If you needed any further evidence that Deandre Baker was going to be a top draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, you got it on Tuesday night.
Baker will be one of 23 players in attendance for the 2019 NFL Draft. The event is will take place in Nashville, Tenn., with the first round set for April 25.
This will be the second year in a row that a Georgia player has been invited to the draft, as Roquan Smith attended the 2018 version. Smith ended up being taken by the Chicago Bears with the No. 8 overall pick in the draft.
Baker is not expected to go that high, but there’s a chance he is still the first player taken at his position. The Georgia standout is competing with the likes of Washington’s Byron Murphy and LSU’s Greedy Williams to be the first player off the board at the position. Williams was also invited to attend the draft.
If you were to ask Baker who should be the No. 1 cornerback in the draft, he would tell you it’s him.
“I know I’m the best cornerback in the draft,” Baker said in March. “I don’t just believe it, I know I’m the best. … My film speaks for itself. My stats, everything. My production, week in and week out. You go back to 2017 or the first day I started I was the best cornerback in the nation.”
The Georgia standout did win the 2018 Jim Thorpe Award, which goes to the country’s top defensive back. Baker did not allow a touchdown in his final two seasons in Athens, while also snaring 5 interceptions.
Most have Baker pegged to go in the 20s, with some pegging to go to the Pittsburgh Steelers with pick No. 20. Other teams who figure to be interested in Baker include the Philadelphia Eagles, the Indianapolis Colts and the Kansas City Chiefs.
Related: Projecting best fits for Georgia football players in the 2019 NFL Draft
Baker is the only Georgia player expected to go in the first round this year. Last season, Smith was joined by running back Sony Michel and offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn in the first round. Those two were both drafted by the New England Patriots.
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