Penn State and the NFL mock draft roundups: Where could former Lions land in the pros?

The end of the NFL season means one thing: It’s officially mock draft time.

A number of outlets took their first shot at predicting how this year’s selection process will play out after the Kansas City Chiefs completed a comeback to beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl 54 on Sunday.

Unsurprisingly, many former Penn State players are expected to be picked in one of the seven rounds once the annual Draft begins in late April. The event will be held in Las Vegas this year, and it’s not out of the question to think that at least two onetime Lions could be invited to sit in the green room as one of the potential first 32 selections.

Here’s how a number of prominent Draft experts believe things could shake out as players continue to prepare for the NFL Combine, which will be held later this month:

CBS Sports

Three NFL writers from the site made first-round projections, but just two see end Yetur Gross-Matos landing in the there.

Ryan Wilson predicted that the multi-time All-Big Ten talented would go at No. 27 to Seattle, while Josh Edwards sees the Tennessee Titans as a fit at No. 29.

The outlet’s Tom Fornelli, who specializes in college football, also took a crack at it, and he put Gross-Matos at No. 9 to the Jacksonville Jaguars and called it the “first surprise” of the top-10.

NFL.com

Chad Reuter has a three-round mock draft out, and he sees multiple Penn State players among the first 100 or so picks, starting with Gross-Matos at No. 22 to the Buffalo Bills.

“With Shaq Lawson heading toward free agency this offseason, the Bills might look to the draft to keep the defense strong on the edge,” Reuter writes.

“Gross-Matos possesses the ability to stack his man on the line and beat him around the corner.”

Star receiver KJ Hamler is the next player listed in Round 2 to the Minnesota Vikings with the No. 58 overall pick. Finally, defensive tackle Robert Windsor is pegged as a third-round pick to the Denver Broncos at No. 77.

Bleacher Report

By far the most extensive entry on the Internet, longtime draftnik Matt Miller offered a complete seven-round rundown. His list starts elsewhere, though, with Hamler to the Jaguars at No. 42.

From there, Miller slots Gross-Matos 11 slots later with the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 53, and projects Windsor as a Round 6 pick of the Detroit Lions.

Finally, there are two Round 7 predictions: Linebacker Cam Brown to the Oakland Raiders and corner John Reid to the Denver Broncos.

ESPN

The outlet’s top draft analysts, Todd McShay and Mel Kiper, have different opinions on Gross-Matos. The former does not include him as a first-round pick while the latter slots him at No. 29 to Tennessee.

“Gross-Matos is a pick to help the competition on the other side of Harold Landry, who came into his own this season. Gross-Matos has long arms on his 6-foot-5 frame, and he is stellar against the run,” Kiper writes.

“He’s not a quick-twitch pass-rusher like Young or Chaisson, but he’s a solid player and hard worker. General manager Jon Robinson has an eye for talent, and it’s a huge offseason for Tennessee.”

Sporting News

Put another strike in the column for Gross-Matos going to Buffalo. SN’s Vinnie Iyer writes:

“A pass rush upgrade will be fighting wide receiver help early on the Bills’ draft board. Gross-Matos (6-5, 242 pounds) is a well-built, explosive and versatile defender who can thrive in Sean McDermott and Leslie Frazier’s 4-3 scheme with Lorenzo Alexander retiring and Shaq Lawson a pending free agent.”

USA Today

Here, we find another prediction for Gross-Matos to Seattle. Writes Nate Davis:

“Free agency figures to decimate Seattle’s D-line, which needs to be deep and non-reliant on blitz help to make this scheme work.”

SB Nation

We close out our rundown here with a two-round mock draft from Dan Kadar. He has Gross-Matos falling into the second round and landing at No. 44 overall to the Indianapolis Colts, and also sees a Keystone State fit for KJ Hamler, as he projects him to the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 53 overall.