Latest mock draft has Tennessee Vols WR going high in the first round
The latest mock draft from NFL.com's Lance Zierlein, a longtime NFL draft analyst, has Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt going high in the first round. Zierlein's mock draft has the Houston Texans drafting Hyatt with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. From NFL.com: Hyatt has almost unnatural speed, with the […]
The latest mock draft from NFL.com's Lance Zierlein, a longtime NFL draft analyst, has Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt going high in the first round.
Zierlein's mock draft has the Houston Texans drafting Hyatt with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Hyatt has almost unnatural speed, with the acceleration to leave man coverage in the dust. He not only is a deep threat, but he also helps move safeties out of the box.
Most mock drafts have Hyatt getting drafted near the end of the first round. Some mock drafts even have him falling to the second round.
The concern with Hyatt, despite the fact that he won the Biletnikoff Award in 2022, is that his route tree was limited at Tennessee and that could lead to growing pains in the NFL. He also didn't face a lot of press coverage during his time in Knoxville.
NFL teams will have to decide if Hyatt's elite speed and high-level pass-catching abilities are worth taking a gamble on. I think it's a no-brainer — Hyatt was electric at Tennessee. And it wasn't just because of the scheme, which is something that Vols head coach Josh Heupel pointed out after UT's win against Kentucky this past season.
"Scheme? Yeah, there's something to putting him (Hyatt) in position (to have success) — [but] it's him going and making plays," said Heupel after Tennessee's win against the Wildcats in late October. "It's (QB) Hendon (Hooker) making plays, it's our offensive line protecting. At the end of the day, it's players, not coaches."
A great scheme doesn't help much without great players and great execution. And it's hard to find a player in college football that played at a higher level and executed better than Hyatt this past season.
Featured image via Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
