NFL News NFL News, Reports and Updates
Back in 2021, my bosses at CBS Sports approached me with the idea to create a set of rankings similar to our own Pete Prisco’s Better-Than Team, focusing on college football players I liked more than the average analyst or fan entering the season. We put together a list of 20 players — after all, I wore No. 20 with the Pittsburgh Steelers — highlighting guys you needed to watch beyond the more notable names on Preseason All-America teams and early NFL Draft boards.
We took a few years off after that, getting caught up in the whirlwind of training camps and life on the road. But looking back, some of the hits from that list, like Michael Penix becoming an NFL first-round pick and the rise of Trent McDuffie, reminded us of just how much fun this project was. Inspired by those successes, we decided it was time to reconvene and do it again. This time, we’re bringing in 247Sports’ scoop extraordinaire Matt Zenitz to help mine for players. Zenitz already named some underrated draft prospects on either side of the ball (offense here, defense there).
The rules are simple: we’re choosing only draft-eligible players (so we can check our work next spring) who are not projected first-round picks. Travis Hunter is certainly not making this list.
After calling coaches and contacts across the country and watching so much film that my eyes hurt, I’ve whittled down my Need-to-Know 20 for the upcoming college football season. I even ranked them in order of just how good I feel about these guys. Check ’em out below.
Donovan…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/college-footballs-need-to-know-20-the-most-underrated-nfl-draft-prospects-entering-the-2024-season/
Author : Bryant McFadden
Publish date : 2024-08-22 14:20:13
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
