Whoa, hold up. The 2025 NFL Draft is creeping up—like, almost here—and the Tennessee Volunteers crowd has got all kinds of reasons to be buzzing. Hopeful much? Yeah, they have a parade of players eyeing those fancy pro contracts. Can’t blame them.
We got a line-up of Vols making their pro dreams real, with Omarr Norman-Lott, Dont’e Thornton Jr., James Pearce Jr., and Dylan Sampson seeming almost like a sure shot. Even though predicting the future is tricky, right? But, hey, there’s chatter about DT Elijah Simmons sneaking in. Sleeper alert, maybe?
Oh, and this guy Simmons? He’s making some noise. He’s out there selling himself hard to all those NFL teams. Like, really putting it all out there, saying stuff like how he’s gonna bring the fire, consistently. High energy, sort of like a never-ending engine, all in one 6-foot-1 package. And he claims to deliver a thousand percent. Can you actually measure that? Or is it a thing you just feel?
Anyway, reflecting on his college days: Simmons was the beef in the middle, you know? Plugged up the defense, cleared paths for his defensive crew. Stat-wise? Not exactly the stuff of legends, with 59 tackles and not a ton of sacks. But he’s got the right build, and that sometimes counts for more than spreadsheets and number crunching.
His tenure with the Volunteers stretched over five years, quite the stint, starting 13 games in that final season. The twist in this draft story? Defensive tackles sometimes don’t get the love they deserve. So Eli might end up dipping down the draft list—classic undervaluation or something more tactical?
Yet, for those in the know, he screams potential sleeper or even a rogue free agent snag. Some folks pinned him to be 2025’s Mr. Irrelevant with a Kansas City Chiefs jersey at the 257th pick. But look, the NFL is weirdly poetic. You can go in late, yet prove to be essential, outshine all doubts.
So, what’s the takeaway? It’s less about how you get in, more about how you shine once you’re there. Just gotta hustle, show that grit, and see where the ride takes you. And who knows? This year’s draft might just throw us a curveball with good ol’ Eli.
Oh, and before I forget—speaking up of surprises—there’s this DB prospect who apparently is talking big too. Draft chatter, it’s like never-ending popcorn.
