Since 2021, the Georgia Bulldogs defense has produced seven 1st Round picks in the NFL Draft and a total of 23 defensive players selected, both highs in that timeframe. Looking ahead to next April's 2025 NFL Draft, it's looking like this trend will continue on. Two Georgia defenders, linebacker Mykel Williams and safety Malaki Starks, have been pegged as future top ten picks since the last college football season ended. But now there's another Bulldog in the top ten of Mel Kiper's big board.
Following a dominant performance against the Texas Longhorns this past Saturday, linebacker Jalon Walker has skyrocketed up the board, going from 24th to 10th as quickly as he was getting to Quinn Ewers last week. This is what Kiper had to say about Walker, who had three sacks in Austin, in Thursday afternoon's big board update:
“Walker gets into the backfield as if he were shot out of a cannon, and his bend and explosion off the edge help him beat blockers and get to the quarterback or ball carrier. He's a versatile defender, with experience both as an off-ball linebacker and a pass rusher. His sideline-to-sideline speed gets your attention when you watch the tape.”
Mykel Williams and Malaki Starks are fourth and eighth respectively on Kiper's big board. Kiper also ranks Carson Beck as the 2025 Draft's 4th-best quarterback, and a trio of interior offensive linemen — Jared Wilson, Dylan Fairchild and Tate Ratledge — among the best in the class. But it's Walker who is arguably the biggest story, and given the way that Georgia head coach Kirby Smart talks about him, it makes sense why.
“He’s just such a high-character kid and high moral value and great family. I mean, you think back to all those wins you get in recruiting and how you really don't know how important they are,” Smart said, according to Anthony Dasher of UGASports. “I think back to when he called and told us he was coming, what that changed his life towards and what it changed for us.”
Speaking of change, what makes Jalon Walker's 2024 emergence even more impressive is that he's not playing his natural position. Having previously lined up more on the edge, Walker is predominantly playing inside linebacker this year. In the end, this positional versatility could be a reason why a team in the top ten would be intrigued by him as a prospect.