HEADLINES

Treylon Burks

Draft Rumors: Giants, Jets, Eagles, Lions, Seahawks, Cowboys, Browns

April 9th, 2022 at 4:42pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Giants used a top-five pick on an offensive lineman in 2020, and Andrew Thomas now anchors their line. But the team entered the offseason with needs everywhere else up front. Even after adding multiple likely interior O-line starters in March, Big Blue has a vacancy at right tackle. This has led the Giants to do extensive prep on this draft’s top tackles, including Alabama’s Evan Neal, NC State’s Ikem Ekwonu and Mississippi State’s Charles Cross, SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano notes. Other teams are penciling the Giants in to take a tackle at No. 5 or No. 7, a rival exec said, via Vacchiano. The Giants brought sizable contingents to the three top tackles’ pro days and have been previously linked to Cross, who rates behind Neal and Ekwonu.

With two picks in the top seven, it would surprise if one of the top three tackles remained on the board after the Giants’ second pick — assuming it is not traded. The Panthers, who hold the No. 6 pick, have eyed Ekwonu and Cross as well. That could put the Giants to the test with the first of their Round 1 choices, with other teams in front of them — namely the Texans and Jets — strong candidates to draft tackles as well. The Giants could exit the first round with a right tackle to join offseason additions Mark Glowinski and Jon Feliciano as part of their latest up-front overhaul.

Here is the latest from the draft realm:

  • Another candidate to join the Giants, Ahmad Gardner will pay them a visit and meet with several other teams ahead of the draft. The Cincinnati standout has emerged as the favorite to be the first cornerback taken, and ProFootballNetwork.com’s Aaron Wilson notes the Jets, Eagles, Lions and Seahawks join the Giants in scheduling “30” visits. The Giants and Jets are believed to have strong interest in Gardner, who seems unlikely to make it out of the top 10. The Jets hold the Nos. 4 and 10 picks.
  • The Cowboys brought in a few first-round prospects this week. Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis, Utah linebacker Devin Lloyd and Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green visited the Cowboys this week, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (all Twitter links). Lloyd and Davis rate as top-12 prospects, per NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah. Barring freefalls or Dallas trading up from No. 24, they will be out of range. Green is viewed by Jeremiah and ESPN.com as the top guard available, being slotted just outside the top 25 by each. The Cowboys, who lost Connor Williams in free agency, are targeting O-linemen early.
  • One of this draft’s top wide receivers, Treylon Burks has met with a few teams already. In addition to Cowboys and Buccaneers summits, the Arkansas product spent time with the Browns and Jets this week, Wilson tweets. The Texans are up next. The Browns are an unrealistic Burks suitor, having traded their first-round pick (No. 13) to the Texans, who would loom as a potential destination thanks to one of the choices they acquired in the Deshaun Watson deal. The Jets have made their wide receiver interest fairly well known this offseason.
  • Although they do not have a first-round pick until 2025, the Browns still hold their second-rounder (No. 44) this year. In addition to their Friday Burks meeting, the Browns brought in North Dakota State wide receiver Christian Watson, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. ESPN and Jeremiah slot the Division I-FCS product 45th. The 6-foot-4 pass catcher played with Trey Lance as a sophomore in 2019 and earned All-American acclaim in 2021.

WR Draft Notes: Commanders, Cowboys, Bucs, Saints, Jets

April 5th, 2022 at 4:33pm CST by Sam Robinson

One of two Ohio State wide receivers expected to become first-round picks later this month, Chris Olave will tour two NFC East teams’ facilities this week. The Cowboys are hosting Olave on a visit Tuesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The former Justin Fields and C.J. Stroud pass catcher will also meet with the Commanders on Thursday, SI.com’s Albert Breer tweets. Olave and Terry McLaurin were teammates in 2018, Olave’s freshman year, and Breer adds the wideouts are close. Having traded for Carson Wentz, the Commanders (pick No. 11) are in need of a complementary pass catcher alongside McLaurin. They have not chosen a first-round wideout since Josh Doctson in 2016. The Cowboys (No. 24) have pulled the trigger on a first-round wideout recently — CeeDee Lamb in 2020 — but Jerry Jones based the Amari Cooper trade on resource allocation, and Dallas adding a low-cost wideout alongside Lamb and the rehabbing Michael Gallup would make sense. Though, the Cowboys are interested in offensive linemen as well.

