The Tennessee Volunteers had one of their more successful seasons in a while under first year head coach Josh Heupel in 2021 and that was reflected in the 2022 NFL Draft where five UT players had their ultimate dream come true of being selected by an NFL team.
Here’s a list of the players who were drafted along with where and by who:
- Alontae Taylor, CB-New Orleans Saints (49th overall, 2nd Rd)
- Velus Jones Jr., WR-Chicago Bears (71st overall, 3rd Rd)
- Matt Butler, DL-Las Vegas Raiders (175th overall, 5th Rd)
- Cade Mays, OL-Carolina Panthers (199th overall, 6th Rd)
- Theo Jackson, DB-Tennessee Titans (204th overall, 7th Rd)
Let’s start at the top and work our way down…
Alontae Taylor
He had a really good senior season with UT where he recorded a career best 60 tackles, six passes defended, and two interceptions. He’ll be a welcome addition to a solid Saints secondary under new head coach Dennis Allen who’s a defensive guy.
Velus Jones Jr.
Jones is one of the guys who really flashed in the pre-draft process and we already knew he was a dude who could absolutely fly! He ran a 4.31 40-yard dash and along with the stats he put up at the receiver position (84 receptions for 1,087 yards and 11 touchdowns) he brings the x-factor of being a dynamic return man as well.
Matt Butler
Choosing to exercise his extra Covid year was a GREAT idea as he flashed with career highs in tackles (47), tackles for loss (8), and sacks (5). He’ll be a nice depth piece along the defensive line for the Raiders.
Cade Mays
Frankly, I’m a little bit surprised that Mays fell to the sixth round but he has had injury issues in his career with UT that could have dropped his draft stock down but if he can stay healthy this is a really good pick for Carolina.
Theo Jackson
This is a feel good pick for the Titans as Jackson is a Nashville kid so getting an opportunity to be drafted by his hometown team has to be an incredible feeling. The Titans are putting a lot of emphasis on defense and with a mostly young secondary he should have an opportunity to make this team and provide some depth along with special teams help. He was also named an All-SEC second team defender in 2021 as he finished the year with 78 tackles, nine for loss, 1.5 sacks, 12 passes defended, and one interception (returned for a TD).
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