Minnesota Gophers - 2020 NFL Draft

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ESPN has the Gophers draft hopefuls ranked this way in terms of best remaining available players.

Winfield - #6 - #2 ranked Safety left on the board
Martin - #125 - #8 ranked OLB left on the board
Johnson - #145 - #23 ranked WR left on the board
Coughlin - #158 - #11 ranked OLB left on the board

Just under 200 picks left in the draft (not counting supplemental) so would think all 4 of them have a solid shot of getting drafted.

They don't list Rodney Smith among their top 30 remaining RB or top 300 overall. Renner did not crack their top 20 remaining DT list.

 

MNVCGUY said:
ESPN has the Gophers draft hopefuls ranked this way in terms of best remaining available players.

Winfield - #6 - #2 ranked Safety left on the board
Martin - #125 - #8 ranked OLB left on the board
Johnson - #145 - #23 ranked WR left on the board
Coughlin - #158 - #11 ranked OLB left on the board

Just under 200 picks left in the draft (not counting supplemental) so would think all 4 of them have a solid shot of getting drafted.

They don't list Rodney Smith among their top 30 remaining RB or top 300 overall. Renner did not crack their top 20 remaining DT list.

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For the sake of argument, let's say this is where they get drafted- it's almost criminal how low Johnson is going to go due to the stacked WR class this year. Somebody is going to get great value. Even if he doesn't have elite speed, he is a monster in the redzone with his leaping ability and body control, and should be able to rack up TD's in the NFL.
 

forever a gopher said:
For the sake of argument, let's say this is where they get drafted- it's almost criminal how low Johnson is going to go due to the stacked WR class this year. Somebody is going to get great value. Even if he doesn't have elite speed, he is a monster in the redzone with his leaping ability and body control, and should be able to rack up TD's in the NFL.
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Would agree that TJ has a chance to be one of those "Steal of the Draft" type players for somebody.
 

Maybe the Vikings will draft him if he is still available.

AWJr will be gone tonight. That means at a minimum two Gophers drafted.

I think the all the Gophers draft eligible players were hurt by not having their Pro Day. I hope to see Carter Coughlin, Kamal Martin, or Chris Williamson drafted. If not, Rodney Smith and any of these guys are probably getting a shot as a UDFA.
 

Not related to the Gophers at all, but I found this interesting after the Packers took Love last night. Just indicative of how much a crap-shoot recruiting (and by extension the NFL draft) is.

In 2019, the Packers took Rashan Gary 12th overall. He was the no.1 overall recruit out of high school his year. In 2020, they took Jordan Love 26th overall. He was the 1,645th overall recruit out of high school his year.
 


It is shocking to me that there are considered to be TWENTY-TWO receivers still available who are considered better than Tyler Johnson.
Beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder, because I am simply not seeing that.
 

forever a gopher said:
For the sake of argument, let's say this is where they get drafted- it's almost criminal how low Johnson is going to go due to the stacked WR class this year. Somebody is going to get great value. Even if he doesn't have elite speed, he is a monster in the redzone with his leaping ability and body control, and should be able to rack up TD's in the NFL.
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This is true, but there were already a surprising number of receivers taken in the first round, to my surprise and dismay, as my beloved Packers need some receivers.
 

MNVCGUY said:
ESPN has the Gophers draft hopefuls ranked this way in terms of best remaining available players.

Winfield - #6 - #2 ranked Safety left on the board
Martin - #125 - #8 ranked OLB left on the board
Johnson - #145 - #23 ranked WR left on the board
Coughlin - #158 - #11 ranked OLB left on the board

Just under 200 picks left in the draft (not counting supplemental) so would think all 4 of them have a solid shot of getting drafted.

They don't list Rodney Smith among their top 30 remaining RB or top 300 overall. Renner did not crack their top 20 remaining DT list.

Click to expand...
Expanded to include Grade and Size, and Bios.

Antoine Winfield, Jr - Safety - # 6 Best Available
5' 9", 203 lbs
Pos Rnk 2, Ovr Rnk 29, Grade 88
Academic All-Big Ten (2019, 2018, 2017)
CoSida Academic All-District (2019)
Big Ten Distinguished Scholar (2018-19)
Unanimous All-American (2019)
All-Big Ten First Team (2019)
Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year (2019)

Antoine Winfield Jr. - Football - University of Minnesota Athletics

Antoine Winfield Jr. (11) DB - PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. ...
gophersports.com gophersports.com

Kamal Martin - OLB - #125 Best Available
6' 3", 240 lbs
Pos Rnk 10, Ovr Rnk 157, Grade 57
All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (2019)

Kamal Martin - Football - University of Minnesota Athletics

Kamal Martin (21) LB - PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. ...
gophersports.com gophersports.com

