Tennessee football: Another 2023 draft board’s top Vol is shocking

There are lots of big names on Tennessee football entering 2022. Hendon Hooker is a dark-horse Heisman candidate, Cedric Tillman is a returning 1,000-yard receiver, Jeremy Banks and Byron Young are stat padders on defense. However, to some experts, not one of them is the Vols’ top 2023 NFL Draft prospect.

It makes sense. Only one returning player on the roster was a five-star across the board, and while he appears to be flying under the radar in general, draft analysts are starting to notice. Senior Darnell Wright is that one player, and he’s starting to get more recognition.

Brad Crawford of 247Sports named Wright as Tennessee football’s only top 50 NFL Draft prospect for 2023 right now. Yes, he left off Hooker, shockingly, and he left off the other guys we mentioned who are all going to be seniors.

This isn’t the first time Wright was named a top draft prospect from Rocky Top either. Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports has Wright as a projected first round draft pick, right now being selected by the Indianapolis Colts at No. 20.

To a degree, though, it makes sense. Wright, who came in at No. 49 on Crawford’s board, isn’t just the only five-star on the Vols’ roster who is a returning starter. He also brings plenty of experience to the position with still some untapped potential.

Wright has been starting on the Vols when healthy since his true freshman season in 2019. He spent his first two years at right tackle, though, and had to move over to left tackle last year while also learning the new system Josh Heupel brought to town.

We should also note that some of his struggles came due to the Vols having to move Jerome Carvin over from left guard to center due to injuries to Cooper Mays, making Wright fully responsible for the left side of the line. That created its own issues.

As a result, he was naturally going to struggle. With another year in the system, though, and fully healthy, Wright could become a breakout star on the line for Tennessee football. He’s definitely the biggest headliner for them up front with Cade Mays gone.

When you combine all of that with his frame at 6’6″ 335 pounds, it’s easy to see why some might consider him the Vols’ best 2023 draft prospect. He had the most hype coming out of high school for a reason, and this may finally be the year he lives up to it.

Two years ago, Wright and Wanya Morris were expected to be the future of Tennessee football at tackle. Morris had more hype before transferring to the Oklahoma Sooners, but Wright was more highly rated across the board on the trail. So far, that’s leading to him getting more NFL Draft hype as well.