What Mel Kiper Jr. helped popularize has become bigger than his ‘90s-era, puffed-up hair. The NFL Draft is more than nine months away, yet it seems every other week projections come out about which players may be first-rounders or who may go No. 1 overall.
This week, it’s ESPN NFL draft analyst Jordan Reid’s turn. He listed 13 players as possible No. 1 overall picks, dividing his choices into three categories: Serious contenders (5), Potential risers (2) and Long shots (6).
Three players from the state of Texas are among Reid’s 13 players: Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. and Texas A&M quarterback Conner Weigman.
Ewers is routinely recognized as a likely first-round pick and currently has the third-best odds to win the Heisman Trophy, according to ESPNBet.com, behind Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel and Georgia QB Carson Beck.
Reid gives Ewers a 12% chance to be the top pick and he’s listed among the serious contenders.
“He has to be in consideration for the top pick if he can piece together a really good prove-it season,” Reid writes. “The decision to return to school was the right one for Ewers, and he now gains another year of needed experience and tries to build on his positive moments shown last season.”
Banks Jr. is also regularly listed as a first-round pick in mock drafts. Reid lists him among the potential risers with a 6% chance to go No. 1 overall.
“At 6-foot-4 and 324 pounds, Banks is an overwhelming run-blocker, but it’s his movement skills that really set him apart from his counterparts in this class,” Reid writes.
And finally, Weigman is listed among the longshots in a sub-category called “The ‘out-of-nowhere’ quarterback.” He is given a 2% chance to be the top pick, with Reid writing, “Weigman has the arm to test throwing windows and push the ball down the field. However, his starter sample size is small, as he has only started eight career games over two seasons.”
It’s been a while since a Longhorn was the NFL’s first overall pick — 42 years, to be exact. In 1982 defensive end Kenneth Sims was No. 1, becoming the third Texas player ever taken first, along with running back Earl Campbell in 1978 and linebacker Tommy Nobis in 1966.
Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett, who was drafted first in 2017, is the only Aggie selected number one overall.