Florida DE/OLB Dante Fowler indicates he is declaring for the NFL Draft
By Peter Smith
I came in with champ. I'm leaving with Him.
— Dante fowler (@dantefowler) November 19, 2014
In the wake of the news that Florida head coach Will Muschamp would not be returning next year, their most talented pass rusher, junior Dante Fowler Jr. made the posted comment on Twitter that his intention was to declare for the 2015 NFL Draft. Fowler is the first of what could be a number of talented underclassmen pass rushers to declare for this year’s draft and this move is not a big surprise.
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There was a good chance that Fowler would have ultimately declared for the NFL Draft regardless of Muschamp’s situation, but given that he is believed to be a first round prospect, there was little sense in staying in Gainesville and learning another defensive system under a new head coach to then have to do the same thing in the NFL the following year.
The 2015 NFL Draft has a long way to go to take shape but the pass rushers, both defensive ends and outside linebackers that can get after the quarterback, appear to be the strongest class both at the top and in terms of the depth. Fowler is the first but will definitely not be the last and the 2015 class could be one where pass rushers not only take over the first round of the draft but also make it so that teams will regret missing out on one this year. And while people will take Fowler at his word that he is declaring for the NFL, the deadline is still a month away and nothing he has done to this point is binding.