Penn State football: PFF projects Yetur Gross-Matos as first-rounder
Penn State football defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos is still getting first-round buzz for the 2020 NFL Draft.
Before the 2019 College Football Season had begun, many viewed Penn State football defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos as a potential first-round pick. As the young defensive end had a dominant Sophomore season for the Lions in 2018, leading the team in sacks and tackle-for-losses, it didn’t really come as much of a surprise that he was on the first-round radar.
That was before the 2019 season kicked off, though. Now that we are six games through the 2019 NCAA season, is Yetur Gross Matos still viewed as a consensus top-round pick? Let’s take a look at his progress first.
As of right now, Gross-Matos has collected 18 total tackles. He has 5.5 sacks and eight tackle-for-losses. Already, Gross-Matos is three sacks away from tying his career-high, which occurred last season — and the Lions are only halfway through their season.
In other words, Gross-Matos is still as good we all expected him to be. So it doesn’t really come as a surprise that the Penn State edge rusher is getting first-round buzz once again. Where precisely in the first round is he getting projected to, though? Let’s check-in with Pro Football Focus writer and analyst, Michael Renner, who put together a 2020 NFL Mock Draft.
Gross-Matos headed to Miami?
The supposed tanking Miami Dolphins will possess multiple first-round picks next spring as they look to rebuild their squad. According to Renner’s guesses, the Dolphins will look to rebuild their defensive line, and that will start by taking a defensive end second-overall pick.
No, that specific pick is not Penn State’s Yetur Gross-Matos. Instead, it’s Ohio State’s, Chase Young. Then, with the Dolphins’ eighth pick, Renner mocks an offensive lineman headed there. And finally, for their third and final pick of the first round (25th overall), they take Gross-Matos.
Next. Penn State put on upset alert vs. Michigan. dark
“He’s got length plus burst and now (finally) some production,” Renner wrote. “He’s had at least three pressures in every single game this season after accomplishing that in only four games last year.” It doesn’t come as a surprise that Gross-Matos is viewed as a potential first-round pick.
We see first-hand every week, just how dominant he can be in the trenches. While 25th overall seems lower than initially projected — there’s still plenty of football left to be played. And that could change.