Texas Football: Top 5 Longhorns 2021 NFL Draft prospects at halfway mark
5) Texas football 2021 NFL Draft prospects at halfway mark
Defensive End. Senior. Ta'Quon Graham. 5. player. 851. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis
There’s no guarantee that any of the Longhorns players on this list will either stay or declare for the 2021 NFL Draft heading into the 2021 offseason. Since the NCAA announced earlier this year that any player participating in the 2020 college football season would not lose one year of eligibility, technically all seniors can return for the Longhorns next season.
But it’s not likely at all that every single one of the top draft-eligible prospects for the Longhorns are going to return for the 2021 season, especially if fourth-year head coach Tom Herman continues to find himself on the hot seat following the fall.
One case that will be interesting to watch is with 6-foot-4 and 295 pound senior defensive end and former four-star recruit Ta’Quon Graham. The potent talent and motor that Graham brings to the table for the Longhorns front seven has yet to have too consistent of an impact for this defense in the box score.
The 2019 season was Graham’s best so far in his four years playing for Texas. So far in his college career, he’s registered 59 total tackles, 18.0 tackles for loss, five sacks, one pass deflection, and one forced fumble. Staying healthy was usually a problem for Graham, but he’s played in all five games for the Longhorns this fall which is a good sign.
When you take a deeper dive into the numbers this year for Graham, you see that he is improving his game in bits and pieces. He’s posting the best overall defensive and pass rushing grades of his career to date. His run defense grade is also good, and has been since the start of last season.
So far this season, Graham has registered 12 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, just two missed tackles, 10 stops on third down, three quarterback hits and six additional pressures, and no penalties called against him.