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Four Tennessee players picked in ESPN's new seven-round NFL mock draft

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•04/22/25•

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James Pearce
Credit: UT Athletics

Tennessee Football didn’t have a first-round pick in ESPN’s new seven-round NFL mock draft on Monday, with James Pearce Jr. dropping to the middle of the second round, but the Vols did have three picks in the first three rounds. 

ESPN’s Jordan Reid projected all 257 picks over seven rounds and had four Tennessee players getting picked: Pearce, running back Dylan Sampson, defensive lineman Omarr Norman-Lott and wide receiver Dont’e Thornton. 

He had Pearce falling to the 43rd overall pick, selected in the second round by the San Francisco 49ers. He had Sampson going to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the third round, with the No. 88 overall pick, and Norman-Lott to the Minnesota Vikings in the third round, with the No. 97 overall pick. Thornton was a fifth-round pick, taken by the Tennessee Titans at No. 141 overall.

James Pearce could go ‘anywhere from the late teens to the late second round’

Pearce last season had 7.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss in 13 games, despite having just 0.5 tackles for loss and no sacks through Tennessee’s first three games of the season. 

In three seasons at Tennessee he had 71 tackles, 30 tackles for loss, 19.5 sacks and one interception returned for a touchdown. 

Pearce put his athleticism on display at the NFL Scouting Combine in February with a 4.47 time in the 40. His 10-yard time of 1.58 was in the 98th percentile. His 40 time was the fastest among defensive ends at the Combine.

“The 49ers need edge help opposite Nick Bosa,” Reid wrote in Monday’s mock draft, “and Pearce’s 19% pressure rate was second in the FBS last season. His draft stock is all over the place, with the scouts I’ve talked to having Pearce going off the board anywhere from the late teens to the late second round.”

Dylan Sampson last season: 1,491 yards, 22 touchdowns

Sampson broke Tennessee single-season rushing records for yards, with 1,491, and touchdowns, with 22, during his junior season. In 35 games over three years at Tennessee, he ran for 2,492 yards and 35 touchdowns while averaging 5.9 yards per carry.

“With Travis Etienne Jr. in the final year of his contract,” Reid wrote, “this would be a good place to pick Sampson. He’s an efficient zone runner with excellent contact balance.”

Norman-Lott, who transferred from Arizona State before the 2023 season, had 44 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks in 23 games at Tennessee.

Thornton, an Oregon transfer, caught 39 passes for 885 yards and seven touchdowns in 22 games with the Vols, including 26 catches for 661 yards and six touchdowns last season.

“Norman-Lott would provide (the Vikings with) young depth along the defensive line as a designated pass rusher,” Reid wrote.

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