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Social media strongly questions D’Andre Swift snub from first round of 2020 NFL Draft

D'Andre Swift did not get taken during the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Jeff Sentell/DawgNation
Connor Riley
Connor Riley

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D’Andre Swift will be just fine even though he didn’t go in the first round

For most of the Georgia football program, Thursday night was a great night. Especially on the offensive line. Andrew Thomas was the first offensive tackle taken in the draft, as the Giants took him with the No. 4 overall pick. It was the second straight year the Giants took a Bulldog in the first round, as Thomas will join Deandre Baker.

Isaiah Wilson then joined Thomas in the first round, as the Tennessee Titans took him with the No. 29 overall pick. It has to be a sweet feeling for Wilson, especially after many thought he should’ve returned to school for another year. He bet on himself and won. You leave to see it.

And even another Georgia offensive lineman shared some good news, as David Andrews announced that he would be playing the game of football once again in 2020. He missed the entire 2019 season for the Patriots after developing blood clots in his lungs.

The Bulldogs joined seven other schools that had multiple draft picks last night. Four of those played for the College Football Playoffs last year. The others were TCU, Alabama and Auburn. So the Bulldogs are clearly doing something right in developing talent.

Thursday night should greatly help Kirby Smart and Matt Luke recruit offensive linemen in the years to come. Thomas and Wilson become the first pair of offensive line teammates to be taken in the first round in the past 20 seasons.

Related: Why tonight’s NFL draft will be huge for Georgia football national recruiting efforts

But there was one player who pretty clearly did not have the night he thought he was going to have, as Georgia running back D’Andre Swift did not hear his name called.

At one point it seemed like Swift was going to be taken with the No. 26 pick by the Miami Dolphins. But the Green Bay Packers ended up trading up to draft Utah State quarterback Jordan Love. When the Dolphins came back on the clock with pick No. 30, they took Auburn cornerback Noah Igbinoghene.

To twist the knife, the Kansas City Chiefs made LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire the first running back off the board with pick No. 32.

Shortly after the first round came to a close, Swift took to Twitter to issue a response to the snub.

Swift wasn’t alone in his response to not being selected. A number of Georgia fans and media types voiced their confusion on Twitter after the round ended, including Kansas City Chief Mecole Hardman.

Related: D’Andre Swift, Mecole Hardman respond to Swift’s first-round 2020 NFL Draft snub

Most NFL draft evaluators saw Swift as the top running back in the 2020 NFL Draft. NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah saw him as the No. 16 overall prospect regardless of position.

Those same talent evaluators now see Swift as someone who can be a steal at the start of the second round. Swift will be a popular name among the many “Top players for round two of the 2020 NFL Draft” articles you’ll see on Friday.

Swift though doesn’t have to look far to see that being a second-round pick can still end up being a good thing. The No. 1 and No. 2 leading rushers in the NFL last season were second-round picks, with one of them being Georgia’s own Nick Chubb.

And while the money isn’t the same, first-round picks are eligible for five-year deals where as second-round picks can get to that second contract in just four seasons. And that is where the real money can be made, as Todd Gurley showed with his monster contract with the Los Angeles Rams.

Anyone who watched Swift in his time at Georgia knows he’s one of the best prospects in this 2020 class. He was his warts sure — durability concerns chief among them — he does just about everything you would want a running back to do. He caught 73 passes in his time at Georgia, while also topping 1,000 yards as a sophomore and junior.

Related: D’Andre Swift: What to know about the 2020 NFL Draft prospect

He’s also got an incredible work effort, as he posted an Instagram story of himself in the gym at 4 a.m. on draft day. And Smart has raved time and time again about his character and leadership abilities.

Thursday night won’t be a night the Georgia running back forgets. That’s probably going to make him all the better at the next level.

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