When it comes to the NFL Draft, it is more about where you land than anything. For as great as any number of players are coming out of the college game, the pros are a different animal. That is why where former Georgia stars such as CJ Allen end up could make all the difference in the world. He is one of four Georgia players who have a good, to halfway decent chance of being a first-round pick.
In Nicholas Rome's latest NFL mock draft for Saturday Blitz, he has two Georgia players going in the first round. He has offensive tackle Monroe Freeling going No. 29 overall to the Los Angeles Rams. Just a pick later, that is where he has Allen coming off the board to the New England Patriots at No. 30. Of the many places where Allen could conceivably get drafted to, it is hard to beat New England.
Not only would Allen be going to one of the best teams in the NFL today, but he would get to play for the elite defensive-minded head coach that is Mike Vrabel in Foxborough. Vrabel is every bit the motivator and force of personality as Kirby Smart, but is just as good schematically in-game, if not better... Keep in mind that Vrabel played linebacker in the NFL at a Pro Bowl level for the Patriots, too.
Other teams may be in line to draft Allen, but you would be lying to yourself if you did not like this one.
CJ Allen goes to New England Patriots at No. 30 in latest NFL mock draft
Outside of Allen and Freeling, the two other most likely candidates to go in the first round out of Georgia this spring in the 2026 NFL Draft are defensive lineman Christen Miller and wide receiver Zachariah Branch. While Allen is the only one of the quartet who feels like a lock to go to-32, Freeling may be able to take advantage of this incredibly weak offensive tackle class. What about the others?
Miller's game is hard to quantify, other than his impact is felt on the field... As far as Branch is concerned, he does have tremendous NFL pedigree. His late great uncle is Raiders legend Cliff Branch. While all four players will have several days in the sun discussing what could happen for them at the next level, this post is all about Allen, and what all he could bring to the table for New England.
Not to say he is a carbon copy of what made Vrabel a special player coming out of Ohio State, but there is a non-zero chance that the Patriots head coach sees some of him in Allen throughout the draft process. Allen was an excellent linebacker at Georgia, but he will unfortunately get overlooked in the pantheon because he did not win the Butkus or a national championship. He feels like a Patriot...
For that reason, it hard to see him falling past New England in this draft, wherever they are picking.