2020 LSU NFL Draft Summary

With the conclusion of the 2020 NFL Draft, the story has officially closed on the 2019 LSU Tiger football team. But in typical 2019 LSU fashion, the team set one more record further solidifying its place in college football history and adding to its argument that it’s the greatest team ever.

LSU had 14 players drafted over the weekend, tying 2004 Ohio State for the most amount of players taken. While LSU tied one draft record, it fell just shy of tying the Miami Hurricanes’ record, also set in the 2004 draft, for most first round picks; that Miami team had six first rounders, while LSU had five.

Still it is by far and away the most successful draft in LSU history, SEC history and among the best in college football history. LSU’s draft class is also unique as no school has ever had a quarterback (Joe Burrow), running back (Clyde Edwards-Helaire) and wide receiver (Justin Jefferson) all taken in the first round of the same draft.

Burrow (first overall, Cincinnati), Jefferson (22nd, Minnesota) and Edwards-Helaire (32nd, Kansas City) were also joined by K’Lavon Chaisson (20th, Jacksonville) and Patrick Queen (28th, Baltimore) in the first round.

Grant Delpit (44th, Cleveland) and Kristian Fulton (61st, Tennessee) both fell out of the first. There were fears for months that Delpit would tumble out of the first round, but it’s disappointing nonetheless. There were concerns about Delpit’s tackling and that sprained ankle he suffered in the Auburn game seemed to have been Delpit’s undoing. All I’ll say is this: go back and watch Delpit’s 2018 tape and tell me he’s not worthy of a first round pick. As for Fulton falling I get the sense that phantom “character issues” related to his two-year suspension led to him falling to the bottom of the second round. There were eight corners selected ahead of him which is laughable. Ohio State’s Jeff Okudah was the runaway best corner in the class, but after that Fulton should have been on the same tier as Florida’s CJ Henderson and Clemson’s A.J. Terrell.

The third round saw Damien Lewis (69th, Seattle), Lloyd Cushenberry (81st Denver) and Jacob Phillips (97th, Cleveland) taken to close out Friday night.

Saturday was the pivotal day for LSU to tie the draft pick record. LSU got off to a fast start when Saahdiq Charles (108th, Washington) and Rashard Lawrence (131st, Arizona) were taken in the fourth round.

Blake Ferguson (185th, Miami) hearing his name called was a welcome surprise. Long snapper is the kind of position where maybe one gets drafted and Ferguson was fortunate enough and talented enough to earn a draft selection.

After Ferguson LSU was one shy of tying the record but had to sweat it out to the end. With five picks to go, Seattle traded back in and took Stephen Sullivan 251st overall.

Once the draft concluded, there were still six LSU players without a home but that quickly changed and all six signed as undrafted free agents over the weekend: Michael Divinity signed with Tampa Bay, Derrick Dillon signed with the New York Giants, Adrian Magee signed with New Orleans, Badara Traore signed with Chicago, Breiden Fehoko signed with the Los Angeles Chargers and Thaddeus Moss, the most surprising LSU player to not get drafted, signed with Washington.