MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Most of the focus leading up to the NFL draft will be on the potential franchise quarterbacks and other first-round talent, but some NFL teams may find slimmer pickings when it comes to the later rounds.
Now, players with less lofty draft stock can still return and collect name, image and likeness money for another season — basically a guaranteed paycheck — sometimes using their extra COVID year. And that’s a big reason why a modest 58 underclassmen declared for the draft, the fewest since 2011 (56).
It was evident to Jim Nagy when he was building out the Senior Bowl roster. There’s plenty of talent at the top, especially with three-year juniors eligible for all-star games like Saturday’s Senior Bowl for the first time, but fewer strong options down the line.
“It was really unique. Rounds five through seven on our board got wiped out in the month of December,” said Nagy, a former NFL scout and current Senior Bowl executive director. “We’ll see what it looks like in April. NIL is a great thing for the players, an awesome thing, but it does have an effect on the draft, whatever that may be.”
He expects plenty of movement with NFL teams trading late-round picks to stock up for next year, or trying to move up into the first four rounds.