2020 NFL Mock Draft: Tua injury drops him to Patriots, Chase Young does Washington

Ohio State superstar Chase Young heads to Washington and the Redskins while Tua Tagovailoa’s injury drops him to the Patriots in this 2020 NFL Mock Draft.

Tua Tagovailoa has been a staple at the top of every 2020 NFL Mock Draft written this year. The 2020 NFL Draft, even before the emergence of Joe Burrow for LSU, was always going to be the year of the quarterback and the Alabama signal-caller was the face of that. But his hip dislocation suffered one week ago puts everything into question.

While the Crimson Tide standout had successful surgery and is slated to make a full recovery that will get him back on the field, the injury raises rightful concerns. This was an incredibly serious injury that Tagovailoa suffered and the fact that his return to football in itself was once in question in the immediate aftermath makes teams question his long-term viability.

That’s particularly true when you consider the notion of Tua still being a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. While it remains to be seen if he’ll leave for the pros or return to Alabama (he should leave, for what it’s worth), if he does come out, the question is if he’ll be a top-32 pick. In this NFL Mock Draft, he does choose to come out and does land in the first round — though not in the top four as he had been. The uncertainty causes him to fall.

The same, however, cannot be said for Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young. After serving a two-game suspension for NCAA violations, Young returns to the Buckeyes defense against Penn State. And if his play this season has proven anything, it’s that he’ll come out and be a dominant force oozing with NFL potential.

What’s interesting about Young, though, is that he’s the top prospect in the 2020 draft class but it’s hard to say where he’ll end up going in the first round. Given the strength of the quarterback class and team needs, he might be great value by not going No. 1 or even immediately after that — though that won’t be the case in this mock draft.

Taking all of this into account, let’s take a look at the latest 2020 NFL Mock Draft as we enter Week 12, going through all 32 first-round picks with no trades just yet. As per usual, the draft order for this mock draft is determined by our latest NFL Power Rankings.