The Minnesota Gophers football team had an eventful Saturday as four players were selected in the final day of the NFL Draft.
Tyler Johnson and Kamal Martin were taken in the fifth round of the draft while Carter Coughlin and Chris Williamson were drafted in the seventh round. With Antoine Winfield Jr. being selected in the second round on Friday night, that brings Minnesota’s total to five drafted players.
#Gophers have five players drafted, the most since 1990.
— Megan Ryan (@theothermegryan) April 25, 2020
Johnson joins Winfield in Tampa Bay
Johnson was the first Gopher off the board on Saturday as he was selected by the Buccaneers with the 161st overall pick.
King of the North heads to @Buccaneers! @T_muhneyy10 is going to be dangerous! #UMNProud pic.twitter.com/Ces0kBJiYq
— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) April 25, 2020
The Gophers wide receiver had an interesting pre-draft process as he declined an invitation in the East-West Shrine Bowl Game and didn’t run timed drills at the NFL Scouting Combine in February.
Still, Johnson’s production on the field was too much to ignore. Johnson recorded 1,318 yards and 13 touchdowns for the Gophers last season and collected 25 touchdowns over the past two seasons.
His arrival in Tampa Bay means he’ll be catching passes from Tom Brady and joining a pass-catching stable that includes Pro Bowl receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin along with Rob Gronkowski, who just came out of retirement.
With his ability to excel out of the slot, where he collected 1,086 of his yards last season per Pro Football Focus, he should have the chance for a big role in the new-look Bucs offense.
Perhaps even bigger for Johnson will be a reunion with his teammate Winfield, who was taken by Tampa Bay with the 45th overall pick.
Martin selected by the Packers
Martin’s wait to be drafted came 14 picks later as the Green Bay Packers made him the 175th selection in the NFL Draft.
Martin starred as the middle linebacker on the Gopher defense last season, collecting 66 total tackles including 2.5 tackles for loss. Martin also was strong in coverage for the Gophers with a pair of interceptions.
Kamal does it all. Recorded 177 tackles (106 solo), broke up nine passes, tallied four interceptions, forced four fumbles and recovered three fumbles in his career. #UMNProud https://t.co/T1f4VnAH76
— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) April 25, 2020
It took a while for Martin to get going in his collegiate career as he was originally used as an edge rusher, but converted to an off-ball linebacker in his senior season and performed well despite missing five games due to injury.
As a linebacker with safety-like athleticism, Martin could have a chance to fill in as a tweener role for the Packers, who need help in their linebacking unit.
Giants select two Gophers in seventh-round
Coughlin and Williamson had to wait a little longer to receive their good news, but it was worth it as the New York Giants drafted Coughlin with the 218th overall pick and Williamson with the 247th overall pick.
All heart in @Cmoe34! The @Giants just got a dude who goes all out, all the time. #UMNProud pic.twitter.com/2hiaBqwejV
— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) April 25, 2020
Coughlin had a monster junior season which had him labeled as a higher-round pick coming into this year, but teams schemed against the Eden Prairie native and cut his sack total from 9.5 in 2018 to 4.5 in 2019.
The scouting combine proved to be a big boost to his stock, however, as he tested in the 98th percentile of all edge defenders in this year’s class with a 4.57 second time in the 40-yard dash. Even with a move to linebacker in the works, Coughlin should have a chance to join the Giants defense.
Williamson will join Coughlin in New York after spending the past two seasons with the Gophers. After originally transferring from Florida, Williamson was a strong slot corner for Minnesota, recording a 43-yard pick-six last season and registering 90 total tackles in his career.
