Safety Jaylon Carlies declares for the NFL Draft
Safety Jaylon Carlies is the second Missouri Tiger to declare early for the NFL Draft since Friday's Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State. Carlies made his intentions known on social media on Tuesday afternoon. He joins cornerback Ennis Rakestraw on the list of early draft entries so far.
Carlies originally committed to Barry Odom and signed with the Tigers in the Class of 2020 a couple of weeks after Eli Drinkwitz was named Missouri's head coach.
Carlies played in all 49 games of his career as a Tiger. He made two starts as a true freshman in 2020 and then started 37 of 39 games over his final three seasons. He missed the 2023 opener against South Dakota due to injury.
Carlies finished his Missouri career with 221 tackles, nine interceptions, 17 passes defended, three sacks, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. He had 64 tackles, six passes defended, two interceptions, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble in 2023. He also recorded career-highs with 4.5 tackles for loss and two sacks this season. His best game may have been his last. Carlies had 11 tackles and a sack in the Cotton Bowl win over the Buckeyes.
Due to the 2020 season not counting against eligbility, Carlies could have returned, but is going pro instead. It is believed Kris Abrams-Draine will also declare for the draft, meaning Mizzou will have to replace three-quarters of its starting secondary in 2024.
Chuck Hicks, Joseph Charleston and Mookie Cooper have all said they're returning for 2024. Other players with eligibility left who have decisions to make are Theo Wease, Kristian Williams, Abrams-Draine and Ty'Ron Hopper. Mizzou is also losing Javon Foster, Xavier Delgado, Cody Schrader, Darius Robinson and Jayden Jernigan, among others, who are out of eligibility.
The reshaping of the roster for 2024 is already well underway. Mizzou has added seven players in the transfer portal and seen 11 transfer out. The portal remains open through January 2. You can follow all of Mizzou's transfer activity here.
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