Eyes on the quarterbacks as underclassmen begin declaring for 2018 NFL Draft

Only three underclassmen have declared for the 2018 NFL Draft at this early date, but there will be many more.

Mark Walton, a junior running back at Miami, just informed the team he has signed with an agent. The 5-foot-10 205 pounder has good speed. He ran for over 1,000 yards in 2016 but played in only four games this season due to an ankle injury.

Walton looks like a third or fourth round selection. He joins Texas offensive tackle Connor Williams and tight end Hayden Hurst from South Carolina.

With two NFL teams making recent changes at the quarterback position, the top of the draft could be effected.

The Giants’ benching of Eli Manning for Geno Smith is somewhat curious because of the other option available during a lost season. Rookie backup Davis Webb, their third round pick in the most recent draft, has a big arm but bad accuracy problems. Reports are the Giants are looking to draft one of the top rated quarterbacks in the 2018 draft.

The 49ers, who traded for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo from New England, may now look to go in another direction with theit top pick.

Potential top five pick Josh Rosen, junior quarterback at UCLA, left the last game of the regular season with concussion symptoms. His college career may have ended but he hasn’t announced it yet. It appears to be a forgone conclusion.

Players who have been invited to play in the 2018 Senior Bowl on January 27 in Mobile as of this date:

Quarterback
Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma

Running backs
Royce Freeman, Oregon
Akrum Wadley, Iowa

Wide receivers
Courtland Sutton, SMU
Simmie Cobbs*, Indiana (underclassman graduate invite)
Anthony Miller, Memphis
Michael Gallup, Colorado St.
Allen Lazard, Iowa St
Jaleel Scott, New Mexico St.

Tight ends
Dallas Goedert, South Dakota St.
Ian Thomas, Indiana
Tony Fumagalli, Wisconsin
Adam Breneman, UMass
Christopher Herneman, Miami
Tyler Conklin, Central Michigan

Offensive tackles
Martinas Rankin, Mississippi St.
Tyrell Crosby, Oregon
Brandon Parker, North Carolina St.
Chukwuma Okorafor, Western Michigan
Timon Parris, Stony Brook

Offensive guards
Will Hernandez, UTEP
Sean Welsh, Iowa
Isaiah Wynn, Georgia
Skyler Phillips, Idaho St.

Centers
Frank Ragnow, Arkansas
Austin Corbett, Nevada

Defensive ends
Bradley Chubb, North Carolina St.
Marquis Haynes, Ole Miss
Marcus Davenport, Texas-San Antonio
Marcus Martin, Slippery Rock

Defensive tackles
Maurice Hurst, Michigan
Derrick Nnadi ,Florida St.
Justin Jones, North Carolina St.

Linebackers
Uchenna Nwosu, USC
Darius Leonard, South Carolina St.
Mike McCray, Michigan
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, Oklahoma
Garret Dooley, Wisconsin

Cornerbacks
Darius Phillips, Western Michigan
Duke Dawson, Florida
Siran Neal, Jacksonville St.
D’Montre Wade, Murray State
Michael Joseph, Dubuque
Danny Johnson, Southern
Kamrin Moore, Boston College
Chandon Sullivan, Georgia State
Taron Johnson, Weber State

Safety
Trayvon Henderson, Hawaii

Punter
Johnny Townsend Florida
Long snapper
Tanner Carew Oregon

Contact Al about how to obtain the 2018 DRAFT DAY REPORT rating all the college draft prospects. Email: adupuy1@cox.net