Cole Kmet And Julian Okwara In Round 2 Of Latest Mock Drafts

Jordan Reid and Eric Edholm project the top Irish draft prospects into round 2

The latest mock draft from Jordan Reid (The Draft Network) and Eric Edholm (Yahoo) have Notre Dame’s top draft targets sliding into round two of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Reid has tight end Cole Kmet coming off the board first, with the Jacksonville Jaguars selecting him with the No. 42 overall pick.

He has the Los Angeles Rams taking defensive end Julian Okwara ten spots later at No. 52 overall.

Edholm has the Chicago Bears taking Kmet with the No. 43 overall pick. The Bears do not have a first-round selection, so Kmet would be their first pick in this year’s draft. Here is what Edholm wrote about Kmet to the Bears:

“The Bears got next to nothing in the passing game from tight ends last year and need that to change. The 6-6, 258-pound Kmet is still raw, but the Chicago-area native has fascinating upside and could be a very good red-zone target. His blocking needs refinement for sure, but the potential is there.

“We expect the Bears to sign one free-agent tight end and draft another. They were handcuffed by the position last season.”

Five picks later he projects the New York Jets to take Okwara with the No. 48 overall pick.

The mock drafts won’t stop coming, but the vast majority of the top mock drafts to be released up to this point have Kmet going anywhere from No. 20 (first round) to the Jaguars and as late as the third round.

The results from the 2019 season have changed some of the draft projections for Okwara. Early in the process there were mocks that had him going as high as No. 21 to the Tennessee Titans, but their run to the AFC title game has them now picking No. 29. Most recently, I saw Okwara going No. 26 to the Dolphins, but most of the recent mock drafts have him falling into the second round.

Both Kmet and Okwara - along with seven other former Irish teammates - will get a chance to boost their stock at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, which takes place from February 23 to March 2.