Here is the latest from the wide receiver draft landscape:

  • Also ranked as a first-round prospect, Arkansas’ Treylon Burks is meeting with a few teams this week. The Cowboys hosted the 225-pound playmaker Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, adding that the Buccaneers will meet with Burks later this week. The Saints are also hosted the 6-foot-2 target last week, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.football tweets. It would surprise if the Bucs (No. 27) went wideout in Round 1, given their Mike Evans–Chris Godwin–Russell Gage setup, but the team could use a cheap building block due to employing three eight-figure-per-year wideouts. The Saints (Nos. 16, 19) are rather desperate for receiving help, with Michael Thomas having run into significant injury trouble over the past two years. New Orleans now has two first-round picks, putting wideout squarely in play.
  • Also holding two first-round selections, the Jets have met with this draft’s top-graded wideout (per Scouts Inc.). Checking in as the No. 6 overall prospect, Garrett Wilson visited the Jets on Monday, Schefter adds (on Twitter). Wilson and Olave formed a top-end duo last season, with the former leading the Buckeyes with 1,058 receiving yards. The Jets have the Nos. 4 and 10 picks and have been linked to receivers throughout the offseason.
  • The tallest of this year’s elite receiver prospects will hold a late pro day. Drake London pushed his pro day to April 15 due to a hamstring issue, Rapoport tweets. The 6-foot-3 USC product ranks as Scouts Inc.’s No. 9 overall prospect.
  • John Metchie checks in as a second-round prospect, but teams are still doing work on the Alabama contributor. The Commanders are using a “30” visit on Metchie on Friday, Breer adds. The former DeVonta Smith/Jaylen Waddle sidekick joins Crimson Tide first-round prospect Jameson Williams in coming off a major injury. A December ACL tear damaged Metchie’s draft stock.

NFL Draft Prospect Profile: Arkansas WR Treylon Burks

March 6th, 2022 at 9:30pm CST by Ely Allen

Treylon Burks has spent his entire life living in Arkansas. The kid is Arkansas born and raised. After only three years of play at the University of Arkansas, NFL teams are dying to give Burks his first home outside of The Natural State. 

Burks left Warren High School as the top-ranked player in the state, despite missing most of his senior season due to a torn ACL. The multi-sport athlete signed to continue his education in-state and made an immediate impact. As a true freshman, Burks gave the Razorbacks 475 yards receiving. Although, Burks is a big-body receiver (measured at 6’2″ and 225 lb. this weekend in Indianapolis), the freshman was so explosive in the open field that his coaches gave him kick- and punt-returner duties. Burks took the opportunity and ran with it, being named 2nd Team All-Sec as a return specialist his freshman year.

In the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Burks broke out in a big way, racking up 820 yards and 7 touchdowns in only 8 games. With all eyes on him and expectations sky-high for the 2021 college season, Burks soared. Despite constant double-teams as the only perceived receiving threat for the Razorbacks, Burks still managed to catch 66 balls for 1,104 yards and 11 touchdowns. He even managed to add on 112 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to the ledger.

As a pro, Burks screams No. 1 receiver material. He has the physical, big body to dominate in jump ball scenarios along with run-after-catch ability to be a threat outside the red-zone, as well. He tracks and adjusts to the ball well in the air and his catch radius will give his future quarterback a bit of leeway to just throw the ball in his general direction. His versatility from college with returns and some rushing attempts have appropriately earned him multiple comparisons to a big-bodied Deebo Samuel.

In The Athletic’s Dane Brugler’s prospect position rankings from December, Burks was listed as the third best receiver behind Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson and Alabama’s Jameson Williams. Many mock drafts see Burks as the second or third wide receiver generally taken off the board behind Wilson and USC’s Drake London. Burks is nearly a consensus first round pick, with many evaluators predicting him to gone by the second half of the first round.

Regardless of when he gets picked up, the lack of any NFL teams in Arkansas guarantees that Burks will soon be heading for a new destination. Whichever team gives him a call on draft night is going to receive an NFL-ready, Day 1 starter ready to compete with NFL corners. Look for teams who currently lack a true No. 1 receiver to pull the trigger somewhere in the middle of the first round, if not earlier.

Arkansas WR Treylon Burks Declares For NFL Draft

December 8th, 2021 at 3:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

Another potential first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft has set his sights on his professional career. Arkansas wide receiver Treylon Burks tweeted that he will opt of the Razorbacks’ upcoming bowl game and forego his senior year.

Burks had a hugely productive career during his three years in Arkansas. The high-end prospect’s junior year was his best. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound wideout tallied 67 catches for 1,123 yards and 11 touchdowns, along with 112 yards and another score on the ground, this season.

The SEC figures to send a few first-round-caliber receivers into the 2022 draft pool. Burks’ yardage total ranked fourth in the conference, behind the likes of Alabama stars Jameson Williams and John Metchie. Burks, however, is listed as ESPN’s sixth-highest-ranked receiver — behind Williams but ahead of Metchie — and checks in at No. 24 overall in Mel Kiper’s latest 2022 draft rankings.

The No. 22-ranked team in the country according to the final AP rankings, Arkansas will play Penn State on New Year’s Day in the Outback Bowl. Burks joins Oregon pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux as Round 1-level talents who intend to skip their team’s bowl game to concentrate on pre-draft training. They will certainly not be the last among the 2022 crop.