2020 NFL Draft: Predicting boom or bust potential for 8 top prospects

FAYETTEVILLE, AR - NOVEMBER 9: Tua Tagovailoa #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide warms up before a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium on November 16, 2019 in Starkville, Mississippi. The Crimson Tide defeated the Bulldogs 38-7. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
FAYETTEVILLE, AR - NOVEMBER 9: Tua Tagovailoa #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide warms up before a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium on November 16, 2019 in Starkville, Mississippi. The Crimson Tide defeated the Bulldogs 38-7. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
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2020 NFL Draft (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
2020 NFL Draft (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Some of the top prospects in the 2020 NFL Draft have the potential to boom or bust with little in-between. But which will it be for these eight players?

The 2020 NFL Draft boasts the best collection of talent that we’ve seen in a while. The NFL kicks off the decade with big-name veterans dominating most positions around the league. However, the 2020 draft class could produce several All-Pro caliber players within two or three years.

While analysts expect a lot from the 2020 class, some of the draft’s biggest names pose potential issues. These players possess boom or bust potential, meaning they could either become Pro Bowlers or fall flat and become backups. There’s relatively no little middle ground with the players on this list.

Of course, there are also a lot of risks in investing a high draft pick in controversial players, but sometimes the move pays off. For instance, NFL.com’s draft analysis for Patrick Mahomes compared the Super Bowl champion to Jay Cutler when he came out of Texas Tech and gave him a 5.87 grade on a 10.0 scale. Mahomes took the league by storm in his second season, beginning a booming career.

NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter listed Mahomes as the biggest boom or bust prospect on offense for the 2017 NFL Draft. The man listed right behind Mahomes was Mitchell Trubisky, who is trending in the opposite direction right now. DeShone Kizer, who Cleveland eventually took in the second round, ranked fourth on Reuter’s list. Kizer did not play in an NFL regular-season game last year.

Reuter’s article illustrates the massive differences that develop between boom or bust prospects.

Having that in mind, we’re going to look at eight of the top boom-or-bust prospects in the 2020 NFL Draft. Not only will we look at these prospects, but we’ll also predict whether or not they, in fact, boom or bust at the next level.