There's a perfect NFL landing spot for Vols WR Jalin Hyatt
Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt announced on Wednesday that he's declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft and skipping UT's Orange Bowl showdown with Clemson. Hyatt, who has two years of eligibility remaining at Tennessee, is projected to be a top-40 selection. It was a no-brainer for the South Carolina native to declare for the […]
Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt announced on Wednesday that he's declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft and skipping UT's Orange Bowl showdown with Clemson.
Hyatt, who has two years of eligibility remaining at Tennessee, is projected to be a top-40 selection. It was a no-brainer for the South Carolina native to declare for the draft. Returning to Tennessee for another season would've been too much of a risk. And there really wouldn't be much to gain. Sure, Hyatt could improve his draft stock some, but he would also risk getting injured and hurting his draft stock. The risk simply isn't worth the reward.
It's a bit early for mock drafts since we don't know the draft order yet, but we can still predict good landing spots for players.
And I think the perfect landing spot for Hyatt would be with the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs are potentially losing two key wide receivers this offseason. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman are both set to be free agents. If they depart in free agency, it leaves Skyy Moore, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Kadarius Toney (who is very injury prone) as Kansas City's top wide receiver options.
In addition to not having a lot of depth at wide receiver next season, the Chiefs could also use a player who can take the top off of defenses. Kansas City essentially needs a replacement for Tyreek Hill, who was traded to the Miami Dolphins earlier this season.
I'm not saying Hyatt is Hill — it's not fair to compare anyone to Hill — but he has that kind of elite speed (his last 40 time was 4.31, but I wouldn't be surprised if he runs faster at the combine/pro day).
Hyatt, who led the SEC in receiving yards/receiving touchdowns this season, was the most explosive player in college football this season. He had 40-plus yard receptions in 7 of Tennessee's 12 games in 2022.
Imagine that kind of speed/explosive playmaking paired with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, one of the best deep-ball passers in the league.
That could be a match made in heaven (it would also reunite Hyatt with his former Vol teammate, Trey Smith).
I'm sure plenty of teams will have interest in Hyatt in the draft next spring, but I'm not sure there would be a better landing spot for him than with the Chiefs.
Featured image via Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
