It's never too early (or too late) to talk about the NFL Draft, so as we enter June — why not talk about 2018?
In this instance, we're focusing on the talent-rich Mountain West.
Top 2018 NFL Draft Prospects by Conference
SEC East | SEC West | ACC | Big Ten | Pac-12 | Big 12 | AAC | MAC | FCS
The site NFLDraftScout.com ranks 2018 prospects by position, even this early — though the site has not assigned an overall ranking just yet. So we take each player's position ranking and compared it to what happened late last month to give a ballpark of where a guy might land next year. It's not scientific, but it gives you an idea.
For example, Boise State's Cedrick Wilson is rated the No. 16 wide receiver in the 2018 NFL Draft class (please note we're not including underclassmen yet, as nobody will officially declare until after the season). In the April 2017 NFL Draft, the No. 16 wide receiver was selected No. 117 overall, a fourth rounder.
So let's take a look at the Mountain West's 2018 prospects and where they might end up in the draft (again, all projections are using NFLDraftScout.com). Rankings used were as of May 28.
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POTENTIAL TOP PICKS
MICHAEL GALLUP, WR – COLORADO STATE
EARLY 2018 PROJECTION: 3rd round (rated No. 7 WR by NFLDraftScout.com)
CAREER STATS: 76 receptions, 1,272 yards, 14 TDs
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DEVONTE BOYD, WR – UNLV
EARLY 2018 PROJECTION: 3rd round (rated No. 14 WR by NFLDraftScout.com)
CAREER STATS: 164 receptions, 2,630 yards, 15 TDs
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CEDRICK WILSON, WR – BOISE STATE
EARLY 2018 PROJECTION: 4th round (rated No. 16 WR by NFLDraftScout.com)
CAREER STATS: 56 receptions, 1,129 yards, 11 TDs
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So how about the rest of the 2018 Mountain West prospects, where would they fall in — and we included some potential high priority free agents?
RD | PLAYER | SCHOOL | POS | HGT | WGT | 40 |
4 | Andre Chachere | San Jose State | CB | 6/1 | 192 | 4.56 |
5 | David Wells | San Diego State | TE | 6/4 | 255 | 4.94 |
5 | Rashaad Penny | San Diego State | RB | 5/10 | 220 | 4.57 |
5 | Austin Corbett | Nevada | OT | 6/4 | 300 | 5.15 |
FA | Jake Roh | Boise State | TE | 6/3 | 237 | 4.77 |
FA | Jake Bennett | Colorado State | C | 6/3 | 290 | 5.32 |
FA | Nick Stevens | Colorado State | QB | 6/2 | 200 | 4.84 |
FA | Metuisela 'Unga | Hawaii | TE | 6/4 | 240 | 4.78 |