ESPN's Mel Kiper recently updated his list of the top prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft as well as his list of the top prospects at each position, and the latter was filled with Michigan Wolverines football players.
The only U-M player to make his overall top-25 list was senior defensive end Kwity Paye, who checked in at No. 20 overall, as the third-best defensive end in the draft and the sixth-highest rated player from the Big Ten (behind Ohio State junior quarterback Justin Fields at No. 3, Penn State junior linebacker Micah Parsons at No. 5, Ohio State redshirt junior cornerback Shaun Wade at No. 7, Minnesota junior wideout Rashod Bateman at No. 10 and Penn State junior tight end Pat Freiermuth at No. 19).
"Paye hasn't put up big numbers for the Wolverines -- he has 9.5 sacks and a forced fumble in three seasons -- but I don't think he has scratched the surface of his talent just yet," Kiper wrote.
"He is an extremely gifted defender with an impressive physical frame. I think he'll test really well at the NFL combine next year. On tape, he shows some scheme versatility, and he could even play some defensive tackle at the next level.
"I'm betting on Paye's upside here."
Paye hasn't yet decided on whether or not he'll play again for Michigan (whenever that occurs) or enter the NFL Draft, telling reporters yesterday he's in wait-and-see mode.
"I"m just kind of waiting on what decision the Big Ten and NCAA is going to make because we don't know what's going on yet," he explained. "I'll have to go back and talk to my mom and see what's best for me and my family.
"I'm not also worried about making that big decision just yet because I'm enjoying my last couple months with the boys, if these are my last couple months with them."
As for the rest of Kiper's position rankings, senior fullback Ben Mason received the next-highest praise. He checked in as the top-rated fullback on Kiper's board, with the ESPN analyst ranking the five best players at each position.
He did not, however, provide a draft round projection for Mason, or any of the other players on his position rankings list. Kiper selected Paye as the third-best defensive end in the 2021 draft, slotting only Wake Forest's Carlos Basham and Miami (FL)'s Gregory Rousseau ahead of him.
Redshirt sophomore right tackle Jalen Mayfield was the final Wolverine to make the analyst's position rankings list, clocking in as the fourth-best offensive tackle, behind Oregon's Penei Sewell, Texas' Samuel Cosmi and North Dakota State's Dillon Radunz (in that order).
It may come as a surprise to some that Kiper didn't have Mayfield as one of his 25 best overall prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft, seeing as how he pegged the former Wolverine tackle at No. 14 overall on his 2021 draft big board in early May.
IF Paye does wind up coming off the board in the first round like Kiper is projecting, he'll join elite Michigan NFL Draft defensive end company. Believe it or not, only five U-M defensive ends have ever come off the board in the first round, with two of those five occurring under current head coach Jim Harbaugh (Taco Charlton in 2017 and Rashan Gary in 2019).
Michigan Defensive Ends to be Selected in the First Round of the NFL Draft
• 1980 — Curtis Greer (No. 6 overall to the St. Louis Cardinals)
• 1985 — Kevin Brooks (No. 17 overall to the Dallas Cowboys)
• 2010 — Brandon Graham (No. 13 overall to the Philadelphia Eagles)
• 2017 — Taco Charlton (No. 28 overall to the Dallas Cowboys)
• 2019 — Rashan Gary (No. 12 overall to the Green Bay Packers)
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