Tyler Johnson - WR - # 141 Best Available
6' 1", 206 lbs
Pos Rnk 29, Ovr Rnk 173, Grade 54
All-Big Ten First Team (2019, 2018)
All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (2017)

Tyler Johnson - Football - University of Minnesota Athletics

Tyler Johnson (6) WR - PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. ...
gophersports.com gophersports.com

Carter Coughlin - OLB - #158 Best Available
6' 3", 236 lbs
Pos Rnk 13, Ovr Rnk 190, Grade 50
Academic All-Big Ten (2019, 2018, 2017)
All-Big Ten Second Team (2019, 2018)

Carter Coughlin - Football - University of Minnesota Athletics

Carter Coughlin (45) LB - PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. ...
gophersports.com gophersports.com
 

forever a gopher said:
For the sake of argument, let's say this is where they get drafted- it's almost criminal how low Johnson is going to go due to the stacked WR class this year. Somebody is going to get great value. Even if he doesn't have elite speed, he is a monster in the redzone with his leaping ability and body control, and should be able to rack up TD's in the NFL.
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ESPN has him as the 30th ranked WR. Absurd
 




In retrospect, Johnson's decision not to run the 40 at the combine may be hurting him. At the time, he thought he would be able to run the 40 at his Pro Day, but when the pro day was canceled, it left him with no 40 time at a position where speed matters.

Now, it's all about which team picks him up, what type of scheme they run, and how they plan to use him. with the right team, Johnson can be a 10-year pro. If he lands with the wrong team, he may have to scramble to establish himself.
 

I wonder if the Vikings will take Johnson at pick 117. Seems like it could be a good fit.
 

I don't know much about the NFL scouting process, but I can't imagine TJ won't succeed in the NFL. He's been playing (and dominating) at the highest levels of D1 FB for the past 4 years. Why people think he suddenly wouldn't be able to even compete against many of those same athletes simply because they're wearing an NFL uniform is beyond me. It's just odd.
 



stocker08 said:
Mel Kiper just on the pre-draft show talking about 2021 draft prospects. Highlighted both Tanner Morgan and Rashod Bateman.
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short ornery norwegian said:
In retrospect, Johnson's decision not to run the 40 at the combine may be hurting him. At the time, he thought he would be able to run the 40 at his Pro Day, but when the pro day was canceled, it left him with no 40 time at a position where speed matters.

Now, it's all about which team picks him up, what type of scheme they run, and how they plan to use him. with the right team, Johnson can be a 10-year pro. If he lands with the wrong team, he may have to scramble to establish himself.
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They will get a lot of attention but as we saw from the early ML7 projection fiasco experience they may be looking at TM2 production, accuracy, intangibles without adjusting for the getting off the bus factor.

—

TJ6 probably should have run when he had the opportunity but maybe he was nursing a minor injury at the time? Who knows. Maybe he really believed or was lead to believe he wasn’t topped out, a few more months of training would have made a real difference. Like many of us going forward carpe diem applies, or YOLO/ A bird in hand/No day is guaranteed or whatever. Then again, how often do pandemics roll around?
 

TJ just snuck into Mel's Top Ten available @ pick 133.
 

Hoping the Vikes will use of of their multitude of 5th and 6th rounders on one of our hometown Gophers. They still need another WR but did just take an OLB
 

stocker08 said:
TJ just snuck into Mel's Top Ten available @ pick 133.
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TJ will be a surprise to whatever team picks him. Pittsburgh? Raiders? Rams? Redskins? Ravens? Eagles?

WR rich draft and No Pro Day hurts.

Keeping fingers crossed.
 
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WriterGoph said:
Hoping the Vikes will use of of their multitude of 5th and 6th rounders on one of our hometown Gophers. They still need another WR but did just take an OLB
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It would be nice if they used some of those picks to move up and grab TJ.
 

There are going to be many great pro players picked in the latter rounds.
 

It is looking like teams are going for Defense.
 

So weird to me that there are still so many WRs ahead of Johnson. A ton of dudes I've never heard of. And I like to think I watch a lot of CFB. Someone is really gunna get a steal with TJ.
 

Nax5 said:
So weird to me that there are still so many WRs ahead of Johnson. A ton of dudes I've never heard of. And I like to think I watch a lot of CFB. Someone is really gunna get a steal with TJ.
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I agree. Is Johnson looked at as a slot receiver or wide out. I think the Gophers used him more in the slot but I might be mistaken.
 

I haven't done any statistical analysis, but go and look at the final 2019 NCAA football rankings, then think back to what you have seen in this draft. Minnesota is a ridiculous outlier.
 

Cool! Bucs take Tyler Johnson with 161! Pairing up TJ with AWjr. in Tampa.
 


AWJr & TJ with Tampa Bay and Tom Brady!
 

Get your Bucs jerseys! TJ catching passes from TB!
 

TJ just went to the Bucs....this is sweet
 



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