New York Giants fans can add another prominent draft analyst to the growing list of Jack Kelly fans.
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler raved about Kelly, the former BYU linebacker and No. 193 pick, in a post-draft column.
Kelly, who played his first three seasons at FCS Weber State before later transferring to BYU, earned first-team All-Big 12 honors last year.
A terrifying pass-rusher, Kelly totaled 15 sacks and 23.5 tackles for loss in two seasons at BYU. He was one of only 17 FBS players with at least 10 sacks last year.
“With his explosive speed and [competitive] skills, Kelly likely wasn’t a hard sell in the war room,” Brugler wrote. “He’ll be a special teams dynamo from day one and will push for defensive snaps early in his career.”
Brugler predicted that Kelly will be the Giants’ Day 3 surprise.
What to know about Giants linebacker Jack Kelly
Kelly spent the last four years making life miserable for opposing offensive linemen, both at the FCS and FBS levels.
Although Kelly only ran a 4.57 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, his prowess at breaking through the line of scrimmage made him a trendy sleeper player during the pre-draft process.
Kelly profiled as a hybrid linebacker, and his development under John Harbaugh and Dennard Wilson already makes him a must-watch rookie.
Teams sometimes try to stash late-round picks on the practice squad, but Kelly’s potential ceiling could be enough to keep him on the Week 1 active roster.
Brugler ranked Kelly and the Giants’ seven-man draft class as his second favorite, trailing only the Cleveland Browns.
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