NFL.com mock draft projects great landing spots for 2 Wildcats

The Kentucky Wildcats may always be a basketball-first school, but you’ll miss something special if you don’t realize what they’ve built their football program into.

With three straight bowl wins and five-straight postseason appearances, the Wildcats aren’t just winning big-time games. They’re now developing players that end up hearing their names called in the NFL Draft, a key attribute for any top program.

This year, Kentucky is almost guaranteed to have one first-round pick in linebacker Jamin Davis. Cornerback Kelvin Joseph has also been mocked as a first-round pick, though not nearly as often as Davis. With potentially two in the first 32, it could be a great Day 1 for Wildcat football.

That said, in his most recent mock draft, NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah has the Cleveland Browns taking Davis at No. 26. Jeremiah loves the potential of Davis.

“I’ve been president of the Davis fan club for a while now, but to say he destroyed at his pro day would be an understatement. It matches what I saw on tape, and he fills a need for Cleveland,” Jeremiah wrote.

It’s easy to see why analysts can fall in love with the athletic Kentucky linebacker. He was a man of many traits last season, producing 102 tackles, 3 interceptions, 4 tackles for loss, 2 passes defended and one touchdown in ten games. He averaged over 10 combined tackles per game.

That’s the production of a player ready to take his game to the next level. And landing with a team like the Browns, who went 11-5 last year and won a playoff game for the first time since 1994, could mean Davis is playing for a legitimate Super Bowl contender next season.

However, Jeremiah doesn’t think it’ll be just Davis in the first round. He has Kelvin Joseph going with the second-to-last first-round pick.

That’s not always a bad thing if you’re drafted by Kansas City. The Chiefs will most likely enter the season as one of, if not the top Super Bowl favorite. Here’s what Jeremiah had to say on the standout cornerback.

“Kansas City has always valued elite traits. Joseph is big, fast and explosive. He’s a little bit raw, but he could team up with L’Jarius Sneed to give the Chiefs two young, athletic cornerbacks,” he wrote.

Joseph would be a great fit in Kansas City, and by the backend of the first round, many of the top-tier cornerback prospects will be off the board.

Both Davis and Joseph have potential to be first-round picks, and it’ll be interesting to see where they land come April 29.