Cam Jones Leads Hoosiers Contingent of NFL Draft Hopefuls Ahead of This Weekend's NFL Draft

Written by: Nate Comp (@NathanComp1)

The NFL Draft is coming up on Thursday in Kansas City and there are a few Hoosiers with hopes of hearing their name called over the weekend. The Hoosiers have a streak of nine consecutive years with an NFL draft pick, continued last season when Micah McFadden was drafted by the New York Giants in the fifth round. While they have not had a first-round pick in 29 years (second-longest streak in Power Five), it is important for Indiana to continue to stack years in which players are selected in the draft.

So, who has the best shot at extending the streak to ten this year? Let’s take a look.

Cam Jones, Linebacker 6’1” 226 Pounds

Indiana’s best prospect for the 2023 NFL Draft is once again a linebacker; this year, it is fifth-year senior, Cam Jones. Jones was originally a 3-star recruit by 247Sports out of St. Benedict at Auburndale High School in Cordova, Tennessee. He missed the final seven games of last season with a foot injury but was still able to log over 1800 snaps in his collegiate career and appear in 47 games. Even missing the majority of last season, Jones earned a Senior Bowl invite (the first for Indiana since Dan Godsil in 2019) and made the most of the opportunity, totaling seven tackles (five solo), a tackle for loss, and a pass break up in a 27-10 victory for his National Team.

“The Senior Bowl was an amazing opportunity and experience. That was my first time being on the field since my season ending injury, Week 5 of the 2022 season.” Jones told Hoosier Huddle. “It felt good flying around on the field again. Day in and day out was a grind. I embraced every moment because I knew so many other athletes would have loved to be there.”

Jones projects as a sixth-round pick entering the draft. His best ability comes in rushing the passer as a gap blitzer and overwhelming interior offensive linemen with more toughness than many expect. He tested in the 84th percentile in wingspan, making him effective in pursuit with good closing speed and the reach to drag down ball carriers. His knocks come in coverage; he was not asked to be a pass coverage linebacker often with Indiana and while he moves decently well laterally, he does not necessarily have the ability in space to stay with receivers. His weight also makes him one of the smaller linebackers in the draft (7th percentile).

Tiawan Mullen, Cornerback 5’10” 181 Pounds

Tiawan Mullen is an interesting case study, seeing as if this were a couple of years ago, he would have easily projected as the best prospect for the Hoosiers. However, a laggard final couple seasons from Mullen has sunk his draft stock significantly and now the former first-team All-American risks falling to an undrafted free agent level. The former 3-star recruit out of Coconut Creek High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida had his best season in 2020, when he logged 22 tackles, five assists, five pass breakups, three interceptions, and an impressive 45.0 QB rating when targeted. However, this QB rating when targeted spiked the next two seasons to 107 and 104, respectively. He logged almost 2000 snaps at the collegiate level, unfortunately his best snaps came early in his career.

Mullen’s best shot at being drafted comes in convincing a team that what they will get is more like the early Tiawan than the later. He is a quick and confident corner with super-quick feet and is a good reader of the quarterback in underneath routes. He has great closing ability to the line of scrimmage and delivers a solid punch, which also makes him a great run stopping corner. He still tests in the higher percentiles when it comes to strength (19 bench press reps), wingspan (78 7/8 inches), and forty time (4.42), but his recent on-field production has teams warry of using a pick on him. He continues to battle the size narrative that he has battled his entire career; his height and weight both rank in the bottom fifth among draft eligible cornerbacks. He will struggle against size on the outside, meaning he likely cannot play as a boundary corner at the next level.

Mullen is projected as an undrafted free agent.

Luke Haggard, Offensive Tackle 6’7” 297 Pounds

Luke Haggard is the last of the guys out of Indiana that NFL Draft experts consider worth performing a full in-depth analysis on. Haggard started his career via Santa Rosa Junior College before joining the Hoosiers in 2020 and taking over the left tackle starting position in 2021. He was a 3-star JUCO recruit, ranked the 14th best offensive tackle at that level when he committed to Indiana in December of 2019. Haggard was invited and participated in the Shrine Bowl in February. He was called for one offensive holding penalty (declined) and recorded a tackle after an interception by Minnesota’s Tanner Morgan.

Though tackles are known for their abilities in pass protection, Haggard’s strengths come more in his run blocking. His best ability is his knack for exploding off the line and getting to the second level when run blocking. At 6’7”, he is in the 76th percentile when it comes to height. However, at just 297, he is one of the lighter tackles in the field. He will be tasked with significantly improving his technique in pass protection and being able to generate movement along the line, rather than just redirecting guys.

Haggard is projected as an undrafted free agent.

Others

While unlikely to hear their name called, Indiana has a few others that are hoping to get undrafted free agent calls when the NFL Draft concludes. Jaylin Williams earned a Shrine Bowl invite along with Haggard, where Williams logged one tackle on defense and an assisted tackle on special teams. Shaun Shivers and Devon “Monster” Matthews both also entered their names in the draft process, while Alfred Bryant, Demarcus Elliot, Bryant Fitzgerald, Jonathan Haynes, James Head Jr, and Bradley Jennings Jr were all participants in Indiana’s April 7th Pro Day.