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ESPN’s Todd McShay Projects Yetur Gross-Matos As First-Round Pick In First 2020 Mock Draft

ESPN NFL Draft expert Todd McShay dropped his first 2020 NFL mock draft on Monday. He predicts that Penn State defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos will be selected by the Baltimore Ravens with the No. 32 overall pick.

Gross-Matos declared for the NFL Draft on December 3 — just a few days after the Nittany Lions’ regular season wrapped up. Despite his decision to forego his final year of eligibility in favor of a pro career, the star defensive end will play for Penn State in this year’s Cotton Bowl Classic against Memphis on December 28.

The junior from Spotsylvania, Virginia recorded eight sacks and 13.5 tackles for a loss of yardage throughout the 2019 regular season. He was named a second team All-Big Ten selection by the Associated Press thanks to his performance throughout 2019, and the conference itself named him a first team All-Big Ten choice.

Gross-Matos had his breakout season in 2018 — the year in which he posted eight sacks and 20 stops for a loss — before truly establishing himself as one of college football’s best at the position as a junior. The star defensive end led the Nittany Lions in sacks in each of his two full years as a starter, and he truly emerged as the leader of Sean Spencer’s Wild Dogs in 2019.

Experts across multiple outlets have universally agreed that Gross-Matos will be a day one pick at the 2020 NFL Draft, which will take place in Paradise, Nevada from April 23-25. CBS Sports recently projected that the defensive end will be nabbed with the 31st pick by Seattle, and NBC Sports thinks the New England Patriots will take Gross-Matos with the No. 30 pick. Elsewhere, the Sporting News thinks Gross-Matos will be selected with the 25th overall pick by Dallas.

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About the Author

Mikey Mandarino

In the most upsetting turn of events, Mikey graduated from Penn State with a digital & print journalism degree in the spring of 2020. He covered Penn State football and served as an editor for Onward State from 2018 until his graduation. Mikey is from Bedminster, New Jersey, so naturally, he spends lots of time yelling about all the best things his home state has to offer. Mikey also loves to play golf, but he sucks at it because golf is really hard. If you, for some reason, feel compelled to see what Mikey has to say on the internet, follow him on Twitter @Mikey_Mandarino. You can also get in touch with Mikey via his big-boy email address: [email protected]

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