Michigan Football: Breaking down Cam McGrone’s NFL draft decision
Michigan football linebacker Cameron McGrone has declared for the NFL draft and we break down the decision.
There were big things expected of Michigan football defender Cameron McGrone in the 2020 season, but just like the Wolverines, he didn’t meet those expectations.
Some of that certainly had to do with injuries and McGrone was sidelined for most of the season. When he did play, he registered 26 tackles, two tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks.
It’s hard to lay the blame at McGrone’s feet for what went wrong with Michigan football as the defense clearly wasn’t as good without him on the field.
However, he was also supposed to be one of the Wolverines best defenders — an impact player with early-round draft potential. Some even though he had first-round ability.
And McGrone could still be an early-round draft choice. In fact, we will find out this April after he declared for the 2020 NFL draft on Tuesday night.
https://twitter.com/McGrone_Strong/status/1344025558825512962
As a redshirt sophomore, McGrone is obviously eligible for the draft but after a subpar season and really just a flash in 2019, that’s not a lot to go on in terms of the NFL draft.
I will say that during the 2019 season when McGrone first got his opportunity to start, he was really good and made a noticeable difference. He was an impact player but unfortunately I didn’t see that guy in 2020.
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It’s possible that the scheme was holding him back, but his blitz attempts just weren’t as effective and he just wasn’t around the ball as much. Last year, I felt like McGrone was an impact player and this season, it just didn’t feel that way.
That doesn’t mean that he won’t be able to make in the NFL. He was a near five-star recruit in high school for a reason and in 16 career games, he had 91 tackles, 3.0 sacks, 11 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.
Had he been able to build on what he did as a redshirt freshman, I think McGrone going in the first or second round would have made absolute sense.
Now, there is no way that’s going to happen. If he tests well, that could obviously help his stock and McGrone does have positive film, but not enough that he won’t be a risk.
He’s surely a talented player and I wish him the best of luck. But for the sake of his draft stock, he probably could have used another year with Michigan football.