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While the 2014 NFL Draft is less than a month old, it is never too early to start looking ahead to 2015. College football and NFL fans are always interested in who the top college football prospects are for the upcoming year and there is a familiar name to Sun Devil fan on these lists so far: Jaelen Strong.
The Arizona State wide receiver burst onto the scene with a strong 2013 campaign that saw him catch 75 passes for 1,122 yards and seven touchdowns. Strong showed a knack for making tough catches in traffic and showed big play ability. NFL talent evaluators have taken notice.
CBS Sports, Walter Football, ESPN (insider) and SI all have the Arizona State product going in the first round in their 2015 mock drafts. While it is still every early in the process, every major prognosticator sees Strong has having first round talent.
When you read these reports that these "experts" say about Strong you will notice a common theme: his size. Strong stands 6-foot-4 and weights a reported 205 pounds and with his frame he even add 15-20 pounds. The taller, more physical wide receivers, like Calvin Johnson and Demarious Thomas, are becoming the hot trend in the NFL and Strong fits that mold.
Again, a lot can happen between now and the 2015 draft. Right now, the only receiver universally ahead of Strong is Alabama's Amari Cooper. Most of these mock drafts have Strong going somewhere between 16-25 and Cooper going top-10.
Arizona State has not had a player taken in the first round of the NFL Draft since 2003, when Terrell Suggs went No. 10 overall to the Ravens. The last Arizona State wide receiver taken in the first round was Aaron Cox in 1988.