as a first-rounder three times, ranked from No. 25 to 30.
The draft prognosticators have Tryon going to Atlanta, Baltimore, Cleveland, Dallas, Indianapolis, New England, New Orleans, New York Jets, Tampa Bay and the hometown Seahawks. OK, almost everywhere in the league.
Dale-Paul Jordan of Phin Phanatic, a Miami Dolphins-themed site, is the most ardent Tryon believer, pegging the UW defensive lineman to go to the Jets at No. 8. His praise is effusive.
"I'm not sure if Adam Gase will be around to make this selection, but what I can tell you is that Tryon is a freak. He came out last year and destroyed his competition. He's got a huge frame and I think will be an outstanding prospect in the next level."
On thebiglead.com, Tryon turned up No. 14, going to Atlanta, with the site rueing the fact the Falcons didn't solve their pass rush issues in last month's draft.
WalterFootball.com listed Tryon at No. 19, going to the Browns. The site likewise sounded enchanted with the Huskies' rising star who hails from Seattle's suburbs.
"Joe Tryon came out of nowhere to have a breakout 2019 campaign. He has a nice frame (6-5, 262) and tons of upside to be an impactful edge rusher in the NFL."
Molden, a first-team All-Pac-12 season and the UW's leading tackler, turns up on nfltraderumors.com's mock draft at No. 25, going to Minnesota, The site cites coach Mike Zimmer's affection for cornerbacks and suggests the Vikings could take the Oregon native even after choosing TCU corner Jeff Gladney in this year's draft at No. 31.
So Tryon and Molden have ample motivation to make these prognosticators, as well as the Huskies, look good 12 months from now.
What these draftniks don't know, as they feverishly gird through a bunch of new names, is that the UW's Jaxson Kirkland, who will make the move to left tackle, could be in the middle of the draft conversation, too.
The 6-foot-7, 322-pound junior from Portland apparently is on a mission during the pandemic, redefining his ample frame to make the pros and everyone else take notice of him at his new position.
The source?
Ah, that's a draft secret.
