The NFL Draft Spotlight is Shining Bright on Luke Musgrave
Image courtesy of Oregon State Athletics
The reminder is there almost everywhere you look. It’s on street corners and billboards. It’s on NFL Network and it’s hashtagged in every tweet from every NFL Draft guru worth their salt.
The Draft Starts in MOBILE!
For those who haven’t had the privilege of feeling the urge to dive into Mel Kiper Jr.’s mock drafts, or do a full seven-round mock of their own (with trades!) on Pro Football Focus or The Draft Network the second your favorite NFL team’s season ends: the annual Reese’s Senior Bowl held in Mobile, Alabama marks the beginning of what some refer to as Draft SZN.
As professional football hits the pause button for one week before the final game of the season is played, the NFL world descends on Hancock Whitney Stadium on the campus of Southern Alabama University in search of the next batch of players who can help their team reach the final game of the season some day. If the week of Senior Bowl practice serves as the NFL Draft’s opening night, then Oregon State tight end Luke Musgrave is making a serious argument to have his name in lights above the proverbial marquee.
Despite missing almost the entire season for the Beavs with a knee injury suffered at Fresno State in Week Two, Musgrave’s stock has remained high in NFL Draft circles. All season long his name routinely came up as a Top Five TE and a Top 60 player overall. After three practices in Mobile, Musgrave has made a serious argument to be the first tight end off the board at the 88th annual NFL Draft in Kansas City this April.
“I have this goal to be the best tight end I can be. Ultimately be the best that’s ever played,” Musgrave told reporters at Senior Bowl Media Day. “That’s my goal. I will minimize the hole I dug myself into with this injury.”
To be the best that’s ever played is a handsome goal, and tomorrow’s Senior Bowl will be the first game action for Musgrave in almost five months. By the time he gets on the field for his first official NFL action it will have been almost a full calendar year since sustaining the knee injury on that wild night in the Valley. Before his hall of fame hopeful professional career can begin, he needs to navigate this three-month job interview that is Draft SZN. Thus far, the big tight end from Bend is absolutely nailing it.
Musgrave has turned in highlight reel catch after highlight reel catch in practice. He ‘Moss’d’ a number of his Senior Bowl teammates in practice and has been a favorite target of TCU Quarterback Max Duggan in Mobile.
It’s become impossible to consume any draft content without hearing Musgrave’s name. Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy mentioned Musgrave as a player he sees moving into the first round at the first press conference of the week. Draft writers Dane Brugler (The Athletic) and Lance Zierlein (NFL.com) talked of Musgrave as the top tight end in the draft and possibly the highest drafted player participating in the Senior Bowl. His biggest competition for the title of Top TE is Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer and Utah’s Dalton Kincaid, neither of whom are in Mobile.
He reached an astounding speed of 20.05 miles per hour in practice, the fastest mark for a tight end not only at this Senior Bowl, but in the five years since the event started tracking the metric. Most importantly, he’s getting first-round grades from the scouts. Raising the question of not only will he be selected on day one, but also, how high?
It’s a good question. The NFL Draft is comically impossible to predict. It only takes one team to fall in love with you to make you a top ten pick, but if that team decides to go with the absolute house of a defensive tackle from the SEC, you might fall another 40 slots. It’s easy to get excited about the possibility of Musgrave’s name lighting up the screen early on the NFL Draft’s opening night. But when it comes to the Draft, a cautiously optimistic approach is always best.
From an Oregon State perspective, Musgrave has the chance to make some real history here. If he is selected in the first round, he’ll be the first Beaver to do so since Brandin Cooks was selected by the Saints at No. 20 overall in 2014.
Nearly a decade between first-rounders illustrates some of the lean years the Beavs have emerged from. The real history will be made if a team takes Musgrave any earlier than Cooks went. To find the last Beaver selected before 20th overall, you have to go all the way back to 1963 when Heisman Trophy Winner Terry Baker went No. 1 overall.
There’s reason to believe that dubious 60-year streak could come to an end. Not only is Musgrave a rare prospect, but a number of TE-needy teams are stacked up in the draft order before 20th overall. Virtually every team 11-19 starting with the Titans at No. 11 have a reasonable need at the position. The current stretch in the middle of the draft with the Patriots at 14, the Packers at 15, and the Commanders at 16, make up a trio of juicy landing spots for tight ends.
Musgrave’s draft odyssey has certainly gotten off to a good start in Mobile. Will he be the history-making Beaver draft pick the scouts and sickos all say he can be? Or will he be the latest Oregon State player to endure a buzz-killing delay to see his name come off the board? We’ll find out in two and a half months.
Welcome to Draft SZN.
