RSS Feed2020 NFL Draft First Round
By Chris Malumphy
With the first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals selected quarterback Joe Burrow from Louisiana State University. Burrow also spent a portion of his college career at The Ohio State University. At one point, the Buckeyes had each of the top three picks in the Draft as the Redskins drafted defensive end Chase Young with the second pick and the Lions tabbed cornerback Jeff Okudah with the third. Yet with all that talent, the Buckeyes couldn't match the juggernauts of LSU (ironically led by Burrow), Clemson and Alabama to win a championship during those years.
The early part of the draft went according to the form expected in many mock drafts. The top three quarterbacks ended up where expected, but without the necessity of any trades as Tua Tagovailoa went to the Miami Dolphins with the fifth pick and Justin Herbert to the Los Angeles Chargers with the sixth. Those selections will make it much harder for quarterbacks like Cam Newton, Jameis Winston and Andy Dalton to find teams that will give them opportunity to start. Hello New England Patriots.
There was the expected runs on tackles and wide receivers. The New York Giants chose the first tackle, Georgia's Andrew Thomas, with the fourth pick. The Cleveland Browns took Jedrick Wills from Alabama with the 10th and the New York Jets followed by choosing Louisville's Mekhi Becton with the 11th. Tristan Wirfs' new assignment will be to protect Tom Brady for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the team drafted him with the 13th choice from Iowa. USC sent Austin Jackson to the Dolphins with pick number 18 to help protect the team's investment in Tagovailoa and the Tennessee Titans used the 29th choice on Isaiah Wilson of Georgia. The last time a college matched Georgia's feat of sending two tackles to the NFL in the 1st round was 1991 when Tennessee sent Antone Davis to the Eagles and Charles McRae to the Buccaneers.
The first wide receiver off the board was Alabama's Henry Ruggs who became the Las Vegas Raiders' first draft pick ever at number 12. Ruggs' former college teammate Jerry Jeudy was taken by the Denver Broncos to give Drew Lock a target with the 15th pick CeeDee Lamb of Oklahoma will join the Dallas Cowboys as the 17th choir. The Philadelphia Eagles, who seem to have a harder time getting decent receiving crew than many teams, looked to TCU's Jalen Reagor with the 21st pick to fill their current void. LSU's Justin Jefferson will try to replace Stefon Diggs for the Minnesota Vikings. The 49ers picked Brandon Aiyuk of Arizona State with the 25th selection.
The national champion LSU Tigers sent five players to the NFL in the first round: quarterback Joe Burrow (Bengals), defensive end K'Lavon Chaisson (Jaguars), wide receiver Justin Jefferson (Vikings), linebacker Patrick Queen (Ravens) and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (Chiefs).
If there was a shocker in the first round, it may have been the Green Bay Packers trading up to select quarterback Jordan Love from Utah State. Love is said to be a raw talent with a high upside. If things go as planned, he'll have the chance to sit behind Aaron Rodgers and hone his skills. Rodgers certainly knows the drill having sat behind Brett Favre for three seasons before getting his big chance. Rodgers might have preferred the Packers selecting a player that could immediately help the team's playoff and Super Bowl push before his own skills begin to fade.
The Miami Dolphins had three first round picks while the Los Angeles Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars, San Francisco 49ers, Las Vegas Raiders and Minnesota Vikings had two each. Dolphins: Tua Tagovailoa (5, QB, Alabama), Austin Jackson (18, T, Southern California), Noah Igbinoghene (30, DB, Auburn); Chargers: Justin Herbert (6, QB, Oregon), Kenneth Murray (23, LB, Oklahoma); Jaguars: C.J. Henderson (9, DB, Florida), K'Lavon Chaisson (20, DE, Louisiana State); Raiders: Henry Ruggs (12, WR, Alabama), Damon Arnette (19, DB, Ohio State); 49ers: Javon Kinlaw (14, DT, South Carolina), Brandon Aiyuk (25, WR, Arizona State); Vikings: Justin Jefferson (22, WR, Louisiana State), Jeff Gladney (31, DB, Texas Christian).
The Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers & Chicago Bears didn't have a first round pick.
| 2020 NFL Draft Round One | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Pick | Player | Name | Team | Position | College | Source |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | Joe Burrow | Bengals | QB | Louisiana State | |
| 1 | 2 | 2 | Chase Young | Redskins | DE | Ohio State | |
| 1 | 3 | 3 | Jeff Okudah | Lions | DB | Ohio State | |
| 1 | 4 | 4 | Andrew Thomas | Giants | T | Georgia | |
| 1 | 5 | 5 | Tua Tagovailoa | Dolphins | QB | Alabama | |
| 1 | 6 | 6 | Justin Herbert | Chargers | QB | Oregon | |
| 1 | 7 | 7 | Derrick Brown | Panthers | DT | Auburn | |
| 1 | 8 | 8 | Isaiah Simmons | Cardinals | LB | Clemson | |
| 1 | 9 | 9 | C.J. Henderson | Jaguars | DB | Florida | |
| 1 | 10 | 10 | Jedrick Wills | Browns | T | Alabama | |
| 1 | 11 | 11 | Mekhi Becton | Jets | T | Louisville | |
| 1 | 12 | 12 | Henry Ruggs | Raiders | WR | Alabama | |
| 1 | 13 | 13 | Tristan Wirfs | Buccaneers | T | Iowa | Colts via 49ers |
| 1 | 14 | 14 | Javon Kinlaw | 49ers | DT | South Carolina | Buccaneers |
| 1 | 15 | 15 | Jerry Jeudy | Broncos | WR | Alabama | |
| 1 | 16 | 16 | A.J. Terrell | Falcons | DB | Clemson | |
| 1 | 17 | 17 | CeeDee Lamb | Cowboys | WR | Oklahoma | |
| 1 | 18 | 18 | Austin Jackson | Dolphins | T | Southern California | Steelers |
| 1 | 19 | 19 | Damon Arnette | Raiders | DB | Ohio State | Bears |
| 1 | 20 | 20 | K'Lavon Chaisson | Jaguars | DE | Louisiana State | Rams |
| 1 | 21 | 21 | Jalen Reagor | Eagles | WR | Texas Christian | |
| 1 | 22 | 22 | Justin Jefferson | Vikings | WR | Louisiana State | Bills |
| 1 | 23 | 23 | Kenneth Murray | Chargers | LB | Oklahoma | Patriots |
| 1 | 24 | 24 | Cesar Ruiz | Saints | C | Michigan | |
| 1 | 25 | 25 | Brandon Aiyuk | 49ers | WR | Arizona State | Vikings |
| 1 | 26 | 26 | Jordan Love | Packers | QB | Utah State | Texans via Dolphins |
| 1 | 27 | 27 | Jordyn Brooks | Seahawks | LB | Texas Tech | |
| 1 | 28 | 28 | Patrick Queen | Ravens | LB | Louisiana State | |
| 1 | 29 | 29 | Isaiah Wilson | Titans | T | Georgia | |
| 1 | 30 | 30 | Noah Igbinoghene | Dolphins | DB | Auburn | Packers |
| 1 | 31 | 31 | Jeff Gladney | Vikings | DB | Texas Christian | 49ers |
| 1 | 32 | 32 | Clyde Edwards-Helaire | Chiefs | RB | Louisiana State | |
