Carolina Panthers draft Kentucky defensive tackle Phil Hoskins in seventh round
Thanks to the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver, Phil Hoskins could have played a seventh year for the University of Kentucky. He chose to enter the NFL Draft, a decision that paid off Saturday.
The Carolina Panthers drafted Hoskins with the 232nd overall pick in the seventh round. He was the sixth Kentucky player picked this year.
Hoskins became the first Kentucky player ever drafted by the Panthers. Every NFL franchise has now drafted at least one UK player in its history.
A 6-foot-5, 313-pound defensive tackle, Hoskins returned for a sixth year of eligibility granted after he missing most of the 2019 season, his senior year, with a knee injury that he suffered during warm-ups for the Florida game, UK’s third of that season. He started all 11 games in Kentucky’s 5-6 campaign last year.
Hoskins had 53 tackles — 7.5 for a loss — and four sacks with seven quarterback hurries, an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in 2020. He finished his time as a Wildcat with 31 career games played.
Hoskins boasts an 83 and 3/8-inch wingspan. NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein, who projected Hoskins as a seventh-rounder or priority free agent following the draft’s conclusion, wrote that his size and measurables would intrigue pro teams but his style of play doesn’t quite match it.
“His playing style leans more to his snap quickness than his length, as he’s much more consistent at searching for gaps than controlling the action with his hands,” Zierlein wrote. “He’s nimble and very active in both the run game and as a rusher, and his spin-counter is a legitimate weapon in attacking the pocket. If he can get his hands and feet to work in skilled harmony, he might have life as a rotational 3-technique in a one-gapping front.”
Hoskins graded well in the data presented by Relative Athletic Scores, a site that uses various size and speed to create an athletic “score” (up to 10) for players relative to their position. Hoskins’ overall score was 6.67 (21st among all defenstive tackles in this year’s draft). It was boosted by high size, explosion and speed grades but weighed down by poor agility scores.
A seventh season of college football was something Hoskins seriously considered, but he felt like he can do more to improve as a player at the next level than by staying in college. He also wanted to start a career in order to support his son.
“The people closest to me are why I do what I do,” Hoskins said before UK’s pro day. “That’s why I’m doint it.”
