Drew Sanders drafted by the Denver Broncos
Arkansas junior linebacker Drew Sanders was selected 67th overall by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the NFL Draft on Friday.
The 6-foot-4, 236-pound native of Denton, Texas, is the first Razorback linebacker to be drafted since Dre Greenlaw was selected 148th overall by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2019 draft. He is the highest drafted Arkansas linebacker since Quinton Caver was the 55th overall pick by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft.
A transfer from Alabama, Sanders earned first team All-American honors from the Associated Press in 2022 and was named second team All-American by four other outlets, as well as being named first team All-SEC by the AP, Coaches, Pro Football Focus and USA Today.
The standout linebacker earned those honors after he finished second in the SEC and 14th in the nation with 9.5 sacks and he added 13.5 tackles for loss and 103 total tackles on the year. All of that production came during his first season at the Mike linebacker position.
While he produced at an extremely high level at the position, Sanders' small sample size of experience is what scared some NFL teams. It's hard to deny Sanders' production though, and he proved that during his lone season with the Razorbacks.
ESPN ranked Sanders as the No. 70 overall player and the No. 3 inside linebacker entering the draft. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Sanders' production score of 86 ranked first of any NFL Combine linebacker and his total score of 82 ranked second of all combine linebackers.
Of the six rankings systems that HawgBeat used prior to the draft, Sanders was the consensus No. 46 overall prospect and he was ranked as the No. 1 overall inside linebacker by three of the six.
Sanders is just the second Arkansas player recruited by head coach Sam Pittman to be drafted during his tenure (2020-present). Illinois State transfer defensive tackle John Ridgeway was selected 178th overall in the fifth round of the 2022 draft by the Dallas Cowboys.