Michigan Football: Which Wolverines will opt for NFL over spring?

Taking a look at the Michigan football players who could choose the NFL draft instead of playing a spring season in 2021.

The fallout over the Big Ten’s decision to postpone its season until the Spring is immense and one of the biggest consequences, at least for Michigan football players, is the impact on the NFL draft.

In a lot of ways, we don’t even know the full impact yet.

As of right now, the 2021 NFL draft is set to take place on April 29. The league does have the ability to push it back to June 2, but there are other questions that need to be answered too.

If the draft is pushed back, what about the entry date for players? As it stands now, would players, who played in the spring even be eligible for the NFL draft? Or would have they to wait for the supplemental draft or worse yet, the 2022 draft before getting their chance?

I’m not necessarily talking about the guys we know will get drafted. What about the ones that are on the border, What do they do?

For underclassmen, it’s not as tough a decision. Take someone like Jalen Mayfield. Right now, he’s getting talked about as a first-round pick and he has a season of starts under his belt.

If he took the route of others and opted for the NFL draft, he could spend the time leading up the draft training and preparing.

Others have done it after injury. If you have the size, skill, and the film to back it up, why not?

If you are Mayfield though, you might miss the chance to cement yourself as a top-10 pick or even a first-rounder.

Maybe by entering right away, he goes in the second or third round. Long term, that might be better than if he has to play a spring and fall season before getting another bite at the apple.

For the record, I think Mayfield will probably opt for the NFL draft unless there is a way for players who play in the Spring to be eligible for the 2021 draft.

Here’s a look at who else could go and who has a tough decision to make.