Report: Jalon Walker will skip Georgia’s Pro Day because of thigh injury

Walker’s draft stock shouldn’t be too negatively impacted by the injury and delayed workout. He is seen widely still as one of the top NFL draft prospects in this year’s class.

Even after opting not to work out, multiple NFL mock drafts have Walker solidly in the first round.

Walker did measure in at the combine, coming in at 6-foot-1, 243 pounds. Perhaps most important was his wing span, which measured in at 79⅞ inches. That should ease any concerns about his ability to play as an edge rusher.

“I’m a ballplayer,” Walker said at the combine. “Just being on the field is my favorite position. For me, it’s just being everywhere. You don’t know the anticipation of being at the outside ‘backer on one snap, then being an inside backer one snap, and then being a star the next snap.

“It gives me the comfort that they don’t know, the element of surprise.”

As for where Walker might now land, the injury does see Walker sliding a bit in the draft. He had been considered a top-10 pick and prospect before the combine, as he had been popularly projected to land with the Carolina Panthers with the No. 8 pick.

But now both Reid and Dane Bruglar of The Athletic have Walker landing with the Falcons at pick No. 15.

“Walker can provide the Falcons with quick pass-rush help,” Reid wrote in his most recent mock draft. “He finished with 6.5 sacks this season, and his 17.1% pressure rate was fifth in the FBS. He’s a bit of a tweener at 6-foot-1 and 243 pounds, but the Falcons need a chaos creator behind the line of scrimmage. Walker can be used in multiple ways as an aggressive edge defender who frequently changes alignment.”

Walker won the Butkus Award this past season as the nation’s top linebacker and was voted a team captain, as he figures to bring excellent leadership qualities to his next stop.

“I know, I know — the Falcons don’t draft Bulldogs in the first two rounds," Bruglar wrote. “But I’ll bet Raheem Morris is very interested in the athletic versatility and intangibles that Walker would bring to Atlanta’s front seven.”

The Falcons famously have never drafted a Georgia player in the first two rounds of the NFL draft, but the Falcons seem to be in the market for defensive help. The Falcons used all 45 of their combine interviews on defensive players.