Todd McShay believes one Georgia defender is being overlooked in NFL Draft

There are a few players from the Georgia Bulldogs dominant defense that are being looked at as a potential first round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft. Linebacker Nakobe Dean and defensive tackle Jordan Davis get most of the attention, but ESPN NFL Draft expert Todd McShay believes that defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt is one of the biggest sleepers in this year’s class.

Wyatt totaled 29 tackles this season with 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. In his four years at Georgia, he racked up 113 tackles with three passes defended, five sacks, and two forced fumbles. Despite playing on a loaded defensive front, McShay believes that Wyatt is the best of the bunch.

“Devonte Wyatt for Georgia, defensive tackle. We talked about Jordan Davis all season long. He’s 340 pounds, he’s big, he moves well for his size and he was getting more pass rush pressure. But Devonte Wyatt was probably the most consistent performer on that defensive front and he’s a little bit more of kind of that three technique,” McShay said. “He can get off a block, he can penetrate up the field.

Wyatt’s stats might not jump off of the stat sheet, but a lot of his contributions can be seen right away when watching Georgia games. McShay notes that Wyatt has all of the tools, and the numbers are still good enough to put him in consideration for the best in the class.

“When you look at his size, he’s 6’3, 315 pounds,” added McShay. “So pretty close to prototypical size. 39 tackles on the season, really good and active versus the run. Only had 2.5 sacks, but when you watch Georgia over and over again, you see he’s kind of the guy that’s always wreaking havoc and pushing quarterbacks off of their spot. So the production’s there, the size and agility’s there. He forced a couple of fumbles this past year as well, so Devonta Wyatt of a great defensive line group may be the best in this year’s class at the Senior Bowl this season.”

McShay didn’t project Wyatt in the first round in his initial mock, but other experts have

While McShay didn’t list Wyatt among his projected first round selections in his initial mock draft, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah did. Jeremiah projected that Wyatt would be selected with the final selection in the first round, going to the Green Bay Packers at the time.

Wyatt certainly ended his collegiate career on a high note. Georgia won a national title, allowing Wyatt to achieve one of his top goals when coming to the Bulldogs. When he announced his NFL Draft decision, Wyatt made sure to send a message to the Georgia players and coaches he accomplished that goal alongside.

“To Coach Smart, Coach Scott, all of my coaches, and all of the support staff I want to thank you for believing in me. My family and I are forever grateful,” Wyatt said. “To my brothers at UGA, I love you guys and I’ll never forget the memories of this championship season. Forever Go Dawgs!”