It was a solid NFL Draft for both Georgia and Florida State football as several Seminoles and Bulldogs get drafted into the league.
Though the first round turned to utter chaos, with six quarterbacks taken in the first 12 picks and a defensive player not going until pick 15, a few ‘Noles and Dawgs were taken in the first round.
Starting with Brock Bowers, who benefitted from Atlanta’s surprise drafting of Michael Penix Jr., the Las Vegas Raiders had been clear that they wanted a QB and they wanted Penix, but by their pick at 13, all six of the top tier quarterbacks were off the board. So, the Raiders went with the best pass catcher in the draft in Bowers. As for a QB, the Raiders didn’t get one in the draft so, Bowers will likely be catching passes from Gardner Minshew, who has proven himself a solid QB option for a team in transition.
Georgia’s Amarius Mims was snagged at 15 and will be protecting Joe Burrow as he went to Cincinnati. Just after hime came the first Seminole off the board in Jared Verse. Verse went at 19 to the Rams. LA just lost their top d-linemen after Aaron Donald retired and Verse seems like the perfect rookie to slot into that dangerous Rams d-line.
Florida State and Georgia got back-to-back picks once again as ‘Noles star receiver Keon Coleman was selected by Buffalo with the first pick in round two and Georgia’s top receiver Ladd McConkey, who impressed at the combine, was snatched up by the Chargers. For Coleman this is a perfect landing spot. The Bills are retooling their receiver room after trading Stefon Diggs and the former ‘Noles will be catching passes from one of the leagues top quarterbacks in Josh Allen.
A bevy of UGA and FSU defenders were then selected in round two. FSU’s Braden Fiske will be joining Jared Verse with the Rams and Renardo Green will also head to California as he joins the 49ers secondary. For Georgia, corner Kamari Lassiter was selected by the Texans at 42 and safety Javon Bullard is headed to Green Bay.
Another offensive selection from Florida State’s impressive group was taken in round three as running back Trey Benson was taken at 66 by Arizona. He is already listed second on the Cardinals depth chart behind James Conner, a solid back for him to learn from.
Another corner left the draft board as FSU’s Jarrian Jones will stay in Florida. He was snatched up at 96 by the Jaguars.
Sedrick Van Pran-Granger was taken by the Bills in round five, but arguably the biggest story out of the later rounds came when FSU quarterback Jordan Travis was taken with the 171st pick by the Jets.
This is the perfect situation for Travis and identical to the situation for Jordan Love in Green Bay. The Jets recently traded away Zach Wilson to Denver, freeing up space for Travis to fight for the No. 2 spot. He will be able to sit behind Aaron Rodgers for two or three years, learning and soaking up everything he can from the future Hall-of-Famer before getting his opportunity to start. While he likely wished to be drafted higher, there is really no better situation for the Seminoles QB.
The most significant picks to come in rounds six and seven were FSU’s Johnny Wilson and Jaheim Bell. Wilson will join the Eagles and a receiver room filled with top tier talent getting the chance to work behind AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, and DeVante Parker.
Bell, a former Valdosta Wildcat, will be part of the new regime in New England, likely catching passes from new QB and North Carolina product Drake Maye and learning under Patriots new head coach Jerod Mayo.